Endpoint Protection

Win 7 x64, SEP 11 RU6 MP2

Since upgrading to RU6 MP2 (from RU6a), I have 1 Win 7 x64 client (of 3) whose Windows Firewall is disabled. Only SEP components installed are AVAS & PTP. All use the same SEP policies.

Control Panel/Windows Firewall reports "These settings are being managed by vendor application Symantec Endpoint Protection" and I can't change them.

I've uninstalled/reinstalled SEP; no change.

How can I re-enable Windows Firewall?

Do you have a firewall policy in place in the SEPM (should be in place by default)? If so, remove it and that should re-enable the Windows firewall.

Is this a managed or an unmanaged client. If its a managed client then recreate the package with AV/AS and assign the package to the group whose clients turn off the Windows firewall.

If its an unmanaged client try repairing the installation with only the AV/AS feature.

Please restart the machine after the changes.

This problem has been around since last August and we're still seeing the issue, even with the latest RU6 MP2 PP1 builds.  We have tried all of the recommendations above, as well as others suggested by Symantec's support organization, and still the problem persists.

In fact, while the problem used to only affect 64-bit clients, beginning with RU6 MP2 we started seeing it on 32-bit Windows XP systems, too.  (But at least on 32-bit Windows XP systems you can manually re-enable the firewall after the first reboot and everything's fine.)

For us, the last reliable client builds were RU6a (11.0.6005), so that's what we're continuing to use until Symantec can resolve the problem once and for all.

reboot the client machines

this will happen if you dont withdraw the firewall policy in the SEPM ( no matter if you dont a have NTP installed)

open sepm

go to ips and firweall policy

at the bottom click on withdraw this policy, do it from all the groups having this problem.

Didn't find any control in SEMP labeled Withdraw this policy, but I turned off Enable this policy on the Overview page of the Firewall & IPS Policies, and that did turn on Windows Firewall on the problem client, so I gather that's what's needed.

I've never had to change these Policies before RU6 MP2, and it has affected only 1 of 3 Win 7 x64 clients, and did not affect the SBS2008 x64 server. As grettir points out, I guess this must be a bug.

Thanks, all!