Firewalls work within our computer to prevent hackers and others from setting fire (figuratively speaking) and destroying data files, ravaging private information or harming computer hardware and software. A computer firewall is a virtual wall, halting unwanted hackers and vicious software attempting to enter personal, business and other computers.



Computer firewalls are similar to firewalls required for large buildings. The firewall is a thick brick wall located between sections of buildings forming a barrier to prevent fire from spreading to other parts of the building.

A computer firewall functions in a similar way and halts the hot hands of hackers and websites from breaking into a computer. The computer user sets the protection level of the firewall as high, low or medium security. Low security would be comparable to an apartment building without a brick firewall.

There are various types of firewalls, each having a specific job dependent upon the purpose for the firewall and the degree of protection required. There are application firewalls, which act as a relay for servers and web proxy agents. Personal firewalls provide protection for home users and others using a personal desktop and laptop computer.

There are certified firewalls, providing protection related to sockets for audio, video and data channels used by businesses with a computer network to protect confidential files from outsiders.

The firewall may limit employee accessibility to some files. Comparison firewalls are pieces of software used to compare the security capabilities and vulnerabilities of firewalls of different companies. IP firewalls are those, which act as a router referred to as "middleboxes" between a source host and a destination host.

Other firewalls are proxy servers and firewalls, which act as guardians for a company's internal network. The firewall functions between the server and a company's internet connection, the proxy server. Other firewalls serve as access controls against unauthorized access to or from a private network. firewalls can be hardware, software or a combination of hardware and software.

A firewall is a critical piece of hardware or software capable of functioning with a set of filters. The filters monitor Internet traffic and when triggered cause the firewall to react and halt potentially harmful traffic. Now, it is possible for a triggered filter to direct a firewall to stop traffic, which a person wants to enter the computer. In this situation, the person must adjust the security level of the firewall to allow entry of the information.

Those who access the Internet through a broadband router, which usually has an existing firewall configuration, have an advantage against harmful attacks. Added to the software firewall in the programs in the computer, the person with broadband connection has double protection against assaults.