How to Disable Windows Firewall (Turn Off Windows Firewall)

If the Windows firewall is interfering with the network connections, follow these steps to completely turn off or disable the Windows firewall.

To protect the system from unauthorized incoming and outgoing connections, Windows has a built-in firewall management system. Using the Windows Firewall, you can set up custom rules to control what can and cannot connect to the network.

If the Windows firewall is acting out of order or to install a third-party firewall software, you can easily disable the Windows Firewall. In this quick guide, let me show the process of disabling Windows Firewall.

The steps shown below are verified to work with Windows 10, 7, and 8.

Disable Windows Firewall GPO

These are the steps you should follow to turn off Windows Firewall with GPO (Group Policy Object).

1. Press “Windows Key + R” keyboard shortcut.
2. Type “gpedit.msc” in the blank field and press “Enter“.
   
3. Go to the following folder in the Group Policy Editor.
   Computer Configuration → Administrative Templates → Network → Network Connections → Windows Defender Firewall → Domain Profile
4. On the right-panel, find and double-click on the “Windows Defender Firewall: Protect all network connections” policy.
   
5. Select the “Disabled” option.
6. Click on the “Apply” and “Ok” buttons to save changes.
   
7. We need to modify another policy. So, go to the following folder.
   Computer Configuration → Administrative Templates → Network → Network Connections → Windows Defender Firewall → Standard Profile
8. Find and double-click on the “Windows Defender Firewall: Protect all network connections” policy.
   
9. Select the “Disabled” option.
10. Click on the “Apply” and “Ok” buttons.
    
11. Close the Group Policy Editor.
12. Reboot Windows.

After rebooting, Windows Firewall will be disabled and no longer interfere with the network connections.

After turning off the firewall, make sure that you are using some sort of third-party firewall software to protect your system from unauthorized connections and access.

If not, enable the firewall again by selecting the “Not configured” option the policy properties window.

Turn Off Windows Firewall from Settings

You can disable windows firewall directly from its settings. Here’s how.

1. Press “Windows Key + R” keyboard shortcut.
2. Type “firewall.cpl” in the Run window and click “Ok“.
   
3. On the left panel, click “Turn Windows defender firewall on or off“.
   
4. Select the “Turn off Windows Defender Firewall” option under both “Private Network Settings” and “Public Network Settings”.
   
5. Click on the “Ok” button to save changes.
6. Reboot Windows.

After rebooting, Windows Firewall will no longer manage your network connections. To enable the firewall, select the “Turn on Windows Defender Firewall” option under both “Private Network Settings” and “Public Network Settings” sections.

Disable Windows Firewall Command Line

This is the command you should use to turn off the firewall from the command line.

NetSh Advfirewall set allprofiles state off

1. Right-click on the Start menu.
2. Select the “Search” option.
3. Search for “command prompt“.
4. Right-click on the result and select “Run as administrator” option.
5. In the command window, execute the below command to completely turn off the firewall.
   NetSh Advfirewall set allprofiles state off
6. Close the Command Prompt window.
7. Reboot Windows.

After rebooting the system, Windows Firewall will no longer be active. If you want to enable the firewall again, then execute the below command.

NetSh Advfirewall set allprofiles state on

PowerShell Command to Disable Windows Firewall

This is the PowerShell command to fully disable the Windows firewall.

Set-NetFirewallProfile -Enabled False

1. Open the Start menu.
2. Search for “PowerShell“.
3. Right-click on “PowerShell” and select “Run as administrator“.
4. In the PowerShell window, execute the below command to disable the Windows Defender Firewall.
   Set-NetFirewallProfile -Enabled False
5. Close the PowerShell.
6. Reboot Windows.

To enable back the firewall, you need to execute the below command in the PowerShell window as an admin.

Set-NetFirewallProfile -Enabled True

That is all. It is that simple to fully disable Windows defender firewall in Windows 10, Windows 7, and Windows 8. If you are stuck or need some help, comment below and I will try to help as much as possible.

If you like this article, check out how to backup Windows firewall settings.