Webroot Desktop Firewall Reviewer's Comments

Webroot Desktop Firewall is an easy to use firewall for the home and home office. It takes a different approach from some other firewalls in that it works by applying rules to the applications you run rather than forcing you to identify the port the application is running on. This makes for an easier configuration, and much more intuitive management panel.

The management panel takes things a bit further though by allowing you to set configurations by using a slider instead of finding specific options in a sea of checkboxes.

Feature Set:  

Webroot Desktop Firewall makes firewall configuration easy. After it finishes its installation process, you are presented with a simple and intuitive management panel that has all the major settings you will ever need to use right at your fingertips.

It includes a 7 day training period where the firewall software learns what your computer does, what you do, and how you interact with your computer and programs. While it learns, it adjusts its settings to adapt to how you work. This makes for a VERY simple configuration because it does much of it on its own.

Another nice thing it has going for it is the sliders it uses for configuration. These are used for quick configuration of your Internet Security level, your Network Security Level, and your Process Monitoring level. If you find that the slider doesn’t do exactly what you want, there are more advanced options available at the touch of a button.

Webroot Desktop Firewall also includes several logging options that may be important if you are attacked at any time. These logs include data that can be forwarded to authorities to assist in tracking down the bad men and women of the world that want to steal or damage your data.

It has the standard options to either kill all network traffic or open your system up to any network traffic. This is in the form of a stop light that is turned sideways. Click on red and everything stops. Click on green and you are wide open to everything. Click the yellow light and you will go back to your normal configuration.

The downfall of Webroot Desktop Firewall is the features it doesn’t include. It performs great for a standalone firewall, but doesn’t have options such as Ad-Blocking, Email Scanning, Virus Scanner Integration, and many others that come with some of the more popular firewall packages.

Ease of Use:  

With the use of sliders to handle much of the configuration process, Webroot Desktop Firewall gets an A on the easy factor. The control panel is easy to navigate and has many options to choose from that allow you control some more advanced features if you wish. The default configuration is normally sufficient for most average home users, though there may be changes that need to be made depending on the software you run locally.

Ease of Installation:  

Installation was a snap. The software has a default configuration that is implemented upon install which automatically filters all traffic and responds accordingly. This makes the install process one of the most simple and fast I have seen in the firewall market.

Reliability:  

As Webroot Desktop Firewall lacks some of the more standard features included in some other firewall software packages, it doesn’t have a whole lot to worry about in the reliability arena. It does what it is designed to do, and it does it well.

The software blocked all attempts our testing threw at it with the exception of one Windows XP vulnerability that it was unable to prevent. Seeing as how this problem is not a firewall issue, but an operating system issue, we can’t fault the firewall for this.

Help/Support:  

Support options are limited at Webroot. Email support seems to be the easiest way to get someone to help. I called the tech support line and waited on hold for quite some time before my impatience got the better of me. They have a small knowledgebase available as well. There is no webchat option available that I could find.

Summary:  

Webroot Desktop Firewall is a simple product that is easy to use. It doesn’t have a lot of the perks that many of the other firewall packages out there have, but it does do what a firewall is meant to do very well.

While its lack of perks such as spyware blocking, virus scanning, and email scanning may deter many people in need of these options from picking it up, it has a definite niche market to work with that contains many people that just need a simple firewall without any frills.