question

[Guest]

how do I find out if I have firewall and what it is?

 

[Cajunswabbie]

how do I find out if I have firewall and what it is?

Other than Windows Firewall you have to install a firewall on your own.
Those you installed should be listed in Start\Control Panel\Add or Remove
Programs. To check for Windows Firewall go to Start\Control Panel and
scroll down to Windows Firewall. You can double click on the Windows
Firewall icon and if it is not started you will get a message to that effect
and it will ask if you want to start the service. Windows Firewall will only
protect you from inbound request. Installed programs can still call home. I
personally have Windows Firewall disabled and I am using the Free Zone Alarm
firewall, which gives inbound and outbound protection. Hope this helps. If
not post back and someone else can try to help.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Other than Windows Firewall you have to install a firewall on your
own.

No, this is a great overstatement.

Note two things:

1. That sentence implies that you should have both the Windows firewall and
another firewall. That is *not* a good idea. Don't run two firewalls. You
achieve no extra protection, you incur the extra overhead of running two
firewalls, and you run the risk (probably small, but not zero) of conflicts
between them.

2. The Windows firewall monitors incoming traffic only. Almost any
third-party firewall will also monitor outbound traffic, stopping rogue
programs trying to call home, and is a better choice. However that's a long
way from saying "you have to install a firewall on your own." I agree that
using a third-pary firewall instead of the Windows is a good idea since it
can improve your security, but I very definitely do *not* agree that it's
something you *have* to do.


--
Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
Please reply to the newsgroup


Those you installed should be listed in Start\Control Panel\Add

 

[Tom Willett]

Ken: I think what he was saying was: Windows firewall comes installed by
default. However, you would have had to knowingly install a third-party
firewall, so therefore, you would have known what it is... ?

Tom
| Cajunswabbie wrote:
|
| > | >> how do I find out if I have firewall and what it is?
| >
| > Other than Windows Firewall you have to install a firewall on your
| > own.
|
|
| No, this is a great overstatement.
|
| Note two things:
|
| 1. That sentence implies that you should have both the Windows firewall
and
| another firewall. That is *not* a good idea. Don't run two firewalls. You
| achieve no extra protection, you incur the extra overhead of running two
| firewalls, and you run the risk (probably small, but not zero) of
conflicts
| between them.
|
| 2. The Windows firewall monitors incoming traffic only. Almost any
| third-party firewall will also monitor outbound traffic, stopping rogue
| programs trying to call home, and is a better choice. However that's a
long
| way from saying "you have to install a firewall on your own." I agree that
| using a third-pary firewall instead of the Windows is a good idea since it
| can improve your security, but I very definitely do *not* agree that it's
| something you *have* to do.
|
|
| --
| Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
| Please reply to the newsgroup
|
|
| Those you installed should be listed in Start\Control Panel\Add
| > or Remove Programs. To check for Windows Firewall go to
| > Start\Control Panel and scroll down to Windows Firewall. You can
| > double click on the Windows Firewall icon and if it is not started
| > you will get a message to that effect and it will ask if you want to
| > start the service. Windows Firewall will only protect you from
| > inbound request. Installed programs can still call home. I personally
| > have Windows Firewall disabled and I am using the Free Zone Alarm
| > firewall, which gives inbound and outbound protection. Hope this
| > helps. If not post back and someone else can try to help.
|
|

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Ken: I think what he was saying was: Windows firewall comes
installed by default. However, you would have had to knowingly
install a third-party firewall, so therefore, you would have known
what it is... ?

You could be right, and perhaps that's what he meant. But it didn't say
that, and if I misread his intent, others may have too, so for the benefit
of those others, I still think it was worth pointing out that what he said
wasn't literally true.

 

[Cajunswabbie]

You could be right, and perhaps that's what he meant. But it didn't say
that, and if I misread his intent, others may have too, so for the benefit
of those others, I still think it was worth pointing out that what he said
wasn't literally true.

Ken, I'm sorry I didn't make it more clearer. Tom stated what I was trying
to state. I did not mean to imply that two firewalls were needed. In case
anyone else misread my meaning, I'm sorry again for not be more clearer.
Thanks for pointing it out.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Ken, I'm sorry I didn't make it more clearer. Tom stated what I was
trying to state. I did not mean to imply that two firewalls were
needed. In case anyone else misread my meaning, I'm sorry again for
not be more clearer. Thanks for pointing it out.

You're welcome, and not a problem. I'm glad to hear that you understood the
issue and it was a matter of perhaps too-quick writing.