Firewall recommendations?

[dbminter]

I'd like some people's recommendations for a piece of firewall software.

 

 

Do NOT recommend the following:

 

1.) Microsoft's Only goes one way.

2.) Norton's Symantec is only second to Microsoft at sucking ass in the software department.

3.) ZoneAlarm I am trying to REPLACE it as best I can because of a huge error apparently introduced into the antispyware engine that is only NOT present in one version of ZA. BUT that version has its own limitations.

 

 

Basically, the closest to ZoneAlarm that is free the better, but, I'm willing to also try out pay options, too, IF they have free trials or the features I'm looking for from ZoneAlarm.

 

 

Thanks!

[cornholio7]

http://www.sunbelt-software.com/Kerio.cfm

 

theres a free trial here.

kerio was recommended to me once but i'm not sure this is the same.

[LIGHTNING UK!]

Outpost Firewall was ok (from what I remember).

 

Sygate Firewall Pro was too but I think it may have been taken over by symantec now.

 

I tried out quite a few different ones a couple of years back and nothing really came close to ZA.

 

Why do you bother with the antispyware stuff in ZA? Just get / use the basic firewall package, then you won't have the problem!

 

There are a zillion other tools out there for spyware and unless you're stupid (I know you're not!) you shouldn't get any anyway.

Normal AV programs pick up most stuff that IE fails to block or at least prompt you on (or at least my one does).

[A_T]

http://www.sunbelt-software.com/Kerio.cfm

 

theres a free trial here.

kerio was recommended to me once but i'm not sure this is the same.

 

I use this one. Has a really good overview which shows what applications are accessing the internet and what bandwidth they are using. It also has application behaviour control which alerts you when apps start and gives you the chance to stop them. I use this and don't bother with an antivirus.

[dbminter]

Why do you bother with the antispyware stuff in ZA? Just get / use the basic firewall package, then you won't have the problem!

 

 

AH! BUT, remember, I am not BOTHERING with the antispyware stuff in ZA. ZA IS bothering ME with it by installing it WHETHER IT IS NEEDED OR NOT as part of its install. The free trial of ZA Pro is the same installer as ZA free, which does not have antispyware. Even IF you disable the antispyware in ZA Pro, it still gets installed, and see my thread about my drive problems for why that is the problem. Only ZA AV, which has no antispyware engine files in its installer package, is immune, unless it is a build less than 737 AND you don't update the antispyware definitions/engine within ZA's updater.

[Defenestration]

I use Look 'n' Stop (www.looknstop.com) which is the lightest firewall around and very secure when using the Enhanced or Phant0m's rule set (you can get the latest beta which is very stable from the forum http://wilderssecurity.com/forumdisplay.php?f=28 ). It does not work with 64-bit Windows.

 

Outpost is also very good although is more resource hungry (with version 4 to be released soon which has 64-bit support)

[Pain_Man]

I've been using ZA for several years now. I've never had serious problems with. Before I got the hardware firewall that comes with the wireless router, ZA was excellent at swatting down any and all "intrusions" and my machine was regularly getting hit by fuckers from China and Hong Kong (90%+ of the attack attempts). ZA stopped them cold.

 

Also, you can always turn off ZA's spyware function.

 

Every firewall should be tested using Steven Gibson's free firewall tester called Shields Up! It can be found at grc.com. Click on Shields Up! and scroll down the page and you'll see it.

 

Click that link and then choose "Probe all ports."

 

As a control, then turn off your firewall and run the test again.

 

Gibson has loads of good information on firewalls and he rates ZA as the best.

 

Here comes the "However"...

 

the recent update to 6.5 contained a bug (I have Zone Alarm Security Suite, so I don't know if the problem is limited to the other versions). I don't know if it's been fixed yet, so I'm waiting. They've already released another minor update. I'm going to wait until the next one b4 I give 6.5 a try.

 

As for Symantec, imo bourne of experience, their products are shitware: wildly over priced, buggy and prone to crash my systems. And trying to uninstall their shit is a nightmare.

 

There was one excellent product they had, WinFax 9.0. When the released WinFax 10 I installed it and it screwed up my system so bad I had to to completely reinstall.

 

I won't touch any Symantec product, period.

Edited September 5, 2006 by Pain_Man

[dbminter]

Also, you can always turn off ZA's spyware function.

 

 

You're NOT listening. Well, in your defense you may not have read my other thread, so, here is the reason:

 

 

It does NOT matter IF the function is ENABLED or not. It gets installed REGARDLESS. The presence of the engine itself is merely enough. 6.5.722 is fine. Update the antispyware engine and the problem appears. Disable antispyware, and, it is still present. Install ZoneAlarm Free 6.5.737 and it is there because the installer for ZA Free is the same as ZA Pro. The only version not affected is ZA AntiVirus because it does not have the spyware function in it at all.

 

 

Here comes the "However"...

 

the recent update to 6.5 contained a bug (I have Zone Alarm Security Suite, so I don't know if the problem is limited to the other versions). I don't know if it's been fixed yet, so I'm waiting. They've already released another minor update. I'm going to wait until the next one b4 I give 6.5 a try.

 

 

You people really AREN'T listening!

 

 

 

 

There was an update released on the 2nd, I think. And, no, it didn't fix it. Like these updates ever do fix problems, right?

 

 

6.5.722 does not contain the bad spyware engine. Only if you update the spyware with its update function. The bad spyware engine is included in the 6.5.737 installer and gets installed regardless of if you choose to turn it on or not. Only ZA AV is free of this because it is the only post 6.5.722 installer that does not contain the antispyware engine in its package. ZoneAlarm Free does contain it because it is contained in ZoneAlarm Pro's package, and, ZA Free's installer is the same as ZA Pro's.

 

 

Thus far, ZA AV's only missing component is the antispyware engine, which I never used anyway. BUT because they refused to write the installer so it doesn't actually "install" the engine, the other flavors of ZA are useless. So, ZA AV is what I've been using and will probably stick with... until I find whatever fucker bug or missing needed feature in ZA AV is...

[Defenestration]

Another good site containing information on firewalls and various leaktests is

 

http://www.firewallleaktester.com/

[lfcrule1972]

I need to find your other post on drive problems I think db - I have used ZA for a couple of years and not seen any problems with it. In fact I have recommended it to many friends - for the cost I don't think you can beat it.

 

I assume you may have already tried to contact ZA about this issue ?

[dbminter]

I need to find your other post on drive problems I think db - I have used ZA for a couple of years and not seen any problems with it. In fact I have recommended it to many friends - for the cost I don't think you can beat it.

 

I assume you may have already tried to contact ZA about this issue ?

 

 

http://forum.imgburn.com/index.php?showtopic=1942&st=40

 

 

Check out the last thread.

 

 

And, no, I won't be telling them. They won't listen, they won't care, they won't try to replicate the problem, and, even if they did, God et al would make sure it doesn't happen to them and only to me, making me appear to be a fool, because it only serves their purposes for humor to have these sort of things happen to me. Lastly, even if they did discover it or were already aware of it, fixing it is NOT a priority. LUK is the ONLY coder, thus far, I've seen who actually takes errors seriously enough to look in and fix.

 

 

Thus, with all that in mind, given how much unnecessary work I've had to put into the problem, my thinking is also why should anyone ELSE benefit from my hard work if they're not going to fix it? They're not going to fix it JUST for me, so why bother? People benefit enough already from my having existed, from my suffering and hard work, and from just crossing my path. I don't need to give them anything else when it can already be taken from me.

 

 

Yeah, I've lost my mind. Big fucking deal. I lost it long ago and no one cared. They care even less now that I'm rotting in pain and emotional distress.