GlassWire Free: Visual Firewall and Local Traffic Inspector for Windows
What Is It?
GlassWire Free isn’t a full-fledged security suite — and it doesn’t pretend to be. Instead, it fills a specific need: showing what’s happening on a Windows machine, in real time, with a clean interface that doesn’t bury the user in log files or low-level stats. It’s a visual front-end for Windows’ own firewall system, layered with traffic graphs, alerting, and historical views of application behavior.
It’s not built for enterprise-scale firewalling or packet shaping. But for standalone workstations — especially ones used by developers, admins, or remote staff — it’s a solid way to monitor who’s talking to what, and when.
Capabilities
| Feature | Description |
| Network Activity Graphs | Real-time and historical bandwidth visualizations per process |
| Application Whitelisting | Alerts on first network use by new apps |
| Host Identification | Resolves remote IPs to hostnames and country flags |
| Built-in Firewall Control | Blocks apps with one click (uses Windows Firewall rules underneath) |
| Alerts for System Changes | Notifies on app installations, new services, driver changes |
| Connection History | View timeline of outgoing/incoming connections per app |
| No Packet Inspection | No deep packet inspection — just metadata and flow-level data |
Deployment Notes
– Windows Only: Works on Windows 7–11. No Linux or macOS support.
– Free Edition Limitations: No remote monitoring, no firewall profiles, limited alert customization.
– Runs in User-Space: Doesn’t install drivers; sits on top of Windows Firewall API.
– Not a Replacement for AV: Best used as a visual supplement to existing endpoint security.
– Not Centrally Managed: No cloud control panel or SIEM integration in Free version.
Installation Guide
1. Download the Free Version
– Available from https://www.glasswire.com/download/
2. Run the Installer
– No registration needed. Installs with limited permissions and no bundled components.
3. Launch and Configure
– Upon first launch, GlassWire starts logging all system network activity.
– Review the graph view, usage stats, and alerts panel.
4. Enable Firewall Blocking (Optional)
– Manually block suspicious apps from connecting by toggling the “fire” icon.
– Note: actual enforcement is handled by Windows Firewall backend.
5. Tune Alerts
– Configure which system changes and connection types trigger notifications.
Usage Scenarios
– Monitoring developer or admin workstations for outbound traffic anomalies.
– Catching background apps phoning home from newly installed software.
– Visualizing network usage on shared or sensitive endpoints.
– Investigating which processes were active during a suspicious spike in traffic.
– Providing visual feedback to less-technical users about network behavior.
