Which firewall is best?

BabylenTatarsky · Feb 26, 2007, 11:06 PM

A thread for my brother, he has this to say:

I have recently formatted my computer, and am looking at which anti virus and firewall I should install.
I've picked out my anti-virus, Nod32, I hear from alot of places this is one of the best anti-virus programs.
I was just wondering if there is a firewall held in the same light as "the best one to get" and if so, which is it?

Ta very much.

Cheers.

cozumel · Feb 26, 2007, 11:31 PM

I use Comodo which is free and supplements my (hardware) broadband router just fine.
If you don't have a hardware router I'd probably go for either ZoneAlarm Pro or Outpost Pro which both cost $39.95.

BTW, NOD32 is best antivirus IMO - good choice

Edit: This should really be discussed in the software, applications & tweaking forum

dipstick · Feb 27, 2007, 12:04 AM

Comodo seems to the best there is, especially for free. I use Kaspersky internet security and its a lot better than ZoneAlarm; plus its the one of the few fully working vista firewalls

Nice read here

niceguyrichy · Feb 27, 2007, 03:16 AM

moved to more appropriate forum

personally I've been putting zonealarm on the family's comps for years, always very happy with it.

zaim · Feb 27, 2007, 06:09 AM

RoyBatty · Feb 27, 2007, 10:15 AM

Good free firewall is Jetico Personal Firewall, it is really small and it needs only 6 MB of RAM. Comodo is probably even better, it is still being updated, but it needs more resources.

Quote:

Originally Posted by zaim

...

zaim is funny, as usual

GutterPunk · Feb 27, 2007, 12:59 PM

I always recommend Comodo at my Helpdesk uhh desk.

Nod32 = the sex...

Matth · Feb 27, 2007, 04:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dipstick

Comodo seems to the best there is, especially for free. I use Kaspersky internet security and its a lot better than ZoneAlarm; plus its the one of the few fully working vista firewalls

Nice read here

I would not hold Matousec up as a good example of firewall research, due to his disgraceful practice of openly "selling bugs", a practice considered reprehensible by the legitimate security community.

If not actually a "black hat", this practice certainly marks Matousec as a "grey hat".

He also seems to have a synergistic relationship with Comodo, and an antagonistic relationship with some of the others.

Another one worth a look http://force.coresecurity.com/ - quite complex to tune well, but also controls registry and file/directory access as well as network access - not seen it pitted against any test suites yet though

H3X4D3C1M4L · Feb 27, 2007, 05:37 PM

ZoneAlarm free version is an exceptionally good firewall for the money.

Of course the most secure solution would be to use OpenBSD and use a well configured pf, nothing more secure than that I don't think short of no internet connection at all

dipstick · Feb 28, 2007, 03:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Matth

I would not hold Matousec up as a good example of firewall research, due to his disgraceful practice of openly "selling bugs", a practice considered reprehensible by the legitimate security community.

If not actually a "black hat", this practice certainly marks Matousec as a "grey hat".

He also seems to have a synergistic relationship with Comodo, and an antagonistic relationship with some of the others.

Another one worth a look http://force.coresecurity.com/ - quite complex to tune well, but also controls registry and file/directory access as well as network access - not seen it pitted against any test suites yet though

That doesn't sound very nice lol. Sorry for posting a crappy review, it was one of the few I could find. But the truth is you should never decide just by one review of a product no matter who the reviewer is

Also just if anyone is wondering I don't think ZoneAlarm is a bad product; if anything its still one of the best. It's their lack of support and lack of courtesy against their customers I really dislike. I actually purchased it not long ago because I thought it was the best and the website said "Vista Ready!" in huge letters but here we are a few months later with no Vista support at all! They even took down the Vista Ready crap and they tell me it will be done when its ready while my subscription is being wasted. Forget about it if you ask about 64bit support; they get really pissed off like you said something about their mothers or something.

Rechinica · Apr 9, 2007, 11:10 AM

You should try Look'n'Stop.
Install kit is about 800k, and it only occupies 3-4MB of RAM.
On their site you can download some common rules that you can modify very easy.

I wanted a lightweight firewall - and found it

Using it in Vista with NOD32 AV - works great.

GutterPunk · Apr 9, 2007, 10:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rechinica

You should try Look'n'Stop.
Install kit is about 800k, and it only occupies 3-4MB of RAM.
On their site you can download some common rules that you can modify very easy.

I wanted a lightweight firewall - and found it

Using it in Vista with NOD32 AV - works great.

is it free?

i wanna check it out!

zexx11 · Apr 9, 2007, 11:00 PM

I use Look n Stop.

[/IMG]

RoyBatty · Apr 10, 2007, 02:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GutterPunk

is it free?

Unfortunately Look'n'stop is not free (only 30 days trial version). But if you want free lightweight firewall try Jetico Personal Firewall

BlueMak · Apr 10, 2007, 03:58 PM

I find Kerio very good.
My only problem with it is that since I use my PC to connect online with my xbox 360, for some reason the only way to make it go online (360) is to disable the network security module, which is no good.

