Why You Need a Firewall and How to Disable It Temporarily
By Eren Mckay
Filed under Miscellaneous
For those of us who work online, one of the most important and basic tools we should have on our computers is a firewall.
One virus attack can destroy your entire hard drive in minutes. And that, my friends, is scary. Of course you should always back up your hard drive so that you don’t lose any of your work. But as my grandma used to say:“Prevention is always the best medicine.”
So in addition to backing up your hard drive, I recommend having a firewall. As with all things that protect us, they can also slow down our daily lives and be a major pain in the … foot 
.
(*By the way the links on this page open up in a new window so that you don’t lose your place)
For example I used to use a really great free firewall that pctools has. The only problem was that every time I would try to open my FTP client (Filezilla) and try to upload images or anything to my site it just wouldn’t allow me to. I wanted to easily deactivate it while I was working on my site and then reactivate it once I was done.
I actually didn’t find a way around this problem. So I ended up uninstalling the PCTools firewall even though it’s so good.
I admit that for a while there I didn’t even install another firewall leaving myself (*I mean my computer 
) very open to virus attacks.
But then my friend Robert Nelson told me about the firewall he uses called Comodo. So I decided to give it a shot and installed it. I really liked the fact that you can easily deactivate it when you are using your FTP client. And also it’s not constantly asking for authorization every 2 seconds like the PCtools one ( *that is unless you browse on paranoid mode)
A virus attack can happen just by inadvertently clicking on a malware link when you’re browsing. So if you don’t have a firewall installed on your computer yet, I strongly recommend getting Comodo (which is totally free).
If you already have Comodo installed and simply want to know how to deactivate it when you’re working on your site, here’s what you do:
ღ Deactivating Your Firewall ღ
In your tray (bottom right) you will find a gray button that is the firewall symbol. If you scroll your mouse over it you will see the words Comodo Firewall come up:
If you don’t see it simply go to your desktop and click on the Comodo Firewall icon. (*Always keep a shortcut there on your desktop for easy access.)
If you double click that icon the following window will come up:
By simply closing that window this will activate the firewall into putting the icon into your tray.
Now you can right click the Comodo Firewall button and new window will open up. You will need to select the sandbox security level and disable. Of course when you want to reactivate you simple select once again and enable it.
For the defense security level I always browse on safe mode but if you’re really scared you can always browse in paranoid mode . Simple click deactivate while working on your site.
Then you will disable it in the firewall security level too. There’s only those 3 levels to disable and then enable once again.
By the way if you haven’t signed up for the Free Embracing Blogging Newsletter just click here and fill in the form.
What about you? Do you use Comodo? Which firewall have you used which you recommend? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
Other posts you may like:
• If you don’t yet have Comodo, you will want to read this step by step tutorial on how to install the free Comodo firewall.
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Mikkel "DaneBlogger" Juhl
I think that the Windows Firewall is quite good. And my take is just that if you keep off the wrong sites (the sites that gives you virus and stuff) then you will only need the Windows Firewall..
So I just have the Windows Firewall activated, and I am happy with that.
Good post btw!
Best wishes Mikkel
.-= Mikkel “DaneBlogger” Juhl´s last blog ..How to Get Something Out of Rainy Days =-.
Mary Gallagher
Hey, Eren, great post. I am so grateful for the firewall program I have because it protected me just last week. A message that I didn’t believe at first notified me of problem files on my own website that I was viewing. After contacting my host, and using tech support to discover the cause of the message, it seemed that some ‘malicious’ code was inserted into a few of my files. So, the firewall alerted me to this security problem and I was able to solve it without further damage.
Talking about the working of a firewall is useful and timely. It is great that you are sharing this information for many who work from home or use a home network with more than one computer. Our home computers contain important, private and crucial info, so security (and regular backup) is a must to consider.
.-= Mary Gallagher´s last blog ..Start Again in 2010 =-.
Young And Fabulous
I’m one of the paranoid people so I have the Kaspersky Internet Security – it has the firewall, anti-virus, and anti-spyware. I used to have different programs for those and it was a pain so I got Kaspersky, following some friend’s recommendation. But yeah, I totally agree with you about getting protection. Even if you keep out of suspicious sites, you can never tell who’s gonna access your network from outside so a firewall, anti-virus, anti-spyware definitely helps protect your system.
.-= Young And Fabulous´s last blog ..Four Common Habits Of The Young And Fabulous =-.
Sire
You’re right, having a firewall is pretty important if you want to protect the data on your computer. I actually don’t use one but I do use a router so I figure the settings on that should do the job.
.-= Sire´s last blog ..Scientific Revelation Explaining Why Some A Listers Are Assholes =-.
Eren Mckay
@Mikkel - Windows firewall works but it does have some major security holes. Because of the hole I still recommend using Comodo as a substitute as it’s much safer for browsing. But if you’re happy with it, that’s cool
.
@Mary – Wow- I didn’t know that the firewall can even tell you of malware on your site. That’s awesome! One more added benefit to having a firewall set up. I love the whole security subject .. I guess because I’m a bit of a “Prevention Queen” (*as some of my friends call me- LOL)
@Cherrie – The system you have installed sounds awesome. My hubby just told me about another full security system this week. It’s a paid version but supposed to detect like everything. We can never have enough protection – that’s for sure.
@Sire – Some routers have a full firewall system but others lack certain protection. If I were you, I would download Comodo and install it just to be sure you’re fully safe
.
Thanks for all your comments my friends ♥,
Eren
.-= Eren Mckay´s last blog ..Inspirational Parenting Quotes – How I See My Calling =-.
Debbie Lattuga
Spending so much time on the internet does put your computer at risk. I changed my browser to Firefox to enhance my virus protection.
