How to toggle internet access on/off ?

Now there are no more Vista security updates, so I would like to be able to completely turn OFF internet access, and still be able to turn internet access back on for when I absolutely need it.

How can I (easily) do this? I imagine some firewall something or something but if so I wouldn't know how. Back in Windows 98 I ran a firewall called "Tiny Personal Firewall" which had a simple button to toggle internet access, as I remember... maybe it was "Zone Alarm" firewall. So is there a way so easy as that? -- I still need to access my local network, so please don't suggest unplugging the ethernet cable, or turning off the modem (it is also my router).

Thank you for your help!

 

I've no immediate answer, but why ignore the internet? Granted, IE 9 won't be getting updates anymore, but IE 9 was kinda long in the tooth already; you might be better served by Firefox or some variant. Also granted, Microsoft Security Essentials won't be getting updates, but there are alternatives also -- AVG and Avast and BitDefender and other antoivirus programs, Malwarebytes and other anti-malware programs. Ditto for firewalls -- Zone Alarm is still around for example.

I;m using Cyberfox, with BitDefender and Malwarebytes, when I'm in Vista these days. I haven't touched the firewall yet. I wouldn't say I'm completely comfortable with this combination, since I've years of experience with a purely MS system, but I suppose the time will come.

 

Let me amend that last post a bit. With MS's Security Essentials uninstalled, and alternate anti-virus and anti-malware programs in their place, something called Windows Defender arises from obscurity. This is an anti-malware program that's been part of Windows for a lo-o-oo-oong time (it shows up in Win 10) but which generally operated without user intervention in Vista (and Win 7 and possibly other op systems). Without MSSE's overawing influence, WD will pop up when you start Vista, ask for a file of current security definitions, AND THEN DOWNLOAD THAT FILE FROM MS AND INSTALL IT when you tell it to proceed.

In other words, within the last half hour, a month after MS officially terminated support for Win Vista, one of its important security tools is still working.

 

You have a point. I guess I'm concerned about no more operating system "security-updates." But frankly, the "Windows Update" function has not worked on Vista for quite some time anyway. (You check for updates, then it burns up the CPU and never finishes) and now having the same Windows update problems on Windows 7 as well. So now instead of waiting for days without results, I don't even try to figure out why anymore and I just shutdown the computer. I don't use the these older computers much except for specific tasks using software or hardware I only have installed on them. So leaving it running for days near 100% CPU just to see if Windows update will ever complete just causes overheating of the computer, and my temper. I can barely even remember when I used to like Microsoft.

 

Hmmm. I'm NOT having those problems with Win 7. I check for updates, and it finds something or not in a couple of minutes -- usually I get a a 300 kB security update every day or so for MS Security Essentials -- and that's it. End of the month, or early in a month, I get a 150 MB "Windows 7 security rollup update" or an "internet explorer security rollup update" , and something like a Skype 7.3 installer or a way way way dated Canon printer update which I ignore.

So I dunno. Win Vista updates have been punk for a couple of years, best I can make out. Thing to do seems to be go to Windows Update Catalog and look for things to download -- tedious certainly, but maybe that's excusable for a 10 year old operating system. Windows 7... it's not so bad yet. I think MS learned some stuff actually, and Win 7 updating won't ever be as bad as Win Vista got to be in the end, but I might be sadly mistaken. We shall see.

Truth is, there's stuff I liked about Vista -- as I keep saying, it strikes me as a rare attempt to create an OS with an artistic user interface, and there's other stuff I like about it which just seemed a huge advance on Win XP and earlier versions of Windows, so it merits appreciation. Other hand, Windows 7 is maybe more practical but stodgier -- I use it a LOT but it sort of fits my hardware -- an AMD 8-core processor, multiple hard disks, Blu-Ray R/W disk, etc.

I've got a Windows 10 partition. I use it now and then, I keep telling myself I should love it, but ... it doesn't happen. And there's still stuff that I prefer to do in Vista, like run old games and old software that I just happen to be familiar with. (I'm an old fart, if you haven't guessed yet. I'm still doing stuff with MS-DOS 6.22 and PC-DOS 2K!)

Oh well, that's me. Best of luck to you, and I much appreciate your courteous response.

 

I was certainly not the only one having problems with Win7 update. I spent hours reading about others attempts to fix it. I'm encouraged by your update success, so I'll fool with it again when it's warm enough in the basement to spend enough time on that computer down there. Yes, I'll keep using Vista until the motherboard breaks. My old 16 and 32 bit programs run on Vista. I must say, however, I got a Win10 tablet, which runs Win10 32 bit version, and it seems like even my old DOS programs run on it. Not sure about Visicalc 1.0 or not (one of my DOS compatibility benchmarks), I'll have to try it. I had to go into the "settings" I think, to enable "legacy NTVDM" or whatever they call it, to get the compatibility. Of course, low-level disc functions, etc., long-file-names, even old batch files are problematic. As for Windows 10, they could've just called it Windows 8.2 because any improvement from 8.1 is not really so drastic. More like rearranging the furniture than remodeling the house. And like you, I don't love it either. I don't "feel" like it's even my computer. I don't know what it's doing and I don't trust it with my data or my "privacy." When MS changed "My Computer" to "This PC" it was a message I didn't fully appreciate.