I got a new laptop and in the process of setting it up there was this offer that popped up to use Live OneCare for 60 days. I signed up!
Things were all right as long as I tried connecting to the VPN’s that I need to connect to. One was connecting through a CheckPoint client software and the other was a Windows VON connection. Both of them did not connect.
So I checked the usual culprit, which is Windows Firewall and found that to be Off. Then only did I realize that my Firewall was OneCare. And it was playing havoc! Rather than tinkering with its settings I uninstalled it and fell back on Windows Firewall and AVG (One care was telling me that AVG was redundant and that I need to uninstall it!)
Everything is back to normal now. What I don’t realize is why does MS create two Firewall programs. I understand OneCare needing a firewall to provide the level of security that it requires. But why does it install another firewall program? After all Windows Firewall is its own product and it should have used that as part of OneCare? Oh wait? Does it mean that the Windows Firewall is a product with a lot of holes and that MS does not trust it’s own Firewall? So they are shipping a new Firewall with OneCare which is essentially a paid service?
But so far, Windows Firewall and AVG have served me pretty well and I don’t see the reason for me to switch to a new paid service from MS? After what is MS’s credentials on security? Not so great I’d say!
