computer networking A computer network is a set of computers sharing resources located on or provided by network nodes. The computers use common communication protocols over digital interconnections to communicate with each other. These interconnections ar ...

, Cisco ASA 5500 Series Adaptive Security Appliances, or simply Cisco ASA, is

Cisco Cisco Systems, Inc., commonly known as Cisco, is an American-based multinational corporation, multinational digital communications technology conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation headquartered in San Jose, California. Cisco develo ...

's line of

network security Network security consists of the policies, processes and practices adopted to prevent, detect and monitor unauthorized access, misuse, modification, or denial of a computer network and network-accessible resources. Network security involves th ...

devices introduced in May 2005. It succeeded three existing lines of popular Cisco products: *

Cisco PIX Cisco PIX (Private Internet eXchange) was a popular IP firewall and network address translation (NAT) appliance. It was one of the first products in this market segment. In 2005, Cisco introduced the neweCisco Adaptive Security Appliance( Cisco ...

, which provided

firewall Firewall may refer to: * Firewall (computing), a technological barrier designed to prevent unauthorized or unwanted communications between computer networks or hosts * Firewall (construction), a barrier inside a building, designed to limit the spre ...

and network address translation (NAT) functions, ended its sale on July 28, 2008. * Cisco's IPS 4200 Series worked as

intrusion prevention system An intrusion detection system (IDS; also intrusion prevention system or IPS) is a device or software application that monitors a network or systems for malicious activity or policy violations. Any intrusion activity or violation is typically rep ...

s (IPS). * Cisco VPN 3000 Series Concentrators, which provided virtual private networking (VPN). The Cisco ASA is a unified threat management device, combining several network security functions in one box.

Reception and criticism

Cisco ASA has become one of the most widely used firewall/VPN solutions for small to medium businesses. Early reviews indicated the Cisco GUI tools for managing the device were lacking. A security flaw was identified when users customized the Clientless

SSL SSL may refer to: Entertainment * RoboCup Small Size League, robotics football competition * ''Sesame Street Live'', a touring version of the children's television show * StarCra