best firewall?

[Poppa_Meth]

just wondering what the best software firewall would be? also would a router with firewall be a better option? I'm using Zone Alarm free now and it works great but has a few problems running edonkey through it. Suffers memory leak with edonkey running, although it just recently started doing this after several months with no problems running them together. unfortunately it looks like Zone Alarm has some of the best ratings on it. any help is appreciated.

[rallynavvie]

I used Norton's firewall for a little while but got sick of assigning properties to it so now I go naked to the internet. I guess I'm not too worried since I'm still on dial-up and would notice if there were some sort of attempt being made on my computer. I dont' trust software firewalls though, I use the one on my wireless router for my video PC to block almost everthing when it shares the internet connection from the other PC. If/when I do get broadband I've got a P3 box with the latest RedHat kernel on it and two NICs that I'll used for a proper hardware firewall.

Norton's was bloatware so I wouldn't recommend it. I've always been told ZoneAlarm is probably the easiest of the software firewalls. Maybe try Black Ice?

[Poppa_Meth]

yeah I'm not touching Norton. I was thinking about it but started reading reviews on amazon and there isn't hardly a single good review on it. It seems to have some horrible problems. Might look into Black Ice as I believe it has decent ratings.

[phonomas]

I like doing both - hardware + software firewall. For the hardware (router), I would recommend Linksys.

[Poppa_Meth]

I'll look into the linksys hardware. I guess I could continue to use ZA and just disable it and enable the XP firewall when I'm using Edonkey. I really do like ZA and this is the only problem I have with it. If I get a hardware firewall I might be able to run both and just disable ZA and depend on the Linksys while using Edonkey.

[stiltman]

Best?

Cisco PIX firewall
CheckPoint Firewall-1

[BJ_M]

Best?

Cisco PIX firewall
CheckPoint Firewall-1

yea -- those are the BEST ! for a little less - sonicwall makes some nice units ...

i like blackice also ..

if you run p2p -- you may want to use this



http://www.bluetack.co.uk/forums/index.php?showtopic=722

[808smokey]

Zone Alarm

[susie]

What about Hardware firewall such as Alpha Shields ???

http://www.alphashield.com/products.htm

[Poppa_Meth]

I think I'm going to end up going with a hardware firewall and a software firewall. Since I like ZA and am familiar with it, I'll probably stick to that and just turn it off when downloading allowing the hardware unit to catch anything that comes in. Now for the hardware. Some of the units mentioned look quite nice but I really like to hear from people who have used them before buying something like this. looking on newegg the linksys equipment seems to have some not so good reviews. Looks like D-link is becomming more popular. anyone have experience with this unit?

http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=33-127-002&depa=0

Also is there any problem with running just one PC through a router like this? I've never needed a router before so I don't know a great deal about them. I was looking into a firewall only unit but the price is generally a good deal higher than a router unit with built in firewall.

[808smokey]

Also is there any problem with running just one PC through a router like this?

Nope wouldn't cause any problems at all. Kinda pointless though I think. I ran ZA, without a hardware firewall, for a year full protection mode, no intrusions, 24 hour connection thru Road runner. I think hardware is better than software firewalls but not completly neccessary on a home computer. I have a Linksys 4 port router, never had any problems with it. Easy to use and setup. It's only running two XP PRO computers. My other computer had Win98se on it and it was a bitch and half to get it setup correctly throught that router so I upgraded it to XP, took all of 5 minutes to set that up with XP. I'm not saying Linksys is better or worse than D-Link just I never had problems with mine. I bought it at radio shack for $39.99 on sale from $59.99 I think

[Ziffelpig]

Using a software firewall with a router is redundant. I use a belkin router, easy to use, you can open ports for P2P, servers etc, you are invisible to the rest of the internet . Routers are an essential component of any home network, and are very reasonably priced now days, I could be wrong but I don't think you can go wireless without a router.

[Agent 0008]

I have 2 computers, one has Zone Alarm Pro (latest) the other has Norton's internet security 2003. I use to be a fan of ZA but currently I prefer Norton's, it's less cumbersome and doesn't slow down the computer half as much as ZA, it also does a better job not interferring with the internet, ZA I always had to manually configure for message boards as it would screw them up, icons, gif images and the ability to post. Norton's has been smooth sailing from day one.

I just received the latest update from ZA and haven't had time to see if they have improved it.

[Poppa_Meth]

I'll probalby get hardware and just continue using ZA free version along with it, though I may check out black ice. A router wouldn't be a complete waste. I have a couple game consoles I may network into the system eventually so the possibility for future use is there.

[Abbadon]

Hello People,

After using several firewalls such as AtGuard, Norton Internet Security, Zone Alarm, I must say I prefer the Dumb Built in Firewall that comes with Windows XP.

Why? because is dumb and blocks all incoming connections not initiated by my machine, that way it doesn't cause problems with p2p clients or any application I need to use; after all my computer is just a client not a server. I know there are some pros and cons, but if one plays safe no Trojans or spywares will be wasting the bandwidth.

Hardware firewalls are expensive, but if I were to buy one I would choose Sonic Wall.

[mujahid7ia]

I have a D-Link router similar to the one in the newegg link, it's a good router, but for eMule I would not recommend it. Sometimes, even with the appropriate ports open, I can not get a HighID. This lasts for a long time and the only solution is to power cycle the router + cable modem for at least a minute. You can check the eMule and eMule Plus forums for router compatibility. I do not know the addresses, but you can find them w/ Google.

[sterno]

I've used both D-Link and Linksys routers. I saw no meaningful differences. Both of them just quietly worked. Occasionally I'd have to unplug them for a minute or two to reset them.

The firewall-only equipment is expensive because it's versatile. You can set up all sorts of access rules. You probably don't need that.

BlackIce has a long history of being an ineffective product that fails to prevent or notify the user of breaches. I would never pay money for it.

[Poppa_Meth]

I think I may just disable ZA and use the XP firewall which using Edonkey. I've done that the past couple times and no problems. I doubt I really need to run a firewall at all but there are just too many possible intrusions when not running one.