Is Bd Firewall Included In 30-day Trial Version?

@claudiu: you are partially wrong. BitDefender Internet Security does indeed have the firewall included. But also does BitDefender AV Plus. It also has a firewall module, but it is less secure then the one offered by BD IS.

@Carol: BitDefender Trail versions are working exactly like the Full versions. There are absolutely no limitations except the 30-day limit and the Trial Reminder whenever you start BitDefender.

If you don't have a firewall module in your BitDefender, that could mean two things:

1) you are testing BitDefender Antivirus (which doesn't have a firewall module)

2) you didn't install the firewall module when you installed BitDefender (all modules are selected by default in the installation kit, but you have the possibility to un-check some of them).

If you want to have BD Firewall, you have to choose BD AV Plus or BD IS. Personally, I'd suggest you to choose BD IS, for two reasons:

1) BD AV Plus series won't be continued in v11.

2) the firewall in BD AV Plus is nothing more then just a manner of controlling the Inbound and Outbound. BD IS Firewall also offers protection against other types of attacks (port scanning, multicast and ICMP traffic filtering, etc... )

You can see a comparison chart between BitDefender products HERE.

That list will be changed in the next months, when BitDefender Total Security will be released (currently in BETA phase).

Sorry if I'm being a pest today

Don't worry about it. If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask here.

Cris.

Hi Carol,

1. I don't have more than a vague idea of what the above bold means. If you can explain it reasonably easily, I would appreciate! If it means that it stops me from being identified by other computers, then I would like that.

Umm... well, first of all, as I previously said, you cannot (as far as I know) prevent someone from "identifying" your PC (identify = find out your IP). What you can do is to prevent that someone to get into your PC without your approval. Now, about the bold section:

Port scanning:

The connection between two PCs is made through ports (Think about ports like they are docks in a harbour). In other words, PORTS are doors through internet traffic can come in/go out. If a port in your PC is open, it means your PC accepts connections on that port. If a port is Closed, connections with that port will be rejected (but that port can be opened on request).

Port Scanning is a method which can be used to find out which ports your PC has open. In other words, ports scanning is similar to a thief trying the doors in a building, to see which door is open.

BD IS detects port scanning attempts and makes your ports Stealth. In other words, your PC will not answer to that attempt to "see" what ports you have open (so even if the ports are open or closed, you are protected against illegal intrusion).

ICMP traffic filtering:

ICMP is another method of finding out if a PC is on-line. ICMP includes: Echo (also known as Ping), Redirect, Destination Unreachable and Other types. If your PC responds to one of these types of requests, then that's a clear sign for a hacker that your PC is open, online and un-protected. BD IS can filter these types of attacks.

Multicast traffic filter:

Multicast traffic is the kind of traffic addressing a special group in a network. Packages are sent to a special address from where the multicast client can receive them if he agrees to.

For example, a member of a network who owns a TV-tuner may broadcast (send to each network member) or multicast (send to a special address) the video stream.

The computers that listen the multicast address can accept or reject the package. If accepted, the video stream can be watched by the multicast clients.

Excessive amounts of multicast traffic consumes bandwidth and resources. With this option enabled any multicast package received will be dropped.

All these methods can be used by Network admins to find out any possible network problems. However, for a home user, these are better to be blocked. Of course, if you want some of these requests to be allowed (to anyone, or to certain IPs), you can set BD to allow them.

Of course, you can imagine that I cannot fully explain them here (there's just not enough space ). If you want further info about them, you can either download BD IS documentation (and look at the Firewall section), or you can search the web for these (you can try on Wikipedia).

Does that include computers from legitimate companies as well as unidentified computers? (I would be just as happy if it included ALL other computers, legitimate companies or not.

You have the possibility to allow certain IPs. In BD v11, the IP restriction will be greatly improved (and easier to use).

2. How much would BD "Internet Security" slow down my browser --in comparison with the speed it operates at currently with just "Antivirus" (not Plus)? And same question regarding it slowing down my own software applications. Would I expect to see a slowdown on either or both?

Well...browsing will not be slowed down. The only module that slows down browsing is HTTP Traffic Scanner, but that option is also in BD AV, and ca be disabled. Also, browsing is not that much slowed down (I never notice slowdowns... you might experience small slowdowns on some sites which have many scripts/multimedia elements in their pages). These slowdowns are caused by the time BD AV needs to scan the pages for viruses/malware.

But the actual traffic speeds (downloading/uploading) are not influenced very much by BD Firewall (just yesterday someone downloaded from my PC with a speed of 6.5 MB/s).

3. Last but not least, I have 24 days left on my trial version of BD "Antivirus." Trial periods are offered on all three products, so how can I upgrade my trial version of BitDefender Antivirus to the trial version of BitDefender Internet Security so I can see it in operation for the remaining 24-25 days I have left?

You have to uninstall BD AV (just to be sure, use the Uninstall Tool). Then just download BD IS and install it. The Trail periods, as far as I know, are totally independent on different BD Products. So, after you install BD IS, you'll have full 30-day Trial period.

Partially Off Topic:

[...]

But I have to know if it's going to slow me down, and if so, how much.

Some users say that BD slows down the PC extremely much. I really have no idea how they came to such a conclusion, because I've been using this product since v7 (and even before, when it was called AVX ) and I never noticed slowdowns.

You have 30 days of testing the Trial. As I said, the Trial version is exactly the same as the full version (not better, not worse). So, if you consider BD slows down your PC too much (I really doubt it ) then just switch to something else

Again, thanks in advance. I included several questions above, but you tend to take them one by one, and I really appreciate that.

Again, you're welcome.

Cris.

2. How much would BD "Internet Security" slow down my browser --in comparison with the speed it operates at currently with just "Antivirus" (not Plus)? And same question regarding it slowing down my own software applications. Would I expect to see a slowdown on either or both?

Tested Beta 3 and i didn`t notice a browser slow down.