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* One plus One is Not Innov...

# One plus One is Not Innovation

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By [Nir Zuk](https://www.paloaltonetworks.com/blog/author/nir-zuk/?ts=markdown "Posts by Nir Zuk")  
Feb 03, 2009  
1 minutes  
[Firewall](https://www.paloaltonetworks.com/blog/category/firewall/?ts=markdown)  
[Firewall](https://www.paloaltonetworks.com/blog/tag/firewall/?ts=markdown)

Check out [Richard Stiennon's blog](http://threatchaos.com/2009/01/innovation-in-firewalls-you-bet/)[entry](http://threatchaos.com/2009/01/innovation-in-firewalls-you-bet/)on his[Threat Chaos blog](http://threatchaos.com/). I think very highly of Richard -- he has never been afraid, even as a Gartner analyst, to say what he thinks even if some of Gartner's customers did not like it.

But this time, Richard, I have to disagree with you. Putting a firewall and an IPS on the same box is not innovation. I did it as the CTO of NetScreen more than 6 years ago so it's certainly not new. And even then it was not innovative. Even in U.S. patent law, which sets the bar quite low on what can be patented (as in [Sealed Crustless Sandwich](http://www.google.com/patents?vid=USPAT6004596)), the mere action of putting two things together does not create something that is patentable. But above all that, putting firewall helpers, such as an IPS, on the same box as the firewall, does not make a better firewall. To make a better firewall, one needs to change the firewall itself. Check out my video response to learn more...

*** ** * ** ***

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[#### See How We're Fortifying Cloud and AI at AWS re:Inforce 2025](https://www.paloaltonetworks.com/blog/2025/06/fortifying-cloud-ai-aws-reinforce/)

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