F5 Configuring BIG-IP AFM: Advanced Firewall Manager

Course Overview

This course uses lectures and hands-on exercises to give participants real-time experience in setting up and configuring the BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager system. Students are introduced to the AFM user interface, stepping through various options that demonstrate how AFM is configured to build a network firewall and to detect and protect against DoS (Denial of Service) attacks. Reporting and log facilities are also explained and used in the course labs. Further Firewall functionality and additional DoS facilities for DNS and SIP traffic are discussed.

Target Audience

• This course is intended for network operators, network administrators, network engineers, network architects, security administrators, and security architects responsible for installation, setup, configuration, and administration of the BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager (AFM) system.

Course Content

 v12.0 Course Topics

• Installation and setup of the BIG-IP AFM system
• AFM network firewall concepts
• Network firewall options and modes
• Network firewall rules, policies, address/port lists , rule lists and schedules
• IP Intelligence facilities of dynamic black and white lists, IP reputation database and dynamic IP shunning.
• Detection and prevention of DoS attacks
• Event logging of firewall rules and DoS attacks
• Reporting and notification facilities
• DoS Whitelists
• DoS Sweep/Flood
• DNS Firewall and DNS DoS
• SIP DoS
• Network Firewall and DoS iRules
• Various AFM component troubleshooting commands 

v11.6 Course Topics

• Installation and setup of the BIG-IP AFM System
• AFM network firewall concepts
• Network firewall options and modes
• Network firewall rules, policies, address/port lists , rule lists and schedules
• IP Intelligence facilities of dynamic black and white lists and the IP reputation database
• Detection and prevention of DoS attacks
• Event logging of firewall rules and DoS attacks
• Reporting and notification facilities
• DoS Whitelists
• DNS Firewall and DNS DoS
• SIP DoS
• Network Firewall iRules
• Various AFM component troubleshooting commands

Course Prerequisites

Students must complete one of the following F5 prerequisites before attending this course:

• Administering BIG-IP instructor-led course
• F5 Certified BIG-IP Administrator

The following web-based courses, although optional, will be very helpful for any student with limited BIG-IP administration and configuration experience:

• Getting Started with BIG-IP web-based training
• Getting Started with BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM) web-based training
• Getting Started with BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager (AFM) web-based training 

The following general network technology knowledge and experience are recommended before attending any F5 Global Training Services instructor-led course:

• OSI model encapsulation
• Routing and switching
• Ethernet and ARP
• TCP/IP concepts
• IP addressing and subnetting
• NAT and private IP addressing
• Default gateway
• Network firewalls
• LAN vs. WAN