SAFE is a reference architecture that network designers can use to simplify the complexity of a large internetwork in which the architecture lets you apply a modular approach to network design. Traditional point security tools are limited in their ability to support and securing a business transformation, either leaving critical new resources unprotected or preventing the deployment of new services as they do not secure new processes and protocols. At the same time, organizations are facing a host of new threats that target many of these new services and impact network and service availability (Lippis, 2012). With SAFE, you can analyze the functional, logical, and physical components of a network and thus simplify the process of designing an overall enterprise network, but CISCO SAFE architecture is especially concerned with security. SAFE takes a defense in-depth-approach in which multiple layers of protection are strategically located throughout the network and the layers are under unified strategy for protecting the entire network and the various components of the network, including individual network segments, infrastructure devices, network services, endpoints, and applications (Oppenheimer, 2011).
SAFE architecture is comprised of the following major modules: core, data center, campus, management, WAN Edge, Internet Edge, branches, extranet, partner site, E-Commerce, teleworkers, and Cisco SensorBase. Each module is discussed as it stands alone and how it integrates with other modules which allows you to pick the module that best apply to your environment. Unlike most security whitepapers, SAFE provides a step-by-step instructions, screenshots, and configuration examples throughout. In fact, it includes just about every configuration necessary to build out the entire SAFE architecture from scratch by including this information, cisco SAFE drastically cuts down on the implementation and deployment time necessary to rollout a secure architecture. It also...