Chapter 4. Exploring the Adaptive Security Device Manager

This chapter provides the background and information you need to easily navigate through ASDM and complete the step-by-step portions in the remaining chapters of this book.

This chapter addresses the following topics:

• Introduction to the Adaptive Security Device Manager This discussion provides a brief overview of the ASDM product.

• Exploring the ASDM Graphical User Interface The chapter then provides a detailed explanation of the different components of the ASDM GUI, including all menu options, navigation icons, navigation features, pull-down menus, and wizards.

The Adaptive Security Device Manager (ASDM) is the primary application used to configure the ASA/PIX Security Appliance running ASA/PIX version 7 or greater. Previous versions of this management GUI were called PIX Device Manager (PDM). The ASDM has been enhanced to provide support for the new features in the ASA/PIX version 7 operating system.

This chapter is an in-depth discussion regarding all sections of the ASDM graphical user interface (GUI). Instructions on how you can do a step-by-step security deployment using ASDM are found in Chapters 5 through Chapter 11 of this book.