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When Microsoft released Service Pack 2, they added numerous enhancements to the Windows Firewall. The most important changes are that the firewall is now turned on by default and applies to all network connections.

The firewall can be accessed in several ways.The simplest way is to go to Control Panel, Switch to Classic View and then double click on Windows Firewall.

The default selection is On (recommended). To turn the firewall off, choose Off (not recommended). This should only be done for testing purposes or if the machine has another firewall. The most secure setting is On (recommended) with Don't allow exceptions selected. In this mode the user should still be able to access the Internet, send and receive e-mail, use messaging programs etc. However, other programs that have previously been configured to access the Internet may not work.

To configure exceptions click the Exceptions tab.

This screen lists the programs that can accept incoming connections. There are several options here. The Display a notification... checkbox is self-explanatory.

To add a new program to the list click Add Program... then either choose from the list of registered programs or click Browse to search for the program.

The Change Scope... option allows the user to specify which computers are allowed to connect to the program. For example, for File and Print Sharing it would be advisable to set this for My network (subnet) only or possibly Custom List.

The Add Port... option gives the user the ability to open specific ports on the machine. A descriptive Name and the Port Number can be entered as well as the protocol TCP or UDP. As above, the Change Scope... option allows the user to specify which computers can connect to the open port.

Adding a program is much safer than adding a port. When you add a port, the port stays open permanently until it is removed. When you add a program the port(s) that the program use(s) remain open only as long as the program is running.

Clicking on the Advanced tab in the Windows Firewall applet renders a screen as shown below. The Restore Defaults option is self-explanatory.

The Settings option under Network Connection Settings is used to specify which server services will be available for external systems to connect to on this machine through the firewall. Simply choose the services needed and select OK.

The Settings option under Security Logging is also relatively self-explanatory. It allows the user to specify the name, location and maximum size of a log file and also to specify what kind of information is logged.

Finally the Settings option under ICMP is used for specifying what control and diagnostic information is allowed through the firewall. Of these options the most important is Allow Incoming Echo Request. When this is set the machine will respond to ping requests. If File and Print Sharing is turned on then this value will automatically be set.

 

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