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bcool
Premium Member
join:2000-08-25

2 recommendations

bcool

Premium Member

Can I live with Windows Firewall alone on W7 SP1

For years I ran one version or another of ZA. After some annoyances with latest ZA 2014, I decided to roll with Windows Firewall alone. I run realtime Anti-malware & Antivirus (Malwarebytes Pro and Avast!), plus I run a router with built-in hardware firewall, and I work from limited user account most of the time. Is Windows Firewall enough. I've been tempted to check out a "helper" program to Windows Firewall (not a standalone firewall) called Windows Firewall Control »www.binisoft.org/wfc.php

But honestly, I'd like to see if I could get comfortable with just Windows 7 SP1 Firewall. It's so quiet! I don't think I've ever heard a peep from it although I've been on W7 for just a matter of weeks. I've checked and double-checked and all systems look green and go! I haven't even found a log to look at yet! Makes me a little antsy with nothing to do....

dandelion
MVM
join:2003-04-29
Germantown, TN

dandelion

MVM

I was going to give it a try with my W8 and see.

bcool
Premium Member
join:2000-08-25

2 recommendations

bcool

Premium Member

ah...you go first?

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

2 edits

2 recommendations

DownTheShore to dandelion

Premium Member

to dandelion
said by dandelion:

I was going to give it a try with my W8 and see.

I've got Windows Firewall running with MBAM Pro and Trend Micro AV on my Win 8.1. I'm behind a router, too. So far, nothing's gone ka-boom and the thing's stayed clean (knock wood, ). On Win 8 there seems to be a finer degree of control with WF than there was with the version of it that is on my Vista computers. The only thing I wish it would have is an icon that runs in the systray.

(Oh, and I have the other usual suspects: WinPatrol Plus, Spyware Blaster, Zemana, and with SAS running a daily quick scan, not running resident.)

antdude
Matrix Ant
Premium Member
join:2001-03-25
US

antdude to bcool

Premium Member

to bcool
I can't re(member/call). Can W7 and W8's firewalls even block outbound connections?
85160670 (banned)
"If U know neither the enemy nor yoursel
join:2013-09-17
Edmonton, AB

2 recommendations

85160670 (banned)

Member

Indeed, here we go .... [ »www.brighthub.com/comput ··· 935.aspx ]. BTW, I use SPHINX for outbond control

bcool
Premium Member
join:2000-08-25

3 edits

bcool

Premium Member

Thanks there! I'll take a gander...

P.s. Somehow Windows Firewall Control and the one I discovered on your link, Vista Firewall Control must have or had a relationship at one point?
PPs. Oh boy, I don't even know how to compare these two "Windows Firewall Control" and the Vista Firewall Control a la Windows 8 Firewall Control
my head hurts
bcool

bcool to DownTheShore

Premium Member

to DownTheShore
Down --- you make me look like a slacker! I thought I was already in overkill with purchasing MBAM Pro and running Avast 2014 which is pretty comprehensive, plus running Windows Defender live and me sticking mostly in limited user account. You have a whole battalion at your disposal! Man --- I hope I don't have to install/use much more than what I've already got. Pretty soon it ain't gonna be worth it getting on-line --- Thanks.

planet
join:2001-11-05
Oz

1 recommendation

planet

Member

I've been using the free 64 bit version of Sphinx FW Control with Win 7 since 2010. Has blocked outbound well for my usage.

Nothin compares to the ole Kerio FW 2.xx. Still running on my ole XP.

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

DownTheShore to bcool

Premium Member

to bcool
said by bcool:

Down --- you make me look like a slacker! I thought I was already in overkill with purchasing MBAM Pro and running Avast 2014 which is pretty comprehensive, plus running Windows Defender live and me sticking mostly in limited user account. You have a whole battalion at your disposal! Man --- I hope I don't have to install/use much more than what I've already got. Pretty soon it ain't gonna be worth it getting on-line --- Thanks.

I learned to layer from years on this site and that combo works well for me at present. They play nicely and don't slow anything down. No one program is going to protect any Windows computer connected to the internet completely, so it's a matter of layering the coverage to eliminate as many of the weak spots as possible without turning the computer into a Fortress of Solitude.

