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User Guide

Cyclope Internet Filtering proxy

  • About Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy

  • How It Works

  • Installation Guide

  • Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy User Interface

  • Client Installation

  • Registration

  • About Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy

    Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy is a software application that filters the user's internet access. Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy was designed especially for networks to block access to web pages or download various file types. Traffic can be filtered using a keyword, a group of letters within the body of a page or file extensions. This solution helps companies protect the IT infrastructure from malicious application, preserve bandwidth and increase employee productivity. Another feature of Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy is the traffic audit of the entire network.


    How It Works

    • 1. The proxy accepts a request from a Web browser which has been configured to submit its Internet to that proxy.
    • 2. The proxy checks to determine whether the request is coming from an appropriate user by checking its IP against a list of accepted IP's.
    • 3. Upon this check the proxy either rejects the request or passes it on to the desired destination, usually a protected Web resource.
    • 4. When the proxy replies to the request, it checks if the web page to be displayed meets the requirements of the filter defined.
    • 5. If the page is allowed, it will be displayed to the user else the user will receive an error page containing information regarding the action that was taken.

    Installation Guide
    • System Requirements

      • Windows NT, XP , 2000, 2003, Vista
      • 256 MB RAM
      • 4 MB on Hard Disk for application files
      • 50MB additional storage space for log files

    • Installation
      • Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy Installation

        • Please Run the setup file.
        • In the setup please choose the installation folder where you want the program to be installed ( the default folder is Program files\CIFP )
        • After install you have to configure Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy. This is possible by running the Configuration Wizard that will open as soon as the installation wizard is finished.
        • Run Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy IP Address Wizard. This wizard will start automatically before finishing the installation wizard.
        • Select the IP Address
        • Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy is a proxy server with advanced filtering features. You have to select one of the IP addresses and type a port number on which the Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy will listen for incoming client connections. In the IP addresses dropdown you will see all the IP addresses that your machine currently is using: the LAN IP address ( which is usually 192.168.x.x or 10.x.x.x ), the Default IP address ( 127.0.0.1 ) and if the case, an External IP address ( like 68.x.x.x or 216.x.x.x ). If you select the LAN IP address ( which is usually 192.168.x.x or 10.x.x.x ) the traffic from all your LAN machines can be filtered. We recommend you to use this IP address. If you select the Default IP address ( 127.0.0.1 ) only the traffic from your machine will be filtered. This is recommended when you test the product on a single machine. Configuring the Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy to listen to an External IP address ( like 68.x.x.x or 216.x.x.x ) is highly not recommended.
        • Browser Configuration
        • This section allows you to configure the browsers installed on your machine to use the Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy in order to filter the content and access the configuration pages. Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy has a web Interface that allows you to configure the filtering rules and to show you detailed statistics. The configuration pages will be automatically loaded at the end of installation process.The other browsers can be configured to use Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy in order to filter and track the web traffic generated while using them.
        • Client Configuration
        • In order to control and filter the Internet traffic made by work stations, you must configure the installed browsers to use a proxy server running on the chosen LAN IP, and chosen port.
        • For manually configuring your browser so that the application performs successfully please follow the paths below. After the wizard is completed, Cyclope internet Filtering Proxy web interface will open in a new browser.

      • Client Browser Configuration

        • For monitoring all computers, it is compulsory that all traffic is routed through the same proxy. All network members will be asked to make some changes to the browsers they are using. This can be done manually following the instructions detailed below, or by using the Client Configuration Utility from the Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy package. Before proceeding to the manual client browser configuration make sure that you know:
          • The server IP ( the computer where the application is installed )
          • The port to be used. The default application port is: 8080.
          If used in network please use the configuration utility to configure the proxy to listen for connections from the network IP address of the computer where Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy is installed, then set all internet browsers from the computer clients that are using Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy to access the Internet via a proxy connection and the proxy address is the address of the computer where the proxy is installed.
        • Internet Explorer

          • Go to Tools / Internet Options / Connections / LAN Settings / Use a proxy server for your LAN / Address - insert server IP ( the computer where Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy is installed ), Port - insert the port.

        • Mozila Firefox

          • Go to Tools/Options / Advanced / Network / Connection / Settings / Manual Proxy Configuration / HTTP proxy - insert server IP ( the computer where Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy is installed ), Port - insert the port.

        • Opera

          • Go to Tools / Preferences / Advanced / Network / Proxy Server / HTTP - insert server IP ( the computer where Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy is installed ), Port - insert the port.

    Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy User Interface
    • Login

      • The application web interface is available accessing web.filter on your browser.
      • Default login information for the administrator account is:
        • Username: admin
        • Password: admin
      • Default login information for the user account is:
        • Username: user
        • Password: user
      • All these details can be changed / modified once you are logged in form the Administration / Account panel.

    • Logout

      • For logging out, press the Logout button on the right upper corner of the interface.

    • Administration
      • User Management

        • In the administration field, the application administrator sets the machines to be monitored. The monitored machines are available in an IP list containing IP addresses, user names and computer names.
        • Add user
        • In order to filter the Internet traffic on other machines you have to configure their proxy settings to use our product as proxy server. The settings for all browsers installed on client machines should be changed. After you changed the proxy settings we recommend you to load a few web pages and see if they are loading correctly. If so, the client configuration is completed and you will be able to see the users in the table above.
        • Delete user
        • In order to delete a user we recommend you to change the proxy server settings on the specific machines. If the proxy settings are not modified, the IP address will be added into the list again.
        • Logging options
        • This division allows the application’s administrator to choose whether he / she wants to log the user’s traffic and activity or not.
        • By enabling the Log user traffic option, the Statistics section will display the traffic report of the users, specifying the resources accessed by the computer and their size. If this option is disabled the traffic report will not display this information.
        • By enabling the Log filter activity option, the Statistics section will display the filter activity report of the users, containing the breaking rules attempts. If this option is disabled the filter activity report will not display this information.

        • Note: In order to filter the Internet traffic on other machines you have to configure their proxy settings to use our product as proxy server. The settings for all browsers installed on client machines should be changed.

        • Note: In order to have the user name and the computer name included in the statistics, Cyclope Client must be installed on each workstation. Otherwise, only computer’s IP will be provided. This is highly recommended for networks where a DHCP server is used. The client application can be installed manually or using the GPO domain policy. Check Client Installation section from the user guide.

      • Proxy Forwarding

        • If you already have an http proxy server that shares the Internet Connection in your LAN you can configure our product to forward the http requests to that proxy.
        • You have to enter the IP address and the Port of the existing http proxy and check the I have an existing Http Proxy option in order to configure our product to forward all the web requests received by our product to the already existing proxy. Our product will do the filtering part before sending the requests to the existing proxy server or after receiving the content from the existing proxy server ( before sending the content to the final client ). By using this feature our product filtering capabilities remain unchanged.
        • If you do not have an existing proxy server please do not use this feature by checking options or filling data.

      • Custom error pages

        • This section allows administrators to customize the error pages sent to the users when they access a blocked resource.
          • Block url error page – the user is displayed this page when is trying to load a blocked website
          • Block file download error page – the user is displayed this page when is trying to download a file with an unauthorized extension
          • Block keyword content error page - the user is displayed this page when is trying to load forbidden content
          • Traffic size error page - the user is displayed this page when the maximum daily traffic allowed is exceeded
        • After you select the error page you want to customize press Preview in order to preview changes and Save in order to save the page.

      • Accounts

        • There are two types of accounts:
          • Administrator account
          • User account
        • When you are logged as an Administrator there are no restriction regarding the functionality of Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy.
        • The User account allows only the viewing of the Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy Statistics section.
        • Default login information for the administrator account is:
          • Username: admin
          • Password: admin
        • Default login information for the user account is:
          • Username: user
          • Password: user
        • How to change login details
          • Please choose the account type
          • Type the New Password
          • Retype Password

          Note: Only the login password can be changed for users and administrators. The login names that are allowed by our product are admin and user – no new logins can be created.

        • In this section the administrator is allowed to configure the e-mail reporting settings in order to receive the reports generated by Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy to a specified e-mail address.

      • Backup-Restore

        • Allows you to backup / restore your settings. This feature is useful for companies that have multiple instances of Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy installed, in order to have the settings ( filtering policy ) on all servers.
        • You can check which settings will be included in the backup:
          • Web Sites - which websites are blocked and which are allowed
          • Keywords & Profiles - the list of blocked words and the profiles
          • Files & Extensions - the list of file types that are blocked
          • Scheduler - if you have defined a scheduler for the filtering policy this can be included in the backup
          • Rules for each user - the list of users that are excluded from the filtering policy
          • Groups - the group structure that you have defined
          • Passwords - user and admin passwords can be included in the backup
        • When Backup button is pressed, a zip file is created and stored into the application folder ( usually c:\Program Files\CIFP ). The zip file name is backup.zip.
        • When Restore button is pressed you will be able to select a zip file ( named backup.zip ) from the installation folder ( usually c:\Program Files\CIFP ) which will be used to restore the settings.

