What does it mean when your firewall blocks port 127.0.0.1?

[HandsOff]

I don't know what this means because it sounds like you are blocking yourself!

This is the firewall example, but I have seen a very similar noscript warning only the port was 45001, I think.


-Also, just for the record, this is 1 of 2 different attempts to connect to two different websites in this yahoo game. They might have had something in the eula somewhere but clearly they are attempting to connect to the internet without the knowledge of the user. As far as I'm concerned that makes it spyware!

(I guess I should have mentioned this is a computer game demo, not an online game!)

[Tommy]

In simple words:
Nothing to worry about, but kind of funny from Kerio :) 127.0.0.1 is your computer also known as localhost. So that's no real outgoing connection. You could/should allow it. Nothing to worry about _in this case_!

Regarding to the connection to Akamai Technologies here some info:
Akamai Technologies has gone from improving basic page download performance to creating the world's largest distributed computing platform for application and content delivery - fundamentally changing the way the Internet works. The Akamai platform routinely handles up to 15% of total Internet traffic - more than one billion hits every day.

Regarding to other connection:
Seams they love to collect informations/statistics/etc. as usual about the users of the game. You can block all outgoing traffic for this game as it is _not_ a online game.

[HandsOff]

Hi, thanks for the reply

Obviously, the more we understand about the computer the better we can make decisions.

About this Local Host thing...This brings up something sort of ironic. I only know how it is used to prevent spying and not all what it is supposed to do. Does it have to do with displaying information on the screen? an app sends a message to the local host which displays it somehow? Otherwise why would it be using Local Host at all?

Akamai I somehow thought was involved in usage tracking, and therefore something good to block. I wonder if there is a performance price tag that goes along with that?


-HandsOff

[Alphalutra1]

127.0.0.1 or localhost as it is commonly referred to is your own pc. Some applications use what is called loopback to communicate with themselves, so they send data to 127.0.0.1 to themselves. You shouldn't ever need to block any loopback except if you have a proxy such as proxomitron because an app could use the proxomitron to access the internet without your knowledge. Then you only need to block loopback to only the port your proxy listens to.

So you are good to go unless you have a proxy, then you have some configuring to do.

Cheers,

Alphalutra1

[HandsOff]

Alphalutra1 - Thanks for your reply!


I'm still struggling a bit with the concept. To use an analogy, do I need a phone in order to talk to myself. I know it is just some technical detail that explains this, yet so often with computers the detail is replaced by generalities. I admit, I probably would not understand the detail but if I hear enough of them, I am counting on my subconscious to piece it all together for me while I sleep!

-HandsOff

[unhappy_viewer]

-{ Quote: "I'm still struggling a bit with the concept. To use an analogy, do I need a phone in order to talk to myself." }-
While it may sound something like your analogy, loopbacks go alot deeper. Simply put, different programs have different reasons for needing loopback. The most common reason is when a trobleshooting program needs to create logs, it uses loopback to analyse certain components of the program that was having trouble. Other programs won't launch if the loopback is blocked such as the ATI Catalyst Control Centre (the display driver for ATI cards).

[HandsOff]

Now that is interesting, and makes a lot of sense! When I was taking some programming classes the taught us to use "flags" to help us find were the program was hanging. Flags like "entering sorting module". Nowadays I suppose it is all done automatically...probably a good thing.

Now I wonder why no script would be using it? I have noticed (with some amusement) that some sites will say "You are unable to view our advertisers....please click here..." Maybe something like that?

Either way I do feel a bit better informed, thanks again!


-HandsOff