Community Newsletter: Q&A: 9/23/05 Svchost.exe: friend or foe?
- 9/22/05 5:48 PM
I think that we deal with a more extended problem
by A. Bijker - 9/23/05 5:15 AM In reply to: 9/23/05 Svchost.exe: friend or foe? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
It is not only svchost.exe, but many other very cryptic names. When the firewall ask me to allow for a certain program to acces to the internet or not, the names of the programs does not give me any information at all when (as in my case) you are no computer nerd at all.
The question should be: How can an average computer user (so not a computer engineer) know if you can allow for a certain program to acces to the internet or not
simple sort of
by funkid7 - 9/23/05 11:53 AM In reply to: I think that we deal with a more extended problem by A. BijkerUnless you have programs installed that are designed to start up with your internet log on then always say no! If you are smart like me and run with utilities that ALL start up at boot time, then you always know for sure it is a no answer.
DLL = DYNAMIC link library
by mox23 - 9/23/05 5:43 AM In reply to: 9/23/05 Svchost.exe: friend or foe? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
DLL stands for "Dynamic Link Library." I'm not trying to nitpick, but I think that if you're going to pulbish technical information on a website like this (which I think is great) it should be accurate, especially when it comes to technical terms.
SVCHOST 6 times into my Windows Task Manager... WHY???
by macroc - 9/23/05 6:12 AM In reply to: 9/23/05 Svchost.exe: friend or foe? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Hi... I wanna know why when I run the Task Manager I have 6 SVCHOST.EXE 4 SVCHOST.EXE as SYSTEM aplication, and 2 SVCHOST.EXE as NETWORK SERVICE, my question is b/c this program use a lot of memory, and every time that I try to end the process, appear again and again and again...
Thanx
What firewall is the best one?
by Thrymm - 9/23/05 6:40 AM In reply to: 9/23/05 Svchost.exe: friend or foe? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Just curious since there are so many out there...
RE:Which Firewall is the best one?
by Duane Pelkey - 9/23/05 7:28 AM In reply to: What firewall is the best one? by ThrymmWell First of all it depends on what OS you are using! Because not knowing if you are using a Linux or Windows computer makes it a bit more difficult to say.
For most people, using Windows something like Zone Alarm Pro is a good one. To test it out you can download the free version from www.zonelabs.com
Then You have the Internet Security Packages now from both Symantec and McAfee.
For Linux there are a huge number that I am still working through myself so I can not even help you there.
I would recommend using Zone Alarm until you get comfortable with the settings and then head on out and see what else is there.
RE:Which Firewall is the best one?
by Thrymm - 9/23/05 7:38 AM In reply to: RE:Which Firewall is the best one? by Duane PelkeyThanks Duane!
Im using Windows XP Pro.... I think my Linksys router actually has a trial for ZoneAlarm with it, so maybe if I get some time to myself this weekend I can try it out.
Thanks again!
re. What Firewall to use
by zepper - 9/23/05 7:53 AM In reply to: What firewall is the best one? by ThrymmThere are three that are considered relatively equal - ZoneAlarm (the free version which is all most people need, or if you have broadband internet and your system is going to be online 24/7, the Pro version might be worth the money); Sygate Personal - I use this one because it is easier to remove than ZA. I remove old versions prior to installing new ones, and ZA can have you editing the registry and manually deleting files if you don't follow the removal instructions exactly the first time.
. I have never used Outpost, but the comparative reviews have it right in the group with the other two I've mentioned.
. I think that Sygate and Outpost have "Pro" versions too if you need more capability than the "free" ones provide. I still use dial-up internet and the free version of Sygate has been more than adequate for my needs.
.bh.
better firewalls than zone alarm
by aaarg - 9/23/05 9:58 AM In reply to: What firewall is the best one? by Thrymmif you have never used a firewall before or you really dont understand what they are then zone alarm is a good choice. after you get some experience i strongly suggest you get a better firewall such as sygate personal firewall or kerio personal firewall. they are both great free firewalls that blow za away and they have "Pro" versions if you want more options.
To block or not to block svchost.exe
by gary hall - 9/23/05 7:01 AM In reply to: 9/23/05 Svchost.exe: friend or foe? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I was interested too in what was going on. I use Zone Alarm and my ISP is Comcast. I found the following information.
Svchost.exe was being accessed by ns.cmc.denver.comcast.net. The source DNS was 67.191.48.32:1060
Another was ns.inflow.pa.bo.comcast.net at 67.191.48.32:3779 The source DNS in all cases is “my-machine”.
Another one the source IP was 68.87.74.10:67 it was incoming (Listening)
Another one was from npls1-pdhcp-bonitasprings.fl.naples.com. I have no idea why or what these wanted with my computer.
Warm regards,
Gary
hello Gary,
by funkid7 - 9/24/05 12:54 AM In reply to: To block or not to block svchost.exe by gary hallThat sounds suspicious to me. I have never dealt with ComCast, though.
Read all my other posts in this thread and you will see what I mean. I may be a bit mouthy, but I mean well, not harm.
You should only have one ISP in my experience. WindowsXP on my machine, has 3 administrator accounts and each one uses a different ISP at times, but never all at the same time.
thank you! This is valuable info!
by jstonewynit - 9/23/05 7:24 AM In reply to: 9/23/05 Svchost.exe: friend or foe? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Thanks for taking the time to address this!
How to remove svchost
by DFI - 9/23/05 7:28 AM In reply to: 9/23/05 Svchost.exe: friend or foe? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
How to block svchost in other applications but only allow it for Microsoft update site? I am currently using window Xp with Microsoft anti spyware and avast anti virus.
thanks
Limiting svcHost targets
by wwheeler1 - 9/23/05 7:31 AM In reply to: 9/23/05 Svchost.exe: friend or foe? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
You should be careful when limiting where svchost.exe can make connections, especially in Windows XP. The following is a partial listing from tasklist.exe:
svchost.exe 1504 DcomLaunch, TermService
svchost.exe 1648 RpcSs
svchost.exe 1752 AudioSrv, BITS, Browser, CryptSvc, Dhcp, dmserver, ERSvc, EventSystem, helpsvc,
HidServ, lanmanserver, LanmanWorkstation, Netman, Nla, RasMan, Schedule, seclogon, SENS, SharedAccess, ShellHWDetection, srservice, TapiSrv, Themes, TrkWks, W32Time, winmgmt, Wmi, wscsvc, wuauserv
svchost.exe 1796 Dnscache
svchost.exe 1816 LmHosts, SSDPSRV, WebClient
As you can tell from this listing, there are quite a number of processes managed by svchost.exe that may need to make connections to a wide variety of location aside from the Microsoft Update Service. I'm not in a corporate environment or a domain, so it isn't domain services that are causing this either. You would be better advised to be cautious about allowing it but to realize that sometimes it really does need access to the Internet for your system to have full functionality. Run a firewall, run intrusion detection systems and antivirus programs that actively scan your system on a regular basis. Run anti-spyware to help prevent unauthorized access. Allow svchost access to the network, though.
Svchost.exe: friend or foe?
by pratikpatel - 9/23/05 7:33 AM In reply to: 9/23/05 Svchost.exe: friend or foe? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Microsoft web site says it is legitimate process...and Mark suggested good rule on it. But I have another question on it.Sometime I see there are more then one instance of svchost.exe running. I have seen 5 instances of it running at sme point.What that means?Is it ok to have more then one instance? is there a way to control how many instance.
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