part of my current project involves moving our network over to gigabit. we currently use a cisco rv082 VPN router with a built in firewall. we have two locations (both with that router) and we would like to have some sort of connectivity between them. we also have some kind of "dedicated line" between the two sites that the phone company has setup that both are internet and analog phones run on. i put the "dedicated" in quotes because i am not sure exactly what is is we have and i have not had a chance yet to speak with anyone who knows more than second hand. my questions are do we need to have a dedicated firewall, or would one on the router suffice? is it ideal to setup the VPN through the router, or by some other method? is VPN the best method of connectivity, or is there something else that is better?
right now i am just trying to price out the various components as if i was going to purchase them myself. we are talking with several contractors but none have submitted any details yet on how they would setup the new network.