Resolved Windows 10 firewall is off

I'm confused.....Every time I boot my PC I get a Windows Security message telling me that my Windows Firewall is turned off. Settings>Windows Security>Firewall and Network Protection (No actions needed) shows that Microsoft Defender Firewall is on for Domain, Private and Public networks. However, on that same screen, Who's protecting me/Manage providers shows there are no providers for Firewall. If I click on the received message to turn on the firewall it still shows no providers. I thought it might be related to Malwarebytes Premium, which is set NOT to be registered in the Windows Security Center, but turning it off has no effect. Windows Firewall troubleshooter found no problem. My Windows 10 Pro is up to date.

My laptop, also running Windows 10 Pro and Malwarebytes Premium, under Who's protecting me/Manage providers shows Windows Firewall is on. Apparently Microsoft Defender Firewall and Windows Firewall are two different things? Any clues?

 

Because some folks like to run with 3rd party security solutions, Microsoft made that easy. When Windows sees another solution has been installed, Microsoft Defender steps out of the way.

You have Malwarebytes Premium installed so that is what happened.

The good news is, Microsoft Defender and Malwarebytes Premium play very well together. They don't interfere with each other and they don't hog resources. This is the same combination I use on my main systems here.

What you need to do is tell Malwarebytes "not" to register itself in Windows Security Center. Fortunately, this is simple.

Open the Malwarebytes control panel. The click on the settings "gear" icon in the upper right. Then click on the Security tab and scroll down to Windows Security Center. Then slide the slider switch to "Off" (the left). Exit Malwarebytes and reboot. Then see if all is working as you expect.

 

Thanks for your suggestion but apparently you didn't read my complete post where I said: "I thought it might be related to Malwarebytes Premium, which is set NOT to be registered in the Windows Security Center, but turning it off has no effect."

 

You are right. I jumped right over that. Sorry.

On the Security providers screen, under Firewall, when you hover over Windows Firewall, you should see a dropdown menu arrow. If you click that and then click Open App, what happens if you click on "Restore firewalls to default"?

 

Hovering does nothing, because no provider is shown.

 

IDK then.

If me, I would run System file checker from an elevated (as administrator) command prompt. The command is sfc /scannow then enter and note the space before the "/"

 

Done, no results shown. I have been through all the Windows Firewall help actions, but I always end up at instructions to turn on Microsoft Defender Firewall, which is on.

 

I opened a case with Microsoft Support and they had me reinstall Windows, which seems to have corrected the problem. Although the Microsoft Defender Firewall is on immediately after reboot, it takes over 2 minutes for the Windows Firewall to turn on. Apparently that's normal. Anyway, I'm not getting that Windows Security message any more.

Thanks Guys for your help....again!

 

If a reinstall fixed this, it is disappointing SFC didn't detect the issue and fix it without having to reinstall. That's its purpose.

I hope the MS tech properly documented this issue. If enough people report the same issue, MS will eventually dedicate resources to find the problem and release a permanent fix.

The problem is there are over 1.5 billion Windows systems out there and virtually each and every one becomes a unique machine within the first few minutes after its first boot. This due to countless possible hardware configurations from 100s (1000s?) of different manufacturers, installed software, network setups, security, and of course, user personalizations.

Anyway, I am glad you got it sorted out and thanks for coming back and posting your update!

 

I agree, but the network troubleshooter also found nothing and I find that disturbing too. What's odd though is that I just did a fresh install of Windows two months ago after I built my new system. I think I was probably getting that security warning since then, but it took me a while to realize that it might actually be a problem. The confusion over there being 2 different firewalls didn't help and Microsoft is not at all clear on that issue.

 

Well, you were connecting to the network so not sure I would expect the network troubleshooter to find anything.

Since this could have been going on since the rebuilt, I am starting to suspect it was Malwarebytes or another 3rd party security solution causing some conflict. I like Malwarebytes - I have either the Premium or Free version on all my systems here. But it has not been problem free. There have been several times where uninstalling Malwarebytes, rebooting, then installing Malwarebytes again resolved the issues.

In Microsoft's defense, they, especially Level-1 tech support, are not expected to understand how specific 3rd party applications "will" interact with Windows. They know how 3rd party apps "should" interact, but MS has no real control over that.

Having said all that, Malwarebytes is an anti-malware solution, not an Internet security solution. Malwarebytes Premium does NOT include a firewall. Some assume Malwarebytes' "Web Protection" feature is a firewall, but it's not. That feature blocks traffic to "known" malicious or suspicious websites. It also blocks phishing attempts. It does not control access to ports which is what a firewall does. So there never should have been 2 different firewalls on your system. And that to me is where the confusion is. Are you sure you didn't install yet another 3rd party firewall?

 

Here's what Microsoft support told me when I specifically asked if Microsoft Defender Firewall and Windows Firewall were the same or different: "Microsoft Defender and Firewall both are different, defender for malware safety and firewall for network scanning or safety." I think the confusion comes from Defender being called a firewall. I have never used any protection software with Windows 10 other then Defender and Malwarebytes Premium.

 

Microsoft Defender and the Windows Firewall are different. "Microsoft Defender", formally "Windows Defender" (totally different from the "Windows Defender" used with Windows 7), is indeed an antimalware solution (and an effective one at that). "Firewall & network protection" is a separate function, as is Account protection, App & browser control, and Device security. Yet they are all bundled under the "Windows Security" umbrella.

There is no "Microsoft Defender Firewall".

Microsoft is notorious for using confusing and/or similar names for different functions, features and programs. Then to make matters worse, just when you think you have them all sorted out, Microsoft renames them, using a different confusing and/or similar name.

Oh well. Life goes on.

 

Well Microsoft disagrees. Settings>Update and Security>Windows Security>Firewall & network protection......What does it show under the three networks? "Firewall is on". Click on any of the networks and what does it show? "Microsoft Defender Firewall". And on the Windows Security screen there is a link for "Turning on Microsoft Defender Firewall".

I realize I'm whipping a dead horse, so the bottom line is now that I understand Microsoft's confusing terminology and have figured out what should be turned on and where, it's all good. And I've learned a lot from our stimulating conversation.

Well said!

 

LOL Just shows how even Microsoft is confused about their own naming conventions.