    • Filter Configuration

      • Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy was designed especially for networks to block access to web pages or download various file types. Traffic can be filtered using a keyword, a group of letters within the body of a page or file extensions.
      • The Filter Configuration section section allows you to configure the filters, to monitor their status and to manage the different groups.
      • The divisions of this section are:
        • Web Sites - White list - allow to define accepted websites for browsing
        • Web Sites - Black list - blocks URL from being displayed
        • Traffic size - blocks Internet access when the specified traffic size is exceeded
        • Keywords & Profiles - blocks a web page containing a specified word from being displayed
        • Files & Extensions - blocks access to different file types ( archives, applications, audio-video, etc. )
        • Web Objects - block Shockwave and Flash objects from running, incoming cookies from being set on your computer and outgoing cookies from being read from your computer
        • Group Management – allows the application administrator to create different groups of users
      • Web Sites - White list

        • This filter blocks access to a specified web site or all web sites.
        • In the Web Sites - White list section, by defining and enabling the White list, the user will be authorized to browse the websites added in the White list no matter what other restrictions might have been set. The Add Pattern option assures you that all websites containing the specified pattern will be allowed ( like groups.google.com not only google.com ).

      • Web Sites - Black List

        • This filter blocks access to a specified web site or all web sites.
        • In the Web Sites - Black List section, by defining and enabling the Black List, the websites added in the Black List will be blocked. The Add Pattern option assures you that all websites containing the specified pattern will be blocked ( like groups.google.com not only google.com ).
        • For better property management, after you add the websites, there is the Remove option.
        • Exclude User – That user is no longer monitored. Pressing the Exclude user button will lead you to a new window. Choose the user you want to exclude than press Change to validate your request.
        • Exclude Group – The chosen group of users is no longer monitored. Pressing the Exclude user button will lead you to a new window. Choose the group you want to exclude than press Change to validate your request.
        • Scheduler – removes users for a specified period of time from the filter action. To schedule filter activity, press the Scheduler button and chose the period when you want the filter to be inactive.
        • When the user tries to access a resource blocked by the filter, he / she will see the following message:

      • Traffic size

        • This section allows administrator to define maximum daily traffic allowed for each monitored user. After entering the maximum daily traffic allowed, press Change to save changes for each user.
        • By entering 100 in the corresponding field, after 100 MB of traffic the user will be prompted that the maximum traffic allowed has been exceeded and no more browsing will be allowed. By leaving the field (unlimited) for a specific user there will be no restrictions for that specific user

      • Keywords & Profiles

        • For enhanced protection, Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy has a keyword filter, meaning that it stops web pages containing in their body a specified keyword or a group of letters from being displayed.
        • In the Keywords & Profiles filter section you can choose to create your own Custom Word List and / or to use the Predefined Profiles provided by Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy.
        • If you choose to define your own Custom Word List, use the Add Word button in order to create the block list. When the keyword is found in the website body, that website will be replaced with a page containing restriction details.
        • The Add Word option, included in this filter, allows blocking the access to non-english websites as well. The websites containing the specified non-english word will not be displayed.
        • When selecting the character set please read the following:
          • select Chirillic for Razeri, Belarusian, Bulgarian, FYRO Macedonian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Mongolian, Russian, Serbian, Tatar, Ukrainian, Uzbek
          • select Latin for Afrikaans, Basque, Danish, Dutch, Faroese, Finnish, French, German, Icelandic, Irish, Italian, Malay, Norvegian, Portuguese, Scottish, Spanish, Swedish, Swahili
          • select Central European for Albanian, Croatian, Czech, Hungarian, Polish, Romanian, Serbian (Latin), Slovak, Slovenian
          • select Baltic for Lituanian, Latvian, Estonian
          • select Arabic for Arabic, Farsi, Urdu
        • When the user tries to access a resource blocked by the filter, he / she will see the following message:
        • If you choose the Predefined Profiles provided by Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy , check the appropriate profile in order to enable it.
        • For better property management, in case of changes in the word pattern contained in the sites to block, there is the Remove option.
        • Exclude User – That user is no longer monitored. Pressing the Exclude user button will lead you to a new window. Choose the user you want to exclude than press Change to validate your request.
        • Exclude Group – The chosen group of users is no longer monitored. Pressing the Exclude user button will lead you to a new window. Choose the group you want to exclude than press Change to validate your request.
        • Scheduler – removes users for a specified period of time from the filter action. To schedule filter activity, press the Scheduler button and chose the period when you want the filter to be inactive.

      • Files & Extensions

        • In the Files & Extensions section you can choose to create your own Custom Extensions List and / or to use the already defined extensions provided by Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy.
        • If you choose to define your own Custom Extensions List, use the Add Extension button in order to create the block list.

