:
: I am guessing you have downloaded the unforgiving, infamous Zone Alarm. First off, I just want to say that I am really impressed with the product... for advanced users. I usually recommend Norton's Firewall software for beginners and average users (without networking experience).

: The problem with the free version of Zone Alarm is that it asks the user what programs can have access and the ones that can't. I either see a complaint that the computer has a trojan (leads me to believe that the user was more libral with their selections) or they have lost functionality somewhere in windows (conservative in your selections).

: I could be wrong, but you may also be using Windows XP's "firewall". I have tested it a few times and have not been extremely happy with it. My recommendation would be to permanantly disable it. When you do this, you will regain the ability to transfer files. Therefore, I am under the impression that this is not what you are referring to in your post.

: Since you are not too specific in what firewall you are using and what you mean by file transfer, I will make up what I would assume the problem is that you are having.

: First off, when the Zone Alarm firewall is 'disarmed' or shut off, it closes all ports and continues to 'firewall'. Therefore, disarming ZoneAlarm will not fix your problem. As the easiest method of repairing your problem, I might recommend that you completely uninstall Zone Alarm, then reinstall. I know that this is really stinky advice, but this should reset all your selections and allow you to re-choose the programs that should have access and the ones that should not have access.

: If you really want to get into it, you can find the IP addresses of your favorite (I am guessing here) FTP sites. If it is outgoing email, then find the IP address for your outgoing email server as well. Zone Alarm has the ability to 'ignore' IP addresses that you have set in. If you need help setting this up and this is exactly the problem you are having, then please post back for instructions.

: I hope this helps. Please be a little more specific about the problem in another post and I can offer exact advice. Thanks.

: Computerpilot

The problem with the free version of Zone Alarm is that it asks the user what programs can have access and the ones that can't. I either see a complaint that the computer has a trojan (leads me to believe that the user was more libral with their selections) or they have lost functionality somewhere in windows (conservative in your selections).

I could be wrong, but you may also be using Windows XP's "firewall". I have tested it a few times and have not been extremely happy with it. My recommendation would be to permanantly disable it. When you do this, you will regain the ability to transfer files. Therefore, I am under the impression that this is not what you are referring to in your post.

Since you are not too specific in what firewall you are using and what you mean by file transfer, I will make up what I would assume the problem is that you are having.

First off, when the Zone Alarm firewall is 'disarmed' or shut off, it closes all ports and continues to 'firewall'. Therefore, disarming ZoneAlarm will not fix your problem. As the easiest method of repairing your problem, I might recommend that you completely uninstall Zone Alarm, then reinstall. I know that this is really stinky advice, but this should reset all your selections and allow you to re-choose the programs that should have access and the ones that should not have access.

If you really want to get into it, you can find the IP addresses of your favorite (I am guessing here) FTP sites. If it is outgoing email, then find the IP address for your outgoing email server as well. Zone Alarm has the ability to 'ignore' IP addresses that you have set in. If you need help setting this up and this is exactly the problem you are having, then please post back for instructions.

I hope this helps. Please be a little more specific about the problem in another post and I can offer exact advice. Thanks.

Computerpilot