Generalized network security policy templates for implementing similar network security policies across multiple networks

A computer-readable medium whose contents cause one or more computer systems to create network security policies for providing network security services in a plurality of computer networks, each network incorporating a plurality of network elements, by:

• generating a network security policy template that defines one or more rules for conducting network security in a single network, each rule being specified relative to classes of network elements;
• for each network,
• generating a network profile identifying the network elements within the network that are members of the classes of the network security policy template;
• and
• from the network security policy template and the network profile for the network, generating a network security policy that defines one or more rules for conducting network security in the network, each rule being specified relative to network elements within the network.

A computer environment for developing a network security policy for a protected network, comprising:

• a memory having a network security policy template allocation and a network profile allocation,
• the security policy template allocation containing a security policy template defining network security directives expressed relative to network elements having specified roles, and
• the network profile allocation containing a network profile identifying, for each of a plurality of the roles specified in the security policy template, one or more network elements in the protected network having the specified role;
• and
• one or more processors that merge the network security policy template contained by the network security policy allocation with the network profile contained by the network profile allocation to produce a network security policy for the protected network.