Re: Barracuda Spam Filter

[Dave Koontz <dkoontz () MBC EDU>]

Watching this thread, I have a couple questions about the 'cuda' product.
What exactly does this product do that the free Spam Assassin code doesn't?
In other words, why should I pay someone $1000+ dollars annually for what
appears to basically be free software bundled on a scaled down server.

It looks like the 'cuda' device uses SA version 3.02, which is two full
versions behind the SA code branch.... which may frankly address some issues
posted here.  Initially, it would seem in the "device" world, I might
actually loose a lot of functionality and features that I have running the
full fledged product.

So...

1) How easy is it to upgrade the device to the latest spam assassin version?
2) Do users have their own baysian DB's and rules, or are they globally
maintained?
3) How easy can users interact with or train the system?
4) Can you easily add your own SA rulesets?  (Custom or SARES)
5) Can the device test & score SPF/DK/DKIM/RBL/SUBL/URIBL results?
6) Does the device support the Razor and/or DCC networks?
7) Does the device support the usage of Grey Listing Technology?

Lastly... Is this product really just a way for a site to "easily" use Spam
Assassin without having to invest any time or effort into learning the
program?  If so, that's fine, but it may not be as full featured as the
product could be.

If the product does all the above and more... I will immediately ask for a
purchase order to save me some precious time!  :-)

---
Dave Koontz
Mary Baldwin College
Staunton VA


-----Original Message-----
From: Justin Sipher [mailto:jsipher () SKIDMORE EDU]
Sent: Tuesday, July 26, 2005 3:59 PM
To: SECURITY () LISTSERV EDUCAUSE EDU
Subject: Re: [SECURITY] Barracuda Spam Filter

Add us to the list of schools who are very happy Barracuda users.
However, I will share a recent story which dampers our enthusiasm slightly.
Our single unit (model 600) had a hardware failure recently.  It was in this
process that we learned that we had a new "single point of failure" in the
e-mail system.  One major problem at the point of the failure is that all
mail in the quarantine at the time of the failure was lost.  Although most
was SPAM, I do know that I had at least one valid e-mail in it.  It was
between when I received the e-mail quarantine summary and when I actually
went to retrieve/delete the message when the failure occurred.  To prevent
this in the future, we've bought a second one and will have the two
clustered for redundancy.  The second problem we had is that they
**appear** to be a victim of their own success.  At the point of the failure
they were out of stock for a replacement even though we were at the upgraded
"instant replacement" level.  In our case it took three days to get a
replacement and then it was a 400 model to hold us over till they could get
a 600.  Not ideal.

I do think they have learned from this (and maybe other) incidents and
knowing everything I know now, I'd still buy another one, so the up-side is
pretty high to overcome those shortcomings.

...Justin
_______________________________________________________
   Justin Sipher
   Chief Technology Officer
   Skidmore College
   Saratoga Springs, NY
   jsipher () skidmore edu
   518-580-5909
_______________________________________________________

On Jul 25, 2005, at 11:35 AM, Gibbs, Aaron M. wrote:

> I'm looking at the Barracuda Spam Filter and would like to know if
> anyone is currently using it. If so what your experiences have been.
>
> Aaron M Gibbs
> Interim Vice President/CIO
> Center for Information Technology
> St. Augustine's College
> 919-516-4379 (Office)
> 919-516-4382 (Fax)
> amgibbs () st-aug edu
> www.st-aug.edu