After installing Windows XP SP2, how do I configure the Windows Firewall to allow Symantec AntiVirus to be controlled through the Symantec System Center?

 

Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) has the Windows Firewall enabled by default, which only allows communication that originates from the local computer. As a result, you cannot control Norton/Symantec AntiVirus (NAV/SAV) through the Symantec System Center. Microsoft recommends that you leave the Windows Firewall enabled and create an exception in it that allows control of NAV/SAV from the Symantec System Center.

To create an exception for Symantec System Center:

  1. From the Start Menu, select Settings, then Control Panel. Double-click Network Connections.

Note: The Windows XP default desktop view and Start menu are different from the Windows Classic View (e.g., in Windows 2000). Therefore, navigating to certain items can be different. Please click on ‘Switch to Classic View’ to see the ‘Network Connections’ icon.

  1. You will need to run the Windows Firewall applet as a local administrator. To do so, press and hold the Shift key while right-clicking Windows Firewall. Select Run As... , and in the resulting dialog box, select The following user radio button, then supply the username and password of an account with local administrator privileges. (This is called the Windows Secondary Logon service).
  2. In the Windows Firewall dialog box, on the General tab, ensure that the On (recommended) radio button is selected and the Don't allow exceptions checkbox is cleared. If this isn't the case, change them accordingly.
  3. From the Exceptions tab, click Add Port... .
  4. In the Edit a Port dialog box, for "Name:", enter Symantec System Center , and for "Port number:", enter 2967 , then select the UDP radio button.
  5. Click Change Scope, and in the resulting dialog box, select the Custom List radio button, and provide the IP address of your SAV server. If you have more than one console, you can enter a list of IP addresses or subnet/netmask entries, separated by commas.
  6. Click OK three times to close all the dialog boxes.