Vista's Firewall

Microsoft also added a new Netsh context to Windows Firewall to accommodate extra features such as outbound rules. You can run Netsh interactively or string together commands and subcontexts into a single command. For example, the command:

netsh advfirewall outbound show 
  all 

will start Netsh, change to the advfirewall context and the outbound subcontext, and run the Show All command. The output will show outbound exceptions configured for the firewall. At any command, you can type a question mark (i.e., ?) to list the supported commands and subcontexts. Netsh lets you export configurations and copy them to other computers or use a script to add new rules from the command line. Use the Show command to list rules and the Add command to create a new rule.

Logging
Like earlier versions of Windows Firewall, the Vista firewall continues to log data to the file system in c:\windows\pfirewall.log by default. You can also choose to log either blocked packets or successful connections.

Integration with IPsec
Vista's firewall integrates IPsec configuration into the firewall rules. Microsoft promotes IPsec heavily, but in my experience few people use it. Barriers to deploying IPsec can be real or perceived and include difficulty with proper setup, the risk of not being able to access a computer if the policy goes wrong, and an inability to use traditional network tools to monitor or manage IPsec traffic. The new firewall doesn't address these risks, but it makes accessing IPsec configurations easier. Microsoft has also rewritten the IPsec wizards in an attempt to make IPsec easier to implement.

Same Tool, New Features
Security professionals will want to check out the new firewall features included with Vista. The ability to create bidirectional ACLs will appeal to many organizations. Third-party host-based firewall software still provides more features, but you can't beat the price of Windows Firewall, and its inclusion in every Vista version lets you protect computers right out of the box. Plus, the firewall continues to let you use Netsh and GPOs for configuration. Organizations that use Group Policy and Vista will be well on their way to deploying an effective, centrally managed host-based firewall solution.