What role does a RADIUS server play when a user remotely connects to a company firewall?

The RADIUS (Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service) server is primarily responsible for AAA, which stands for Authentication, Authorization, and Accounting. When a user remotely connects to a company firewall, the RADIUS server validates the user's credentials (authentication), determines what the user is allowed to do (authorization), and tracks their activities (accounting).

Authentication ensures that the user logging in has the correct username and password, or other credentials. Authorization then checks what resources or services the authenticated user is permitted to access. Lastly, accounting involves keeping track of the user's session, such as when they logged in, what actions they took, and when they logged out, which is crucial for auditing and monitoring purposes.

While data encryption, network mapping, and session management may play roles in network communications and security, they are not the primary functions of a RADIUS server in the context of managing user connections to a firewall. RADIUS focuses specifically on the AAA framework to enforce secure access control policies.