Start Protecting Your Systems

When you start using Cisco Umbrella, there are a few first steps to take so that Umbrella can start protecting your systems and organizations.

Register a network by adding a Network identity.
An identity is an entity that Umbrella protects through policies and monitors through reports.
Point Your DNS to Umbrella.
You must explicitly point your operating system or hardware firewall/router DNS settings to Umbrella's name server IP addresses and turn off the automatic DNS servers provided by your ISP. Umbrella supports both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses.
Add and configure policies.
Through policies, define how Umbrella's security and access controls are applied to identities, determining whether traffic is inspected and either blocked or allowed. There are three policy types for you to consider adding:
- DNS Policy—provide DNS-layer visibility, security, and enforcement with the ability to selectively proxy risky domains for added security.
- Firewall Policy—provide filtering and forwarding of your web traffic.
- Web Policy—provide URL-layer visibility, security, and enforcement of your web traffic.

For more information about policies, see Umbrella Policies Overview.