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#16
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XP Firewall
William B. Lurie wrote:
I see some flak about what the XP Firewall does and doesn't do. How about a reference from our MVPs as to what it is supposed to do, and what evidence it gives that it is actually doing anything? I've had mine "on" for a couple of months, and it gives no evidence that it is doing anything. Maybe that's really good! A program that just does its thing and doesn't brag about it. WinXP's built-in firewall is adequate at stopping incoming attacks, and hiding your ports from probes. What WinXP SP2's firewall does not do, is give you any kind of alerts or other indication that it's working or has blocked any attempted intrusions. It also does not protect you from any Trojans or spyware that you (or someone else using your computer) might download and install inadvertently. It doesn't monitor out-going traffic at all, other than to check for IP-spoofing, much less block (or at even ask you about) the bad or the questionable out-going signals. It assumes that any application you have on your hard drive is there because you want it there, and therefore has your "permission" to access the Internet. Further, because the Windows Firewall is a "stateful" firewall, it will also assume that any incoming traffic that's a direct response to a Trojan's or spyware's out-going signal is also authorized. Description of a Personal Firewall http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;321050 ZoneAlarm, Kerio, or Sygate are all much better than WinXP's built-in firewall, and are much more easily configured, and there are free versions of each readily available. Even the commercially available Symantec's Norton Personal Firewall is superior by far, although it does take a heavier toll of system performance then do ZoneAlarm or Sygate. -- Bruce Chambers Help us help you: http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on having both at once. - RAH |
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#17
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XP Firewall
Bruce Chambers wrote:
William B. Lurie wrote: I see some flak about what the XP Firewall does and doesn't do. How about a reference from our MVPs as to what it is supposed to do, and what evidence it gives that it is actually doing anything? I've had mine "on" for a couple of months, and it gives no evidence that it is doing anything. Maybe that's really good! A program that just does its thing and doesn't brag about it. WinXP's built-in firewall is adequate at stopping incoming attacks, and hiding your ports from probes. What WinXP SP2's firewall does not do, is give you any kind of alerts or other indication that it's working or has blocked any attempted intrusions. It also does not protect you from any Trojans or spyware that you (or someone else using your computer) might download and install inadvertently. It doesn't monitor out-going traffic at all, other than to check for IP-spoofing, much less block (or at even ask you about) the bad or the questionable out-going signals. It assumes that any application you have on your hard drive is there because you want it there, and therefore has your "permission" to access the Internet. Further, because the Windows Firewall is a "stateful" firewall, it will also assume that any incoming traffic that's a direct response to a Trojan's or spyware's out-going signal is also authorized. Description of a Personal Firewall http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;321050 ZoneAlarm, Kerio, or Sygate are all much better than WinXP's built-in firewall, and are much more easily configured, and there are free versions of each readily available. Even the commercially available Symantec's Norton Personal Firewall is superior by far, although it does take a heavier toll of system performance then do ZoneAlarm or Sygate. Thank you, Bruce. I appreciate the informative response. Bill |
#18
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XP Firewall
"Richard Urban" wrote in message ... | When you install the latest version of ZoneAlarm it will automatically shut | down the SP2 firewall. This, when you think about it is a bit scary. If | ZoneAlarm can do it, why not some form of spywear. Another reason to dump | the Windows XP firewall. | | -- | Regards, | | Richard Urban | | aka Crusty (-: Old B@stard :-) | | "Spywear"--is that a trenchcoat and dark glasses? |
#19
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XP Firewall
Thanks for the tips.
"Stan" wrote in message ... Mike, I will be getting my first XP system soon. From your post I understand that I should leave XP firewall on for the fist internet visit until I get Zone Alarm, etc. d/led. After ZA is in place I should disable XP firewall? "Mike Hall" wrote in message ... William There is nothing better than the feeling of being 'needed'.. thanks for the vote of confidence in all of the people that come here to help that are NOT MVPs.. There seems to be little point in me telling you that the XP firewall exists primarily to protect the OS on its first visit to the internet, such that it can be updated without fear of being attacked within the first few seconds.. that if MS attempted to place a fully fledged firewall into XP that they would be flooded with lawsuits.. that MS also recommend use of a third party software firewall.. .. And there is no point in me telling you to do a Google search for free software firewalls and what they offer over and above the SP2 offering either, because I am not an MVP.. Happy New Year to ya.. Mike Hall "William B. Lurie" wrote in message ... I see some flak about what the XP Firewall does and doesn't do. How about a reference from our MVPs as to what it is supposed to do, and what evidence it gives that it is actually doing anything? I've had mine "on" for a couple of months, and it gives no evidence that it is doing anything. Maybe that's really good! A program that just does its thing and doesn't brag about it. -- William B. Lurie |
#20
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XP Firewall
William B. Lurie wrote:
Thank you, Bruce. I appreciate the informative response. Bill You're welcome. -- Bruce Chambers Help us help you: http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on having both at once. - RAH |
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