Is The Router Firewall Necessary If You Have A Router?

In short, the answer is YES. You must need the Router Firewall if you want to use the router.

In this era of advanced technology, security becomes one of the biggest concerns stated by the companies that are joining their internal LANs (Local Area Networks) to the internet. The internet is a network that we use across the globe. But due to the underlying object, it becomes insecure. Information is frequently transmitted with the help of the network. In addition, it is easy to represent someone others when you are online.

This guideline is going to focus on the firewalls. Hence, if you are tired by searching “if I have a router do I need a firewall?”, then this article can help you to know details about the firewalls. Let’s start.

What is a Firewall? Router Firewall

If you want to know “do I need a firewall if I have a router?”, then at first, you have to understand what the firewall is. The firewall is a type of software application or device which works as a manageable boundary between the internal network of the system and the external world that means the internet. Firewalls implement a set of commands to determine who gets to relate to which devices and to what settings they are approved to use. When you set up the firewall in a proper way, then the firewall gives a unique means to protect the network and the devices that are connected with it.

Network-based Threats

A firewall always protects the system from any network-based threats.

Almost all the systems on the internet are under continuous attacks. The malware on the computers, botnets, hackers, and many more are making a slow but notably determined war, examining the internet to get unguarded vulnerabilities on other Internet-connected machines. If they encounter a vulnerability, then they affect the computer that they have found, or defective.
The fundamental idea of the firewall is quite simple. It filters or blocks those kinds of network traffic which regularly striking your machine.

Traffic that you desire to reach:

• Web pages which you visit.
• Your downloaded software.
• Videos or music which you often watch.
• And much more pleasant things.

The traffic which you positively don’t want:

• Some hackers always try to get entry to the computer across the network to hijack your personal data.
• The computer of your neighbor which are affected with the botnet, attempting to attach with your system across the network to increase the virus.
• And so many more.

A firewall recognizes the difference.

If you see the above examples, then you can definitely notice that firewalls are simple smart programs which are given the sole responsibility to shield us from malicious threats.

Types of Firewall

If you are looking for “do I need a firewall if I have a router?”, then you need to know the types of firewall. There are two basic types of firewall. They are the Hardware Firewall and Software Firewall.

• Hardware Firewall

This is one of the greatest and affordable firewalls which is used by most of the computer user. It is normally a bit of thing which sits between the computer and the place where the cables plug into the wall, with the sparkling light which tells you it is on.

The principal job of the router is to ‘route’ the information between the internet and the computer.  

In addition, a router always allows you to yield the internet connection by what’s called NAT (Network Address Translation). NAT ‘transposes’ between your IP address from the service provider of the internet and the IP addresses that the machines use via the router.

The routers wait for the connections initiated by the computer reaching out to sources on the network. When the link establishes, then the router continues to track. Hence, when an acknowledgment comes back on that link, then it identifies which of the local devices will get the information.

The side effect is, if an external network attempts to originate a link, then the router does not understand that the computer to transfer it to. Then, it only can neglect the effort. That efficiently blocks everything on the internet from attempting to begin a link to the computer on the local network. It automatically makes the router a dominant incoming firewall.

• Software Firewall

Basically, the software firewall is the application which runs on the system. They work as close to the internet interface as possible and control all the traffic of the network.

If you are not practicing a router, then all the traffic of the network will still technically enter your computer. But, the router firewall prevents malicious traffic from growing further. Like a router, the firewall software blocks the rest of the system from yet recognizing that there is any wicked traffic.

Some of the software firewalls also can be configured to control the outgoing traffic. When your system becomes infected and some of the malware attempts to ‘phone home’ by connecting to the known wicked website or attempts to affect other devices on the network, then the software firewall can alert you and prevent the attempt.

All modern versions of Windows must have a software firewall created in and switched on by default. Windows may even bother you while assuring that the firewall is either turned on or that you know of the hazards in it when you turn it on.

Selecting and Set up a Firewall

In general, it’s better to use a broadband router firewall. As it is quite likely that you previously have one. That means you are pretty much done.

There is often a conflict. Some assume that an outgoing firewall is essential. Routers are very common, and as well as approximately a necessity for anyone who has several systems sharing only one internet connection. If you use a Network Address Translation router, then you have a firewall without requiring to charge every computer with supplementary software.

Software firewalls do make the judgment in a pretty relevant situation. They are significant when you can’t assume another computer on the local network. If you enable the software firewall, then it can help you to protect the children from the misuse of the internet. Are you using the regional public Wi-Fi hotspot? Then, you can turn on this before connecting the network to access the internet safely.
In the latest versions of Windows, it comes with the built-in firewall. It has evolved to the point where it is actually pretty inexpensive to transmit it on whole the time. Also if you are backward of the router. It appears to affect the operations quite a little. It also protects you by memorizing to turn it on when you drive or have not-so-reliable traffic on the network.

That’s why we have mentioned earlier that you always have two firewalls from previous: one is your router and the other is your Windows firewall.

Limitation of the Firewalls

It is necessary to remember that the firewall can’t guard you against everything.

A firewall defends you from the threats which arrive through wicked connection tries from outside from the internet. The firewall can’t defend you from everything that you invite onto your computer yourself like downloads, attachments, email, and as well as removable hard disks.

Nevertheless, security from internet attacks remains critically essential.

On The Whole

We hope, after going through the above discussion your question “do I need a firewall if I have a router?” might be resolved.