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Windows firewall
Windows firewall appears to be turned off. How do I turn it on? It is blocking me from downloading apps and updating. I have installed McAfee security firewall. Could this be the problem?
joe53
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January 19th, 2013 00:00
Hi jwinter1979, and welcome to the forum.
Please answer all the following questions:
1) What operating system are you using ( XP, Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8)?
2) What security came pre-installed with your system, if any? Please use the exact name and version if possible.
3) Is this a new system? If so, approximate date of purchase?
4) Did you uninstall any prior security program before installing McAfee?
5) The exact name, and version of the McAfee program you installed?
6) Apart from the download difficulties, is your computer otherwise working OK? In particular, can you open your anti-virus and run a scan?
Having more than one firewall installed and running in real-time can indeed result in conflicts that compromise security. We will need the above info to help answer your question.
jwinter1979
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January 19th, 2013 21:00
I am using Windows 8. Windows 8 security came standard on my Dell computer (windows firewall). Date of purchase was November 3rd last year. Did not uninstall the prior security program before installing McAfee. Installed McAfee Secure last week. My computer is working otherwise. Can open McAfee and run a scan. It seems as if the installation of McAfee has turned off my Windows security program from Dell. Although it had problems downloading updates automatic to Windows before McAfee and had problems downloading Flash player (most updated version).
Thank you for your time,
Jwinter
joe53
5.8K Posts
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January 20th, 2013 00:00
Thanks for the info. It sounds like you have some security program conflicts. It is important to have only one AV and one firewall installed and running to avoid this.
The native security that comes with Windows 8 is Windows Defender Anti-virus/anti-malware, and Windows firewall. These can be activated/de-activated in your Security Center (instructions in links below).
Dell computers these days typically ship with McAfee security suites pre-installed (including an AV and a firewall), so the Win 8 firewall and AV would be de-activated by default to avoid conflicts. Do you recall if you activated and/or registered any McAfee products when you first got your computer? Is it possible that you did not activate McAfee until recently?
If you have not actually purchased McAfee, but are using a trial version, I would recommend uninstalling it, and re-activate Windows Defender and firewall. (see 3rd link below for uninstall instructions). Because McAfee can be difficult to completely uninstall, you might consider also downloading their uninstall tool MCPR (4th link). I don't know if this necessary or supported by Windows 8 - all I can say is I used it when I first got my Win 8 system to uninstall McAfee, with no adverse results.
I can't rule out infection on your system, especially if you were running more than one AV or firewall at some time. Your inability to download updates is a bit worrisome. If my suggestions do not solve your problems, there are other options to explore.
Good luck, and keep us informed.
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-CA/windows-8/windows-firewall-from-start-to-finish
http://www.pcworld.com/article/2020260/how-to-activate-windows-defender-in-windows-8.html
http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/add-or-remove-programs-in-windows-8.html
http://download.mcafee.com/products/licensed/cust_support_patches/MCPR.exe