Patent ID: 8132251

Claim:
A method for interconnecting a first internet protocol network to a second internet protocol network, comprising: receiving a filtering rule for updating one of: a first firewall function and a second firewall function; performing the first firewall function via a first filtering unit; performing the second firewall function via a second filtering unit, wherein the first and second filtering units are deployed in a single firewall device, wherein the first filtering unit interfaces with the first internet protocol network and the second filtering unit interfaces with the second internet protocol network; changing a destination internet protocol address of a packet transmitted to the second internet protocol network and changing a source internet protocol address of a packet received from the second internet protocol network via a second network address translation unit interconnected between the second internet protocol network and the second filtering unit; retrieving a first routing rule from a first routing control point by a first internet protocol gateway in communication with the first internet protocol network; retrieving a second routing rule from a second routing control point by a second internet protocol gateway in communication with the second internet protocol network; providing a common control unit for identifying an administrator entering the filtering rule; providing a first control unit for managing filtering rules for the first internet protocol network; providing a second control unit for managing filtering rules for the second internet protocol network; and determining whether a first rule entered by the administrator is redundant with respect to a second rule entered by another administrator, wherein the determining determines whether to merge the first and second rules when the first and second rules correspond to a same action, wherein the determining comprises transmitting one of the first and second rules to a common rule configuration file to be used as a filtering rule for both the first and second firewall functions when the first and second rules are identical.