Enhanced Firewall is a component of AVG Internet Security, which creates rules each time an application or process starts for the first time. These rules determine how Enhanced Firewall behaves toward each application or process when it connects to the internet or to another network. We recommend you only make alterations to application rules if you have advanced knowledge of firewall concepts. Enhanced Firewall is already configured to provide the appropriate firewall protection in most cases.
Create a new application rule
Adjust access restrictions
Set actions for unauthorized connections
In addition to defining the types of connections you authorize for applications or processes, you can also specify how Enhanced Firewall behaves when it detects a non-authorized connection. To define Enhanced Firewall behavior for a non-authorized connection:
- Click a group (vendor) in the Application column to open the list of applications or processes in that group.
- Select an application or process to expand its individual communication settings.
- Use the drop-down menu to manage the program's behavior. The following behaviors are available:
- Default rule: Enhanced Firewall decides to allow or block connections based on the settings of the active Enhanced Firewall network profile (Private or Public).
- Auto-decide: Enhanced Firewall allows connections with verified applications, but blocks connections from unknown or suspicious applications.
- Block: Enhanced Firewall blocks all other connections.
- Ask: Enhanced Firewall asks you to decide if you want to allow or block a connection each time a new request is received. Selecting this option may result in frequent and potentially obtrusive alerts.
For more information about network profiles, refer to the following article:
Specify authorized ports
Tighten rule restrictions further by specifying the network ports each application uses for communication when an incoming or ongoing connection is allowed. To specify authorized ports:
- Click a group (vendor) in the Application column to open the list of applications or processes in that group.
- Select an application or process to expand its individual communication settings.
- Specify the Outbound ports
and Inbound ports that you allow the application or process to communicate with. Specify ports in the following ways:
- A: Type specific port numbers into the text box. For multiple ports, separate each port number with a comma.
- B: Select All from the drop-down menu to authorize communication with all ports.
- C: Select a predefined port number from the drop-down menu.
- Optionally, configure packet rules from the main application rules screen by following steps 1-2 above, then clicking Packet rules.For more information about packet rules, refer to the following article:
NOTE: Different application or process types require different ports. For example, for internet browsers, port 443 is the default port used for HTTPS (secure HTTP), and port 80 is the most commonly used port for HTTP (unsecured), therefore the application rules port entry is 443,80. For information about the correct network port to specify for an application, contact the application vendor or refer to the application's documentation or support pages.