How To Disable Firewall For A Game?
Introduction:
Has your computer’s firewall been preventing you from playing your favorite game online? Have you added the game to the Windows Firewall exceptions list but still unable to connect? If yes, don’t worry. We have come up with this article that will guide you on how to disable firewalls for a game. Henceforth, no firewall related problems shall stop you from enjoying your favorite online through the entire article so as to know how to disable firewall for a game.
Windows includes a built-in Firewall that helps protect computers against unwanted network traffic. However, being an integral part of the system, many third party applications are not able install their own Firewalls resulting in conflict between them and Windows Firewall. This might lead to Firewall blocking the software from operating in a real time environment.
While most players are able to connect to games without any issue, some are not able to do it for various reasons. Disabling Windows Firewall when you are connected to the internet can help in resolving this problem.
Here is how to disable firewall for a game:
Some games require that your Firewall is turned off or at least the game’s port be opened for smooth operation. If you are not able to connect to a game, it might result in denial of service as well as loss of important data.
Follow the steps below to disable Firewall for a game:
Method1:
Step 1: Press “Win+R” key combination to load Run dialog box and type “firewall.cpl” (without quotes) inside it and hit Enter. This will open Windows firewall settings window.
Step 2: Inside “Windows Firewall”, click on “Turn Windows firewall on or off” link given under ‘Monitor’ section found towards the left-hand side panel, which will open up another Security Settings window. Here, select the option “Turn off Windows Firewall (not recommended)” to disable it for a game or any other software being installed on your system.
Step 3: Click the ‘OK’ button to save changes. If you are prompted with a UAC confirmation box click on Yes to continue further.
That’s all! You have successfully disabled your firewall just in case you want to play games that require your firewall being turned off in order to run smoothly online. Also doing this will help in resolving errors like “Firewall is blocking some features of this game” when installing the game directly from its DVD without using any internet connection.
If you are unable to connect even after disabling the firewall, try forwarding ports manually for your PC/laptop.
Method 2:
1) Go to the Control Panel > Security Center . Alternatively, right-click on your computer icon on the desktop and select “Properties.” Now click on the “Windows Firewall” link which comes under “Security.” A new window will open up displaying “Windows Firewall Properties.” You can also open it by simply searching and typing the phrase ‘Change Windows Firewall settings’ in the Start menu search box.
2) Click on the “Turn Windows Firewall On or Off” link on the left side. A new window will open up displaying the current status of the firewall in your system.
3) Click on “Turn off Windows Firewall (not recommended).”
4) Click OK and you are done!
Now try to connect to the game again. If it still doesn’t work, I recommend you to add that specific executable file (i.e. launcher for multiplayer games etc.) in Firewall Exceptions list and then disable it once more after launching the game successfully. This should definitely help you resolve this issue permanently.
Disable firewall via CMD:
If you are unable to access Control Panel, then open up Command Prompt and type following command:
netsh advfirewall set allprofiles state off
If you are using 64 bit Windows, replace ‘allprofiles’ with ‘allprofile’ in the above command.
Type exit to close Command Prompt and restart your system after following the steps given above.
Once done, check your network status. You should now be able to connect to the game without any issues.
Demerits of Disabling firewall:
Disabling Windows Firewall is not advisable in any case and everyone must take backup of their important data and disable it only when required.
There are several demerits of disabling your firewall. It leaves the system vulnerable to security threats and attacks by hackers . So, it is recommended that you keep Firewall enabled at all times for safety purposes.
Disabling the firewall might result in IP conflict, which will render your internet connection useless.
It also disables Windows Firewall protection against viruses . This opens up doorways for malicious spyware to invade the system and steal the valuable data like usernames, passwords etc.
So it is recommended that you keep your Windows Firewall turned on at all times. But if you still want to disable it temporarily then follow the steps given above carefully.
Another problem is that some games need Firewall turned on in order to run properly, so if you chose not to follow the steps listed above then you might just be able to start up your game but soon after playing it will lag very badly or even crash completely. This might lead you having to redownload the entire game again because none of your progress would’ve been saved which can cause a lot of frustration.
If none of these methods work, I recommend you should contact the game’s customer support directly as they are usually aware of any known problems occurring with their software and they can also direct you to a fix for it.
Conclusion:
Many times due to Firewall settings errors gamers are unable to play games that require firewall being turned off or on in order to play online properly. This might lead the gamer in having to download the entire game again because none of your progress would’ve been saved which can cause a lot of frustration.
Usually Disabling firewalls can fix most problems with games regarding firewall blocking, so if none of the above methods worked for you then contact the game’s customer support directly. If all else fails, you can also manually find your Windows Firewall asking to allow or deny certain executables in case the automatic one is not working.
I recommend you should contact the game’s customer support directly as they are usually aware of any known problems occurring with their software and they can also direct you to a fix for it .
