Comparison between firewall and anti-virus software
A firewall is like a guard that allows or prohibits intruders to the network. It has a control policy that indicates and dictates what should be denied and permitted to access the network in order to protect the network from any harm. It is a preventive measure and not completely the solution to viruses or any harmful things that can be acquired in the internet. It is designed to protect and not to heal infected data. Firewall is not able to do that. Unlike anti-virus software, it updates and scans the memory or programs when you reboot your computer. During the reboot, it can detect whether there are viruses, the location of the viruses and eventually cure it. Anti-virus software is designed for the purpose of healing and detecting harmful virus on your computer. In other words, even if the viruses had infected some parts of the data saved in your computer, it is still capable of adjusting allowing its features to cure the infected area. Compared to a firewall, it is designed only to protect and guard the network due to its control policy.