Comments:

2. 

   • Sami on Sat 05 Sep 2009
   • 04:43:13 PM UTC

   Re: How to upgrade my firewall safely

   You should probably consult the firewall's manual about upgrading, but disconnecting your network cable is always a safe choice.

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3. 

   • BobJam (not verified) on Sat 05 Sep 2009
   • 04:54:40 PM UTC

   Athlonite?

   Typically, there are instructions on an update, and it will tell you if you can overwrite an existing installation or if you should do the uninstall first and then install the new version.

   Regardless of what they say, I usually do a complete uninstall and then install the new version.

   There's a danger in that though. It has to do with whether an update is just a patch for the existing version, in which case you would definitely want to overwrite your existing version, or if it's an entirely standalone version . . . i.e. anyone downloading it for the first time would have the complete program.

   Most updates are standalones, but now and then it'll just be a patch.

   If they don't say (and they usually do), you may be able to get a good idea from the size of the file. For example, if the existing installation came from a 20MB download and the new one is likewise around 20MB (or even bigger), then it's probably a standalone and my recommendation would be to do a complete uninstall of the older version and then install the newer.

   But if the size of the downloaded file you got the old version from was, say, 20MB and this "new" one is only, say, 40KB, then it's likely just a patch, and I definitely wouldn't uninstall my existing version . . . I'd just apply the patch to it. (This assumes you know what the size of the old download was . . . which is why I saved my old downloads when I was using Windows. And that's also a backup in case the new one is just a patch and you thought it was a standalone)

   Part of the confusion to this is the technical definitions of the terms "update" and "upgrade" . . . there's a significant difference but most of us use the terms interchangeably.

   Technically, an "update" is a patch, and an "upgrade" is a completely new standalone version. But that's not always the way vendors use those terms.

   Since in your case, the version number went from a 5 to a 6, my suspicion is that it's a completely new standalone program. If that's the case, I would do an unistall of the old first and then install the new.

   However, I'm no longer a Window's kinda' guy and never used PC Tools Firewall when I had Windows. I think Athlonite uses it, plus he's much more current on Windows than I am.

   So, let's see if he chimes in here.

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4. 

   • BobJam (not verified) on Sat 05 Sep 2009
   • 05:22:06 PM UTC

   Hmmmmmm . . .

   Looking at Sami's reply, I think maybe I misunderstood your question.

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5. 

   • paul g on Sat 05 Sep 2009
   • 05:27:33 PM UTC

   firewall upgrade.

   Thanks for your quick reply's Sami and BobJam, I did'nt know about the difference between Patch and upgrade thanks for that info, Ill take your advice BobJam and wait and see if Athlonite knows anything about PC Tools firewall...

   Thanks for your time guy's..........cheers.........p...............

   If You Dont Ask You Will Never Know..

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6. 

   • Athlonite on Sat 05 Sep 2009
   • 09:28:10 PM UTC

   Hey Paul !!

   Yes indeed , I certainly use PC Tools Free Firewall.

   http://www.pctools.com/firewall/

   OK, now to your question. The first installer`s size was about 7 MB . This one (the new version) is 10.2 MB in size . This is because of Compatibility updates to Windows 7 and with the 64 bit OS so, yes , a new version and a new install. Usually , when you get updates , they will come via the auto-updater in the program itself . they would of also asked you to Upgrade to the newest version via a little add in the notification area ( Clock location). if you didn`t get notified of a new version , try running the the Updater in the program itself . Click on the ``Smart Update`` at the top right hand and see if they offer it. If not , and you would still like to upgrade to the newer version then, simply download and Save to your Documents folder or wherever you save your downloads and Disconnect from the internet and Uninstall the old and re-install the new. You know that , the new version will be nagging you for every connection it scans for about a couple of weeks or until all of the programs on your PC that needs to access the .Net has done so.
   It would be wise to do as BobJam does and save your Previous downloaded installers to a separate folder or to Burn them onto a CD for future use. (in case something goes wrong with the new one). I use a Flash Drive to store All of my old installers.

   Athlonite.

   Your help is always needed.

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• 

  • paul g on Sun 06 Sep 2009
  • 07:12:56 AM UTC

  PC Tools Free Firewall.

  Hey,Athlonite. Thanks for your reply. I have now noticed that they are 2 different sizes.
  I have run the smart update and it just ran normally and i have had nothing yet in the
  notification area. So i guess im alright for now with version 5 as it seems to be working fine, if they are not telling me to upgrade to 6 then i will wait a while and see if anything dose come through about it off PC Tools.

  Thanks for your time..........cheers.........p.........

  If You Dont Ask You Will Never Know..

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