Re: black ice usage question

From: Duane Arnold (notme_at_notme.com)
Date: 11/07/03 

Date: Fri, 07 Nov 2003 01:45:22 GMT

"RB" <rbig@bellsouth.nospam.net> wrote in
news:rWzqb.44251$SV2.36894@bignews3.bellsouth.net:

> I've used Tiny Personal Firewall, Kerio, and Zone Alarm. I like all
> of them. I felt Zone Alarm was the least user friendly to my newbie
> lack of expertise. But, I had reasonably good results from all.
>
> A guy has been after me to switch to Black Ice. Any compelling
> reasons for or against me making this switch?
>
>
>

RB, it comes back to if one doesn't understand the product and doesn't read
the manual on how to configure BI properly, then not only will BI fail a
test, but any FW will fail a test if not configured properly. Even a
router or a FW appliance will fail a test if not configured properly.

I have put BlackIce through all the tests/paces and it has passed all of
them except for one test, which was the PING test and that's because the
PING test was initiated/solicited by the computer BI was on. And since BI
is a stateful FW, it let that traffic back in to the machine. Any other
machine across the Internet doing a ping, BI will not let the traffic
past, because it is unsolicited inbound traffic to the machine. But one
must know how to set the appropriate rules in BI to make it happen, which
is in the BI Knowledge Base.

All I'll say is that I have BI configured properly and have put my machine
on the Internet from behind the Linksys router using the DMZ of the router.
The whole nine yards are running on my machines such as SQL Server, IIS,
etc. etc. services that can be attacked if not protected by a FW. And
nothing has come past BI --- nothing.

I'll say this too. I have BI running on a 84 year old family member's
machine with it set on the Paranoid level and Auto Block and that's it and
nothing has come past BI -- nothing.

Like I said, BI is not for the average Joe Blow home user. One has to know
what one is doing to use the product.

I am making this post more along the lines for people who are reading it
that have heard nothing but the negative about BI.

BlackIce rocks if one knows how to use the product. It's not for the
average John Doe.

Duane :)

  

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