Jetico as a Windows Service

For anyone who is interested.

I am playing with NTWrapper (www.duodata.de/ntwrapper/index.htm) which allows you to run an application as a service. Uisng it to load Jetico as a service. Seems to be working fine.

There is both a "lite" (Freeware) and a "pro" (Shareware) version.

 

I've found NTWrapper quite some time ago. Am looking for the same utility to make Jetico run as a service but too lazy to google... Thanks for the link!

 

Can anybody explain what is the benefit of runnung it as a windows service rather than an application.
Thanks.

 

Hi aigle,

 

Thanks Stem!

 

Here I explained why I wanted this for my own use ! I'll definitively try this, thanks.

But... here I explain why it will certainly be a problem if it runs as a process, unless you guys help me solve this issue !

 

another way to run Jetico as service... http://www.snapfiles.com/get/any2service.html

it's freeware.

 

Thanks for the tip. I have switched back to Kerio long ago though since Jetico was certainly fine but damn too complicated to handle for a simple mind like me.

 

Once you get the hang of general tcpip workings, Jetico is an amazing firewall. I really like the tree structure design and with the it now workign very nicely as a service I doubt i'll be looking elsewhere soon. I am still using v1 and after investigating a bit, have applied the windows utils SrvAny and InstSrv to load the firewall as a service.
Apart from everything else the size of these 2 utils is 40kb and the loader is only 8kb and takes 1mb in memory once up and running. Bit of fiddling gave me interactive mode too so I can still have it at optimal learning setting with all the alerts and windows.
Seems to be a very good solution, I should've searched for it earlier.

ps. If people are looking to get these, they are in the most recent resource kit for windows 2003 as well.

 

I assume you are using Jetico 1 because Jetico 2 (jpfsrv.exe) is running as a service or do i miss somehthing?

 

Nope you didn't miss anything. Jetico 2 runs as a service, but version 1 is started by explorer.exe upon startup and logging in.

Cheers,

Alphalutra1

 

So what is happening when a computer is running but no one is logged in? The communication is completely uncontrolled?

 

Warning: don't use Any2Service to turn Jetico into a service!
Use NTWrapper instead although it is a commercial application and you can make only 1 service in its lite version (but that's enough for Jetico )
NTWrapper has the option "Restart application" which you need to tick for Jetico. It then restarts Jetico after it exits when it gets user-logoff message from system.
Any2Service is attractive as it is freeware, but it's very simple and lacks this "Restart application" function. That's why it is useless in this case.

 

Very interesting,but i assume that if you use Jetico 1.0 alongside a Router you're pretty well covered even if it doesnt run as a service.
I'll keep in mind your suggestion about NTWrapper for the not so remote eventuality i have to use a mobile connection in the near future.

 

That is a very serious shortcoming.
Means Jetico 1.0 is not a complete firewall. Needs always a router at least. What happens when one has a system that reboots itself back to login state and one has only been depending on Jetico for unsolicited inbound connections? Leave it that way overnight etc., maybe nothing happens if system is patched?

 

Hello Jarmo P,
i dont think it is that serious if,as you infer,you have a patched system and if you have an antitrojan like Boclean or an antivirus like your Avast,which is a service and perhaps with its Network Shield provider can compensate for the very brief time Jetico is on holiday.
Regards,poirot

 

Hi again, Alpha,

This is a significant point you make. It means that as soon as one is logged in Jetico 1 is "working": does this mean that no data can come or go into my system *before* the system completes booting?? If so, then running as a service is no big deal.

Or am I missing something important here ??


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You might say it this way. But when the system completes booting, the computer gets to the logon screen. And the network subsystem is loaded at that time as well. And even if you do not log on, many services start up and open their ports and are able to communicate. And Jetico is not here to filter this communication ...

So I think it is a big deal to run Jetico (or any firewall) as a service.

 

Thanks, Jack. How about being behind a Dlink dsl router -- protected or not? If not, why not?


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Sam: with default settings the DSL router does not forward any incoming connections to the inner network (as it does not know to which computer - you might have more than one - it should be forwarded to).
So you may relax, you are protected enough.

But if something on your computer initiated outgoing connection, the router would permit it...

 

OK, thanks Jack.


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