Firewall Novice: Need Help

Which of the two ZoneAlarm Free and Kerio Free is a better firewall? Can anyone tell me about their functionality, performance and efficiency? I dont want to pay for a firewall. So just the free ones.

Also, what do firewalls do actually? Do they really keep [SHADOW]viruses, worms, trojans, spywares and other nasties[/SHADOW] away from your PC?
Please provide me detailed information.

Regards,
Abhishek

 

Both ZA and Kerio are nice products... At the moment I like ZA more, but the v4.2 beta's of Kerio are very good, and if the final comes out I might switch

 

Personally, I would recommend ZoneAlarm Free, especially for a new user... but that is not why I am replying. I think your second question about what firewalls actually do is more significant. You have to have the proper expectations. Firewalls are not a magic bullet. They will not keep all malware away from your PC. Primarily, host based firewalls like ZA simply keep unsolicited internet traffic away from your PC as well as informing the user and allowing the user control over what applications communication via the network. That is basically it. Malware (including viruses, trojans, etc.) can still be downloaded. Malware can still be received via email. Really it is the domain of the anti-virus and/or anti-trojan software to actually scan downloaded and/or emailed files for malware. A firewall has a different purpose. You will need multiple pieces of software in order to develop a coherent, layered approach to security.

 

Thanks a ton Alec. That was really helpful and informative. I am trying Zonealarm free at the moment.

Regards,
Abhishek

 

That review gave top honors to Norton Personal Firewall...

I read on these forums that Norton made a terrible firewall...

 

Maagazine talking heads have their agendas. Forum members have their agendas. Expect different opinions from different sources.

 

Like any product, you are going to get differing opinions. There are lots who use and like NIS/NPF, others who prefer to use something else.

Regards,

CrazyM

 

i must agree za free for any beginner is probably the best out there. but be careful when uninstaling it. it does tend to be a pain in the neck to get rid of, kerio is fairly easy but more complicated than za would be. im curently using outpost but if the new kerio comes out i will probably be using it.

 

The question at hand is ZA or Kerio FREE . NOT 4.2 . ZA is no where NEAR as good at protecting as Kerio is . But , ZA is easier for a newbie

 

Hi abhi_mittal,

Sorry for the late response-got to see your post just now.

I have used ZA for some time and have been using kerio 2.1.5 (freeware) for the last couple of months.The latter may have acquired a somewhat intimidating reputation and if one is slightly willing to go under the hood then it is definitely worth it.It is supposed to be more effective-though this,ofcourse , is a matter of choice.

You may like to try it out and to start with is the blarp FAQ:
http://web.archive.org/web/20040205...qmanager.cgi?file=kerio_genrules&toc=kerio#q1

And the FAQ at DSLReports:
http://www.dslreports.com/faq/security/2.5.1. Kerio and pre-v3.0 Tiny PFW

I myself started with the Sponge rule set below and continued with it for some time before realizing that this is nowhere as good as his other security suggestions :
http://www.geocities.com/yosponge/

Finally graduated to the below linked BlitzenZeus's rule set at DSLReports which is working fine till date ,seem to breeze thru various security tests , with some tweakings to accommodate personal preferences:
http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,8023708

Hope this is of some help to you in taking a decision.

 

Well, thanks a ton Yogi. I am already using KPF now!!

Abhishek

 

Abhi,

Consider Sygate free too if you are not running proxy, real good and solid firewall with no security issues.