Overview

Ramp Networks is a leading supplier of high speed Internet access solutions for the small office or home network. The WebRamp 700s is a higher end Cable/xDSL router that targets the growing market for shared Internet access. It is designed to share the Internet connection with all PCs on your private network and provide higher security with its built-in firewall.

The device is packed with both CAT5 patch and cross-over cables, making it simple to install with any configuration. Included in the box you'll also find Installation Guide and CD with Documentation and Applications.

The front panel of the unit has Power and Test LEDs, as well as Link, Transmit and Receive LEDs for each port, allowing for monitoring activity and troubleshooting at any time. The back of the router has a Reset button and clearly marked LAN and WAN RJ45 ports.

WebRamp 700s back

Requirements:
486 PC or above, CD-ROM, 16Mb RAM recommended.
TCP/IP software on every computer.
UNIX, Microsoft Windows 3.x/95/98, Apple MacOS 7.5.3 or later, Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 or later

Specifications:
1 10BaseT LAN port to connect to an Ethernet Hub
1 10BaseT WAN port to connect to a Cable/xDSL Modem
Browser based configuration and management
Real-time clock (Y2K comp.)
General Status LEDs: Power, Test Ethernet LEDs: Link, Transmit, Receive (per port)
Dimensions: 8 x 4.25 x 1.5 inches
Optional VPN: 56 bit ARC4, 56 bit DES, Unencrypted tunneling

Installation and Management

WebRamp 700s is a NAT based solution, which provides for ease of installation and administration. Installation involves little more than connecting the router between your private network and the Cable/DSL modem. Once the unit is connected to the modem and the hub, all options can be configured using the intuitive Web browser based interface. Without installing any additional software, you can simply open your Browser and point it to the unit, where one is prompted to enter admin name and password to access the configuration and management screens. The unit can be managed from any PC on the network, provided it has a Java-enabled Browser.

Although the default settings are more than adequate for the average user, you might have to go through them, change the admin password from the default and possibly enable some of the features, such as DHCP. Also, WebRamp 700s offers an impressive array of configuration options, ranging from setting the NAT options to having a log of attempted attacks e-mailed to the administrator. As with any NAT solution, you have certain ports that are configured to be accessible and the option to add custom ports, if you need to run non-standard applications and some games. Here are a couple of screen shots of the administration interface, you can just click on an image to enlarge it:

Access Menu: allows you to add custom or pre-defined services.

Log Settings Menu: an array of configuration options.

DHCP Setup: allows you to manually add DNS, client IPs...

General Status: All sorts of information you could possibly need about the router.

Security

WebRamp 700s uses "stateful packet inspection" similar to that used in enterprise-level firewall products offered by Check Point and Cisco. A more detailed explanation is available at http://www.rampnet.com/products/700s/spi.html.

In addition, as other similar products, it provides NAT (Network Address Translation), which adds a level of security since the IP address of a PC on the private network is never transmitted on the Internet. The unit is also pre-configured to automatically detect and thwart DoS (Denial of Service) attacks.

Conclusion

The good: Easy setup, good documentation, excellent security features, extensive logs and reports, optional content blocking, up to 6Mbits/s throughput.

The bad: No login scripting support - if your ISP uses some non-standard script for login and IP authentication, it is not supported by the WebRamp 700s.

Although WebRamp 700s is a bit more expensive ( $479 US List price for a 5 users License ) than some other hardware NAT solutions, it provides additional security, as well as extensive reports and logging functionality which justifies the price difference. Overall, the unit is a well designed solution, easy to administer and offers "as much power as we've come to expect from higher-priced, higher-end routers" (Les Freed, PC Magazine).

WebRamp 700s is clearly the choice if you'd like to avoid purchasing separate IPs for everyone on your LAN, providing the small business or home network with a competitively priced NAT solution with a well rounded set of additional features.

Rating
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