Network Kill Switch

A lightweight Windows system tray application for instant network control

What is Network Kill Switch?

Network Kill Switch is a powerful yet simple Windows utility that gives you instant control over your network connections. With a single click from your system tray, you can disable or enable all network adapters (Ethernet and WiFi) simultaneously. Perfect for privacy, security, focus time, or quick network troubleshooting.

Features

• System Tray Integration - Lives quietly in your Windows system tray
• One-Click Toggle - Left-click icon to instantly toggle all network adapters
• Visual Status Indicators - Green = network enabled, Red = network disabled
• Complete Network Control - Toggles both Ethernet AND WiFi adapters together
• Smart Timer Function - Temporarily disable network with auto-restore:
  • 1 minute
  • 2 minutes
  • 5 minutes
  • 30 minutes
  • 1 hour
• Status Verification - Automatically verifies adapter state after toggling
• Auto-Detection - Finds your physical network adapters automatically
• Auto-Startup - Optional "Start with Windows" during installation
• Standalone Installer - No Python installation required
• ARM Compatible - Works on Windows on ARM via x64 emulation
• Lightweight - Minimal resource usage (~20-30 MB installed)

Screenshots

System Tray - Network Enabled (Green)

System Tray - Network Disabled (Red)

Timer Options Menu

Download & Installation

For End Users

Download Latest Release (v2.0.0)

1. Download NetworkKillSwitch-Setup.exe from the Releases page
2. Run the installer (requires administrator privileges)
3. Follow the installation wizard:
   • Choose your installation directory (default: C:\Program Files\Network Kill Switch)
   • Check "Start with Windows" to enable automatic startup (recommended)
   • Click Install
4. Done! The app will appear in your system tray immediately

No Python installation required! The installer includes everything you need.

Uninstallation

1. Open Windows Settings → Apps → Installed apps
2. Find "Network Kill Switch"
3. Click Uninstall

The uninstaller will automatically:

• Stop any running instances
• Remove the auto-startup configuration
• Clean up all files and registry entries

Usage Guide

Quick Start

1. Find the icon in your system tray (notification area, bottom-right corner)

   • Green icon = Network enabled (at least one adapter is active)
   • Red icon = Network disabled (all adapters are off)
   • Timer icon = Temporary disable mode (will auto-restore)

2. Quick Actions:

   • Left-click the icon → Instantly toggle all network adapters on/off
   • Right-click the icon → Open full menu with advanced options

Menu Options (Right-Click)

• Toggle Network (On/Off) - Enable or disable ALL network adapters
• Disable for 1/2/5/30/60 minutes - Temporary disable with automatic restore
• Cancel Timer - Stop countdown and restore network immediately
• Quit - Exit the application

Timer Feature

When you select a timer option:

1. All network adapters are immediately disabled
2. The tray icon changes to the timer icon
3. Hover over the icon to see a live countdown (e.g., "Network: Disabled (Re-enabling in 4m 32s)")
4. The network automatically restores when the timer expires
5. You can click "Cancel Timer" or manually toggle to restore early

Tips

• Keyboard shortcuts: Not currently supported, but you can assign a hotkey to the executable via Windows properties
• Multiple adapters: The app detects and controls ALL physical Ethernet and WiFi adapters simultaneously
• Virtual adapters: VPN, Hyper-V, and other virtual adapters are excluded from control
• Administrator required: The app must run with admin privileges to control network adapters

For Developers

System Requirements

• OS: Windows 10 or Windows 11
• Python: 3.7 or higher (for development only)
• Privileges: Administrator rights (required to toggle network adapters)

Development Setup

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/chilidogsonic/network-kill-switch.git
   cd network-kill-switch

2. Install Python dependencies:

   pip install -r requirements.txt

3. Run the application:

   # Open Command Prompt or PowerShell as Administrator
   python network_kill_switch.py

   The app will appear in your system tray.

Building from Source

Want to build your own installer? See BUILD.md for detailed instructions.

Quick Build:

# Install dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt

# Build the standalone EXE and installer
build_installer.bat

Output:

• Standalone EXE: dist\NetworkKillSwitch.exe
• Windows Installer: Output\NetworkKillSwitch-Setup.exe

Build Prerequisites

• Python 3.7+
• Inno Setup 6 (for creating the installer)
• PyInstaller (automatically installed by build script)

Troubleshooting

"Could not find network adapter" error

Solution:

• The app looks for physical Ethernet and WiFi adapters using specific naming patterns
• Virtual adapters (VPN, Hyper-V, VMware, VirtualBox) are intentionally excluded
• Check your adapter names in Device Manager → Network adapters
• If your adapter has an unusual name, you may need to modify the detection logic in network_kill_switch.py (line 131)

Toggle doesn't work / No effect when clicking

Solution:

1. Verify administrator privileges:

   • Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open Task Manager
   • Find NetworkKillSwitch.exe in the Details tab
   • Check if "Elevated" column shows "Yes"
   • If not, right-click the app shortcut → "Run as administrator"

2. Check Windows Event Viewer:

   • Press Win+X → Event Viewer
   • Navigate to Windows Logs → System
   • Look for errors related to network adapter operations

3. Test PowerShell commands manually:

   • Open PowerShell as Administrator
   • Run: Get-NetAdapter (should list your adapters)
   • Run: Disable-NetAdapter -Name "Ethernet" -Confirm:$false (replace "Ethernet" with your adapter name)

Auto-startup not working

Solution:

