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4953

HA Nut
Premium Member
join:2004-05-13
USA

HA Nut

Premium Member

Always leave the Windows Firewall on?

The December 2008 PC World magazine has an article in it (on page 134) that encourages users to always leave the Windows Firewall on, even if you are running another software firewall (their example is ZoneAlarm.)

I know that 2 AVs are not recommended. And I know that somewhere I've seen that 2 software firewalls are also not recommended. But after this, it's made me wonder... is it ok to leave the Windows Firewall on all the time? (FWIW, my Windows Firewall was on for a while with Comodo and I didn't notice any issues.)

Drunkula
Premium Member
join:2000-06-12
Denton, TX

Drunkula

Premium Member

I, too, would be interested to know. I'm no expert but its my opinion that 1 is better than 2 in this case.

Cudni
La Merma - Vigilado
MVM
join:2003-12-20
Someshire

Cudni to HA Nut

MVM

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Windows Firewall does not conflict, if it does it is very rare, with firewalls like ZA, Norton, Eset etc. etc.

One idea behind such suggestion might be that in case main firewall fails for whatever reason you are still protected. Not all firewall allow the WF to run concurrently (Norton and possibly others) even if you specifically enable both WF gets disabled.

Cudni

ManOfSnow
@verizon.net

ManOfSnow to HA Nut

Anon

to HA Nut


Running Two firewalls at once is ridiculous and dangerous. RIDICULOUS !

Anyone who knows anything about the workings of a computer knows that by running two firewalls they will fight each other for Stack Placemenmt therby weakening both the firewalls as they are battling for Stack Placement.....allowing a Hacker to slip right into the system.

I have seen many arguements on this subject. Usually those presenting contrary comments have no idea what they are talking about or a serious lack of understanding of Stack Placement. Definitely I have no intentions of entering into discussions on this matter. Let a person do however they so please.........as for me....I will use ONE FIREWALL.

DownTheShore
Pray for Ukraine
Premium Member
join:2003-12-02
Beautiful NJ

DownTheShore to HA Nut

Premium Member

to HA Nut
Why even bother going online in that instance?

ironwalker
World Renowned
MVM
join:2001-08-31
Keansburg, NJ

ironwalker to ManOfSnow

MVM

to ManOfSnow
said by ManOfSnow :

Running Two firewalls at once is ridiculous and dangerous. RIDICULOUS !

Anyone who knows anything about the workings of a computer knows that by running two firewalls they will fight each other for Stack Placemenmt therby weakening both the firewalls as they are battling for Stack Placement.....allowing a Hacker to slip right into the system.

I have seen many arguements on this subject. Usually those presenting contrary comments have no idea what they are talking about or a serious lack of understanding of Stack Placement. Definitely I have no intentions of entering into discussions on this matter. Let a person do however they so please.........as for me....I will use ONE FIREWALL.
What the snowy one says above.

MarkAW
Barry White
Premium Member
join:2001-08-27
Canada

1 edit

MarkAW to Cudni

Premium Member

to Cudni
said by Cudni:

Windows Firewall does not conflict, if it does it is very rare, with firewalls like ZA, Norton, Eset etc. etc.

One idea behind such suggestion might be that in case main firewall fails for whatever reason you are still protected. Not all firewall allow the WF to run concurrently (Norton and possibly others) even if you specifically enable both WF gets disabled.

Cudni
In that case then Cudni wouldn't it be better to run a software firewall along with a hardware firewall like a router?
Edit: Most if not all software Firewalls turns the WF off when installed.

Telly Boot
Premium Member
join:2002-05-15
Vancouver, BC

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My observation is that Norton (NIS) turns off the windows firewall when it's running and when you uninstall NIS you are prompted to switch the Windows Firewall on again. I would think that all AV's would do the same.

zapzap
@eu.int

-1 recommendation

zapzap to HA Nut

Anon

to HA Nut
said by HA Nut:

The December 2008 PC World magazine has an article in it (on page 134) that encourages users to always leave the Windows Firewall on, even if you are running another software firewall (their example is ZoneAlarm.)

I know that 2 AVs are not recommended. And I know that somewhere I've seen that 2 software firewalls are also not recommended. But after this, it's made me wonder... is it ok to leave the Windows Firewall on all the time? (FWIW, my Windows Firewall was on for a while with Comodo and I didn't notice any issues.)
No, ZA will conflict with XP firewall and you will, before or later, experience connection problems...
Really a bad idea and PC world should better rectify this information since it will create a lot of issues to users.

There is no limit to incompetence

/zapzap
Kerodo
join:2004-05-08

Kerodo to HA Nut

Member

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Never run two software firewalls, it's not only a conflict possiblity, but it's also massively redundant and will no doubt slow things down to some degree. If you want that feeling of extra protection, then use a router with one software firewall instead of Win Firewall plus another one. IMO, running 2 is just asking for trouble and is a waste with it's duplicate filtering. Plus the chances of your regular software firewall failing are probably 1 in 10,000. Running 2 is ridiculous....

ctceo
Premium Member
join:2001-04-26
South Bend, IN

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I always disable the following features of any Windows system I assemble. I however encourage the use of substitute software for obvious reasons.

System Restore
Automatic Updating
Windows Firewall

Reasons Why:
System Restore:
Has been known to crash systems on reboot after a restore, is not very customizable nor does it have a very in-depth GUI.

Automatic Updating:
If your update is what caused the error you could be in for a world of hurt. That combined with System restore can have often FATAL results for your OS Installation.

Windows Firewall:
This firewall in it's default configuration, has often provided for a networking headache. Frequently preventing PC's from seeing one another, printers to not be visible from one pc to the next, shared folders to not be viewable or accessible by some of the users, and sometimes one PC can see and access another perfectly well but not vice versa.

