Recommendations on free firewalls?

There are literally too many to mention. I'd suggest you visit

Thanks - much appreciated.

Please read the links below.

Interesting articles with more than a grain of truth - one reason I can't stand Norton is that it's continually trying to justify its existence with a shower of popups. ZoneAlarm allows you to turn off specific alerts as you come to recognise them, and I like the way it shows me what's happening on my machine. Tho' I'm hardly a networking expert, I do run IIS and I'd rather have a firm handle on what external machines can connect to my webserver and the various fileshares. If only ZA wasn't so greedy with CPU I'd be very happy with it, especially with its effective antispyware and antivirus components. On the other hand I've never had a client who has any clue how to manage Norton's firewall, and all too many of them bought their machines with it pre-installed.

If I was replacing my existing NAT modem/router/wireless kit I'd probably go for a separate modem, firewall/router and wireless access point - I've just installed a pair of Netgear FVS114s which seem extraordinarily good value for the money. However, I've been encouraging clients (especially domestic ones) to run ZoneAlarm so that they get an inkling of what's going on with those screen-savers and music-sharing programs they insist on downloading...