Norton WiFi Privacy not running on startup in Windows 7

I have Norton WiFi Privacy (NWFP) running on a laptop (Alienware M17xR2) under 64-bit Win 7 Ultimate.

NWFP is set (from within the app interface) to run on startup, the NWFP service is shown in Computer Management as set to "auto" and the service is listed as "started" when I check it after starting the computer.

Nevertheless, the program does not actually seem to be running automatically on startup. My reasons for thinking it is not running are

  • the icon that appears when NWFP is running is absent from the notification area of the task bar [despite its properties having been changed from the default "only show notifications" to "show icon and notifications"];
  • I am also running Norton 360 and it does not list NWFP as a startup program in Startup Manager; and
  • when I run NWFP manually after startup, it behaves as though it is not already running (ie it sometimes - but not always - requires me to log in to my Norton account, the NWFP icon then appears in the Notification Area, and NWFP initially indicates that the VPN is off and then changes to VPN on).

I have the latest version of NWFP, fully updated Win 7 and the latest versions of all drivers (except for the audio driver because the latest one from Windows Update stopped my audio working and I had to roll back the driver).

Any suggestions?

Thanks for the clarification. It is more for other users who may be seeing the same issue.

 

Sorry, I thought that was self-evident. It was "Changing the setting for Launch at Startup to off. Restart your computer, then reset the Launch at startup and restart to test again". I'd actually checked the first of your suggestions before I originally posted but didn't mention it because it seemed obvious (otherwise I could not have changed the icon's properties from the default "only show notifications" - which makes it hidden - to "show icon and notifications" - which makes it visible) and I thought the second point was a check to see if NWFS was set to run at startup rather than a fix per se. For info, msconfig showed NWFS as set to run at startup, while computer management showed the NWFP service as "started" and the startup type as "automatic", even when the notification icon was absent and the VPN was off. Who knows why this should be so? Perhaps something to do with that Windows Firewall dialog box that popped up during the reset process. Anyway, thanks again for your solution.

Good news. Thanks for posting.

Could you elaborate on which suggestion helped?

Thanks Peter. Your fix worked. Sorry for the slow reply but I wanted to make sure that the fix stuck.

Interestingly, on the second restart I got a message box asking whether Windows Firewall should allow traffic only on secured networks or on both secured and unsecured networks (something I have never encountered since installing Norton 360 many years ago). I allowed both, since that's part of the reason for having a VPN. Norton WiFi Privacy now appears in the notification area and starts automatically, although it occasionally comes up with the VPN not active and I have to click on the Norton WiFi Privacy icon then log in to my Norton account to get the VPN working. I'm not entirely sure, but I think this only happens if the computer has been switched off for a couple of days.

Thanks again.

  • the icon that appears when NWFP is running is absent from the notification area of the task bar [despite its properties having been changed from the default "only show notifications" to "show icon and notifications"];
    Have you checked the hidden system tray icons to see if it is there? 
  • I am also running Norton 360 and it does not list NWFP as a startup program in Startup Manager; and
    Did you check msconfig to see if it shows there in the Startup tab?
  • when I run NWFP manually after startup, it behaves as though it is not already running (ie it sometimes - but not always - requires me to log in to my Norton account, the NWFP icon then appears in the Notification Area, and NWFP initially indicates that the VPN is off and then changes to VPN on).
    Try Changing the setting for Launch at Startup to off. Restart your computer, then reset the Launch at startp and restart to test again.