outpost or zonealarm

[chaos16]

which one is better zonealarm 6.0 or outpost 2.7???

now i know zonealarm maybe has the uper hand coz its newer but do u think that the upcoming outpost 3.0 will be better or even now 2.7 is better than zonealarm.


coz i find that even zonealarm 6.0 slows down my computer and my internet.

pls help. ;D

[EEEQ]

I have the same doubt of you...

But I´ve used Zonealarm PRO 6 and now I´m using Outpost 2.7, becouse it´s more stable and lighter in my system..

But I don´t know which one is more secure...

[hayc59]

chaos16, Howdy :)
You are gonna hear a thousand reasons why this and why that
and then your gonna be bomb-barded by seven or eight poll's
then your gonna have to decide for yourself and that my friend
is the question.....good luck
All I can say is I have used Outpost since version 1
and many others before that! I happy where I am at today
and my psycho- babel shrink agrees.....*puppy*

[nunya]

http://www.outpostfirewall.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=9858

[EEEQ]

Another thread: Why should I use Outpost? :

http://www.outpostfirewall.com/forum/showthread.php?t=14488

[Robertbb]

You need to install each one and see which is better for you.
They are both good firewalls.

I personally am running ZA6 and it's working great. I've also run Outpost but for some reason it just doesn't like my setup and goes loopy, blocking previously allowed programs to not access the internet and no amount of tweaking the settings fixes it except removing outpost.

I am keeping my eye on Outpost however....

[G1111]

I am having major problems with ZA Pro (going from 5.5 to 6) and because of the difficulty have only XP SP2 firewall currently running. I am pursuing possible fixes with ZA and on their forum. I am looking at Outpost 2.7 in case my problem with ZA Pro can't be fixed and wondering if there are any conflicts or compatibility issues with Outpost and Kaspersky Personal AV, TrojanHunter, ProcessGuard, RegDefend, WormGuard, SpyBot S&D & SpywareBlaster. I am also running a Linksys Broadband (RT31P2) Router. Are there any problems with these programs running with Outpost and will Outpost detect my router and automatically configure itself. I know Outpost has more features and tweaks, but I read info. on the webiste and it looks like it can work at the "simple" level (default and automatic configuation).

[chaos16]

i think that the new upcoming version of outpost 3.0 will be way better than zonealarm hopefully and way lighter and way way more stable.

hopefully as well it has a new technology like the 3 firewalls that zonealarm has.

i've read on the kaspersky forum that the new outpost will have a antispyware built in as well.

and the beta version will come on august i think i am looking forward to it hopefully there will be loads of ppl that will test the beta version and report all the bugs ;D




BTW. is outpost the same as zonealarm in the way the firewall is already seted up. is it the same but lighter right??

[G1111]

-{ Quote: "BTW. is outpost the same as zonealarm in the way the firewall is already seted up. is it the same but lighter right??" }-

Don't know I was running ZA Pro 5.5 until I had major problemns trying to do a clean install of 6. I have not yet tried Outpost.

[Tooltimetim]

Personally... I am using ZoneAlarm Pro 6 right now. It is working great for me... I don't mind the little bit of slowness when browsing/using my computer, because when I did use Outpost (2.5, 2.7) I always ran into problems.

Like many have said to me, "Try as many as you want, and see which one works best for you." :)

[Rainwalker]

"which one is better zonealarm 6.0 or outpost 2.7???"

At the end of the day only you will be able to answer that question :)

[profhsg]

I've used both the latest versions of both programs (OP 2.7 & ZA 6.0) and both are good programs. I do tend to prefer the ability in OP 2.7 to specify easily the exact parameters of an outgoing connection a program makes and find its logging superior to ZAP. On the other hand, using component control with OP 2.7 and my browsers gave me real trouble. Whenever I used my browser and OP 2.7 (and earlier, I've used the program since v 2.0) and a component was modified OP would freeze and I couldn't tell it to approve or disapprove the change. Often the browser would freeze too and I would be forced to close my browser to do anything. I am not alone in my problem, as a search of the excellent OP support forum will show. So far no fix from Agnitum or the denizens of the forum. I have now switched to ZA 6.0 and don't have the problem. Moreover, I find 6.0 uses fewer resources than earlier versions of ZA Pro I have used and doesn't noticably slow down browsing as earlier versions of ZAP did. So far, I have found ZAP 6.0 to be relatively bug free for a new release. However, I was forced to give up my RegDefender because ZAP 6.0's system firewall seemed to conflict. I was willing to do this because in the six months I've been using RD, it's never found a reg. change I didn't initiate. I figured between ZAP 6.0's features, and Win Patrol Plus 9.5 (which don't seem to conflict at all) I was safe enough for my purposes.