Feb 26, 2007, 11:06 PM	#1
BabylenTatarsky Rocks Your Socks Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: St. Helens [UK] Posts: 1,652 Rep Power: 63 System Specs	Which firewall is best? A thread for my brother, he has this to say: I have recently formatted my computer, and am looking at which anti virus and firewall I should install. I've picked out my anti-virus, Nod32, I hear from alot of places this is one of the best anti-virus programs. I was just wondering if there is a firewall held in the same light as "the best one to get" and if so, which is it? Ta very much. Cheers. __________________

Feb 26, 2007, 11:31 PM	#2
cozumel I'm dangerous but cute... Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Under the waves... Posts: 3,577 Rep Power: 60 System Specs	I use Comodo which is free and supplements my (hardware) broadband router just fine. If you don't have a hardware router I'd probably go for either ZoneAlarm Pro or Outpost Pro which both cost $39.95. BTW, NOD32 is best antivirus IMO - good choice Edit: This should really be discussed in the software, applications & tweaking forum __________________ Don't worry about money - Be a beach bum! Scuba Rocks Last edited by cozumel; Feb 27, 2007 at 12:04 AM.

Feb 27, 2007, 06:09 AM	#5
zaim HardwareHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Melbourne, AU Posts: 1,052 Rep Power: 42	__________________ زعيم MAIN PC(1)(2)(3):•Q9550•GAP35DS3P• 4GBCrucialPC2-8500BallistixTracerLED•XFX9800GTX•3x146GB CheetahSAS15K.5 Raid0•2x 1TB Raid1•LianLiA10B•2x22"5ms@3360x1050• BEDROOM HTPC(1)(2)(3):E6600•MSI945GM3-F•2048DDR2667•1TB•Samsung26"HDTV•HybridHDTV•5.1• Laptop:•Centrino2 P8400 1066fsb•4GB-DDR2 800•320GBSATA•DVDDL•15.4"WXGA•802.11a/b/g/n• WHServer:•AM2 5200+•2GB DDR2 800•Lots of TB Storage•1GB TCP/IP• www.zaimc.com // myspace/zaimc // zaimm.deviantart BLOG BLOG BLOG BLOG BLOG 16 x 92mm fan + radiator experiment!

Feb 27, 2007, 12:59 PM	#7
GutterPunk I = Greatest Dood Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Nebraska Posts: 5,949 Rep Power: 71	I always recommend Comodo at my Helpdesk uhh desk. Nod32 = the sex... __________________ Rock On \m/ Thank you Mousey for the Sig! --------------- Intel Core2Duo E6660 (3.4GHZ) ~ Tuniq Tower 120 ~ Enermax Galaxy 1000W ~ Corsair Dominator @ 1090MHZ 5-5-5-15 (OCZ XTC Modded Cooler)~ EVGA 8800GTX W/ HR-03 Plus 120MM ~ Asus DVD-RW LiteScribe ~ LG DVD-RW ~ Corsair Voyager 2GB ReadyBoost Drive ~ Vantec Nexus Fan Controller ~ ThermalTake Armor 25CM fan ~ Personal Finance Blog: Dent Your Debt

Apr 9, 2007, 11:00 PM	#13
zexx11 HardwareHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Lynchburg Va. Posts: 75 Rep Power: 0 System Specs	I use Look n Stop.[/IMG]

Feb 27, 2007, 12:04 AM	#3
dipstick HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: USA Posts: 3,609 Rep Power: 71 System Specs	Comodo seems to the best there is, especially for free. I use Kaspersky internet security and its a lot better than ZoneAlarm; plus its the one of the few fully working vista firewalls Nice read here

Feb 27, 2007, 05:37 PM	#9
H3X4D3C1M4L DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 6,794 Rep Power: 0	ZoneAlarm free version is an exceptionally good firewall for the money. Of course the most secure solution would be to use OpenBSD and use a well configured pf, nothing more secure than that I don't think short of no internet connection at all

Apr 9, 2007, 11:10 AM	#11
Rechinica DriverHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 26 Rep Power: 0 System Specs	You should try Look'n'Stop. Install kit is about 800k, and it only occupies 3-4MB of RAM. On their site you can download some common rules that you can modify very easy. I wanted a lightweight firewall - and found it Using it in Vista with NOD32 AV - works great.

Apr 10, 2007, 03:58 PM	#15
BlueMak HH's Asteroids' Dominator Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Hellas->Macedonia->Thessaloniki Posts: 13,459 Rep Power: 349 System Specs	I find Kerio very good. My only problem with it is that since I use my PC to connect online with my xbox 360, for some reason the only way to make it go online (360) is to disable the network security module, which is no good. __________________ The people who are regarded as moral luminaries are those who forego ordinary pleasures themselves and find compensation in interfering with the pleasures of others(Bertrand Russell)"You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil,You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them." - Lt. Gen. James N. Mattis This is slavery, not to speak one's thought. [Euripides-The Phoenician Women (c.411-409 B.C.)] http://www.macedonia.info/FALLACIESANDFACTS.htm *Sic semper tyrannis.*