ISP asking me to turn off firewalls

Fifer

I've been having an ongoing problem since October with my 'upgraded' 8MB broadband link with Plusnet. They are now asking me to undertake some (more) tests whilst connected to the Internet, but I am concerned by the following instructions:

Please confirm the following:

Your broadband hardware is powered-up and plugged in
Unless your hardware is powered up and connected, the checks will fail. If you are not able to set up your broadband connection right now, you can return to this point within 48 hours to begin the tests.
You have disabled hardware and software firewalls
A firewall is a feature that blocks other Internet users from accessing your network. If you connect with a router, check the router settings to confirm that if it has a built-in firewall, it is currently disabled. If you are not sure, check the router documentation.
You have disconnected any dial-up connections
If you are currently using a normal (not broadband) dial-up modem, you need to disconnect this as soon as you have clicked on Start Connection Check. Remember that you still need to leave your broadband hardware connected and powered up.

Is it sensible for them to ask me to turn off firewalls whilst connected to the internet?

irnbru_2

Fifer wrote:

Is it sensible for them to ask me to turn off firewalls whilst connected to the internet?

Yes, they want to eliminate any potential source of the problem.

woo

Are you going through the 'self-test and raise a fault' or are you in direct contact with the support staff?

I can understand them asking to you to switch off a software firewall, but not the hardware one.

Do you have a router?

amcluesent

>They are now asking me to undertake some (more) tests whilst connected to the Internet<

Perfectly sensible to ask you disable firewalls while the testing is underway.

Firewalls, encryption, NAT all make diagnosing problems much, much more difficult. Fine to progressively enable them once you have a basic working system

sgx.saint

A firewall can have an adverse affect on a connection just as much as it can be beneficial if configured incorrectly.

If you have been asked by the support staff to disable it, then I suggest you follow their advice.

The likelyhood of a 'hacker' trying to get into your computer while your firewall is down is extremely low, same applies to malicious software. Unless of course you are a VIP

Fifer

Thanks for the responses.

Al, I don't need 8MB at the moment, but then I once thought I only needed 14.4 kbps. I'm paying for it, so I might as well have it. The real problem is that my rock-steady 2MB has deteriorated since the non-optional 'upgrade'. I'd be happy to get back to what I had before. If only the master socket is capable, it's not a problem as my router is wireless. The current problem isn't helped by using the master socket though.

I think I'll disable the firewalls, but disconnect everything except the laptop as there's no critical data on that.

albertross_2

Disabling firewalls is bad advice, if you plug an unpatched XP machine into broadband with no firewall and NAT, you'll probably catch a worm in seconds. If it's fully patched, and has upto date AV, file and print sharing turned off, you are a bit safer, but not something I would do.

The fact that it has gone wrong after the 8Meg upgrade tells me it is nothing to do with the PC.

Fifer

I have to admit that's exactly what I though, but trying to get anywhere with Plusnet "support" is like swimming through treacle.

rjm2k1

albertross wrote:

The fact that it has gone wrong after the 8Meg upgrade tells me it is nothing to do with the PC.

Assuming nothing else has been changed as a result of the upgrade, ie a new modem, router etc.

I had issues with my connection after installing a wireless router, sometimes the connection would work, sometimes it wouldn't, sometimes it was painfully slow. I disabled ZoneAlarm on my pc and everything was fine, seems to be some wierd issue with zonealarm being behind the router. Since the OP has already said they have a Wireless router, disabling the firewall on the laptop will make little difference unless there is already something on the machine, since the NAT of the router will protect all of the machines behind it unless OP has configured a default route/DMZ.

Aliktren

albertross wrote:

Disabling firewalls is bad advice, if you plug an unpatched XP machine into broadband with no firewall and NAT, you'll probably catch a worm in seconds. If it's fully patched, and has upto date AV, file and print sharing turned off, you are a bit safer, but not something I would do.

The fact that it has gone wrong after the 8Meg upgrade tells me it is nothing to do with the PC.

Yep, prepare for the wealth of popups and wierdness to begin, if you need to do it, as suggested, make sure you have applied all the Microsoft patches and have your AV software active, but if you have both then a short exposure shouldnt be fatal. And if I was the ISP support team I would want you to try without a firewall, it's a process of elimination as with all fault finding.

tawnyowls

And if you do follow their advice, back up everything first!