Need some good advice here please

[john ranger]

I have window xp, and I know xp has a firewall built in.How does this firewall rate?Is it good enough for whats out there right now?If not what is your best advice for one?Can I get one for free?If not how much should I pay for a good one.
Thank you

John

[DilLy]

It is very configurable. Actually it is not very user friendly unless you enjoy lots of configuring. It only handles incoming connections, though, and has been known to be intruding on some types of tasks. That may lend itself to the need to configure it more heavily than some others.

I used it for a while to check it out, but when it comes to Firewalls, I like a nice user interface, and one that blocks traffic both ways. THere are plenty of free ones out there. Actually you can still get Tiny Personaly Firewall for free, which is for more advanced users, and still better than XP's firewall. ZoneAlarm is very easy to use and very effective, and they have a free version which is highly rated (I use the ZAPro version which I paid for, love it too).

XP's firewall is "adequate" if you ask me, kind of like the CD burning software they included, and watching DVD's in MediaPlayer. There are better out there and I am sure some will give more suggestions here.

[Lord Prism]

I have WinXP (Home) and I use Zone Alarm.

http://download.com.com/3000-2092-10133851.html?tag=lst-0-8


Good Luck,

[Blankman]

Yes, listen to the advice and go with something like ZA, try staying away from Symantec's Personal Firewall, I tried it for awhile but it caused lots of probs, and just wasn't worth it.

[john ranger]

Well I'm going with Zone Alarm Pro Ver. 2.6.362

Hope this will do the job.Thanks guys