Firewall and Network Protection in the Windows Security App

Private and public networks

You can specify that a particular network your device connects to is private or public. The key difference is whether other devices on the same network are allowed to see, and maybe connect to, your device.

Your home network might be an example of a private network - in theory the only devices on that network are your devices, and devices owned by your family. You're fine with those other devices being able to see yours, because you trust those devices.

The Wi-Fi at your local coffee shop, however, is a public network. Most of the other devices connected to it belong to strangers and you'd probably prefer they not be able to see or connect to your device.

As a general rule you'll have stricter security controls on a public network than on a private network, simply because of the level of trust you may have for the other people and devices on that network. 

Configure Windows Firewall with Windows Security

1. In the Windows Security app  on your PC,​​​​​​​ select Firewall & network protection or use the following shortcut:

   Firewall & network protection​​​​​​​

2. Windows Security shows you which type of network you're currently connected to. Usually, your device will only be connected to one network at a time. Select a network profile: Domain network, Private network, or Public network

3. Under Microsoft Defender Firewall, switch the setting to On to enable Windows Firewall. To turn it off, switch the setting to Off. Turning off Windows Firewall could make your device more vulnerable to unauthorized access. If there's an app you need to use that's being blocked, you can allow it through the firewall, instead of turning the firewall off

4. Under the Incoming connections section, there's a checkbox for Blocks all incoming connections, including those in the list of allowed apps. Checking this box tells the Windows Firewall to ignore the allowed apps list and block everything. Turning this on increases your security but might cause some apps to stop working

Additional settings

Here's a list of additional settings available in the firewall and network protection page:

• Allow an app through firewall : If the firewall is blocking an app you need, you can add an exception for that app, or open a specific port. Learn more about that process (and why you might not want to) at Risks of Allowing Apps Through Windows Firewall

• Network and Internet troubleshooter: If you're having general network connectivity issues you can use this troubleshooter to try and automatically diagnose and fix them.

• Firewall notification settings: Want more notifications when your firewall blocks something? Fewer? Learn how to configure notifications

• Advanced settings: This will open the classic Windows Defender Firewall, tool which lets you create inbound or outbound rules, connection security rules, and see monitoring logs for the firewall. Most people won't want to dig into it that deeply; adding, changing, or deleting rules incorrectly can cause your system to be more vulnerable or can cause some apps not to work

• Restore firewalls to default - If someone, or something, has made changes to your Windows Firewall settings that is causing things not to work properly you're just two clicks away from resetting the settings back to the way they were when you first got the computer. If your organization has applied any policies to configure the firewall, those will be reapplied