how to tell if windows has a firewall

[Guest]

OK this one is a really basic somewhat daft question but how does one find if
Windows XP Home edition on a computer has a firewall installed and running?
Simply doing START, SEARCH, "Firewall" didn't find any windows one(s). I'd
like to know if I have a firewall that I'm unaware of and how to look at it's
settings/rules.
Thank you !
Sarah

 

[Quentin David Jones]

Look in Control Panel for :
Security Centre

That's where the Windows FW is.
(you need SP2)

Q.

 

[Ramesh, MS-MVP]

Windows XP already includes a firewall, which is capable of monitoring the inbound traffic. To check the status of the Windows Firewall in SP2, type WSCUI.CPL in Start/Run dialog. This opens the Windows Security Center where you can check the Windows Firewall and the anti-virus product status.

There are are several third-party firewall applications available, such as Zone Alarm, Sygate Personal Firewall, Kerio, Lavasoft, and others. If you've installed one of them, the respective icons should be present in the Start menu or in the Notification area (previously, the System tray).

--
Regards,

Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows XP Shell/User]
Windows® XP Troubleshooting http://www.winhelponline.com


OK this one is a really basic somewhat daft question but how does one find if
Windows XP Home edition on a computer has a firewall installed and running?
Simply doing START, SEARCH, "Firewall" didn't find any windows one(s). I'd
like to know if I have a firewall that I'm unaware of and how to look at it's
settings/rules.
Thank you !
Sarah