Firewall Settings Help FAQ
If you are having trouble accessing some pages on this site and you are using a firewall...
The problem with some firewalls ( Norton Internet Security in particular ) is that they may default to preventing your Web browser from sending referrer information between pages, and this referer information is required as part of the verification check at this site, used to stop certain internet abuses.
How referrer information works:
When you click to a new Web page, your browser notes the current page that you are on and it sends that information to the server of the new Web page. This way the server of the new Web page knows which page you viewed last. If you block referrer information, the server of the page you are requesting will not know what page you came from.
By default, Norton Internet Security (NIS) and Norton Personal Firewall (NPF) block this referrer information. Other firewalls may block this information as well. In order to allow referrer information to pass to a particular Website, you must create a rule for it and make forest-of-dean.net a trusted site.
Settings for different firewalls
Norton Internet Security 2005
- Open Norton Internet Security 2005.
- Click on privacy control.
- Click on configure.
- Click on advanced.
- Click on add site.
- Enter the site
- Click on ok.
- Click on the site in the panel on the left.
- On the right, uncheck all the boxes under the Global settings tab.
- Choose permit for all the radio buttons.
- Under the User Settings tab, uncheck all the boxes.
- Choose permit for all the radio buttons.
- Click ok and log back into the site via your libraries site.
- Repeat steps 1-13 and include the other sites you wish to access.
The default settings for the 2003 and 2004 editions of both Norton products block certain information needed to verify access to some of the web pages. Fortunately, the problem can be remedied with a small change in settings. Please follow the steps below in order to make the necessary adjustments:
Basic Method (fewer steps but a broader modification of the firewall)
- Launch the Norton Personal Firewall/ Norton Internet Security product from start ~ programs or by right-clicking the icon on the task bar.
- Click "Privacy Control."
- Click "Configure."
- Click "Custom Level."
- Make sure cookie blocking is set to "none."
- Uncheck "enable browser privacy." It is checked by default.
- Click "okay" twice and close the Norton Personal Firewall/ Norton Internet Security product.
It is necessary to instruct the program to allow referer information to pass to the Web site that you are attempting to access. The following site will provide you with more information about how to do this: Passing referrer information to specific Web pages (Symantec Web Site)
Norton Personal Firewall/ Norton Internet Security 2002 and Earlier
Both of these programs block referer information, which is needed to verify your access to some of the web pages. Fortunately, these programs also allow users to make simple adjustments to allow access. Specifically, it is necessary to instruct the program to allow referer information to pass to the Web site that you are attempting to access. The following site will provide more information about how to do this:
Cannot access a Web page when Browser Privacy is enabled (Symantec Web Site)
Zone Alarm Pro Version 4 & 5 blocks referer information and certain types of cookies that are needed to verify your access to the some of the web pages. Fortunately, Zone Alarm Pro provides a mechanism to alter this setting and permit access. Follow these steps in Zone Alarm Pro for access:
Basic Method (fewer steps but a broader modification of the firewall)
- Open Zone Alarm Pro
- Click "Privacy" from the options of the left.
- Select the "Cookie Control" tab.
- Click "Custom."
- Make sure the box labeled "Block Persistent Cookies" is not checked.
- Make sure the box labeled "Block Third Party Cookies" is not checked.
- Make sure the box labeled "Remove Private Header Information" is not checked.
- Open Zone Alarm Pro
- Click "Privacy" from the options of the left.
- Select the "Site List" tab
- Select "Add" and enter the URL
- Highlight the URL and select "Options"
- Select the "Cookies" tab
- Uncheck the boxes for: "Persistent Cookies", "3rd Party Cookies" and "Remove Private Header Information"
- Click "Apply"
- Click "OK"
- Repeat the previous steps for additional URLs
Zone Alarm Pro Version 3 blocks referer information and certain types of cookies that are needed to verify your access to the web pages. Fortunately, Zone Alarm Pro provides a mechanism to alter this setting and permit access. Follow these steps in Zone Alarm Pro for access:
- Open Zone Alarm Pro
- Select the Privacy Panel
- Select the Cookies Tab
- Make sure the box labeled "Block Persistent Cookies" is not checked.
- Make sure the box labeled "Block Third Party Cookies" is not checked.
- Make sure the box labeled "Remove Private Header Information" is not checked.
- In the system tray in the lower right corner, look for the M icon. Right Click.
- Click "Privacy Service." Click "Open Privacy Service."
- Look on the right for the heading "I want to"
- Under the heading, click "Control Access to Cookies."
- "Cookies from third-party sites" will have a default setting of "reject." Change it to "accept."
- Next, click the "clean slate" tab in the upper right. At the bottom of the screen, there is an option that says "Prevent 'referer' information from being shared." It is check by default. Remove the check.
- Click "Apply" then "Okay."
- Close any remaining McAfee windows.
The default settings in McAfee Internet Security block access. These settings can be modified via the following steps:
- Right click the McAfee Guardian icon in the lower right corner of your computer screen.
- Select "Internet Security."
- Select "Browser Buddy."
- Select "Settings."
- Check the setting labeled either "Referer Filter" or "Search Cleaner." If it is on, it must be turned off.
- Check the settings labeled "direct cookies" and "indirect cookies." Both must be allowed.