How to Enable or Disable Windows 10 firewall

How to disable Windows 10 firewall

Today we are going to see how you can disable the Windows 10 firewall, either temporarily or forever, a very useful resource if you have connectivity problems and want to make sure that it is not the fault of the Windows firewall or firewall.

Photo by Soumil Kumar from Pexels

The Windows firewall is additional protection for the entry and exit of data from your PC to the network, so it is not advisable to disable it as a rule, but only as an exceptional temporary measure for the diagnosis or solution of a connection problem.

Disable Windows 10 firewall
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To disable the Windows 10 firewall you need to go to the Windows Defender Security Center. You can open the start menu and type its name, but it is faster to click its shield icon in the Notification Area, next to the clock.

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The Windows Defender Security Center includes all the security, performance, and antivirus options built into the operating system. At this moment we are only interested in deactivating the firewall, so click on Firewall and network protection.

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The Windows 10 firewall can be activated and deactivated separately in three types of networks: domain networks (more common in a work environment), private networks (for example, in your home) and public networks (networks without password in one cafeteria and the like). Windows tells you what type of network you are currently connected to with the callsign (active), but if you want to disable the firewall on all of them you must do it one by one. First, click on Domain Network.

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Once in Domain Network, click on the switch to disable Windows Firewall. Remember that you have only disabled it in this type of network and that you must repeat the process in the rest. To do this, click on the arrow to return to the previous window.

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The firewall configuration window will look a little different now, as there is a new button urging you to activate the firewall on the types of networks that you have already disabled. Neither case, now it's up to the Private Network, which is generally the type of network you'll be connected to when you're at home.

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The modus operandi is the same as under the Windows Defender Firewall section, disable the switch to disable the Windows firewall. You will receive a warning window trying to dissuade you. Click on the arrow to go back to the configuration window one last time.

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The last type of network in which we need to deactivate the Windows firewall is in public networks, that is, those in which there is no encryption. You should not disable the firewall on these types of networks unless you are sure of what you are doing, as it could leave your PC exposed to hackers.

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You only need to disable the last switch of the Windows firewall to disconnect the firewall also in public networks. The effect is immediate, and from that moment the Windows Defender icon in the Windows Notification Area will show a symbol indicating that "something is wrong".

Activate the Windows firewall again
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If you change your mind, or if you have finished diagnosing your network, reactivating the Windows firewall is very easy. Instead of having to go to each section and activate it, you just have to press Restore settings so that Windows restores the firewall on the type of network you are currently connected to.

For the rest of the networks, you can click Activate to activate it also, from the Windows Defender Security Center window.