Other person's experiences may vary and as several posters have suggested, it will be best if you tried both programs yourself.

[chaos16]

coz with zonealarm every few minutes my internet stops and i have to put the firewall of and then it works.

and i have never had this problem.

as well lately i haven't been able to use my email or hotmails.

with yahoo or msn hotmails.

i doesn't alow me to use incredimail or through the site??

[Kerodo]

This is one of those threads that could go on forever, with testimonies on both sides for and against. It's amazing how often people try to compare these two firewalls. They are certainly very different in many ways. I personally like both of them, and tend to use whichever one has the least bugs at any particular moment. :)

[mvdu]

And right now, I seem to have sorted out ZAP 6's problem, so I'm using that. On my system, Outpost blocks things when I don't want it to. Still, they are both secure firewalls..

[G1111]

The fix ZA Tech. Support did not work, so after quite a few forum posts and no luck with a fix supplied by ZA I cannot reinstall ZA Pro 6. I am now using Outpost and have had no real problems (just an annoying Outpost pop-up when I launch IE6 to figure out - something changing in FraudEliminator helper app.). Otherwise it seems to get along with my other software. I am trying to determine if it affects my Internet speed (I am testing in peak usgae times with Comcast and everyone in my subdivision seems to have it also).

[chaos16]

now we have had a long time to test the new zonealarm 6.0

so how many ppl tried the new version of zonealarm and than changed to outpost???

who here prefers outpost now than the new zonealarm 6.0 and why.


why is the reason u prefer outpost.

BTW. any news on the next version of outpost 3.0 beta???

[waters]

I have just changed firewall,so i thought i would try both.
Out of the two,i am really impressed with outpost.
Used it some time ago ,and had some problems,but none this time.
I cant tell outpost is on but i could with zone alarm.

[mercurie]

Well, I can share with you how I feel. I have several PCs in my home. I used ZA both Free and Pro with much success through 4.5 version and then ZA started to become an all in one security app. like so many these days are. Well, Zone Labs did not do it well made a mess of version 5. They are playing catch up in version 6. I see some are having issues with 6 too. Not nearly as bad as 5 however.

In the middle of all the 5 mess my key expired. I used a late version of 5 for a short period of time. And then made the move to OutPost.

OutPost has gained a pay user. ZoneLabs has lost a pay user.

OutPost people seem to do a better job in the development area imo. Both are effective but imo you will suffer far less problems going with OutPost then Zone Alarm pay or free. ;)

[chaos16]

as well i find that outpost has lees conflict more stability and not much of a resource hog???

am i right.


as well outpost passes more leak test than zonealarm right???

do u know of any other test except from leak test that outpost passes more than zonealarm???

[waters]

Both are good firewalls,surely the best test is the one that works best on your computer for you.

[jcc1234]

After some preliminary tests with ZA_Security_Suite, Outpost_Pro (along with a good AV) and Norton_Internet_Security, in my opinion, they are all good firewalls. I am looking for certain features and here is what I found:

ZA_SS Outpost_Pro NIS
Global component list yes yes yes
Per application component list no yes no
Expert rules yes yes yes
Detect Keyboard logger yes ? ?
Dangerous WSH script filter no N/A yes
Launch program detection ? ? yes (no Win98)

Note: N/A = not applicable

All the above firewalls pass stealth test if configured properly . What I am looking for is which one has the best "process guard" features.

[jcc1234]

oooops, sorry the columns didn't line up

[jcc1234]

Hope this time the columns line up correctly.

