firewall on or off? I can't tell

[Guest]

I may or may not be having a problem with the firewall in XP. I just
completed a full reinstall of the software on my PC. I started with the XP
disks that shipped with my PC, installed my antivirus software and let it
update itself, installed the very newest version of Zone Alarm, then let XP
download service pack 2. That's where it gets funny. Even though the radio
button for turning the firewall is off, I got a couple of notices asking me
for permission for programs to access the internet that look like the XP
firewall was on. Zone Alarms have a different look for the same thing.

So what's happening? Is the XP firewall really off? Is there another way
to make sure it is?

 

[Torgeir Bakken \(MVP\)]

I may or may not be having a problem with the firewall in XP. I just
completed a full reinstall of the software on my PC. I started with the XP
disks that shipped with my PC, installed my antivirus software and let it
update itself, installed the very newest version of Zone Alarm, then let XP
download service pack 2. That's where it gets funny. Even though the radio
button for turning the firewall is off, I got a couple of notices asking me
for permission for programs to access the internet that look like the XP
firewall was on. Zone Alarms have a different look for the same thing.

Does it look exactly as the "Firewall security alert" picture here:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/security/internet/sp2_wfintro.mspx

So what's happening? Is the XP firewall really off? Is there another way
to make sure it is?

To check the state of the firewall, open a command prompt (e.g.
Start/Run --> cmd.exe) and then, in the command prompt, enter the
two commands below (each followed by the Enter key):

netsh.exe firewall show state >fw-state.txt
notepad fw-state.txt


What is "Operational mode" listed as?

 

[Guest]

Yes, the firewall security alert looked the like the one on the page you
directed me to. As I type this, I am at work and won't be able to check the
rest of it until I return home tonight. Keep in mind that I saw that alert
even though the radio button for the Windows XP firewall was set to off.

 

[Guest]

I just checked. The operational state is listed as disabled. I take that as
meaning the XP firewall is turned off. Strange that it would give me those
security alerts.