MS Update -> no internet anymore

Alrik Fassbauer · July 9, 2008

Hello, everyone.

Fine. I did the newest update yesterday evening, and since then my internet connection doesn't work anymore.

What could've gone wong ? I'm puzzled.

By the way, I'm currently writing from the iMac of my sister.

Alrik

Edit : I think I found a possible solution : It's a "DNS Patch" in conjunction with ZoneAlarm.
http://forums.zonealarm.com/zonelabs/board/message?board.id=Official&message.id=6

Ionstormsucks · July 9, 2008

What system are you using? In case you're using Vista I would not recommend ZoneAlarm since it is know to cause random trouble.

Alrik Fassbauer · July 9, 2008

Okay, I've got it, it seems to me : I read that putting Zonealarm not to "high" security level, but to "middle" actually works.

It did in my case.

But this is very ärgerlich nevertheless, that MS doesn't see this possible collision with one of the most widely used firewalls.
... which leads me (once again) to the question whether I should use a different firewall ... Or additionally ...

Prime Junta · July 9, 2008

Alrik Fassbauer said:
But this is very ärgerlich nevertheless, that MS doesn't see this possible collision with one of the most widely used firewalls.
... which leads me (once again) to the question whether I should use a different firewall ... Or additionally ...

I'm not a big fan of software firewalls. I recommend a hardware one instead -- any cheap NAT router will do the job fine, will be less troublesome, and will provide a much higher level of protection. They're so cheap nowadays that there's really no excuse not to have one.

Ionstormsucks · July 9, 2008

Alrik Fassbauer said:
Okay, I've got it, it seems to me : I read that putting Zonealarm not to "high" security level, but to "middle" actually works.

It did in my case.

But this is very ärgerlich nevertheless, that MS doesn't see this possible collision with one of the most widely used firewalls.
... which leads me (once again) to the question whether I should use a different firewall ... Or additionally ...

Well, it's MS - what do you expect? I had nothing but trouble with ZoneAlarm and Vista, so I just uninstalled it. ZoneAlarm did constantly cause errors, sometimes even closed itself so...
But as PJ already said private firewalls are not really that great anyway and often not really necessary. I guess people feel protected by them, but very often that's simply wrong.

Majnun · July 9, 2008

If you're too cheap to buy a router (like me!), or are on dial-up and don't see the point of wasting the money (like me!), then you might try Agnitum Outpost Firewall.

I had to switch to it (from zone alarm actually) years ago when Dark Age of Camelot stopped playing nice with zone alarm. I've used it for years with zero troubles and it passes all security tests I've thrown at it. It doesn't respond to attacks at all, it just silently blocks them and pretend it's not there.

Anyway, you can get it here:

http://www.majorgeeks.com/Outpost_Firewall_Free_d1056.html

There's a Pro version that costs $40 but I don't see the need for it (and have never tried it).

blatantninja · July 9, 2008

I despise Zone Alarm. My dad and brother both use it religiously and I've lost count of how many times they've had some internet or networking problem and I've traced it back to zone alarm. That thing is the bane of my existence (computer wise!)

Rills · July 9, 2008

If you need a software firewall I suggest Comodo (free) or Online Armor's free version that actually contains HIPS and they are not resource intensive. Both have good, solid reputations as well as a very helpful forum community.

The thing about software firewalls from my own experiences and reading/research is that of all security software offerings, a decent software firewall is an elusive beast. Even the best of the best have issues and they seem perpetual.

Gorath · July 9, 2008

The difference between the typical hardware firewall in a DSL Router and a software firewall is: The hardware is typically configured to "let everything out and the answer back in". It´s hard to change this, if it´s possible at all. If you have a software running you can configure every single program and make sure crap like Media Player does not phone home. Why would I want to allow every 2nd crappy program to connect to a server to check for an update on program start?

Guest · July 10, 2008

Yeah, I'm not really concerned about "attacks". On a linux box I don't even use a firewall. But when running windows (with many of the vulnerable services disabled) I want to be able to decide which applications can send stuff to the internet and which don't. That's what sofware firewalls are for, and that's what they are good at.

Alrik Fassbauer · July 10, 2008

Gorath said:
The difference between the typical hardware firewall in a DSL Router and a software firewall is: The hardware is typically configured to "let everything out and the answer back in".

Yes, that's why I use software firewalls : Hardware solutions just don't give me the tools to control every program manually.

There is a router, yes. A netgear one.

Ionstormsucks · July 11, 2008

I can only recommend you again to get rid of ZoneAlarm if you're using Vista. Not that I think that it is such a bad program - always worked fine for me with XP - but it simply does not seem to go together with Vista. Since I deinstalled it a few days ago, I have no problems with Vista whatsoever. Before that I was constantly encountering strange errors, programs no longer funnctioning or the comuter no longer shuting down correctly... also had a few failed updates, etc. Now, I have no problems at all.

Alrik Fassbauer · July 11, 2008

Okay, but I don't have vista

, neither do I plan to use it.

Ionstormsucks · July 11, 2008

Alrik Fassbauer said:
Okay, but I don't have vista , neither do I plan to use it.

You shouldn't... I wouldn't use it myself, but I have 8 gigs of memory and since I had a Vista version that came with my Dell computer I thought I should give it a try. Guess I could by the 64 bit version of XP, but I don't wanna make these MS guys even richer as they already are.

Rills · July 11, 2008

Ionstormsucks said:
You shouldn't... I wouldn't use it myself, but I have 8 gigs of memory and since I had a Vista version that came with my Dell computer I thought I should give it a try. Guess I could by the 64 bit version of XP, but I don't wanna make these MS guys even richer as they already are.

I would stay away from the 64 bit XP. Finding drivers for this version is even worse than for Vista 64 bit.

blatantninja · July 11, 2008

I'm about to install Vista 64 on my rig and see what happens. It will dual boot with XP (32), so if it doesn't run some things, I'll be fine.

aries100 · July 11, 2008

There's an update from Zone-Alarm that fixes this. Unfortunately, I can't remember the link right now...

Alrik Fassbauer · July 11, 2008

Thanks.

This update can be found via the built-in update function of Zonealarm as well.

Gorath · July 11, 2008

Ionstormsucks said:
You shouldn't... I wouldn't use it myself, but I have 8 gigs of memory and since I had a Vista version that came with my Dell computer I thought I should give it a try. Guess I could by the 64 bit version of XP, but I don't wanna make these MS guys even richer as they already are.

I would use this as an excuse to install a 64 bit Linux. Then use it for standard stuff and only boot into Vista if you need to.

pibbur · July 12, 2008

I'm very happy I remembered reading this on the forums. This happened on one of my PC's, and the PC's of my two daughters yesterday and this morning.

You saved me hours of scratching my head. And because the resulting profuse bleeding didn't occur, I did not develop anemia or even shock. And my cat did not turn into a vampire.

MS Update -> no internet anymore

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