alg.exe (Application Layer Gateway) - Is that ICF?

[*Vanguard*]

I uninstalled Norton Internet Security 2003 and Norton Antivirus 2003.
Won't be using NIS anymore but might continue using NAV (still debating
on that one). Wow, surfing got a lot quicker. However, I then enabled
the ICF (Internet Connection Firewall) that comes with Windows XP.
Until I decide on what firewall to replace NIS with, I still want
something (plus my router has a firewall, too, but again not as potent).

Since I am now running ICF (temporarily), I noticed a new process in
Task Manager for alg.exe. Right-clicking on the file says it is from
Microsoft and its description is "Application Layer Gateway". Is this
Microsoft's firewall?

 

[Carey Frisch [MVP]]

Application Layer Gateway Service
http://www.theeldergeek.com/application_layer_gateway.htm

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows XP - Shell/User

Be Smart! Protect your PC!
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/

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| I uninstalled Norton Internet Security 2003 and Norton Antivirus 2003.
| Won't be using NIS anymore but might continue using NAV (still debating
| on that one). Wow, surfing got a lot quicker. However, I then enabled
| the ICF (Internet Connection Firewall) that comes with Windows XP.
| Until I decide on what firewall to replace NIS with, I still want
| something (plus my router has a firewall, too, but again not as potent).
|
| Since I am now running ICF (temporarily), I noticed a new process in
| Task Manager for alg.exe. Right-clicking on the file says it is from
| Microsoft and its description is "Application Layer Gateway". Is this
| Microsoft's firewall?

 

[R. McCarty]

http://www.theeldergeek.com/application_layer_gateway.htm

 

[Wesley Vogel]

Besides what the others have posted.

Start | Run | Type: services.msc | OK |
Scroll down to and double click: Internet Connection Firewall (ICF) /
Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) |
Dependencies tab | See what's listed

 

[*Vanguard*]

Carey Frisch [MVP] said in news:[email protected]:

Application Layer Gateway Service
http://www.theeldergeek.com/application_layer_gateway.htm

"Provides support for 3rd party protocol plug-ins for Internet
Connection Sharing and the Internet Connection Firewall."

That just repeates the descriptive text already displayed when you look
at the properties of the Application Layer Gateway service. I don't
know of anything that I have installed that would qualify as a 3rd party
plug-in for ICF, especially since I have not ICF until yesterday (after
finally getting rid of Norton's firewall and looking for another
solution). So maybe Microsoft loads this by default in the expectation
that a future plug-in *may* need it that gets installed later.

As noted by Westley, alg.exe is a dependency. ICF is rolled into a
svchost.exe process. Anything that shows up new in the Processes tab in
Task Manager gets my immediate attention. I forgot to check for
dependencies. Since it is listed as a dependency by ICF then I can't
get rid of it (by configuring ALG startup as Manual or Disabled).

Thanks for the help.