After some preliminary tests with ZA_Security_Suite, Outpost_Pro (along with a good AV) and Norton_Internet_Security, in my opinion, they are all good firewalls. I am looking for certain features and here is what I found:
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ZA_SS.. . Outpost_Pro. . . . . NIS
Global component list - - - - - - - - - - yes . . . . .yes. . . . . . . .yes
Per application component list- - - - - - no. . . . . yes. . . . . . . no
Expert rules- - - - - - - - - - - - -- - -yes. . . . . yes. . . . . . . yes
Detect Keyboard logger - - - - - - - -- - yes. . .. . . ?. . . . . . . . .?
Dangerous WSH script filter- - - - - - -- no. . . . . N/A . . . . . . . yes
Launch program detection- - - - - - - - - -?. . . .. . .? . . . . . . . yes (no Win98 )

Note: N/A = not applicable

All the above firewalls pass stealth test if configured properly . So what I am looking for is which one has the best "process guard" features.

[Gort]

Gort uses Outpost 2.7 on Main Computer - very stable - Gort Likes ...
Gort uses ZAPro 6.0 on Computer used for Beta Testing - Interesting - Gort Likes too ...
Time for Gort to flip a "Tank" and decide ... Heads - Outpost, Tails - ZA

" sceeeeeeeeeeeeeerrrraaaazzzzzzzzzz*poof* ... hmmmm ... Gort may need another Tank ... "

[mercurie]

-{ Quote: "Both are good firewalls,surely the best test is the one that works best on your computer for you." }-True. I share only my experiences. ;)

[G1111]

Another reason is Agnitum is offering a 50% discount to switch to Outpost Firewall:

http://www.agnitum.com/purchase/migrate.html

[Kerodo]

-{ Quote: "Another reason is Agnitum is offering a 50% discount to switch to Outpost Firewall:

http://www.agnitum.com/purchase/migrate.html" }-
That doesn't sound like a good reason to do anything... :P

[hayc59]

-{ Quote: "That doesn't sound like a good reason to do anything... :P" }-
If your on a budget and want an ass kickin firewall it sure does!!!

[Kerodo]

-{ Quote: "If your on a budget and want an ass kickin firewall it sure does!!!" }-
Hahaha... I was only kidding mostly hayc.. ;)

I bought it myself less than a year ago. Don't use it now because I just bought myself a wireless router and don't care about the outbound control.

I wanted to see if I would get any reactions from the die hard Outpost folks.

Good job.. ;D

[hayc59]

-{ Quote: "Hahaha... I was only kidding mostly hayc.. ;)

I bought it myself less than a year ago. Don't use it now because I just bought myself a wireless router and don't care about the outbound control.

I wanted to see if I would get any reactions from the die hard Outpost folks.

Good job.. ;D" }-

;D ;D

[chaos16]

looking forward to the beta of outpost 3.0 coming this month.

hopefully its better than zonealarm in every way.

in resources.

In features

plus hopefully the antispyware of outpost will be way better than zonealarms.

i wonder if tauscan will be implemented in the outpost antispyware 3.0???

coz then that would mean spyware and trojan detection on the outpost pro version.

[pppp]

I have used ZA (paid version) for several years. Up to 5.1, it did the job, although it has been getting a bit flakey (requiring tweaks) to make it work OK since 5. Past that, forget it. If you get it to work acceptably, you are lucky. Can't say what is wrong, but they have not had adequate testing before releasing last couple of versions (in fact, based on my experience with it, the last programmer to touch it got to approve his own work without a walkthrough and without any testing, because some of the problems are so obvious, it's hard to imagine any responsible company allowing this crap out the door), and I would avoid v6 like the plague. When I "upgraded" to this because of a "critical update" notice, it blocked internet access completely. It also blocked some startup programs from loading.

Appeared to be interfering with my network bridge, and if I manually reset it, my PC would hang (BSOD) and automatically restart. The only way to get internet access was to disable ZA at startup. You can start it after the PC has fully booted, but if it doesn't load at startup, many of the protections that it is supposed to offer don't work properly.

Apparently a few people have been able to get it working, but from what I see on the ZA boards, they are the minority. Unfortunately, I didn't check the user boards before downloading and installing the current release. (You don't have to believe me, but you should check here first if you are even considering using this product http://forum.zonelabs.org/zonelabs/board?board.id=inst ). The company has finally acknowledged the major problems they are having with a small post on the support forum, but they still have the new version posted for download without warning, and are screwing up thousands of peoples' PCs because of it. IMHO, it is unforgivable that this has been going on for about 3 weeks now, and the company still advises that there is a critical update waiting, and has no warning that your PC may be screwed if you do. It is impossible to back out of this release successfully (it kills all your previous settings, and even after a clean uninstall and reinstall of 5.5, I can't get things to work properly). ZA tech support has offered none - they seem barely aware that there is a problem (and they aren't that bright anyway). If you get through to an actual person, you can spend hours banging your head against the desk and not getting any help.

