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Firewall KEEPS asking to allow same application

tibi08

tibi08

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Sep 17, 2007
703
75
Brighton, UK
I have a couple of applications, which every time I reboot my Mac, the firewall asks YET AGAIN if it's okay to run the application (giving the date I downloaded it).

One of the applications is Skype, the other Slimserver.

Any ideas?
 
I have the same problem with Transmission. I'm looking for a solution, too. I even tried adding it manually when the app was closed, but still no luck.
 
I've got the same problem with both Skype and Transmission as mentioned. I have yet to find a way to stop the annoying dialog. Hopefully future versions of Skype and Transmission will fix the problem.
 
JSchwage said:
I've got the same problem with both Skype and Transmission as mentioned. I have yet to find a way to stop the annoying dialog. Hopefully future versions of Skype and Transmission will fix the problem.
Click to expand...

Do you have an external wireless router; if so, why do you have the Apple Firewall turned on?

Cheers,
 
tibi08 said:
Because two firewalls are better than one?
Click to expand...

Perhaps, but if I understand how this works, the external firewall is supposed to completely block all ports except those you explicitly open and the Apple firewall protects you against threats on your internal network or threats you may have allowed in through opening FTP or Mail server type ports to the outside. If this is the case and you don't have other systems internally that can harm you, wouldn't the Apple Firewall be redundant?

Cheers,
 
panzer06 said:
Perhaps, but if I understand how this works, the external firewall is supposed to completely block all ports except those you explicitly open and the Apple firewall protects you against threats on your internal network or threats you may have allowed in through opening FTP or Mail server type ports to the outside. If this is the case and you don't have other systems internally that can harm you, wouldn't the Apple Firewall be redundant?

Cheers,
Click to expand...

Not sure I accept this argument - a hardware firewall alone is less secure than a hardware and a software firewall. I would rather put up with repetitive prompts from Mac OS than have no software firewall!
 
tibi08 said:
Not sure I accept this argument - a hardware firewall alone is less secure than a hardware and a software firewall. I would rather put up with repetitive prompts from Mac OS than have no software firewall!
Click to expand...

Perhaps so. Safe is always better than sorry. I wonder if there is a way to see what the software firewall is doing/stopping. It would be nice to quantify its necessity.

Cheers,
 
tibi08 said:
Not sure I accept this argument - a hardware firewall alone is less secure than a hardware and a software firewall. I would rather put up with repetitive prompts from Mac OS than have no software firewall!
Click to expand...

Yeah... and wearing 2 seatbelts and having 9 airbags would also be a safer way to drive to work, but also more restricting on your movement in the car and the space usage by the car manufacturer.

You can do a multitude of things to be "safer"... but at a certain point all you're doing is limiting yourself without really protecting yourself from anything.

The hardware firewall alone should be fine by itself.


Edit: Unless you're on a large network and are worried about a local breach... .then I retract my statement.
 
Are you double clicking a DMG file before opening the app?

You need to copy that app into your Applications folder, and run the app from there.
 
I get the same problem with Transmission and Xtorrent. Both prompt to Allow/Deny access each time they are loaded. Very annoying.

Both are installed from .dmgs in the Applications folder. I don't get any other warnings, though I don't have Skype installed.

I guess it my be that the apps are using multiple ports each time they run and the software firewall 'thinks' the app is acting suspiciously? That's my guess.
 
Ya I think its just a bug.. Something they will need to fix w/ an update.
Azureus and iChat both repeatedly ask me as well..
 
iTunes as well... plus Adium...

I was searching for help on this issue and came across this thread... some thoughts:

1. I too have a "double-firewall" situation involving my hardware router, along with OSX's software firewall. I agree there is a law of diminishing returns in effect if you're layering too much security where it overlaps or is redundant. Having a hardware firewall and OSX's firewall on is redundant - while connected to that hardware (hardwired or wireless). However, I have a MBP and often take it to wifi hotspots and have the OSX software firewall in place so that I don't have to worry about it while "abroad". If you have a desktop machine hooked to a router with a firewall then having the OSX firewall enabled may be overkill. Of course, if you have a wireless router and you let friends/allow open access onto your wireless - then the software firewall is beneficial.

2. Back to the issue at hand: constant prompts about firewall exceptions: I'm having this from iTunes, Adium, and Transmission.

