Step 1: Purchase and Setup Firewalla
Firewalla is a hardware firewall that connects to your home network and provides powerful filtering, monitoring, and parental controls for all devices connected to your internet.
Firewalla Purple SE (~$249 USD) is recommended for most families. It supports speeds up to 500 Mbps, which is sufficient for most home internet plans, and includes all the same filtering and parental control features. It's a one-time purchase with no monthly fees. If you have gigabit internet, consider the Firewalla Purple (~$369 USD) instead.
Purchase Firewalla → Installation Guide →Confirm completion:
Step 2: Enable Family Protect
Family Protect is Firewalla's built-in content filter that blocks adult content, malware, and other harmful websites across your entire network.
In the Firewalla app, go to Rules → Family Protect and toggle it ON. This automatically blocks pornography and other offensive content on all devices.
Family Protect Guide →Confirm completion:
Step 3: Enable Security Features
Ad Block removes intrusive advertisements, and Active Protect monitors for security threats and suspicious activity.
Ads can contain inappropriate content or lead to malicious sites. Active Protect watches for unusual network behavior that might indicate malware or hacking attempts.
In the Firewalla app, go to Rules and enable both Ad Block and Active Protect.
Ad Block Guide → Active Protect Guide →Confirm completion:
Step 4: Block Content Categories
Beyond the default filtering, you can block entire categories of content to protect your family from distractions and harmful material.
In the Firewalla app, go to Rules, tap the + button to add a new rule, select Block as the action, then choose Category as the target type. Block the following categories:
- Porn - Explicit content
- Violence - Violent and graphic content
- Drugs & Alcohol - Drug and alcohol related content
- Gambling - Betting and casino sites
- P2P - Gateway for pirated movies, music, software, and pornography
- VPN - Can be used to bypass filtering
- Social - Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, etc.
- Video - Netflix, YouTube, etc.
- Gaming - Online games
Confirm completion:
Step 5: Create Device Groups
Organize devices by family member so you can apply different rules to adults and children.
In the app, go to Devices, then create groups like "Parents," "Teens," and "Kids." Drag each device into the appropriate group.
What this enables:
- Set internet schedules per group (e.g., earlier bedtime for younger kids)
- Apply stricter filtering to children while allowing different rules for parents
- Block social media and gaming for kids but allow for teens
- View activity reports for each group separately
Discuss the right rules for your family with your spouse or accountability partner. Every family is different—what matters is that you agree together on the boundaries and hold each other accountable to maintaining them.
Handling Unknown & Guest Devices
When visitors connect to your WiFi, their devices won't be in any group—meaning they could have unfiltered access. Firewalla's New Device Quarantine solves this by automatically blocking internet access for any new device until you approve it.
- In the Firewalla app, scroll down and tap the + button
- Tap New Device Quarantine and turn it ON
- A new Quarantine Group will appear under Devices
- Any new device connecting to your network will automatically be placed in this group with no internet access
- You can then move approved devices to the appropriate group (Parents, Teens, Kids)
Confirm completion:
Step 6: Set Up Internet Schedules
Control when internet access is available for each device group. This helps ensure devices aren't used late at night.
In the app, go to Rules → Schedules. Consider turning off internet access for children's devices:
- School nights: 9:00 PM - 7:00 AM
- Weekends: 10:00 PM - 7:00 AM
- Sundays / the Lord's Day: Consider disabling internet access for all devices for the entire day. An exception may be made for a device used to access a church livestream or for VOIP phones.
Adjust based on your family's needs and children's ages.
Rules & Schedules Guide →Confirm completion:
Step 7: Enable Safe Search
Force all search engines (Google, Bing, etc.) to use their safe search mode, filtering explicit content from search results.
In the Firewalla app, go to Rules → Safe Search and toggle it ON.
Safe Search Guide →Confirm completion:
Step 8: Review Reports Weekly
Firewalla provides detailed activity reports. Make it a habit to review these weekly to stay aware of what's happening on your network. Both parents should review reports—even if one parent is more technically inclined, both should have full knowledge of what is happening on the network.
Pair Both Parents' Phones
The best way to ensure both parents have access is to install the Firewalla app on both phones and pair them to the same Firewalla box. This way both parents can view reports, receive alarms, and manage settings independently.
- On the phone already paired with Firewalla, open the app
- Go to Box Settings → Additional Pairing and turn it ON
- A QR code will be generated—the second parent scans this from the Firewalla app on their phone
- The QR code can also be emailed if the second parent is not nearby
Even if one parent is less technical, the Firewalla app is straightforward enough for viewing reports and receiving alerts. You don't need to understand every setting—the important thing is that both parents can see the activity data.
Email Alerts
As an additional layer, Firewalla can send automated email alerts when concerning activity is detected. In the app, go to Alarm Settings to configure email notifications so alerts are delivered to both parents automatically. This ensures that even without opening the app, both parents are notified of blocked attempts or unusual activity.
Pair a Second Phone Guide →When reviewing, look for:
- Blocked attempts - sites that were blocked by your filters
- Top destinations - which sites are most visited
- New devices - any unknown devices on your network
- Usage patterns - when and how much each device is used