Guest Anders F Posted September 9, 2008 Posted September 9, 2008 I asked this on the microsoft.public.windows.networking.firewall group but this is pretty inactive and I got no answer. My old system is XP Pro SP3 and I use this to configure the router. My new computer is an ASUS Eee PC 900, Linux version. I have not used it very much, just checked to see if I can access the internet. I can. --------- I have a second computer so I bought a router (Zonet ZSR0104CP) to keep them both connected to the net. This router is advertised as having a firewall but to me, this firewall seems like nothing but a joke. As I understand it, a firewall should keep the bad guys out. There are some things I can configure, I will list them and I will tell you why I think they suck. 1) MAC filtering. MAC addresses are only available on the local net. I only have two computers and I do not intend to use one to hack the other. OK, there are bigger LANs and there might be those where this filering is meaningsfull. Still, the great majority of baddies must be out there, not on the LAN. 2) IP address filtering, 192.168.10.xxx to 192.168.10.xxx. LAN addresses, same as point 1. 3) Time filtering, day of the week and time to block. The baddies do not work 9 to 15. This is meant to keep the computer from the net, not the net from the computer. 4) URL filtering, example from the set-up page: *.*sex*.* . I don't trust that all sex sites have "sex" in their names. I don't trust that all trojan sites have "trojan" in their names. I don't trust that the URLs from baddies are not faked. I do not know if there is an URL in all IP messages. Besides the router, I am using the Windows firewall. With an external firewall this should not be necessary but I feel very unsure about it. I know something about networking but I am no expert. Does the firewall have any value at all? Am I wrong about something? Thanks for any answer Anders
Guest Leythos Posted September 9, 2008 Posted September 9, 2008 Re: Router firewall no protection? In article <uLXvsWrEJHA.4904@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl>, nospam@example.com says... > I know something about networking but I am no > expert. Does the firewall have any value at > all? Am I wrong about something? > Your device is a NAT Router, it's not really a firewall, but most residential devices claiming to be firewalls are not really firewalls either. Your device provides protection against Unsolicited Inbound traffic. This means that unless one of your computers/devices connects to something outside, there is no valid path for the outside to get back into your network. In almost all cases, if you are behind a firewall or NAT appliance, the Windows firewall, as well as most others, is of little benefit. The NAT Router is the start of your security, then your brain, then anti-malware tools and hundreds of other methods. -- - Igitur qui desiderat pacem, praeparet bellum. - Calling an illegal alien an "undocumented worker" is like calling a drug dealer an "unlicensed pharmacist" spam999free@rrohio.com (remove 999 for proper email address)
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