        • Note: When a new extension is added – pdf for example you have to fill just the extension name ( pdf ). Using other combinations like ( .pdf ) or ( *.pdf ) is not supported and as result the access will not be blocked to the resources.

        • If you choose the Predefined Extensions as a running mode, please check the appropriate extension in order to enable the filter. According to the chosen extension, the archive files, the applications and the audio-video files will be stoped from being downloaded.
        • When the user tries to access a resource blocked by the filter, he / she will see the following message:
        • For better property management, in case you don't want to block an extension anymore, there is the Remove option.
        • Exclude User – That user is no longer monitored. Pressing the Exclude user button will lead you to a new window. Choose the user you want to exclude than press Change to validate your request.
        • Exclude Group – The chosen group of users is no longer monitored. Pressing the Exclude user button will lead you to a new window. Choose the group you want to exclude than press Change to validate your request.
        • Scheduler – removes users for a specified period of time from the filter action. To schedule filter activity, press the Scheduler button and chose the period when you want the filter to be inactive.

      • Web Objects

        • This section allows administrator to stop Shockwave-Flash Objects from being run and to stop Cookies from being set or read from your LAN Computer
        • Block Shockwave-Flash Objects - blocks the display of Shockwave-Flash Objects within a web page. The content of the web site is loaded just the flash object is not shown.
          • For defining the URL pattern, click Add Pattern button then write the letter group contained in websites you would like to block.
        • Block Incoming Cookies – This filter stops cookies from being set on a computer.
          • Cookies are usually set by web sites that need further user recognition or login details. It is recommended to check the login operation on these websites before blocking the access.
          • For defining the URL pattern, click Add Pattern button then write the letter group contained in websites you would like to block.
        • Block Outgoing Cookies – This filter stops cookies from being read from a computer.
          • Cookies are usually set by web sites that need further user recognition or login details. It is recommended to check the login operation on these websites before blocking the access.
          • For defining the URL pattern, click Add Pattern button then write the letter group contained in websites you would like to block.
        • For better property management, after you add the websites, there is the Remove option.
        • Exclude User – That user is no longer monitored. Pressing the Exclude user button will lead you to a new window. Choose the user you want to exclude than press Change to validate your request.
        • Exclude Group – The chosen group of users is no longer monitored. Pressing the Exclude user button will lead you to a new window. Choose the group you want to exclude than press Change to validate your request.
        • Scheduler – removes users for a specified period of time from the filter action. To schedule filter activity, press the Scheduler button and chose the period when you want the filter to be inactive.

      • Group Management

        • Group Management allows application manager to create groups for different categories of users.
          • Add Group - Create a new group for a specific category of users
          • Add computer - Assign computer / user to a specified group
          • Delete Group - Choose the group you want to delete
          • Rename Group - Choose the group you want to rename and enter the new name
          • Delete Computer - Delete user/ computer from the specified group

    • Statistics
      • Overview

        • First time when the administrator runs Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy, the overview page will guide him to client configuration, to define the filtering policy and to check statistics. Information about the running mode is also available ( trial mode or registered ).
        • The Overview page provides information about:
          • The running mode, trial or registered and the license details like number of users and validity of license.
          • Summary statistics – the number of users currently using the product, the total amount of traffic that was recorded for the current day and the breaking rules attempts.

      • Trafic and Websites

        • Traffic & Websites panel reports the user activity and size ( expressed in Megabytes - Mbytes ) and chart in traffic. The View Log button allows you to see the pages accessed. Below the table, there is the total traffic made on the filtering proxy.
        • Logs can be visualized on specified dates, choosing the date from the calendar above the table

      • Filter Activity

        • The filter activity panel reports the results of the application usage.
        • The website visited and the action taken by Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy are presented in a table format, accompanied by information on date, time, IP, user name and computer name. Filter activity reports are available on daily basis.

