How to enable and configure the Windows Vista Firewall

Posted on April 1, 2009 at 5:12 am

For security reasons, the Windows Vista Firewall is essential for any computer system to prevent any malicious program from running. It restricts probable malwares from sending and receiving malicious data or commands. By default the firewall service is enabled. If, for some reason, the windows service is not running, below are steps you can follow to enable the firewall service.

Click on start and type services on the search box and hit enter. This will launch the services window.

On the services window scroll down to the Widows Firewall entry and check the status if started startup type should be automatic.

To configure windows firewall follow these steps.

Navigate to Start > Control Panel > Security > Windows Firewall. This will open the windows firewall window.

On the Windows Firewall window you can see that the firewall is turned on. You don’t need to configure Windows Firewall under normal operations, but if you want to run applications that need to connect to the internet then you have to make some configurations on your firewall.

To configure your firewall to allow programs and connect to a network or the internet click Change Settings. On the settings window, make sure your firewall is turned on, click on the Exceptions tab. On the Exceptions tab you will see all programs that are allowed by Windows Firewall.

You can add programs to pass through the firewall by clicking Add Program. Click on the program you want or you can browse the location of the program’s exe file if it is not in the list then click OK. The program you have included can now pass through the firewall and can access external networks or the Internet.

Operating the Vista Firewall is not a simple process, as you have seen but it is a necessary thing to do to prevent malicious programs from spreading in your PC and local home or office network. In the next posts we will show you how to use third party alternatives to the Vista Firewall so you can achieve more system protection.