In short, network firewall is to protect the entire network while WAF is to protect the specific web application.
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Article authored
by Kunal Chowdhury on .
Today's fast tip will discuss the distinctions between network firewalls and web application firewalls. Please leave a comment below if you have any other questions.

A web application firewall (WAF) is a specific type of firewall that is designed to protect web applications from malicious attacks. It operates at the application layer of the OSI model and is placed in front of a web application to monitor and filter incoming traffic. A WAF can protect against a variety of threats, including SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), and other types of web-based attacks.
A network firewall, on the other hand, is a more general-purpose firewall that is designed to protect a network from unauthorized access. It operates at the network layer of the OSI model and controls access to the network by monitoring and filtering incoming and outgoing traffic based on a set of predefined rules. Network firewalls can be hardware- or software-based and are typically used to protect an entire organization's network.
In summary, a WAF is specialized in protecting web applications from malicious attacks and a Network firewall is a general-purpose firewall that protects the entire network from unauthorized access.
Solution Architect & Former Microsoft MVP
Kunal Chowdhury is an enterprise solution architect and former multi-year Microsoft MVP. He is the author of three technical books: Windows Presentation Foundation Development Cookbook, Mastering Visual Studio 2017, and the Mastering Visual Studio 2019.
He publishes technical and non-technical articles on Kunal-Chowdhury.com.