A personal firewall will have a variety of levels of protection that depends on whether your computer is connected to the Internet or to a network. A computer on a home network will often have shared files with other computers on the network and will also access the same resources, such as printers. If this is the case there will be more access than if the computers are connecting to the Internet.
Connecting to the Internet is risky and needs to be controlled. Firewalls should be set to restrict certain data that is outgoing and incoming as well as close any ports that aren’t being used. A port is a standardized number that routes Internet traffic with the use of network software.
You don’t need to be a computer expert. Most firewall settings are configured according to default. If you need to modify these settings you’ll usually get an alert when you’re making the change.
There are two basic components to a personal firewall. The first component will look at the data when it comes into your computer to decide whether or not the data should be allowed to pass through. The second component will set up certain policies for some applications. These policies can be relaxed since they simply let certain programs have access to the Internet.
The first component is known as the “packet filter”. This filter will take a look at each packet of data and will let it pass through or let it drop. These packets are composed of data that is routed on the network. There are rules for these packets, which are called polices, that let data pass or decide which data fails to meet the policy standards. Failure to meet these policies will give an alert or else just drop the packet depending on how the firewall has been configured.
The second component is known as the “application filter”. This filter will decide whether certain programs are allowed to receive and send data through one port or another. A browser will need to have access to the Internet so a policy is put into place that allows the receiving and sending of data using Port 80, which is a standard number.
Just because the web browser is using Port 80, and other ports are blocked by the personal firewall, your computer still won’t be secure.
An application filter is set up for certain programs and not the particular components of these programs. Every program will have more than one module, each of which can be infected. In a Windows environment these are known as DDLs (dynamic link libraries).
In most cases your antivirus software will be able to determine if a module is infected but any new viruses, that are not yet part of the antivirus database, may slip by undetected. Your computer system will be vulnerable if your personal firewall allows this to happen.
A firewall won’t give you complete protection against viruses and hackers. A firewall is only effective for keeping some hackers out of your system and you should supplement your system with antivirus software. You should also practice safe file sharing procedures.
There is one main rule to follow with firewalls: If you don’t know what is trying to accessing your computer consider it a risk.
By: Paul Wilcox
Posts Tagged ‘Printers’
Using Firewalls to Protect Your Computer From Attack
March 22nd, 2010What Are Network Patch Panels?
March 17th, 2010
Patch panels are used as the central point in a network where all the network cables terminate. It is the grand central station of the network. Networks that use these panels (and almost all modern networks use this technology) are consider “star-networks” or they use the term “star-topology.” This is because if you look at a drawing of your network, all the network nodes (nodes are end-points on the network and include things like computers and printer) all connect back to the central “hub” and it looks like a big starburst. Another term is “spoke-and-wheel” where the “wheel” is your hub and patch panel and the individual cables going out to your nodes (computers and printers) become the spokes.
They come in various types and configurations from the simple wall-mounted 12-port patch panel block, to elaborate 96-port (and more!) rack-mounted patch panel. As was mentioned above, patch panels are rated for speed. So if you are running Cat 6 cable, you will need a Cat 6 patch panel.
Network panels come in various designs and styles. There are patch where the cables plug-in straight (90°), or angled at a 45° angle downwards; there are panels with 110 style punch downs on the back and ones with tool-less punch downs; there are various number of ports on the panels. Check the internet for the vast array of styles available. There are also two different standards for network panels: T568A and T568B mentioned above. Be sure to buy the correct ones for the installation!
It is best to buy patch panels that are rated for both standards. Since the only difference between the two standards is the order of the colored pairs, most manufacturers rate their patch panels for both standards. They simply have both wiring diagrams affixed to their patch panels.
By: Dean Novosat
Windows 7 a Review You Will Understand
January 20th, 2010
The big question is… should we embrace or avoid Windows 7? This is the question I am going examine in this entry and I hope that I will be able to help you make an informed choice about whether to adopt Windows 7.
After the nightmare experience so many people had with Windows Vista on it’s release; it is no surprise that people have been waiting for positive reviews before trying Windows 7. So let’s get cracking and have a look at three of the features of Windows 7 that have really impressed me.
1. Improved Speed over Windows Vista
One of the big problems experienced with Vista was the speed at which it performed; so this was one of the big challenges that the people at Microsoft had to address. They did this by redesigning how Windows 7 displays graphics to your monitor.
Windows 7 can not start to display things before all the background information is worked out. So you do not get that feeling that your computer is freezing. This change has reduced the wait time for applications to load, save and respond to users’ requests. How this was achieved is not important, what is however important is the fact that this feature really improves usability in Windows 7 over Windows Vista.
2. Home Networking & Media
It is no longer the case that people just use a network in the office, therefore Microsoft have really catered for the home network in Windows 7. The ease at which you can now share your files between computers in your network will surprise you. It is also so much easier to connect printers to your home network and also to connect to your home Wi-Fi connection.
There are loads of new features in Windows 7 to make it easier to share all your MP3s, Videos and TV shows throughout your house by using your home network in Windows 7. You can view music or recorded TV shows from remote computer and play them across the home network. If you want to watch a recorded TV show, you can easily transfer it to your laptop so that you can watch it on the laptop at another time.
3. Not So Many Annoying Pop-ups
One of the things that really annoyed me about Windows Vista was the fact that when I wanted to do anything with my computer I got a pop-up box asking me if I was sure I wanted to do it; also if an application was looking to do something we got the same pop-up. These constant pop-ups became really quite frustrating. In Windows 7, Microsoft have introduced a setting where you can adjust the settings to reduce or switch off these annoying little pop-up boxes.
My experiences with Windows 7 are all positive and I will be suggesting to my clients based in Dublin to consider installing Windows 7 on new PCs. If you would like to talk to someone in iPing about Windows 7 or your IT support in Dublin please drop us a LINE
By: Mark Z Kelly
