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Windows XP Service Pack 2 - Full-Screen Multiplayer Games Fail

After installing Service Pack 2 for Windows XP, you may note that some multiplayer Internet games fail by either hanging or completely crashing with an error message.

One culprit may be the updated Windows Firewall. It may be blocking Internet access and displaying an alert, asking if you want to allow the game to use the Internet. Some full-screen games may disable the ability to switch tasks, thus the Windows Firewall alert may not be visible and/or accessible.

If this is the case, Microsoft offers a possible solution that may get some of your games to work correctly. This involves adding your game to the Windows Firewall exception list, allowing it to access the Internet without a dialog box appearing in the background.

MSKB 875363: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?
kbid=875363