What to use: WFP, TDI or none?

When installing 5.2.11 I get WFP or TDI for Win7 (64-bit), but in XP (32-bit) it only shows TDI.
I'm not sure what to use (another option is to use none - 'unchecked')

What are these and do I need to use the same option for all computers?

These are the different implementations of a LAN traffic filtering driver that comes with NetWorx.

TDI is a driver that works anywhere from Windows XP to Windows 8.

WFP is a driver that works on Windows 7 and above.

Generally WFP is designed to be a more reliable and standard way to filter traffic, but in practice due to third party software products installed (antivirus, firewall, etc) either driver may fail to work correctly.

So the short answer is:

• If you need to exclude local traffic from NetWorx records, stick to the default option (TDI before Windows 7, WFP after Windows 7)
• If you are using Windows 7 and are having a problem with the WFP driver, try installing TDI.
• If you don't need to exlude local traffic or you simply don't have it, then don't install any of these drivers at all.

Hi Andrew,
I noticed on my W7 Home Premium x86 box that NetWorx 5.2.12 installer wants to prefer TDI over WPF. Is this right. Has something changed?

...and by "wants to prefer", I mean TDI says "(recommended)", whilst WFP does not.

In fact, WFP is actually selected (highlighted) by default when I run the installer. Don't know if this is because that is what was selected in 5.2.11 setup...

Very confused now. Which to pick?

For some people the WFP filter caused system stability issues in the past.

That's why we now have marked the TDI one as recommended.

However it the WFP option is selected by the installer it means you had it installed in the past.

Assuming you didn't have any problems with it, I would recommend to stick to WFP.

OK - thanks for the quick response and explanation.

Please let us know in future changelogs if this advice should ever change! I guess what you're saying is that for W7 and up, WFP *should* still be the "filter of choice" unless it causes some specific grief on a specific system...

It's still a bit confusing having two options and not knowing the advantages or disadvantages of each - and what might happen if you pick the wrong/inappropriate one! I mean, from what you've said, TDI works for ALL windows versions and is possibly more stable in certain situations - why would/should a user choose WFP instead? Accuracy? Efficiency? Better integration? Better OS-support?

Meanwhile, I shall continue with WFP as you've advised

Feature-wise these drivers are the same. However TDI becoming a legacy technology and WFP is replacing it in traffic filtering applications.

Until Windows 7 (in fact Vista) TDI had been a de-facto choice for the task. Starting with Windows Vista Microsoft introduced a new way of capturing network traffic called WFP.

The WFP is now the preferred way to capture and filter traffic, however as the technology is relatively new, there are still possible glitches when using it.

But unless you experience any issues like a system crash/BSOD or corrupted downloads, I recommend to use the WFP driver.

Thanks again Andrew.

Sorry to necropost but this thread seemed relevant and I didn't find any FAQ on the site as I'm sure this question is asked repeatedly. Might I suggest a web link in the installer to take you to a brief description of TDI vs WFP?
Anyway my primary question is, why does the latest installer says TDI (recommended)? My previous install was using WFP so I kept it set to that, but it seems to contradict the information in this thread.
This is on a Windows 8 64bit system.

These are two different driver architectures. NetWorx comes with a traffic filtering driver for both, though their functionality is exactly the same. In terms of stability it seems the TDI driver works better on most systems, and that's why it has become the recommended choice. Having said that, if the WFP driver works okay for you, I would recommend to stick to it.

It generally has something to do with other software installed. Many antivirus, firewall and security products install their own TDI and WFP drivers and these may conflict with that in NetWorx. That's why Networx offers a choice.

Hi Andrew,

I do not have to exclude any traffic and don't want these LAN drivers installed. However, since they are checked automatically, I had them installed in earlier version of NetWorx.
I now install new version networx 5.3.3 (i had 5.2.10 i think) and unchecked the LAN driver install, but was informed that this would NOT remove the already installed driver (installed by previous versions of networx), which is strange, but then i have to do it manually.

Please give me a step by step instruction (for dummies) how to remove the NetWorx LAN drivers. As far as i remember i had the wfp driver installed, as it was autoselected. But just to be in the safe side, please give instructions for removing both, WFP and TDI version of LAN driver.

I run windows 7 ultimate 32 bit, and Win XP on another harddrive, as well as win 7 64 bit and Linux (suse, ubuntu and others), but most time (95%) i use win 7 ultimate 32 bit, and this is what my question here is about.

Please give a step by step instruction on how to uninstall any LAN driver that was installed by a previous NetWorx versions. Please keep it simple so that a dummie, even a newborn baby, was able to do it

Thank you very much.

P.S.
I just want to precise that i also run norton internet security (21.6.0.32)
This should not be harmed by the removing if the netwrtox lan drivers, i suppose but just i case i could reinstall that.

Martin,
The easiest way to do it is:

1. Backup your usage (open the NetWorx Popup menu, select Usage Report, and click the Backup menu button).
2. Uninstall NetWorx.
3. Install NetWorx again, without the driver.
4. Restore your usage (Usage Reports -> Restore menu button).