I thought that a firewall was something which provided a barrier between my computer and others so that nothing got through without my consent.  Seems a simple concept.

I recently installed Kerio Personal Firewall in order to see if it was suitable for a friend of mine.  As soon as it was up and running I got bombarded with messages which were definitely not suitable for a non-computer literate person.  I could live with that, and probably learn to configure it, but what I can't get to grips with is everything else it does.

It has caught me out a couple of times by having a pop-up blocker (active by default) which stops me, for example, awarding stars here at TT.  It also intercepts all automatic program initiation, for example, invoking Help from Excel.  I can deal with this myself on a case by case basis but I don't know how to explain to someone else how to interpret the messages.

Anyway, it got me thinking.  Are these functions, worthy or not, any business of a firewall?  Hence the question posed in the thread title - just what is a firewall supposed to do?

Enjoy,
Tony

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A firewall can be hardware, software or a combination of both.  I like Zone Alarm lite for my home use.  It's easy to configure and doesn't cost.  If you need a pop-up blocker, Zone Alarm pro has this ability.  You can also get free pop-up blockers by signing up and installing Yahoo, which will stop pop-ups.  Here's something a little more in depth.
What is a firewall?

Glen A. Johnson
If you're from Northern Illinois/Southern Wisconsin feel free to join the Tek-Tips in Chicago, Illinois Forum.

 TTinChicago
Johnson Computers

Thanks Glen,

Lots of reading in that link and I will go back.

From one of the links I followed (here) I found what seems like a reasonable definition as per my understanding ..

Quote:

A firewall is a piece of hardware, or a software program that examines data passing into your computer or network and discards it if it does not meet certain criteria.

It could be read to apply to every web page visited, but manually setting criteria for browsing would, I would imagine, become an intolerable overhead.  I know pop-ups can be extremely irritating but I still consider pop-up blocking to be a function separate from that of a firewall.  The issue is not whether or not I need or want a pop-up blocker; just whether or not a firewall should do it.  In this particular instance I have switched it off because it is a bit over zealous and causes more problems than it cures.

Most of all, what Kerio calls 'System Security' seems completely unrelated.  When my machine is disconnected from both my home network and the internet, the firewall shouldn't be doing anything (however inherently laudable), should it?  Again, it isn't whether or not I want the functionality, it's whether or not it's the job of a firewall.

Enjoy,
Tony

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