firewall . which to choose

Discussion in 'other firewalls' started by luther13z, Dec 29, 2006.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. lgeek

    lgeek Registered Member

    Joined:
    Feb 7, 2007
    Posts:
    1
    Now let me tell you something about that. The reason that is the case is because all of his staff are frightened that if they don't suck up they will be sacked. If they tell him anything he doesn't like they will be sacked. If you knew anything about this company (which you don't) you wouldn't go near them with anyone elses 10 foot pole.

    The only thing they do well, and luckily for them it's core business, is their certificates and research.
     
  2. Stem

    Stem Firewall Expert

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2005
    Posts:
    4,948
    Location:
    UK
    Please, lets keep this thread on topic: "firewall . which to choose" and not start stumbling off onto discussing other forums.

    Thank you,
    Stem
     
  3. Kees1958

    Kees1958 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jul 8, 2006
    Posts:
    5,857

    Mike,

    Do you have experience with CoreForce (FireWall, Sandbox and DataWall all in one)
     
  4. DankH

    DankH Registered Member

    Joined:
    Feb 22, 2007
    Posts:
    4
    Jetico is the best one to chose ,i think !:D
     
  5. ScythedBlade

    ScythedBlade Registered Member

    Joined:
    Feb 20, 2007
    Posts:
    7
    Jetico is free ... they change the dates of the beta version to make you upgrade ...

    but it has problems on vista ... i wish look n stop was free ...
     
  6. mercurie

    mercurie A Friendly Creature

    Joined:
    Nov 28, 2003
    Posts:
    2,448
    Location:
    Sky over the Wilders Forest
    For Free I really like this PC Tools Firewall Plus seems effective and light to me.;)
     
  7. TraCKs

    TraCKs Registered Member

    Joined:
    Aug 15, 2005
    Posts:
    36
    Location:
    Australia
    The importance of color, should not be over-looked when choosing a firewall. My personal preferance is blueish, with a tinge of yellow and a small splattering of white. The color blue has also been proven to make your computer run faster and more stable.... give it a try! im sure you will be happy...:)
     
  8. duke1959

    duke1959 Very Frequent Poster

    Joined:
    Jul 21, 2006
    Posts:
    1,238
    TraCKs thanks, that made me laugh. Seriously though, I am starting to believe more and more that if someone like myself is behind a Router with a SPI Firewall, that using Firefox with NoScript, a good AV, and some type of IDS or Hips protection then Windows Firewall is all that is needed. If someone like myself however feels they still want some Third party Firewall because they like having one, then I say use ZA Alarm Free 4.5.594. It doesn't have the bloat of the newer versions, runs light on the PC, and is very informative. Whenever I have had it on board it never once conflicted with any of the many types of software I would run at different times, and I really liked it. The only other one that I liked, but at this time can't seem to use is the PC Tools FW. Oh, and I almost forgot. ZA Free is quite colorful as well TraCKs. LOL
     
  9. acr1965

    acr1965 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Oct 12, 2006
    Posts:
    4,995
    Didn't there used to be a Look 'n' Stop Lite that was free? Also, the PC Tools firewall is a LnS offspring of some sort. I would not mind to try it except for it now being associated with PC Tools.
     
  10. Jo Ann

    Jo Ann Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2007
    Posts:
    619
    Rather than start another 'Which Firewall' thread, I thought I'd piggyback this one...

    My PC is a laptop with a Pentium M 1.6GHz processor and 512MB RAM running Windows XP. I am behind a wireless router (I share the internet with my husband who uses a desktop). Comodo is currently installed on my laptop and I find it easy enough to use without getting into rules (I consider myself PC-literate at the user-level; I'm not a 'techy').

    Before Comodo, I just used Windows Firewall, but it didn't provide outbound application filtering (which I needed most since our router already provides inbound filtering). Comodo seems to do that job well, but it also seems to impact my laptop's performance. My laptop takes longer to startup and longer to launch applications than before I installedl Comodo!

    So for my situation, would you knowledgeable guys suggest that I replace Comodo with some other firewall?
     
    Last edited: Mar 1, 2007
  11. lucas1985

    lucas1985 Retired Moderator

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2006
    Posts:
    4,047
    Location:
    France, May 1968
    ZA Free would be my suggestion. All other free firewalls worth mentioning are packet filters (no outbound control) -such as CHX-I and Ghostwall- or rule-based firewalls (more difficult to setup) -such as Jetico or Kerio 2.1.5-
    If you don´t mind paying, LnS could be a good option.
     
  12. twl845

    twl845 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Apr 12, 2005
    Posts:
    4,186
    Location:
    USA
    joann- Remember you were using Windows firewal which is part of Windows, so you wouldn't notice any slow down from it. Now you have installed a real firewall which uses some resources to do the job. Comodo actually runs pretty light as firewalls go. I uninstalled another brand, and cut my response time in half with Comodo.:D
     
  13. Stem

    Stem Firewall Expert

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2005
    Posts:
    4,948
    Location:
    UK
    I did find a copy of this on one of my backups, but it only gives packet filtering (not application).
    L`n`S (full version) did use to revert to a free version after the trial,.. is it the same now?
     
