win xp sp2 firewall "?"

my new laptop came w/ xp sp2 and i'm not sure what firewall i want to run on it yet so i just enabled it for the time being. i kept getting booted off line {thru dialup} and figured out that on the firewall i had to make the dialup servse an execption. why? is that like allowing or blocking that program from accessing the internet? if that being the case is everthing already blocked unless i make an execption?

 

No, the Windows firewall only blocks incoming connections for special apps so you don't need to configure it for your DU connection. Who do you have for an ISP?

 

i'm using wm connect. well it kept kicking me off line then when i made it an execption it quit kicking me off. so xp's firewall wont stop a program from connecting to the internet?

 

You can add a program to the 'deny' list and Windows will stop it from usuing the internet.
However the only real important thing for a home user is that it stops incoming packets cold. It works really well. Its a lot better than ZoneAlarm. At least it doesn't completely hose the machine when you take it off.

 

i agree to a point on stopping incoming packets but look at it this way, if you imesh and you block it untell you want to down loud imesh isnt surfing the web brang you who knows what attention. know firewal;ls arent built to protect you from viruses or backdoors pretty much if your machine trys it it thinks you allow it. but if you can deny access to out going then the firewall has a whole new set of rules to live by and if a backdoor was installed on your machine and when it went to connect and the firewall didnt have that program in its list it'll ask if you want it to access the net .{if you have that opption set} now for me i'm going to block the program then it'll be added to the list and right t hen i'm going to work on removing the unknown program