PC Tools Firewall Plus Free Edition for Windows

User Reviews

• Does not work on Win 8.1

  steveos001!10/17/2015

  Pros

  Works fine on Win7 i use it on 2 machines

  Cons

  Compatibility problems Win 8.1, will not uninstall properly and disables Wireless Internet. To re-enable go to adapter settings and uncheck PC Tools Firewall Driver

  Summary

  Get a newer product

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• VERY EFFICIENT

  jnupin1/26/2015

  Pros

  - easy to use; - automatic settings; - efficient - compatible with many antivirus

  Cons

  - no objection.

  Summary

  - simple, light and efficient.

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• The best free firewall I've ever had

  heeed11uknw3/15/2013

  Pros

  Good, good, good,...... Easy to use, install, operate. Dependable

  Cons

  None what so ever in my best knowledge

  Summary

  I really don't get all these dissatisfaction and problems people are conveying here. Really like to get it! I've had Pc tools along with avast for years. Both on my Pc and laptop till few months back. They were compatible and not even once had problem or infection. Now that I've bought my new Vaio(love this Sony btw!) that comes with Kasperski per-installed, thought of uninstalling it for I'm fed up with it's pup ups! and install Avast along with PC tools BUT to be honest all these negative comments got to me and since I'm not a Pc savvy ..........!!! wish i knew what best to do.

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• DOING THE JOB ON TWO Win7 64-bit Notebooks

  ThomasinaPaine2/22/2013

  Pros

  I had no problem with installing this firewall on a Compaq and Toshiba Win7 64-bit dual cone laptops. Have been using it for around 6 months and have fiddles around with the settings a bit. Application blocking particularly to see what is crucial. It has been an education, and I've learned a lot :) I tried ZA and Comodo and MS Essentials. The first two were ARGHH! maddening! Hard to understand and adjust settings onunless you're an accomplished geek. (I'm not, but I hand in there...heh) MS Essentials didn't seem to do much of anything. PCTools FW actually obeys ms when I block something from connecting to the internet <g> I've been well pleased, felt a little more "in control" with the newest version. I also run Kingsoft AV (along with its partner Kingsoft PCDoctor) along with SAS and Malwarebytes, CacheCleaner and Glary's and never seem to get invaded by anything. SO...I'm pretty pleased...or pretty deluded one!

  Cons

  I deducted one star because I think ANY security software should tell you what all those dang "svchost.exe files that you see in TaskManager running processes actually are LINKED to...! I mean,why not tell us, you know? LOL.

  Summary

  I tried MANY more than I mentioned above and decided for free (Since F-Secure costs now) I don't think you can beat PCTOOLS Firewall :)

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• love the firewall and its services.

  Lonnie6aa2/8/2013

  Pros

  for free ware it has all the bells and whistle that should come with paid subscriptions. Gives me the peace of mind that I had even with a full paid subscription to kaspersky.

  Cons

  none that i have found

  Summary

  I love this firewall and have recommended it to numerous of my family members and friends.

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• Now retired by PC Tools, but good while it lasted...

  johntdrums11/2/2012

  Pros

  This WAS a very dependable and capable free Firewall. PC Tools have retired it now and have instead incorporated it into their Internet Security Suite (thanks to their merger with Symantec). HOWEVER, after uninstalling it (since it's no longer 'updateable') you might be faced with some problems.... See "Cons"

  Cons

  After uninstalling this great program (using Revo Uninstaller and doing a 'forced uninstall' to find extra little bits), I was still left with some "PC Tools Drivers" in my Device Manager. I had been trying for months to uninstall or delete these annoying network devices which didn't serve any purpose other than to sit there in my Device Manager with a little yellow exclamation mark saying they didn't work... but to no avail! Finally, after heaps of internet searching, I found the solution - yay!!! Ironically, it was from a PC Tools Moderator, but you can't find it on their website! See my summary below for the fix...

  Summary

  The problem many people have with PC Tools Firewall Plus is that since the program was retired many users have decided to uninstall it from their computers. The trouble is that it leaves the PC Tools Drivers in your PC's Device Manager with no possible way to uninstall them. BUT, I managed to find a solution... Here is the best way to uninstall these drivers: 1. Click on "Start" (or the Windows logo at the bottom left of your computer screen). 2. Click on Run (or type "Run" into 'All Programs',) then type in 'regedit', then press OK. You may have to sign in as an administrator. 3. Go to registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Enum\Root\S4_PCTDRIVERMP\... You will find some sub-keys: 0000, 0001, etc. 4. Open a sub-key and look for a value with the name "Driver". It should contain something like {4D36E972-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002bE10318}\00xx, where xx = a digit. It may also state the name of the PC Tools driver involved. If it does, this is your culprit. 5. Now, go back up and open the key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class\{4D36E972-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002bE10318} and click on this to find the sub-key 00xx, where xx = the same as above. 6. Find the value called "Characteristics". Click on this and change the value from 29 to 1. Please note: If a key does not contain the name "Characteristics", you can create a "REG_DWORD" value by going to 'Edit' - 'New' - 'DWORD (32-bit) Value', then rename it "Characteristics". Make the value "1" for each relevant key. 7. Repeat stages 4 to 6 for each appropriate PC Tools sub-key found in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\ENUM\Root\S4_PCTDRIVERMP\... 8. Restart your computer and then uninstall the PCTools Drivers using Device Manager. This method was originally posted by "Alexey", a moderator from PC Tools. There were many posts back and forth because of discrepancies and misunderstandings. However, I edited the whole thing to make it easier to understand. After months of trying to find a solution, even with Alexey's original "hard-to-follow" description that I had to deal with, I tried this method and it actually worked. I hope it works for you too! Cheers...

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• Almost had to reinstall XP

  ChrisGDMA7/4/2012

  Pros

  Pros? Are you f-ing kiddin'?

  Cons

  The firewall didn't even install properly. When reaching the last step of installation, pressing "next" made my PC go a fraction of a second into the blue screen of death and restart itself. Loaded the fail-safe defaults from Bios, booted into XP in safe mode, logged into my administrator account, tried to uninstall this firewall and BAM: blue screen of death and another self-restart. Tried to uninstall it with CCleaner in safe mode (awesome software I really love for keeping my PC clean), but again the uninstaller starts, I agree to uninstall this firewall and BAM-BAM: blue screen of death and self-restart. I had to go to Program Files and delete the installation folder and my PC seems to work alright once again.

  Summary

  This is an XP crasher! I hate it, it's an abomination and I can't believe crap like this invaded CNET lately. Download and use at your own risk, folks. I'm going to look for a good firewall that won't destroy my PC.

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• does the job reqd

  sakshambhatla6/10/2012

  Pros

  easy to use. set it up in mnutes. windows firewall is such a pain

  Cons

  no complains yet

  Summary

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• Numero UNO!

  LiliaMSU4/12/2012

  Pros

  The best! Your search for the best Firewall stops here!

  Cons

  The best! The best! The best!

  Summary

  The best firewall! Not long ago someone won a security suite (antivirus and firewall) and asked me if I wanted it. I said no thank you - I am very happy with PC Tools!

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• Do not install on Windows 7 64 bit, reinstalled Windows

  4/9/2012

  Pros

  Old versions used to be good on Windows XP.

  Cons

  Old versions used to be good on Windows XP.

  Summary

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