Top 2 Ways to Enable or Disable Windows 10 Firewall Notifications

The Windows Firewall feature protects your computer against the most common attacks. It works quietly behind the scenes to give us the much-needed peace of mind. I appreciate this feature and what it does, but some users don’t like the pop-up notifications it shows. In this guide, you will learn how to permanently enable/disable Windows 10 Firewall notifications.

Windows Firewall will show you a pop-up notification when it detects an application or some script trying to access your network connection to gain access to your computer. You can then choose to allow or disallow this action depending on whether you are familiar with the app in question. If you’ve already configured all your apps and don’t want to be disturbed again, you may want to disable Firewall notifications. This is much more convenient than spending seconds trying to figure out if the app looking for a Firewall access is legitimate.

Let’s start.

1. Windows 10 Firewall Notifications via Security Center

The Security Center is where Microsoft houses all of its defense and security features and protocols, including the previous part of Microsoft Defender.

Stage 1: Search for Windows Security in the start menu and open it.

Step 2: Click on Firewall and network connection. A green checkmark next to each entry means everything is fine and you don’t need to take any action.

Stage 3: Scroll a little and towards the end you will find the Firewall notification settings.

Step 4: Click on Manage notifications.

Step 5: You can enable/disable Microsoft Firewall notifications here. Change the ‘Notify me when Microsoft Defender Firewall blocks a new app’ option.

Windows will continue to block non-whitelisted apps, but you will no longer receive notifications with the option to enable it. Now, in case something goes wrong, you will first have to examine the firewall settings to find the blocked app. I suggest you let it stay active unless you’re okay and figure out what happens when you disable Windows Firewall notifications.

You can also choose between Public, Private, and Domain firewalls to disable firewall notifications by selecting them right below.

2. Windows 10 Firewall Notifications via Control Panel

In the old days before Windows 10 was released to the world, this is how users managed their Firewall settings. You can still use it if that’s your preference.

Stage 1: Search for and open Control Panel from the start menu.

Step 2: Navigate to the folder structure below. Select Change notification settings from the left window pane.

Control Panel\System and Security\Windows Firewall

Step 2: Deselect ‘Notify me when Windows Firewall blocks a new application’ for the type of network you are connected to and want to stop notifications.

Allow or Disallow Apps Through Windows Firewall

You will no longer receive notifications when the Windows operating system blocks an application through the firewall. So how do you whitelist an app or allow it now? Simple enough.

Stage 1: Go back to Control Panel and navigate back to the same folder structure.

Control Panel\System and Security\Windows Firewall

Step 2: This time, select ‘Allow an app or feature through Windows Defender Firewall’ in the right window pane.

Stage 3: Here you will find a list of applications and services with both public and private network options. Click Change settings first. This is to protect you from making unnecessary changes as it may break application/service functionality and you don’t want that. Depending on which network you are on, you can now allow/disallow apps on a network. Check/uncheck services accordingly.

If you think you have accidentally allowed/allowed something, you can always come back and change the settings. I recommend not to bother too much.

Fire in the Hole

Windows Defender Firewall settings act as the first line of defense between your computer and the outside world. There are all kinds of threats on the web trying to take advantage of the smallest mistakes you make. Don’t give them this chance. Keep the Firewall feature enabled even if you look like an obstacle. The same goes for Windows Defender, which is part of the Windows Security suite, a built-in service-oriented system aimed at protecting your data and computer.

I use Windows Security with Malwarebytes to protect my computer. One is free and comes pre-installed while the other follows the freemium model. I recommend the paid version, but the free is good too. Together, this setup will protect you against almost any external threat. Of course, no system is perfect and even the world’s most secure servers have been hacked, but this is an ongoing battle. All we can do is learn the apps and try our best to do our best.

Next: Another way to protect your computer is to use Windows Hello. Click the link below to learn how to set up Windows Hello and why you should use this feature.