XP's Firewall

Daizy

I’d rather allow Roman Polanski to baby-sit my daughter than allow Daizy to monkey with my computer

 

Johanna,

Thank you for putting me into such august company. If your cooking is as good as your knowledge of computers, it would be a gourmet meal.

Ok, I have a better understanding of your thinking, and I agree with what you're saying.

"Do I trust M$? Yeah, but like my 3 year old, I keep an eye on 'em."

Great line, have to remmber that one!

Regards - Charles

 

Do I trust M$? Yeah, but like my 3 year old, I keep an eye on 'em."

I sure do agree with that. But right now I have to keep my eys on Teenagers. ( Nieces & Nephews )

But in the line there is I believe an important word TRUST

But I would apply that to not only M$ but to all Software I use and to also TO MYSELF as being the controller of said components.

I have to trust that I make the right choices.

I have to trust that I have set things up correctly.

I have to trust myself to re-activate AV if I have disabled it to install software or something.

This may not belong here but here goes anyway. I ran 4 different online port scans this AM.

Sygate can't even find my machine. Due to ( it says ) the Router.

Symantec can't find the pots either for the same reason.

Gibson lists some 25 ports and all as being closed or Stealthed.

Securitymetrics does the same.

Now a question.

" Who in hell am I supposed to believe/trust out of the above " ?

So the whole thing winds up right back in 'Ol BillyBobs' lap. I have to trust not only the software but myself and the choices that I have made.

Johanna

I can not use Symantec for the same reason that you can not use the XP firewall. Conflicts. With what I have yet to find out.

BillyBob

 

There's one important consideration about the XP firewall that I don't think anyone has mentioned ... if you're running a LAN, and enable XP's firewall, goodbye LAN!

The only way my machines (two XP Pro, one 98 SE) will communicate with each other (through a D-Link DI-704P router) is if the XP firewall is turned off. I use ZA on all three computers, with each one's IP address listed in the trusted zone.

 

That would be very scary thought for me too.

BTW. With the Router there is no need whatsoever for ICF anyway.

The Router does the same job and I personally believe better.

Plus if your Router is like my Linksys it keeps the LAN and the Internet separated.

BillyBob

 

Have a neighbor that runs two machines hooked together - meaning that each can access the other's files. The router is a LinkSys, fairly new, installed early this year.

One XP, the other 98.

I just reinstalled XP on the newer one, with ICF enabled and with ZAP v4.0.

When I installed ZAP, the connection type was DSL direct line out.

Everything works fine, even better because of the reinstall. I don't know enough about networks to say whether this is the situation that BB and Jim are writing about. Feel free to ask me more about the setup, when I get back to the system, I'll find out more about the way its setup.

BTW, another issue. I'm going to be monitoring the system, my neighbor is clueless in some ways. I may be able to find out why XP seems to stop making auto System Restore points.

Regards - Charles

When I wrote "system works better ", I should have said that it was broken before What got broken? NAV!!! BSOD's and SR wouldn't work at all. And AOL was another culprit. AOL v9.0 - a Beta version that a AOL tech advised for use. That really did the system in.

 

OK here I do have to ask again.

With a Router being used ( Linksys like mine ) WHY is ICF needed. ?

The router more than makes up for it not running.

Running ICF behind the Router is not the same as running Sygate along with ICF. Sygate does what ICF doesn't.

I need someone with more knowledge of ICF than I have to verify my right or wrong thinking but. As fas as I know ICF is designed to work for Internet use not LAN. Too entirely different things. Especially with a Router involved. I can unplug my Modem from the Router and still have the LAN. And I don't not need ICF for that. Kerio handles the LAN very nicely.

I believe ICF is short for Internet Connection Firewall. Not Local Area Network Connections.

I believe with the Router ( left as the default DHCP server ) non-routable IPs are used on each machine which ICF may not be looking for and may cause conflicts.

As to SR. That is another M$ wild ( but sort of a good one ) idea that works when it wants to and don't when it don't. And another thing that I do not fully trust or depend on.

Now get this.
Yesterday I unintalled Nero4.x and installed Nero 5.0. NOT ONCE did SR make a RP. ( it is supposed to I believe ( or does sometimes ))

I unistalled and re-installed something else with a newer version. Again no RP made.

But here is where I get confused big time. SR has ALWAYS made a new RP when I would install Windows Updates. You figure it out. I gave up. I just make sure I have one when I need it. And make a new one and dispose of the old ones after I get changes made and I know all is well.

BillyBob

 

Hey BB,

On the re-install, ICF is a default, so I left it that way. Want to see what happen on another system other than my own.

As far as I know, it was on before the re-install.


About SR: Got a chance to see when SR makes points and when not.

MS updates - after the reinstall, first thing was to do updates that I have kept on my system (I use the Catalog download site and do the updates manually).

The pattern: If the updates are "critical" - SR created. If not - SR not created.

Applications: Installed NAV2003 - SR created

Installed a bunch of others - no SR.

By the evidence, NAV is so intrusive on Windows, that XP creates an SR point.

I was thinking of Johanna when I was installing NAV and her phrase "NAV bosses MS around" - think "squats" is more like it

Regards - Charles

EDIT: have not reinstalled Roxio yet. Will see what happens.

 

I install NIS on the partition that DOESN'T have XP on it, but lots of stuff latches onto the C drive anyway.

Charles, when you get to Roxio, don't forget the updates. The one that takes Takes Two off of Easy CD is the most important!

(and, if my cooking were like my comp skills, my kids would live off of PB & J sandwiches and Kraft Mac & Cheese)

 

Hi Johanna,

"Charles, when you get to Roxio, don't forget the updates. The one that takes Takes Two off of Easy CD is the most important! "

Thanks for the reminder, wouldn't of thought of that.

Regards - Charles