Apache Friends Support Forum

my site cannot be viewed unless i turn my firewall off, and for security reasons i don't want to do that

is there another way i can make it viewable without turning firewall off

Which firewall are you using?

If the firewall from your OS Internet Connection Firewall see the link below and disable this almost useless firewall.

Can't you configure your firewall to allow traffic through on port 80 and the other ports that XAMPP uses?

See your firewall help files how to do that.

These port can be found by going to http://localhost/security/index.php - scroll down and you will see all the ports XAMPP uses.

I recommend the Comodo Free Internet Security Suite (not the pro) which will allow you to do the above easily and is rated the best firewall out there - Comodo issues SSL certificates and is very Internet Security orientated.

If you're using Windows firewall, here's how to do it:

http://www.myownserver.info/index.php/step-4-additonal-settings/8-port-forwarding.html#Windows_firewall

Sharley wrote:Which firewall are you using?

If the firewall from your OS Internet Connection Firewall see the link below and disable this almost useless firewall.

I did not know this. Good thing to learn now though. They say you learn something new everyday, I think I'm covered for several weeks now.

Sharley wrote:I recommend the Comodo Free Internet Security Suite (not the pro) which will allow you to do the above easily and is rated the best firewall out there - Comodo issues SSL certificates and is very Internet Security orientated.

Thank you very much!!! I'll definitely be looking into this. BTW, what is so bad about window's firewalls?

A firewall is only a firewall if it is bi-directional else it is only a security feature.

Unless the Windows firewall has changed it only works one way, in - where a good firewall works both for inbound traffic and for traffic leaving your PC - it asks if you want to allow a program to access the Internet, which helps prevent Trojans from sending data back to it's keeper, which also helps you to see what programs are accessing the Internet without you knowing about it.

But half a firewall is better than no firewall at all, I suppose.

thank you.. couple more questions

how do i CHMOD in xampp.. i use smartftp and it wont let me chmod local files

also i need a external hard drive, ( that is static and doesn't turn off unless i tell it to ) any recommendations? i can only afford one of them 2tb hard drives at the moment

because with my pc the site is only viewable when my pc is on

i usually restart it 3 times a day and during that time my site is down

diasick wrote:how do i CHMOD in xampp.. i use smartftp and it wont let me chmod local files...

Ignore any references to chmod in your scripts as the chmod command is for *nix environments not Windows, your scripts will work locally by default - see link below.
Forum search for chmod link

diasick wrote:...also i need a external hard drive...any recommendations?

Sorry, none at all but Google would be your best friend for gidgets like that which would produce results with a broader review base than here - if Seagate make them I can recommend the quality of their hard drive products and the free software to manage them (SeaTools).

BTW, even with an external HD your PC will have to be turned on for the data stored on that EHD to be accessed, processed and distributed, CMIIW.

diasick wrote:...also i need a external hard drive...any recommendations? i can only afford one of them 2tb hard drives at the moment

because with my pc the site is only viewable when my pc is on

i usually restart it 3 times a day and during that time my site is down

I personally try to stay away from external hard drives except for transferring data between computers. The reason being is the heat factor. MOST external hard drives have no sort of cooling, such as a fan blowing on them, etc. and they don't spin down. Your newer computers will spin down the hard disks so they're not running full speed when they aren't being accessed. This keeps them from getting as hot and can help extend the life of your drive. Plus, your pc probably has better ventilation than an external enclosure does.

Now with that being said, I personally will use either seagate or western digital. I have both brands of hard drives and they both work fine for me. It's a matter of preference. I also recommend using smaller size drives, because if it fails, that's less data you loose. It would be better instead of buying one 2TB drive to buy two 1TB drives and using one to mirror the other or using them both together for your 2TB so if one fails, you still have the data on the other. Do a search on drive redundancy in Google and read a few articles on it. I personally use RAID 5.

Also, as Sharley said, this won't keep you from having to have your computer on.

What I personally do and what I recommend to anyone wanting to have a site available 24/7 is use an old PC. Use an old office PC or one you've put aside and bought a new one to use. A server PC doesn't have to be a new top-of-the-line computer for a personal web server. The old ones work great for this. If you do use an old one, I suggest starting by formatting and putting a fresh install of Windows on it too. This will help clear the junk off of it from previous uses and may make it much more stable. And don't install any unnecessary software on it. Dedicate that computer to running as your server only.

Does anyone know of a good free or cheap firewall software for Windows Server 2003? Commando doesn't work with it.

dmphotography wrote:Does anyone know of a good free or cheap firewall software for Windows Server 2003? Commando doesn't work with it.

See if there is anything that suits in the results of this Google search for free firewall for Windows Server 2003 (link).

Thanks. I ended up just buying OutpostPRO as it had good reviews and was only $40 right now.

Now my question is when I do a security test of open ports, port 80 is obviously open for web traffic because of the server. What are the risks associated with that? And what do you do to protect yourself there since you must allow traffic on that port?

dmphotography wrote:...Now my question is when I do a security test of open ports, port 80 is obviously open for web traffic because of the server. What are the risks associated with that? And what do you do to protect yourself there since you must allow traffic on that port?

viewtopic.php?p=132667#p132667

Ahhh, thank you. "Hardening a Server". That's the term I was needing to know.