Block Entire Folder in Windows Firewall

This script provides functionalities to manage (block/unblock) executables (EXEs) in specified directories via Windows Firewall. The operation can be targeted at individual directories or recursively applied to subdirectories as well.

By default, both Inbound and Outbound connections will be affected, but the scope can be controlled via the -Inbound or -Outbound switches.

Special care should be taken when using this script due to its potentially broad impact. Blocking EXEs indiscriminately may disrupt applications depending on these executables.

Installing

You can either download the PS1 script from here, or install using...

Install-Script BlockFolderWindowsFirewall -Force

Answer Yes to any prompts. -Force is optional, but it will force the script to update if it is outdated.

This script is published on PowerShell Gallery.

Usage

BlockFolderWindowsFirewall [-Path <String>] [-Outbound] [-Inbound] [-Recurse] [-UnblockInstead] [-Version] [-Help] [-CheckForUpdate]

Parameters

Parameter	Required	Description
-Path	Yes	The folder of EXEs to block/unblock.
-Recurse	No	Scans the folder and subfolders for EXEs.
-UnblockInstead	No	Unblocks the EXEs in a folder or subfolder.
-Inbound	No	Blocks all inbound connections for the EXEs in a folder or subfolder.
-Outbound	No	Blocks all outbound connections for the EXEs in a folder or subfolder.
-CheckForUpdate	No	Checks if there is an update available for the script.
-UpdateSelf	No	Updates the script to the latest version.
-Help	No	Displays the help message.
-Version	No	Shows the current version of the script.

Examples

Description	Command
Block all EXEs in a specified folder	BlockFolderWindowsFirewall -Path "C:\Folder\Subfolder"
Block all EXEs in a specified folder and its subfolders	BlockFolderWindowsFirewall -Path "C:\Folder\Subfolder" -Recurse
Block only the inbound connections for EXEs in a specified folder	BlockFolderWindowsFirewall -Path "C:\Folder\Subfolder" -Inbound
Block only the outbound connections for EXEs in a specified folder	BlockFolderWindowsFirewall -Path "C:\Folder\Subfolder" -Outbound
Unblock all EXEs in a specified folder	BlockFolderWindowsFirewall -Path "C:\Folder\Subfolder" -UnblockInstead
Unblock all EXEs in a specified folder and its subfolders	BlockFolderWindowsFirewall -Path "C:\Folder\Subfolder" -Recurse -UnblockInstead
Unblock only the inbound connections for EXEs in a specified folder	BlockFolderWindowsFirewall -Path "C:\Folder\Subfolder" -UnblockInstead -Inbound
Unblock only the outbound connections for EXEs in a specified folder	BlockFolderWindowsFirewall -Path "C:\Folder\Subfolder" -UnblockInstead -Outbound
Display help for the script	BlockFolderWindowsFirewall -Help
Check the current version of the script	BlockFolderWindowsFirewall -Version
Check if there is an update available for the script	BlockFolderWindowsFirewall -CheckForUpdate

Screenshot