3. All of which I believe I installed updates for AFTER I installed the latest Apple security update (Security Update 2007-009). I delayed installation of this patch for a while after its release just to watch for the fall-out (I installed on 1/2/2008). I believe the constant prompting correlates to that patch. If you notice, the iTunes update came Tuesday of MacWorld, and Transmission and Adium both had updates just recently. All of which we would have all installed after the security patch.

That said, hopefuly somebody can confirm whether it correlates with the security patch. If so, does anyone know if Apple knows and whether a fix is in the works?
 
futura said:
All of which I believe I installed updates for AFTER I installed the latest Apple security update (Security Update 2007-009). I delayed installation of this patch for a while after its release just to watch for the fall-out (I installed on 1/2/2008). I believe the constant prompting correlates to that patch. If you notice, the iTunes update came Tuesday of MacWorld, and Transmission and Adium both had updates just recently. All of which we would have all installed after the security patch.

That said, hopefuly somebody can confirm whether it correlates with the security patch. If so, does anyone know if Apple knows and whether a fix is in the works?
Click to expand...

It has absolutely nothing to do with the security patch. It is simply capturing those applications downloaded from the Internet when you had Leopard installed. Randomly, some applications only prompt you once, e.g. Adium and Skype have stopped asking me. Some applications never stop asking you!

I've had this problem since 10.5.0 and I am hoping that 10.5.2 sees the end of it!
 
tibi08 said:
It has absolutely nothing to do with the security patch. It is simply capturing those applications downloaded from the Internet when you had Leopard installed. Randomly, some applications only prompt you once, e.g. Adium and Skype have stopped asking me. Some applications never stop asking you!

I've had this problem since 10.5.0 and I am hoping that 10.5.2 sees the end of it!
Click to expand...

Behavior between peoples' reports (here and on other forums) seems sporadic at best. Adium always prompts me. iTunes always prompts me. Transmission prompts me. That bit is consistent in my experience at least so far.

It may not be due to the security patch as you mention, but in my experience I have only observed the behavior since that patch - and of course the software updates for those various pieces of software.

I too hope 10.5.2 comes out shortly and resolves it all.

Cheers.
 
JimmyDThing said:
The hardware firewall alone should be fine by itself.
Click to expand...
Defense in depth (and including awareness/education as controls) is the best approach to security.

Back to the initial question - yeah, my iTunes incessantly pops up asking to allow incoming connections every time I launch it, even despite the fact it's listed as an allowed application (prior to running, during the prompting, and after quitting). I'm somewhat relieved that other people have this problem, however, it's aggravating.
 
I have this problem specifically on Azureus. I have to click "Allow" mulitiple times and it pops up whenever I restart the program. Oh ya, it's installed too.
 
tibi08 said:
Because two firewalls are better than one?
Click to expand...

Methinks thou dost protect too much. :D

Any router (wired or wireless) automatically acts as a perfect hardware firewall. There is absolutely no point in having a second firewall turned on, or a third, or a fourth. If your screen door is locked tight and the scary monsters can't get into your house, there's no point in hiding in a locked closet in your locked bedroom. They just ain't gettin' in. All you're doing is inconveniencing yourself.

More info on NAT Router firewall protection:
http://www.grc.com/sn/SN-003.htm
 
eRondeau said:
Methinks thou dost protect too much. :D

Any router (wired or wireless) automatically acts as a perfect hardware firewall. There is absolutely no point in having a second firewall turned on, or a third, or a fourth. If your screen door is locked tight and the scary monsters can't get into your house, there's no point in hiding in a locked closet in your locked bedroom. They just ain't gettin' in. All you're doing is inconveniencing yourself.

More info on NAT Router firewall protection:
http://www.grc.com/sn/SN-003.htm
Click to expand...

All well and good, except for laptops. I've got both my router firewall, as well as the software firewall enabled. Then I don't have to worry about remembering to switch it on when I'm in a non-secure area, like Starbucks.

I haven't investigated it yet (been meaning to), but it would be nice to be able to specify which networks are trusted, and which aren't. In the AirPort preferences you specify the order in which you prefer to access.

Hmm.... maybe that can be scripted...
 
Sparkle/Auto-updating

I think I've figured out the problem.

All of these apps are auto-updating through Sparkle or some other method, aren't they? To get rid of the "Accept incoming connections" nag, I think you might have to re-download from the website so OS X can verify the app's origin. My reasoning is based on this iTunes troubleshooting tip.

I'll give this a try later on tonight when I'm back in front of my home computer.
 
After i installed the update, my limewire wont work. It says its being blocked by a firewall. How do i stop it? I dont know how to find the firewall either:eek: Please help!
 
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