I've used a separate anti-spyware program running resident in addition to my FW & AV for years now. At various times it's been BOClean, MVPS Hosts, Threatfire, Mamutu, Spybot Search & Destroy, a-squared, SAS (SuperAntiSpyware) or Voodoo Shield. I've always used Spyware Blaster and WinPatrol on all my computers, though, over the years. On the laptops I've added a separate antikeylogger program.

I never got into the whole sandbox/VM thing as a security measure, and I always run as an administrator since I'm the only one using this computer. So I want to make sure that I have as many of the vectors automatically covered as I can, without slowing my computer to a crawl. I normally practice commonsense when surfing, but it's kept me safe the few times that I dance on the dark side.
DownTheShore

1 recommendation

DownTheShore to antdude

Premium Member

to antdude
said by antdude:

I can't re(member/call). Can W7 and W8's firewalls even block outbound connections?

On 8.1:






norwegian
Premium Member
join:2005-02-15
Outback

norwegian to planet

Premium Member

to planet
said by planet:

I've been using the free 64 bit version of Sphinx FW Control with Win 7 since 2010. Has blocked outbound well for my usage.

I do like the product after trialing the free for a few months.
I've been wondering if it is worth paying for the pro version to allow system protection too.
Svchost comes to mind.
Sentinel
Premium Member
join:2001-02-07
Florida

1 recommendation

Sentinel to bcool

Premium Member

to bcool
I've been using Win7 firewall since I got it and I like it fine. Only I wish it had is better logging. I wish it would bother me a bit more actually. It blocks programs but does not tell me or log it so it's hard to know how to set up a rule for it.

With the old KPF I used to block everything and log it, then run a program and it would get blocked. Then go check the log and see what and how it was blocked and create a rule. But with Win7 the log is terrible and it doesn't really pop anything up that is helpful.

therube
join:2004-11-11
Randallstown, MD

therube to bcool

Member

to bcool
> Can I live with Windows Firewall alone

Yes

> It's so quiet! I don't think I've ever heard a peep

That's a limitation (failing) of it, assuming you do want, expect to hear from it.

There are some third party products that work along with Windows Firewall to make it more talkative.

Windows Firewall Control, but the free version is limited...
Aranarth
join:2011-11-04
Stanwood, MI

Aranarth to bcool

Member

to bcool
If you have ipv6 turned off and you are behind a ipv4 router with a firewall the built in firewall in Win7/8/8.1 is just fine.

I would add a strong hosts file, and a good dns such as opendns to the mix and you will be fine.
85160670 (banned)
"If U know neither the enemy nor yoursel
join:2013-09-17
Edmonton, AB

85160670 (banned) to bcool

Member

to bcool
Click for full size
BTW, here is image message comparison Win_FW vs. ZA_FW

bcool
Premium Member
join:2000-08-25

bcool

Premium Member

There's a lot of talk about WF native WFH feature which has been described in superlative terms but man...I'm not sure I'm gonna be able to hang on much longer --- the quiet now is maddening ...after so many years with ZoneAlarm. Now that I have OS configured the way I want it, perhaps, maybe just perhaps I can go ahead again with ZoneAlarm. It may have stuck its nose right in the middle of the network stack which accounted for why certain changes I made manually did not take BUT...but one thing I can say in ZA's (i.e. ZA2014) defense, it did not degrade my internet connection. But I will deliberate on this for a few more days. Thanks all!

antdude
Matrix Ant
Premium Member
join:2001-03-25
US

antdude to 85160670

Premium Member

to 85160670
said by 85160670:

Indeed, here we go .... [ »www.brighthub.com/comput ··· 935.aspx ]. BTW, I use SPHINX for outbond control

"... Although Windows Firewall provides an abundance of options (see Microsoft's Windows Firewall with Advanced Security Getting Started Guide for more information), the process of configuring it is certainly not for the technically challenged. While most third-party firewalls will alert you each time an outgoing connection attempt is blocked and give you an option to either unblock or to keep on blocking, Windows Firewall does not. Instead, you need to create your own rules from scratch - and that's a task which will be well beyond the capabilities of many users..."

