This is the first of serveral Free Software Reviews that I'll be posting.

PLEASE DO NOT POST TO THIS THREAD UNLESS YOU ARE ADDING TO THIS REVIEW.

First is Windows XP Firewall. This piece of lame software can easily be exploited, unless you have years of technical expertise with it's system settings. I render it virtually useless and a waste of my hard drive space. I don't recommend depending upon Windows Firewall for any type of prevention

Of the Free Firewall's available to Windows users, there are two (2) I recommend which are as follows:

Second is ZoneAlarm by CheckPoint. ZoneAlarm Firewall protection is an easy-to-use firewall that blocks hackers and other unknown threats. It systematically identifies hackers and blocks access attempts. It automatically makes your computer invisible to anyone on the Internet. ZoneAlarm Firewall is recommended for use with BOTH Anti-Virus and Anti-Spyware software. ZoneAlarm is FREE for individual and not-for-profit charitable entity use. You will want to disable Windows Firewall for use with ZoneAlarm.

ZoneAlarm firewall also offers advanced settings, but not for the faint of heart. I recommend thoroughly reading the ZoneAlarm User's Guide prior to use of any of its Advanced Features. I use ZoneAlarm Firewall on both my personal and business computers.

Download is just under 39 MB. A DSL or Cable Internet connection is recommended.

Third is PC Tools Firewall Plus 2.0 for Windows. This is a fairly new free firewall just released March 2007. I have tested this firewall on a PC using Windows XP Home Edition and was satisfied with its performance. It has been designed for the basic home user, without requiring any technical or advanced hardware/software knowledge. However, for advance & technical users, PC Tools Firewall Plus offers premium network defense settings.

Download is just under 4 MB. A simple Dial-up connection is sufficient for this download, and usually takes under 10 to 15 minutes.

I hope this has helped, and enjoy your free software.

I also like Zonealarm, but it has some quirks--or perhaps they're Windows quirks. I've noticed that when I use Zonealarm, it quite often interferes with Windows Networking--regardless of how many times I ensure that the correct ports are open. If I turn the firewall setting all the way off, then it's fine, and I can turn the firewall back to Med. or High and it won't interfere with Windows Networking until I try to navigate to a different computer on the network. It's very annoying--does PC Tools Firewall Plus 2.0 have this same issue? I really think it's a Windows problem, not the individual program's problem, but it's still annoying. I don't understand--the ports for windows networking are always open, yet the firewall still blocks traffic.

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AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+ (@2.6 GHz)
2x1GB OCZ Spec. Ops. PC3200
ASRock Dual939-SATA2
Antec TruePower 550 watt PSU
80 GB Seagate Barracuda SATA 7200 rpm
300 GB Seagate Barracuda SATA 7200 rpm
120 GB Maxtor ATA/133 7200 rpm
ATI Radeon x1950 Pro

Both ZoneAlarm and PC Tools Firewall have advanced Network Protocol options. Network Protocols in both Firewall applications (ZoneAlarm and PC Tools) work in conjunction with Trusted Zones in Internet Explorer and Windows Explorer. To my knowledge and experience, ZoneAlarm has deliberately set restrictions on network firewall settings with the free/basic edition to entice the consumer to upgrade to the Pro -- which offers a slew of network advancements.

In ZoneAlarm, the Internet Zone Security can be set to High, while at the same time Trusted Zone Security set to Medium or Off. The Advanced tab allows for "Allow uncommon protocols at High Security" (checked), and "Filter IP traffic over 1394"(unchecked -- with caution). These are very limited advanced settings for Networks using the Basic Edition.

UDP Port 1394 (iclpv-nlc) is a Network Log Client that uses the Datagram Protocol, a communications protocol for the Internet network layer, transport layer, and session layer. This protocol when used over PORT 1394 makes possible the transmission of a datagram message from one computer to an application running in another computer. Like TCP (Transmission Control Protocol), UDP is used with IP (the Internet Protocol) but unlike TCP on Port 1394, UDP Port 1394 is connectionless and does not guarantee reliable communication; it's up to the application that received the message on Port 1394 to process any errors and verify correct delivery.

Microsft Windows XP Professional allows tweaking of UDP Port 1394 + TCP/IP exceptions over common networks/Intranets (man, I hate messing around with network protocols -- they are so difficult to fix if in error). This can become a huge problem with Microsoft Windows with its inherent firewall requiring disability.

Any how, YES, ZoneAlarm can be a pain in the butt just like PC Tools Firewall. They both work fantastic, but it becomes a matter of choosing the lesser of the two evils.