Anyone who recommends ZA in its current state is doing a disservice to the entire computing community. It is far too much of a crapshoot, and frankly, right now it is a waste of money. Unfortunately, I still have 1/2 year remaining on my subscription, but I'm afraid I will have to abandon it, because I need a working and safe PC.

No matter what anyone says, stay away from this product.

[Kerodo]

I'm not defending ZA because I really don't care, but how do you explain the fact that many people have used the product thru version 6 without a single problem?

[mvdu]

Well, personally I have to echo pppp. I can't get it to work with my internet connection. Everything is fine with the other firewalls I have tried.

[Kerodo]

I think what you see on the message boards is the few who are having problems vs the 1000's who don't so they don't post. Same for other firewalls though. Visit the Outpost forum and you will see those people who are having problems with Outpost vs the many who don't so they don't post. So I don't think ZA is any better or worse than Outpost in that regard.

[mvdu]

I'm not so sure about that. I imagine the problems are bigger than you say.

[Dazed_and_Confused]

I've used ZA for quite a while. I am getting tired of how much of a resource hog it is, especially with all the other cra* they've added. ::)

So I installed Outpost on one of my other PC's (using the 50% discount discussed above ;) ). I have found Outpost to be lighter, but ZA's rules easier to understand and use, at least for a dumb-blonde like me.

Jury is still out...

[Dazed_and_Confused]

See here (http://www.firewallleaktester.com/tests.htm) for test results.

[WSFuser]

i never noticed ZAs results since i switched firewalls before hearing about the tests but ZA seems to do pretty well. the firewalls/tests could use a bit of updating tho.

[profhsg]

-{ Quote: "I've used ZA for quite a while. I am getting tired of how much of a resource hog it is, especially with all the other cra* they've added. ::)

So I installed Outpost on one of my other PC's (using the 50% discount discussed above ;) ). I have found Outpost to be lighter, but ZA's rules easier to understand and use, at least for a dumb-blonde like me.

Jury is still out..." }-

Zone Alarm Pro's application rules are easier as long as you're willing to settle for simple allow/disallow rules. If you wish to have more specific rules, e.g., specifying the protocol, server, remote or local port etc. etc., Outpost is actually much easier to use. Zone Alarm has the capability of making rules which are more specific which they call "Expert Rules." Unfortunately, Zone Alarm gives no guidance as to any of the details mentioned above. It's up to you to fill in all the blanks.

In contrast the Outpost Wizard fills in all the details for you. For example, suppose you're trying to update program X on your computer. You use the update function on the program. Zone Alarm will give you an allow/disallow option, but if you want a more specific rule, you're on your own. If you have Outpost, it will alert you and give you the options of a preset list of rules for the particular application, a preset list of rules for the type of application it is, e.g., browser, email program, and a custom option (the third will always be there, the first two are often not there). If you select the custom option you will see a dialog in which all the necessary parameters for that request for that program are filled in. If you check allow, as you normally should if you started the update or you scheduled it to start, Outpost will only allow an update if it meets the parameters specified in the custom rule you just created. At least theoretically, the narrower Outpost approach is safer. If a piece of malware tried to hijack program X and use its update function to direct you to a server of its choosing, Outpost would ask you again if you wish to permit it. If you didn't directly or indirectly start the update, you ought to become suspicious and block the request. If all you had was an allow/disallow option, the request would get right through if you previously allowed the program to access the internet.

To be fair two points have to be made. Zone Alarm and Outpost both have warning systems to warn of changed applications. The system might allow the firewall to catch a piece malware attempting to hijack a previously allowed program. Second, you could always have the firewall ask for permission to let the program access the internet every time you tried to have it update, etc. This, however, is a pain in the a**, and I found that when I used ZA, I simply checked the remeber this box for each application to which I was trying to give internet access.

Is the extra degree of safety provided by the more specific rules of Outpost worth the hassle of dispensing with a simple allow/disallow system? Since, I'm no expert, I can't really say. Perhaps others here can answer that one.

