this post was submitted on 27 Sep 2024
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Hey there folks,

I'm trying to figure out how to configure my UFW, and I'm just not sure where to start. What can I do to see the intetnet traffic from individual apps so I can know what I might want to block? This is just my personal computer and I'm a total newbie to configuring firewalls so I'm just not sure how to go about it. Most online guides seem to assume one already knows what they want to block but I don't even know how/where to monitor local traffic to figure out what I can/should consider blocking.

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[–] JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world 5 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (8 children)

You don't need a firewall on a typical desktop computer. You only need them on routers and servers.

That is because your personal computer is not actually on the internet. It is on a local network (LAN) and it talks only to your router. The router is the computer connected to the internet, and it has a firewall.

The question highlights a classic misunderstanding about networking that IMO should be better addressed. I was like OP once, and panicking about this pointlessly.

Addendum: You're all replying to OP as if they're a sysadmin managing a public-facing server. But OP says clearly that they're just a beginner on a PC - which will almost certainly be firewalled by their router. We should be encouraging and educating people like this, not terrorizing them about all the risks they're taking.

[–] floquant@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Unless your ISP provides IPv6 connectivity, which gives every endpoint a globally-routable address. Firewalling at the router only works because of NAT.

[–] JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

That's why I wrote typical. The question was from a beginner, not a networking expert.

[–] floquant@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 1 month ago

Indeed... IPv6 needs to be actively disabled, not enabled, by default.

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