A firewall is designed to protect your computer from unauthorized access from an external network. With the default settings it forbids all incoming connections defined as unsafe. In some cases, this behavior interferes with communication with remote servers and the firewall needs to be disabled. Our experts tell you how to perform this operation in Windows 10.
Security Center
In the new operating system interface, the user can access the network screen settings in two ways.
You will find the shield-shaped icon of the Security Control Center in the system tray. Click on it with your mouse to open the control applet.
On the initial tab, go to the firewall settings section, which is framed in the screenshot.
Choose a network type, which is marked “active” in the description. Open the options by clicking on the boxed area.
Move the firewall status slider indicated by the arrow to the “Off” position.
You will see a notification in the system tray that the firewall has been disabled. If necessary, repeat the procedure for other types of networks that are not active at the moment.
Call up the OS options using the “Win+i” key combination. Go to Manage updates and security.
Select the option marked with the shield symbol in the sidebar, which is indicated by a one in the screenshot. Move to the right side of the screen, where the list of security areas is displayed. The button marked with a double line opens the System Security Control Center applet. Clicking on the area marked with “3” leads directly to the control of the security settings of the active network connection.
Control Panel
Using the applets saved in Windows 10 classic control panel allows you to fine-tune your firewall settings.
Press “Win+R” to open the “Run” dialog window. Type “firewall” in the highlighted text field.cpl”. Press Enter on the physical keyboard of your PC or the virtual “OK” button and get direct access to the control applet of the firewall.
In the main window, the green icons designate the active areas of protection. The current connection status is shown in the right part of the drop-down header. To manage the settings use one of the links marked with “3” and “4” in the navigation area.
The first one leads to the basic settings applet. Move the radio buttons to the positions highlighted in green, disabling the firewall for private and public networks. Save the new settings by clicking the “OK” button.
The second link takes you to the MMC console with the firewall monitor. Highlight the line of the same name in the area indicated by the arrow. Navigate to the main window field and click the link marked with a double arrow.
In the applet that opens, visit the three tabs with the network profiles one by one. On each of them using the drop-down menu marked with an arrow turn the firewall to the “Disable” position. Save the changes you have made by clicking “Apply”.
After you have performed the operation you will see the monitor window as shown in the following screenshot. Turn off the firewall for all three network profiles.
Command prompt
The command line, as an administration tool, also allows to disable the firewall.
Call the “Start” advanced menu with the “Win+X” key combination. Click on the box in the highlighted area to start the command prompt in administrative privilege mode.
Type “netsh advfirewall set allprofiles state off” at the prompt. After you press Enter, you will receive a notification in the system tray that the firewall has been disabled. The command line window itself displays an “OK” message, indicating that the operation was successfully completed. To turn the firewall on, use a similar command that changes the status value from “off” to “on”.
Stopping the service and notifications
The firewall service will continue to operate after the firewall is disabled. As a consequence, the system tray will constantly show notifications on the need to restore network security of your PC.
After calling the “Run” dialog box, type “regedit” in the text box. Press “OK” or the enter key to start the registry editor.
Select the HKLM branch by expanding one by one the directories highlighted with a green check marker. Walk the path marked with one in the address bar. Highlight the end directory, marked in the screenshot with a double. Double-click on the highlighted line in the right part of the editor window.
In the opened dialog window modify the start parameter value by indicating “4” in the highlighted field. Click on “OK” and make a note of the changes.
In the same branch of HKLM navigate to the path marked on the screenshot with “1. Select the “Notifications” folder. Go to the right half of the editor window and create a DWORD parameter.
Specify name “DisableNotifications” in obtained line. Double-click on it, and open the dialog box for editing. In the highlighted field, enter the value “1”. Record the settings with the “OK” button and restart your PC.
To conclude
By following the step-by-step instructions provided by our experts, you’ll be able to disable the Windows 10 firewall, stop its service, and receive notifications about weakened network protection.
