allright i guess it's time to post this because i've been getting pissed with ZoneAlarm lately. currently, im using 5.5.094 which i've never upgraded because of some unstability issues that i've heard about with the new releases. right now, ZoneAlarm sucks in saving the changes that i make to programs. what i mean by this is that when set to always allow a program, it asks me to do it again when i restart the comp or when i shut down zonealarm on my own.
so does anyone know of a really good firewall that i can use? also it has to be freeware cause i dont want to pay
edit:just got reminded. another reason i dont want it is because vsmon.exe(ZoneAlarm service) leaked a LOT of memory and went up to 118K memory usage. windows then alerted me that i was running our of physical memory(i have 512MB RAM)
I would say stick to Windows XP(SP2) built in firewall. Since there aren't any good free firewalls. Outpost was a good firewall but too bad it doesn't work in my pc.
I'ts freeware, I'm using it for about a month now and i'm very pleased with it.
It is a little less intoitive to configure in the first run compared to ZA but there is a manual and support in the company site so i think you'll manage that easly.
You just have to first choose your internet and\or network connection from the main window and from that moment on it will perform just like ZA with the messege window asking for permission and etc.
After you configure it go to ShieldsUp and run the tests to see how affective the firewall is. If you configured it right you should pass all the tests
you can continue and set rules and configure it more deeply (read the manual) but you don't have to and after the first config just allow\deny access of programs.
If you want to read more user opinions here are some
How come it works for you and not me ? I used it, but i get those blue screens everytime
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Check the below page out
"Outpost Free was released before Windows XP and has not been updated for it - there is therefore a possibility that it will cause problems (including blue screen crashes) with Windows XP, especially with Service Pack 2 (disabling SP2's Data Execution Protection may help in some cases)."
If you want to make sure you are "safely" removing ZoneAlarm I suggest you remove it in Safe Mode. Then after the system restarts keep running CCleaner's Issues scanner multiple times until no more ZaMailSafe entries are found, and then open RegEdit and manually delete Zone Labs entries found in:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Zone Labs
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Zone Labs
You may or will also have to manually delete the left over C:\Windows\Internet Logs folder as well.
Give Sunbelt Kerio Personal Firewall a try. The 30 day trial period allows you to use all of it's paid features, and after the 30 day trial period ends some of those paid features will be disabled as it morphs into freeware mode. It's also very easy to backup the configuration, and doesn't seem to cause as many problems as ZoneAlarm Free and it's a more current version (currently just rebranded) versus using ZoneAlarm Free v5.5.
The last time I tested "this free firewall" which is Comodo Personal Firewall it had some open ports when I used the ShieldsUp! test on http://grc.com, needless to say it only lasted a few minutes after that test.
Give Sunbelt Kerio Personal Firewall a try. The 30 day trial period allows you to use all of it's paid features, and after the 30 day trial period ends some of those paid features will be disabled as it morphs into freeware mode. It's also very easy to backup the configuration, and doesn't seem to cause as many problems as ZoneAlarm Free and it's a more current version (currently just rebranded) versus using ZoneAlarm Free v5.5.
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i dont like it. it always asks me whether to allow a program to let it execute a program(whether or not it uses the inet) and the interface is a bit sloppy.
Changed my mind and started to use Netveda Saftey.net firewall.. wholdman posted earlier. It's working good. It also passed all the tests @ grc.com. JohnDemolition, give it a try.
i dont like it. it always asks me whether to allow a program to let it execute a program(whether or not it uses the inet) and the interface is a bit sloppy.
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There's two ways it can be installed.
The default is for it to automatically allow a program access which is not completely secure. You must have used it in it's "prompt mode" which is more secure. Once you allow and create a rule for all of the programs you use online, and some other programs that call upon other programs it shouldn't bug you anymore unless a program has changed by either a new version being installed, or by a malware infection.
Has a thing called "ShieldsUp!" which can probe your computer and test your firewall and present the result in how successful it was in its portscans.
From a console you can run "netstat -a" to display all active connections. "netstat -b" is also a useful command.
If you have another computer you can scan your computer with a tool called "nmap" which is a great tool used by many real professionals. http://www.insecure.org/
Has a thing called "ShieldsUp!" which can probe your computer and test your firewall and present the result in how successful it was in its portscans.
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ShieldsUp! isn't the most thorough test, it's basic at most, however it's a very quick and easy way to evaluate how a firewall is performing. If a firewall can't past those quick tests I immediately uninstall it. Although allot of people bad-mouth Steve Gibson there'd be allot of computer users that wouldn't have known to use a firewall, myself included when I discovered GRC.com back in the year 2000.
Whats wrong with steve gibson? He is pretty much the one who started the whole pc security thing. I mean he is even credited as being the first one to find spyware.
Shields up is ok. Andavari do what other firewall tests do you use?