Firewall clash

[Joy. 0]

I have a Mac. I have Eset with firewall etc. REcently there's been an issue where there's a clash with MAC fire wall en ESET firewall. I've disabled firewal on ESET and use MAC firewall.

However ESET or something switches my MAC firewal off despite the fact it's set and locked. And ESET is turned on

Still this is causing  problems with my internet connection switching on and off.  I have to keep checking internet connection. What is the cause and which firewall is best.? thank you Joy

[planet 232]

Hello Joy,

If you have ESET Cyber Security Pro, this does come with a firewall. When installed, ESET recommends that you disable the built-in firewall in macOS in order to use their firewall.

If you wish to continue using the macOS firewall, it would be best to uninstall Cyber Security Pro and to install Cyber Security instead, as it does not have a firewall, and your license should still work with this version.

In terms of which firewall is 'best', the macOS firewall in System Preferences can only filter incoming connections (when an application like Spotify on your Mac wants to let things from the Internet connect inside your Mac in a special way), and does not do outgoing connections (such as an application on your Mac wanting to send something somewhere on the Internet in a special way). ESET's firewall can filter both incoming and outgoing connections, and depending on your preferences, you can really get into details of specifying TCP/UDP, the ports, IPs/URLS, etc. Based on this, ESET's firewall gives you further protection with your Mac and the Internet.

Some VPN Applications or other third-party applications are known to automatically keep switching the macOS firewall off in the background, but ESET should not be automatically doing this as it instead usually asks you to manually turn it off yourself via System Preferences.

For the cause of your internet connection switching on and off, I would first check if ESET's firewall mode is set to automatic instead of interactive. To check this, click on the ESET icon on your menu bar (top right corner of the screen), click Preferences..., click Firewall and ensure your Filtering mode is Auto with exceptions. Then, either disconnect and reconnect your Mac from the Internet or restart macOS to refresh any Zones or DHCP leases for the ESET firewall to gel with your connection and possibly resolve any further problems.

If you continue to have issues with your internet connection, you can try temporarily uninstalling ESET Cyber Security Pro to see if that seems to resolve your connection issues. If not, then the issue lies elsewhere on your Mac or other devices you use to connect to the Internet with. If it is resolved, then please let us know.

Some useful links:
How do I uninstall or reinstall ESET Cyber Security or ESET Cyber Security Pro?
How do I install and Activate ESET Cyber Security?
How do I install and Activate ESET Cyber Security Pro?