      • Aggregated Traffic and Websites

        • The table shows all the requests made by the browser to the web server including the size of the request in Kb ( Kilobytes ).
        • Available periods for aggregating logs:
          • This Week
          • This Week
          • Last Week
          • Last 7 days
          • Last 14 days
          • Last 30 days
          • This Month
          • Last Month
          • Last 3 Months
          • Last Last 6 Months
          • This Year

      • Aggregated Filter Activity

        • This panel shows the aggregated filter activity for a specific period of time, period that can be chosen from the dropdown list.
        • Available periods for aggregating logs:
          • This Week
          • This Week
          • Last Week
          • Last 7 days
          • Last 14 days
          • Last 30 days
          • This Month
          • Last Month
          • Last 3 Months
          • Last Last 6 Months
          • This Year

      • Email Reporting

        • Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy has an email reporting feature, meaning that the administrator can receive periodical emails containing the application’s reports.
        • In order to test this feature please enter your email address in the first field and press Test E-mail button.
        • Other options that can be configured are:
          • E-mail Address – the email address that will be used for sending the email
          • Sending Hour – the hour the email will be sent at
        • The types of the reports that you will receive by email:
          • Daily Traffic Report – this report shows the user activity and size ( expressed in Megabytes - Mbytes ) and chart in traffic.
          • Weekly Traffic Report – this report aggregates the daily logs and provides the same data ( traffic size for each user ) for a week
          • Monthly Traffic Report – this report aggregates the weekly logs and provides the same data ( traffic size for each user ) for a month
          • Daily Filter Activity Report – this report shows the website visited and the action taken by Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy presented in a table format, accompanied by information on date, time, IP, user name and computer name
          • Weekly Filter Activity Report – this report aggregates the daily reports into a single report
          • Monthly Filter Activity Report – this report aggregates the weekly reports into a single report

  • Client Installation

    • The client applications are located in the [Installation_FOlder]\Clients folder and must be installed on each computer that is to be monitored.
      • CIFPClientManual.exe - invisible in Task Manager, recommended to be installed on computer running on Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows 7 operating systems ( The Windows 98 and Windows ME machines cannot be monitored ).
      • CIFPClientAutomatic.exe - invisible in Task Manager, recommended to be installed on computer running on Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows 7 operating systems ( The Windows 98 and Windows ME machines cannot be monitored ) providing automatic traffic redirection features.
      • CIFPNetClient.dll - this application should be installed in networks using GPO ( Group Policy Object )
    • Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy Client Installation

      • Run the chosen client version setup.
      • At the end of the application installation, the following dialog box will appear, allowing the Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy Client Configuration
      • Information needed to be filled in is the name of the server or the IP address of the server on which Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy Server is installed and the server port ( default value is 8585 ). Test if the client can connect to the server by pressing Test Server Connection button. It is recommended to test the connection before proceeding to the next client.

    • Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy Net Client Installation

      • In case you chose to use the CyclopeNETHidden.dll, the clients designed for Active Directory, make sure that the following set of parameters required for use with the Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy Net Client is configured.
      • These parameters are:
      • "-cfg=[srv=CYLOPE_SERVER&srvport=CYLOPE_SERVER_PORT]"
      • The parameters are identical with the one used by Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy Client.
      • The Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy Net Client may be started each time a user logs on, by using a GPO ( Group Policy Object ). To create this:
        • 1. A GPO has to be linked to an OU ( Organizational Unit ).
          • - In Active Directory / Users and Computers, right click the OU and select Properties.
          • - In the Group Policy Tab a new GPO may be created for the OU or an existing unlinked GPO may be linked to the current OU
        • 2. Click Edit to edit the GPO Properties or open a MMC with the wanted GPO snap-in
        • 3. Under User Configuration, expand Windows Settings, click Scripts ( Logon / Logoff ) and double click Logon.
        • 4. Click Add and browse to a script ( from a share or from the local computer ) that starts an application. The script is written in Windows Script Host.
        • Each time a user that has the GPO – linked, logs on, the application is started.
        • Example of the script: winScript.vbs
          • Set WshShell = WScript.CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
          • WshShell.Run rundll32.exe \\Share\CIFPNetClient.dll rdl -cfg=[srv=10.0.0.1&srvport=8585]"
        • Example of the script: winScript.vbs
          • Dim WshShell
          • Dim value
          • Set WshShell = WScript.CreateObject ("WScript.shell")
          • value = "rundll32.exe \\10.0.0.1:8585\Client\CIFPNetClient.dll rdl -cfg=[srv=10.0.0.1&srvport=8585]"
          • WshShell.RegWrite "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\cy", value

    • Cyclope Internet Filtering Proxy Client Uninstall

      • In order to uninstall the client application please run CIFPCLientUninstall.exe ( located in your Windows folder ). You will be prompted with a message requesting a password.
      • This security check prevents unauthorised users from disalbling the client application. The requested password is cyclopeadmin123x.
      • Press Uninstall Now Button in order to complete the process.

  • Registration

    • In order to register your product please go to http://www.cyclope-series.com/internet-filtering/order.html
    • Before proceeding, make sure that you have disabled the product so that the payment processing service provider web page can be accessed without any restrictions. The license key and registration instructions will be sent by email.

 
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