#DIY SOPHOS HOME FIREWALL ROUTER HOW TO#
#DIY SOPHOS HOME FIREWALL ROUTER INSTALL#
#DIY SOPHOS HOME FIREWALL ROUTER SOFTWARE#
#DIY SOPHOS HOME FIREWALL ROUTER PASSWORD#
#DIY SOPHOS HOME FIREWALL ROUTER FREE#

Sign into your ESXi server just as you did on vSphere.

(These instructions will now refer to VMware Workstation). You can use vSphere for this, however, I would highly recommend using Workstation to do the following. Follow the settings through and finish off, you should now have another vSwitch with a separate kernel and vmnic.

Now click on “Add Networking” again and this time select Virtual Machine and select the NIC you have just chosen in the last step.

Click next and unless you wish to create VLANs press next again and enter another network IP address before getting to the summary.

If you are unsure which one yours is then connect your ethernet cable from your second server port to the ISP router which should be in modem-only mode. First, we will select “VMkernal” and select your second NIC.

Now create another vswitch and VMkernal for the external connection by clicking on “Add Networking” in the top right-hand corner.

You should see that a “vmnic” is already active for the management network, this will be used for the internal network i.e your LAN.

Once you have successfully logged in, navigate to the tab “Configuration” and select “Networking” on the left-hand side.

#DIY SOPHOS HOME FIREWALL ROUTER PASSWORD#

Open vSphere and connect to the ESXi server by inputting the IP address you have just assigned to the management interface in step 1 along with “root” as the username and the password you previously set in step 1.You should now be able to access your ESXi server using vSphere, Workstation or both.

It is recommended that you select the “static” IP address option and assign an IP address that is not currently being used on your network.

Now click on “IP Configuration” and assign your management interface IP address.

Now click on “Network Adapters” and make a note of the NIC that is being used for your LAN.

When you have configured your password, click on “configure management network”.

Press F2 and you will enter “password” as the password now that we have access we can change this by clicking on “configure password”.

We will now configure ESXi with an IP address so that we can access it via vSphere/Workstation.

Before we go any further, you must have your server connected via ethernet to the same network as your LAN. When the installation has finished, you should be presented with a screen like the one below.

Server Operating System such as Server 2012 (Can be used to add devices to a domain and as a DHCP server).

#DIY SOPHOS HOME FIREWALL ROUTER SOFTWARE#

VMware Workstation software (This is a paid software and is similar to vSphere however it does offer additional features).

Additional router (This is used to connect your LAN clients).

VMware vSphere software (Used to access ESXi and the VM’s within).

VMware ESXi software (Installed on your server).

Server with at least 500GB to 1TB storage and x2 NICs.

This will be put into access point mode only and set with a static IP address and default gateway which will point to the internal interface of the Sophos XG.īefore we begin, let’s make sure we have the right hardware and software.

The device named “AP” is the internal router.

The switches and NICs are explained in more detail later. The red dotted line is referring to the interface on the XG that will connect to the ISP router whereas the green dotted line refers to the internal interface connecting to the access point. The topology shows two virtual machines on the ESXi server, one being the XG and the other Server 2012 (optional).

ESXi server will have x2 physical interfaces, one acting as the WAN interface and the other the LAN interface.

You can keep it in routing mode but you may suffer from dropped connections, it is also suggested that you have WiFi off as you don’t want your internal hosts bypassing the firewall.

ISP router is at the edge of the network and is in modem-only mode.

Let me just explain this topology a little further… If your struggling to configure ESXi to work with the firewall or you just want some guidance then follow these steps to get your Sophos XG firewall up and running.Įxample topology: The topology below is that of a small example network which will be referred to throughout this guide to help you set your firewall up.

#DIY SOPHOS HOME FIREWALL ROUTER HOW TO#

Before setting the Sophos XG firewall up, I searched online to find guides on how to do this and to my surprise, I didn’t find much, hence the reason for this post.

#DIY SOPHOS HOME FIREWALL ROUTER INSTALL#

Having the ability to install the firewall onto an ESXi server meant I could provision multiple VMs on one machine and the same network.

#DIY SOPHOS HOME FIREWALL ROUTER FREE#

The team at Sophos have been kind enough to offer a FREE software version of this firewall for home users, which I have managed to install using VMware ESXi. The Sophos XG is a next-generation firewall packed with enterprise-grade features.

Diy sophos home firewall router