Some kid at Best Buy Geek Squad suggested it. I used to have problems all the time when I used IE, but have been virus free for 5 years since I switched.
.-= Debbie Lattuga´s last blog ..Art and Healing Program | Sarasota =-.
Pete Bass
Nice article Eren. I myself use the free firewall from Zone Alarm. When I first installed it, I had to set permissions each time something ran on my computer for the first time. Ever since then it just runs in the background and only alerts me when it senses suspicious activity. It gives me the chance to tell it yes or no and if I am not sure, it gives me info about a site and lets me go and Google the situation and make an informed decision based on my findings. Believe me I am no techno geek and ZA is easy enough for me to figure it out. Whenever I use Filezilla, my ZA already knows it is my friend and I don’t have to disable my firewall for any reasons. Subsequently I can give or deny permissions to any program I want.
One other great free feature of my ZA firewall is that it will report to me if a website is a known attack site and give me the chance to get out of there before I actually enter it.
To @Mikkel I agree it would be nice to just stay off of the wrong sites but without good tools, we just don’t always know which ones are unsafe until it is too late.
.-= Pete Bass´s last blog ..Help out an orphanage and get a six figure business in the process. =-.
Melanie (ModernMami)
You’re so right that those things that protect our computers, are also the ones that often times slow it down. But, they’re important to have for the reasons you mentioned.
.-= Melanie (ModernMami)´s last blog ..Attending your First Sponsored Blogger Event? Some Dos and Don’ts to Remember =-.
Eren Mckay
@Debbie – So true what you said about IE. There are many security holes in it. I have IE, but rarely use it. I usually browse with Firefox, not only because of the security but because of the many different extensions that are useful to me when browsing. But with any browser you still need a firewall. I had a virus attack on my computer just by clicking a link and I was browsing with Firefox. So if you don’t yet have a good Firewall installed on your computer I recommend using Comodo.
@Pete – The Zone Alarm Firewall is also a great one. Thanks for telling us about it
. The annoying parts of Firewalls can be set up the right way through the setting and permissions.
@Melanie- Yeah Comodo doesn’t slow me down a lot if I use it in safe mode but in paranoid mode it would drive me bonkers- LOL. I hope more people will install a firewall to avoid headaches and keep their hard drives safe.
Thanks y’all for stopping by.
All the best,
Eren
.-= Eren Mckay´s last blog ..Inspirational Parenting Quotes – How I See My Calling =-.
Robert Nelson
Thanks for the heads up.Great article(even if I am mentioned in it).
I’m curious, how does one know if it is a “bad site” question is for Dane Blogger
.-= Robert Nelson´s last blog ..Review Of Beginner To Blogger =-.
Mitch
I have Comodo, but I don’t have anything with the sandbox setting at all. Are you using a paid version, or do I need to see if I should be upgrading what I have?
.-= Mitch´s last blog ..Now My Word Is Gold? =-.
Eren Mckay
Hi Robert - Thanks for telling me about it. I love it!
Hi Mitch - The version I’m using is free. I believe it’s the version that you’re using that doesn’t have the sandbox feature. They upgraded and made things much better. So I recommend upgrading your version
.
.-= Eren Mckay´s last blog ..Inspirational Parenting Quotes – How I See My Calling =-.
Mitch
Erin,
I ran into one of those problems it seems a lot of people ran into. It wouldn’t let me update, and the recommendation was to remove it and load the new version. Well, I figured if I had to unload it anyway that I might as well throw on Zone Alarm, which had always been my product of choice, but until recently they didn’t have a 64-bit version.
That’s too bad; a cumbersome way to make someone give pause for your product, if you know what I mean.
.-= Mitch´s last blog ..Sunday Question – Are You A Positive Or Negative Personality? =-.
Eren Mckay
Hi Mitch,
Totally hear you on that. I think if you uninstall and then install the new version of the Comodo firewall, it will work. Other software programs have also done that to me where if I try to upgrade it gives me issues. So nowadays I always go the route of uninstalling first just to save me headaches.
Hope you get it all worked out
Blessings ♥,
Eren
.-= Eren Mckay´s last blog ..Inspirational Parenting Quotes – How I See My Calling =-.
Craig Chamberlain
Thanks for the info, but for the non-networking gurus among us like myself, I find that Comodo is infuriating!
Sure, it is one of the best as the online reviews state, but if I can’t make it work without a hassle, then I will just get rid of it!
I have used it for about a year now and as of late, I am have all kinds of problems which don’t make any sense to me.
All of a sudden it seems, I’m getting all kinds of nags for authorization to programs I use all the time, and for things that I have no idea whether I should allow or not. When a program wanted to open up the program iTunes, I ended up having to answer 87 balloons that Comodo popped up!!
How am I to get any work done if I’m constantly asked questions about how programs work? And it’s not just from the internet but the Defence+ asks question that are way over my head for just clicking and starting a program that I installed, not some malicious virus or Trojan!
What is worse, when Comodo asks me to allow, I figure out ‘YES’ it’s part of how this program works, it asks me again a few seconds later, even when I have the box “remember my answer.”
How do I make sense of how firewalls work and set things up right so I don’t get all these ridiculous balloon pop-up headaches? Have any tutorials or advice?
Eren Mckay
Hi Craig!
That sounds very irritating for sure. It might be that you have an older version that has some kind of bug in it. I would uninstall the version you have on your hard drive first then I would install the newest version of Comodo. Also look in the settings. You might be on paranoid mode and that will irritate you to pieces. If that still doesn’t work then you might want to try out another firewall.
Hope that helps,
Eren
.-= Eren Mckay´s last blog ..Princess and the frog baby shower =-.