I use Norton 360's firewall with manual controls (no automatic rule creations).

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

DownTheShore

Premium Member

I've got Outpost FW on my desktop because I bought a lifetime license for that, but that thing is really a PITA with all of its alerts re outbound traffic for things that should be automatically allowed.
85160670 (banned)
"If U know neither the enemy nor yoursel
join:2013-09-17
Edmonton, AB

85160670 (banned) to antdude

Member

to antdude
Indeed, U R very right ..... need more time testing what is allowed or blocked,thats why I use SPHINX outbond ctrl.

bcool
Premium Member
join:2000-08-25

bcool

Premium Member

The course I will take in the immediate future is in descending order of probability:

1.) no change (i.e., Windows Firewall alone)
2.) SPHINX WIN8 Firewall Control (also good for WIN7)
3.) Re-install ZoneAlarm 2014
?
bcool

1 edit

1 recommendation

bcool to DownTheShore

Premium Member

to DownTheShore
Down --- I'm not personally familiar with Outpost FW though I know it's been around for some time. I will say this about latest ZA Free: it was the least noisy with alerts of all versions I've ever used. Its database apparently allows it to handle the mundane, the so-called "safe" connections on its own.

shearer
Northern Lights
Premium Member
join:2002-06-18
Asia

1 recommendation

shearer to antdude

Premium Member

to antdude
said by antdude:

While most third-party firewalls will alert you each time an outgoing connection attempt is blocked and give you an option to either unblock or to keep on blocking, Windows Firewall does not.

This is my main gripe with Win 7's Firewall

planet
join:2001-11-05
Oz

1 recommendation

planet

Member

SPHINX WIN8 Firewall Control (also good for WIN7) is a free program that gives outbound control to win 7 & 8 FW
Mister_E
join:2004-04-02
Etobicoke, ON

1 edit

1 recommendation

Mister_E to bcool

Member

to bcool
There's also Windows Firewall Notifier which is similar to Windows Firewall Control, but seems even less intrusive. I've been using it for a while now and happy with it (being a Kerio 2.15 fan prior).

"Windows Firewall Notifier (WFN) extends the default Windows embedded firewall behavior, allowing to visualize and handle incoming or outgoing connections." For Win Vista/7/8.
Sentinel
Premium Member
join:2001-02-07
Florida

Sentinel to planet

Premium Member

to planet
Hey planet,
Do you have a link for SPHINX please? I'd like to check it out.
OZO
Premium Member
join:2003-01-17

2 recommendations

OZO

Premium Member

Try this link: Windows 8 Firewall Control: Sphinx Software

antdude
Matrix Ant
Premium Member
join:2001-03-25
US

antdude to Mister_E

Premium Member

to Mister_E
said by Mister_E:

There's also Windows Firewall Notifier which is similar to Windows Firewall Control, but seems even less intrusive. I've been using it for a while now and happy with it (being a Kerio 2.15 fan prior).

"Windows Firewall Notifier (WFN) extends the default Windows embedded firewall behavior, allowing to visualize and handle incoming or outgoing connections." For Win Vista/7/8.

Exactly. I loved KPF v2.1.5 until XP SP3's BSoDs, Outpost Firewall 2009, Conseal PC Firewall, Norton, etc.

Cartel
Intel inside Your sensitive data outside
Premium Member
join:2006-09-13
Chilliwack, BC

Cartel to bcool

Premium Member

to bcool
Click for full size
You could...but why?

Here's a good source.

»www.tomsguide.com/us/dow ··· 889.html

a5c3aa63cfecda1a78cd51af270a69f4
Eddn
join:2014-03-17
Bend, OR

Eddn to bcool

Member

to bcool
Firewall Control is nice program works well with W8 through W8.1 ,several Windows files example run32.dll try to log out ?
I ignore so it is blocked in session .
iE is constantly trying to call out !
Windows 8.1,built in defender and Malwarebytes pro,along with
Firewall Control,Asus logic boost speed and cCleaner

Windows 7 MSE is only AV needed in Windows 8 same only different name MSE=Microsoft Security Essentials .