  14. Jo Ann

    Jo Ann Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2007
    Posts:
    619
    Thank you for replying lucas. My husband runs ZoneAlarm and it's his belief that ZA (the free or paid version) would have as much or more 'drain' on my laptop's resources than Comodo.

    I don't mind at all paying for a firewall if it results in good (and easily managed) outbound application-filtering, accomodate my wireless network connection, and would take less of a toll on my laptop's resources than Comodo.
     
  15. Jo Ann

    Jo Ann Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2007
    Posts:
    619
    I do realize that, but having no experience with any other FW's I didn't know if I can do better than Comodo (as far as resource use) without sacrificing its easy-to-use application filtering.

    PS. Could it be that the reason Comodo seems 'light' to you is that your PC is more powerful than my laptop?
     
    Last edited: Mar 1, 2007
  16. Stem

    Stem Firewall Expert

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2005
    Posts:
    4,948
    Location:
    UK
    Hello Jo Ann,

    Yes Comodo can be "heavy". I would of liked to of seen a release of Comodo with just an application firewall with Network filter rules,.. this would, I believe, given very good competition to ZA free.

    You could look at PC tools firewall , which is basically an application firewall( as packect filter rules can be disabled, but I think in most cases un-needed). There are some reports of problems with WIFI, so unsure at this time if this would be fully suitable for you
     
  17. Jo Ann

    Jo Ann Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2007
    Posts:
    619
    ~removed quote of post just above~

    Stem, thanks for the suggestion - is PC Tools Firewall much lighter (on resources) than Comodo?

    It sounds as if it might be a good solution for my situation (if it doesn't bring about wireless connectivity problems)! :doubt:
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 1, 2007
  18. JimIT

    JimIT Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jan 22, 2003
    Posts:
    1,035
    Location:
    Denton, Texas
    Another vote for LNS here. Easy to install. Pretty much set and forget with the existing rulesets. I have it on a laptop w/similar specs and it's like it's not even there. If nothing else, d/l it, give it a try, and see what you think. at a $39 one-off, it's a pretty good deal.
     
  19. Jo Ann

    Jo Ann Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2007
    Posts:
    619
    Thanks Jim - I'll give it a look-see along with PC Tools FW. Btw, just from visiting the LnS forum on Wilders I've noticed a few versions ...which version are you running on your laptop? Have you run into any problem with wireless connectivity?
     
  20. JimIT

    JimIT Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jan 22, 2003
    Posts:
    1,035
    Location:
    Denton, Texas
    I'm running the 2.06 beta right now, but 2.05 is current.

    I have a wireless connection at home and work, and no issues whatsoever. I have looked long and hard for a firewall, and LNS is right up my alley as far as speed and staying out of my way.
     
  21. Dr. Lucien Sanchez

    Dr. Lucien Sanchez Registered Member

    Joined:
    Dec 16, 2006
    Posts:
    44
    Location:
    England
    I personally find that Comodo is the best one for a stand-alone firewall, but if you have a firewall in a router then Kerio 2.1.5 is the better choice.
     
  22. ccsito

    ccsito Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jul 27, 2006
    Posts:
    1,579
    Location:
    Nation's Capital
  23. Hipgnosis

    Hipgnosis Registered Member

    Joined:
    Aug 26, 2003
    Posts:
    297
    Location:
    Witness Protection Program

    Look 'n Stop Lite is available here:

    LnS Lite
     
  24. pvsurfer

    pvsurfer Registered Member

    Joined:
    Sep 1, 2004
    Posts:
    1,617
    Location:
    USA
    JoAnn, I strongly suggest that you checkout the Firewall Ratings Table (about half-way down the referenced page). That table ranks all tested firewalls by their final leak-test scores and based on your needs, that's the most important factor in choosing your firewall.

    As you can see for yourself, Comodo is rated Excellent, beating out all others. While some of the other firewalls recommended in this thread such as LnS, PC Tools (an LnS derivative), and Kerio may be somewhat lighter on you laptop's resources, they are rated Poor in the above referenced table!

    So since you are happy with Comodo (other than it being a little too heavy for your laptop), I would still stay with it and tolerate its impact on your startup, etc., after all you're going to experience some of that with any firewall (other than Windows' firewall)!

    pv
     
  25. Jo Ann

    Jo Ann Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2007
    Posts:
    619
    Thank you all so much, and a special thanks to pvsurfer for bringing those firewall ratings to my attention!

    Just one final question. If I wanted to install and try one of the other suggested firewalls, can I simply uncheck Comodo from my Startup, or would I have to first remove Comodo entirelyo_O If I decide to go back to Comodo, I would hate to lose all of my settings and have to train it all over again.
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.