Windows Firewall Control (WFC) by BiniSoft.org

Thank. When updating "over the top" the restore.wfw file must be manually deleted?

 

Thanks, finally I can rest at peace and let apps auto-update.

 

I don't understand which feature this refers to.
TairikuOkami's snip above is for notification exceptions, but this is different to an "auto allow" feature isn't it?

 

When you set the exception in capital letters, it will be allowed without notifications, either somefile.exe or all executables in the file path, useful especially with store apps, which change names with an each update.

 

Thanks TairikuOkami, I never would have figured that out. That is a useful feature.

 

Indeed, I had no idea this option existed. Seems pretty useful if somewhat dangerous. It should get it's own interface once it's stable.

 

I am sorry to see this feature removed - have been using it a lot lately to transfer rules from one PC to another. Anyone know what sort of "unreliable results" it was producing? I might have to go back and start the export/import process again.

 

Forgive me Alexandrud...

I used to import the basic rules with the command line:
netsh advfirewall import "RB.wfw"

Now I believe with command
netsh advfirewall import "Base WFC 21.9.2023.wpw" but it doesn't seem to work.

Am I doing something wrong here?

 

restore.wfw is generated only on a clean installation. It contains the Windows Firewall rules before any WFC installation. During an update of WFC, that file remains untouched. It can be used by the WFC uninstaller to restore the firewall rules that a user had before installing WFC (second option in the uninstall dialog).

You can read more about this feature here.

*.wfw is a Microsoft proprietary binary format. You can use netsh.exe advfirewall export/import "filename.wfw" your firewall rules as a backup. This format exports all firewall rules and automatically overwrites any existing rules at import.
*.wpw is a file extension used by WFC. The content of it is XML which can be viewed/edited in any text editor. This file can be exported from WFC and imported through WFC only. This format can be used to export 1 to n rules (selected rules only) and when you import the rules contained in this file, they will be added on top of the existing firewall rules.

And to answer to this question:

I had many reports over the years and complaints where the users used this format (*.wfw) to export their rules and when using the file to re-import the firewall rules back it didn't work as expected. For example, instead of importing back original 500 rules, it imports 100 and the rest are gone. If one rule is broken inside that binary file, then you don't know how many rules you get back. Obviously, this is not on a large scale, but there are situations when this happens. Also, exporting a rules set from Windows 11 and importing it back in Windows 10 is not allowed. Exporting just user custom rules, not with all the default rules from the OS is not possible. It is all or nothing.

My recommendation is to use the proposed *.wpw format from WFC. If there is a problem during the export you receive a notification. If there is a problem during import you receive a notification and you can find the problem in WFC log, which entry causes problems. Being an XML file, it is easier to inspect and fix the file. With a corrupted binary file, you can't do anything about it. For export, select only your custom rules in Rules Panel and export just those. There is no need to export everything.

 

Hi Alexandru!
Does v. 6 9 8 0 still work with Windows seven ?
Thanks.

 

@alexandrud

Thank you for new version!

Yes that makes really sense!

Greetings

 

JFI for translating

Changed from v6.9.7.0 to v6.9.8.0:

Code:

Changed string: 414
Deleted string: 421

 

Yes. I also compiled a NET 8 version of it and I tested it today on a Windows 7 x86 machine. So, yes, it works fine with Windows 7.

Actually it is the other way around. Deleted string is 414 and the modified one is 421. I did not mention this in the release post because I updated all the included languages, so there is no need for any update since all the translation files are up to date.

 

Oops, I should slow down sometimes ;-)
But I see different included translation files where are NOT up-to-date - maybe from older v6.9.7.0 or so, however - after the update to v6.8.9.0 (no reinstall), they are still there. So, all the following are not up-to-date:



Greetings

 

Yes, they are from a previous installation. The latest WFC versions will not install these anymore on a clean install. While updating, unmaintained translation files are not removed, only the included ones are updated.

 

All right! Then I will remove those unmaintained.

Thank you for clarification!

 

Hi, when will WFC will be able to use .NET 7 ? Is this automatic ? Or should we use separate builds ?

 

Separate builds. The current NET Framework version will continue to be supported in parallel with the NET 8 build. But this is not yet ready, it will take a while.

 

That's very handy!


So, if if I understand it correctly, in this list

Code:

NVNGX_UPDATE.EXE
WHATSAPP.EXE
MSEDGEWEBVIEW2.EXE
nvdisplay.container.exe
searchapp.exe

The first three will be authorized, and the last two will be blocked, all without any action on my part and without any notifications? Is a rule also automatically created/updated ?

 

Thanks for the clarification. How much performance gains you expect on an x86-64 system with modern CPU ?

 

Correct. The only "disadvantage" is, that everything is allowed, all protocols, all ports, but that is sort of the idea. I would prefer a predefined rule, like TCP port via port 443 only, maybe in time.

Created, yes, updated, no. Old rules will have to be removed manually. That is useful, if you need sort of a temporary rule. I unpack TOR to the desktop (ramdisk) and then remove it afterwards, so I do not have to re-created the rule.

 

Thanks for the new version. It fixes the issues. Perhaps you could consider including the latest PDF guide by default in the installation folder? I mean, an additional 0.8MB in the installer file size shouldn't be a problem.

Unless of course you complete it some time after release.

 

Normally I wouldn't be annoying, but I'm at my wit's end.

Until the update to version 6.9.8.0, WFC worked without any problems for years. Suddenly, however, I get the "blue exclamation mark of death".

Of course, I have tried everything: restarting the service manually, reinstalling the software, selecting a restore point, lots of reboots (even into Safe Mode), etc. Windows firewall itself has no problems, permissions are fine - WFC just can no longer find its service. The service does not show any problems in the Windows log... the two applications just don't want to communicate anymore.

Does anyone have any idea what the problem could be?

Operating system: Windows 10, version 10.0.19045.3693

 

Check the installation folder. You should have two executable files, wfcUI.exe and wfcs.exe. If there is one named wfc.exe it is from a previous version (the one which shows the exclamation mark). Please manually remove wfc.exe. wfcUI.exe should be the same version as wfcs.exe, 6.9.8.0.

From which version did you upgrade to version 6.9.8.0?
Does Malwarebytes Windows Firewall Control service appear in the list of Windows services? Can you start it?

Please le me know if this was helpful.

 

Unfortunately not, but thanks for your reply and support.

After deinstallation, the directory got removed completly. And there are only the mentioned executables (beside other files of course) in the directory.

Unfortunately, I no longer know. However, the version was so old that the installer prompted me to uninstall it. And then disaster took its course.

Edit: I guess it was v6.9.2.0 - and it works perfectly.

Yes, starting, stopping, restarting - no problem. And there is no error in the event log.

I have of course read all the information on the net about the same problem, e.g. that you should restart the service manually and only then start WFC manually - unfortunately none of this has helped. I think I need to reset the system completely.
Is there perhaps a way to revert to older builds? This would allow me to determine when the problem first occurre
d. You probably don't have a version repository, do you?