The usual way around this is to have basically an army of clone PC's, But how often does a typical family go out and buy say 7 PC's for the family?

For each of the three there are better alternatives, some of which are even free!
Expand your moderator at work

Cudni
La Merma - Vigilado
MVM
join:2003-12-20
Someshire

1 recommendation

Cudni to MarkAW

MVM

to MarkAW

Re: Always leave the Windows Firewall on?

said by MarkAW:

In that case then Cudni wouldn't it be better to run a software firewall along with a hardware firewall like a router?
It is always a good idea to be behind the router

Cudni
ctggzg
Premium Member
join:2005-02-11
USA

ctggzg to Drunkula

Premium Member

to Drunkula
said by Drunkula:

I, too, would be interested to know. I'm no expert but its my opinion that 1 is better than 2 in this case.
Nor is one better than zero.

Matt3
All noise, no signal.
Premium Member
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC

Matt3 to ctceo

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to ctceo
said by ctceo:

Automatic Updating:
If your update is what caused the error you could be in for a world of hurt. That combined with System restore can have often FATAL results for your OS Installation.
That is one of the most irresponsible things I've ever heard unless you're in a controlled environment where a substitute patch management system is in place.

Doctor Four
My other vehicle is a TARDIS
Premium Member
join:2000-09-05
Dallas, TX

Doctor Four to HA Nut

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Leaving the Windows Firewall on is unnecessary and redundant if you already have another software firewall installed and running, and if you are behind a router, most of which have their own firewall built in. And like others have said, there may be conflicts as both firewalls will likely be trying to access the same resources at the same time.

Now if there is no other firewall running, and the PC is not behind a router, then it should be left on.

HA Nut
Premium Member
join:2004-05-13
USA

HA Nut

Premium Member

Thanks for all the replies.

I have searched a bit more to see if there was anything else out there about this issue. I found 2 articles, one from a while back from MS and a recent one at the ZA forum.
»support.microsoft.com/se ··· &gssnb=1
»forums.zonealarm.org/zon ··· id=30951

Essentially, while not giving any technical details, they both say that it is not a good idea to run the Windows Firewall and another software firewall at the same time. Just too many unknowns.

The article endorsing the 2 firewall approach in PC World is not attributed to any author. I'm not sure if it will do any good to email them but I may try.

ctceo
Premium Member
join:2001-04-26
South Bend, IN

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ctceo to Matt3

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to Matt3
You, then are one of several lucky ones. Apparently you also likely didn't have problems with the SP2 crash day either.

I suggest doing some google research before making such assessments in the future.

Vista:
»www.google.com/search?q= ··· irefox-a

SP2:
»www.askdavetaylor.com/wh ··· day.html

SP1:
»www.google.com/search?hl ··· G=Search

Automatic Updates in General:
»www.google.com/search?hl ··· G=Search

jdong
Eat A Beaver, Save A Tree.
Premium Member
join:2002-07-09
Rochester, MI

jdong to ManOfSnow

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to ManOfSnow
said by ManOfSnow :

Anyone who knows anything about the workings of a computer knows that by running two firewalls they will fight each other for Stack Placemenmt therby weakening both the firewalls as they are battling for Stack Placement.....allowing a Hacker to slip right into the system.

W....what? Please enlighten this OS developer what you mean by that statement?

mbi777
join:2002-05-24
Orlando, FL

1 recommendation

mbi777 to HA Nut

Member

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I am running WinXP Pro SP3. I too had the windows firewall on and also COMODO. When I went to my control panel\Security center\firewall it said that I should not be running two firewalls. I went ahead and then went to control panel\windows firewall and turned it off. Upon going back to the control panel\security center\firewall it then said that I was running Comodo. Thanks for the recomendations.

amysheehan
MVM
join:1999-12-21
Chula Vista, CA

3 edits

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amysheehan to HA Nut

MVM

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For Vista and XP per MS - Conflicts

Click for full size
Vista Security Center screenshot
Please see screenshot for VISTA settings and recommendations re 2 firewalls ---

RE: WindowsXP:

Should I use both the built-in firewall and a software firewall from a different company on my Windows XP computer?
A. No.
Running multiple software firewalls is unnecessary for typical home computers, home networking, and small-business networking scenarios. Using two firewalls on the same connection could cause issues with connectivity to the Internet or other unexpected behavior.

One firewall, whether it is the Windows XP Internet Connection Firewall or a different software firewall, can provide substantial protection for your computer.

MS Firewall FAQ's:
»www.microsoft.com/protec ··· faq.mspx

cork1958
Cork
Premium Member
join:2000-02-26

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to ManOfSnow

Re: Always leave the Windows Firewall on?

said by ManOfSnow :

Running Two firewalls at once is ridiculous and dangerous. RIDICULOUS !

Anyone who knows anything about the workings of a computer knows that by running two firewalls they will fight each other for Stack Placemenmt therby weakening both the firewalls as they are battling for Stack Placement.....allowing a Hacker to slip right into the system.

I have seen many arguements on this subject. Usually those presenting contrary comments have no idea what they are talking about or a serious lack of understanding of Stack Placement. Definitely I have no intentions of entering into discussions on this matter. Let a person do however they so please.........as for me....I will use ONE FIREWALL.
Discussion should've ended right here. Enough said!!
Tommyastro
join:2004-01-18
Poughkeepsie, NY

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Member

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Leave it on, especially if you use Windows.

Telly Boot
Premium Member
join:2002-05-15
Vancouver, BC

Telly Boot to cork1958

Premium Member

to cork1958
said by cork1958:

Discussion should've ended right here. Enough said!!
Gee, Uh...Golly, I guess you're right. I don't know why we have these dangblasted Discussion Forums in the First Place.