SAFE

Easy-to-Use Security Reference Architecture

SAFE can help you simplify your security strategy and deployment. This Cisco security reference architecture features easy-to-use visual icons that help you design a secure infrastructure for the edge, branch, data center, campus, cloud, and WAN. The framework encompasses operational domains such as management, security intelligence, compliance, segmentation, threat defense, and secure services.

SAFE solutions have been deployed, tested, and validated at Cisco and provide guidance, best practices, and configuration steps.

Why complicate your security network design? Keep it simple with SAFE.

The SAFE Key

The SAFE Key organizes security by using two core concepts: Places in the Network (PINs) and Secure Domains.

PINs reference examples of locations that are found in networks and the infrastructure needed to create them:

• Data center
• Branch
• Campus
• WAN
• Internet edge
• Cloud

Secure Domains are operational areas used to protect these locations. They are security concepts that traverse an entire network:

• Management
• Security intelligence
• Compliance
• Segmentation
• Threat defense
• Secure services

This reference architecture logically arranges capabilities to secure business workflows against threats.

• SASE Architecture Guide - February 2021 (PDF - 1.9 MB)
• Trusted Internet Connections (TIC) 3.0 Architecture Guide - December 2020 (PDF - 2.2 MB)
• SAFE Secure Branch Architecture Guide (PDF - 1.7 MB)
• SAFE Secure Campus Architecture Guide (PDF - 2 MB)
• SAFE Secure Cloud Architecture Guide (PDF - 3.3 MB)
• SAFE Secure Data Center Architecture Guide (PDF - 3.7 MB)
• SAFE Secure Internet Architecture Guide (PDF - 2.6 MB)
• SAFE Secure Internet Edge Architecture Guide (PDF - 2.9 MB)
• SAFE Secure Segmentation Operations Guide (PDF - 2.2 MB) 

SAFE design guides have been tested, validated, and deployed at Cisco. They provide best practices, configuration steps, and more.

Secure Remote Worker for Azure Design Guide - Jan 2021 (PDF - 9.8 MB)

SAFE Secure Data Center Design Guide - December 2020 (PDF - 34.1 MB)

Trusted Internet Connections (TIC) 3.0 Design Guide - December 2020 (PDF - 6 MB)

Trusted Internet Connections (TIC) 3.0 Cisco Overlay Guidance - December 2020 (PDF - 461 KB)

SAFE Secure Cloud for AWS - Design Guide - November 2020 (PDF - 30.5 MB)

Umbrella Design Guide – October 2020 (PDF - 14.8 MB)

Secure Remote Worker Design Guide for AWS - October 2020 (PDF - 10.1 MB)

SAFE Secure Cloud for Azure - July 2020 (PDF - 13.1 MB)

Secure Remote Worker Design Guide - April 2020 (PDF - 2.81 MB)

SAFE Edge Remote Access VPN with DDoS Design Guide – September 2016 (PDF - 4.6 MB)

Ransomware Defense Design Guide – August 2017 (PDF - 6.2 MB)

IoT Threat Defense for Manufacturing SAFE Design Guide – May 2018 (PDF - 8.6 MB)

SAFE Secure Cloud Protect Design Guide - February 2018 (PDF - 2 MB)