I'm setting up a new server at the moment. This means that I'm installing shiny new copies of Windows Server 2003 and then attaching them to the network to get the latest updates and patches. This can be a dangerous business. I've known people get their machines infected before they've even installed their software because the nasty programs out there pounce before the updates are installed.

But not me. I've got a cheap little broadband router, originally designed for people with ADSL or Cable internet connections. This is designed to isolate your machine from all the nastiness out there, letting your machines originate connections but having no truck with anthing nasty coming inbound. It has worked a treat so far. I'm even going to leave it in place when my system is configured and only let web based port 80 traffic (and a VPN connection) come into my precious systems. I know that given enough time I could figure out how to configure all the firewall software and systems to make sure that everything is safe. But the hardware only cost me around 60 quid and it is a dead doddle to set up and manage. And I can be absolutely sure that only the ports that I open up will get through to the machines in my little cluster.

If you are in the business of setting up machines and downloading patches you could do a lot worse than invest in something like my little D-Link Di-704P, if only for ensuring that for new machines their first encounter with the outside world is a happy one. And if you are setting up a cluster on a network that you are a bit nervous about it is a great way of buying peace of mind.