[Dazed_and_Confused]

You've made some valid points, profhsg. ;)

-{ Quote: "Is the extra degree of safety provided by the more specific rules of Outpost worth the hassle of dispensing with a simple allow/disallow system? Since, I'm no expert, I can't really say. Perhaps others here can answer that one." }-

I guess I never quite understood all that extra mumbo-jumbo involved in configuring these more specific rules. I am going to keep working with it, though.

[ifonly]

-{ Quote: "I have found Outpost to be lighter, but ZA's rules easier to understand and use, at least for a dumb-blonde like me.

" }-

if only your avatar really was you

oh, if only

[WSFuser]

the advantage of having more specific rules is that u control what internet access the app has. if a malicious process got injected into a fully trusted app then it too would have full internet access.

[Mem1]

That's why ZAP has advanced program control, application interaction control and component control in the Program Control settings. Injection will occur only if approved by the user as a program module change - just like allowing outside of the specific rules.

[Paranoid2000]

See here (http://www.wilderssecurity.com/showpost.php?p=300769&postcount=52) for some examples where restricting application access can come in useful.

[chaos16]

With the setting of outpost pro 2.7 and the setting out of the box from zonealarm pro 6.0 which one block more bad things??


i know that outpost is a more stable program and a lighter program and it passes more leak test but i want to know which block prevent more trojans,viruses, hackers, spyware etc...

as well one of the main things which one is better for blocking a hacker?

[Chuck_IV]

-{ Quote: "Another reason is Agnitum is offering a 50% discount to switch to Outpost Firewall:

http://www.agnitum.com/purchase/migrate.html" }-

Too bad that deal isn't around anymore(well at least the webpage is gone). I'd consider switching for that price.

[WSFuser]

-{ Quote: "With the setting of outpost pro 2.7 and the setting out of the box from zonealarm pro 6.0 which one block more bad things??


i know that outpost is a more stable program and a lighter program and it passes more leak test but i want to know which block prevent more trojans,viruses, hackers, spyware etc...

as well one of the main things which one is better for blocking a hacker?" }-
both firewalls will block hackers but ZA might have the edge in leaktests since it has the OSFirewall which gives it some processguard functionality.

[chaos16]

well hopefully outpost 3.0 will have that cutting edge.

[WSFuser]

no thanx, outpost already plans for an antispyware plugin. i prefer teh layered approach of multiple and seperate products.

[Paranoid2000]

-{ Quote: "Too bad that deal isn't around anymore(well at least the webpage is gone). I'd consider switching for that price." }-The discount is still available but not currently publicised, just contact Agnitum support with your proof of purchase.

[TraCKs]

Ive tried outpost 2.7, but i prefer ZA Pro 6, i just love the new technology that the new ZA has. Its the same kind of technology that processGuard has, take a look at this link i seen in another forum that explains some of the new stuff in ZA

page 265-267 Dangerous behavior http://download.zonelabs.com/bin/media/pdf/zaclient60_user_manual.pdf

[Tyreman]

The "Only" way to know is try each one ;D .
See how it runs on "Your" ;D unit and its OS configuration.
Everybody has differing "loads' for example, but not limited to: some have services of varying types disabled others do not, sometimes various registry tweaks(long ago forgotten), different apps loaded and on an on(potential prior leftovers from some-+).
While not much of an answer maybe only way to know for sure :-\ .

[Chuck_IV]

-{ Quote: "Ive tried outpost 2.7, but i prefer ZA Pro 6, i just love the new technology that the new ZA has. Its the same kind of technology that processGuard has, take a look at this link i seen in another forum that explains some of the new stuff in ZA

page 265-267 Dangerous behavior http://download.zonelabs.com/bin/media/pdf/zaclient60_user_manual.pdf" }-

I like the new technology too but I'm fed up with the bugs. I've looked past them for a while, but they are getting to me.

[Tyreman]

-{ Quote: "I like the new technology too but I'm fed up with the bugs. I've looked past them for a while, but they are getting to me." }-
;D Judging by some of the apps forums and other sites about the 'net..people are not alone in that line of thought!!!!
If it works for whomever Godspeed :) BUT if it doesn't Oh Poo!! :'(