1. Check Task Scheduler:

   • Press Win+R → type taskschd.msc → Enter
   • Look for a task named "NetworkKillSwitchApp"
   • Right-click → Properties → Verify:
     • Trigger: "At log on"
     • Action: Points to correct EXE path
     • "Run with highest privileges" is checked

2. Run diagnostic script:

   • Navigate to installation folder: C:\Program Files\Network Kill Switch
   • Right-click check_task_permissions.ps1 → "Run with PowerShell"
   • Review the diagnostic output

3. Manual setup:

   • Right-click setup_task_silent.ps1 in the installation folder
   • Select "Run with PowerShell"

Icon doesn't appear in system tray

Solution:

1. Check if app is running:

   • Open Task Manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc)
   • Look for NetworkKillSwitch.exe under "Background processes"

2. Check overflow area:

   • Click the ^ arrow in your system tray (hidden icons)
   • The icon might be collapsed there

3. Restart the application:

   • Kill the process in Task Manager
   • Relaunch from Start Menu or installation folder

App shows "Loading..." indefinitely

Solution:

• This usually indicates PowerShell commands are timing out
• Check your antivirus software isn't blocking PowerShell execution
• Try running as Administrator
• Verify PowerShell execution policy: Get-ExecutionPolicy (should be at least RemoteSigned)

Technical Architecture

Technology Stack

Component	Technology	Purpose
Language	Python 3.7+	Core application logic
UI Framework	pystray	System tray integration and menu
Image Processing	Pillow (PIL)	Icon rendering and manipulation
Network Control	Windows PowerShell	Native adapter enable/disable commands
Packaging	PyInstaller	Standalone EXE compilation
Installer	Inno Setup	Windows installer creation

How It Works

1. Adapter Detection:

   • Uses PowerShell's Get-NetAdapter cmdlet to enumerate physical network adapters
   • Filters for Ethernet and WiFi adapters (excludes virtual adapters like VPN, Hyper-V)
   • Supports multiple adapters simultaneously

2. State Management:

   • Monitors adapter status using Get-NetAdapter | Select-Object Status
   • Real-time status verification after each toggle operation
   • Tooltip updates every second during timer countdown

3. Toggle Operation:

   • Executes PowerShell commands: Enable-NetAdapter / Disable-NetAdapter
   • Runs in background thread to avoid UI blocking
   • Visual feedback with animated loading indicator

4. Timer Function:

   • Spawns dedicated background thread for countdown
   • Updates tooltip every second with formatted time remaining
   • Automatically re-enables adapters when timer expires

5. Administrator Privileges:

   • Embedded UAC manifest (uac_admin=True in PyInstaller spec)
   • Automatically prompts for elevation on launch
   • Gracefully handles non-admin scenarios with warnings

File Structure

Network Kill Switch/
├── network_kill_switch.py    # Main application code
├── NetworkKillSwitch.spec     # PyInstaller build specification
├── installer.iss              # Inno Setup installer script
├── build_installer.bat        # Automated build script
├── icon.ico                   # Application icon
├── icons/                     # System tray icon assets
│   ├── status_on.ico         # Green (enabled state)
│   ├── status_off.ico        # Red (disabled state)
│   ├── status_loading_*.ico  # Loading animation frames
│   └── status_timer.ico      # Timer active state
├── assets/                    # Documentation assets
│   ├── logofor_readme.png    # README header logo
│   └── *.png                 # Icon source images
├── screenshots/               # Application screenshots
├── setup_task_silent.ps1     # Auto-startup configuration
├── uninstall_task.ps1        # Auto-startup removal
├── check_task_permissions.ps1 # Diagnostic utility
├── requirements.txt          # Python dependencies
├── README.md                 # This file
├── BUILD.md                  # Build instructions
├── TROUBLESHOOTING.md        # Extended troubleshooting guide
├── CHANGELOG.md              # Version history
└── LICENSE                   # MIT License

Version History

Version 2.0.0 (Current)

Major Update: Rebranded from "Ethernet Toggle" to "Network Kill Switch"

New Features:

• Added WiFi adapter support (in addition to Ethernet)
• Added timer function with 5 preset durations (1m, 2m, 5m, 30m, 1h)
• Live countdown display in tooltip during timer mode
• Animated loading indicator during toggle operations
• Status verification after each toggle operation
• Left-click quick toggle functionality
• Custom icon states (on, off, loading, timer)

Improvements:

• Complete rebrand to "Network Kill Switch"
• Enhanced multi-adapter support
• Better error handling and user feedback
• Optimized PowerShell execution for faster response
• ARM64 Windows compatibility via x64 emulation

Bug Fixes:

• Fixed icon path resolution in compiled EXE
• Fixed PowerShell subprocess execution in frozen executables
• Fixed admin privilege detection and warnings

Version 1.0.0 (Legacy)

• Initial release as "Ethernet Toggle"
• Basic Ethernet adapter on/off functionality
• System tray integration
• Simple green/red status indicators

For detailed change history, see CHANGELOG.md.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

TL;DR: You can use, modify, and distribute this software freely. No warranty is provided.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Here's how you can help:

Reporting Bugs

1. Check if the issue already exists in Issues
2. Create a new issue with:
   • Clear description of the problem
   • Steps to reproduce
   • Expected vs actual behavior
   • Your Windows version and system specs

Suggesting Features

1. Open an issue with the "enhancement" label
2. Describe the feature and its use case
3. Explain why it would be valuable

Submitting Pull Requests

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature)
3. Make your changes with clear commit messages
4. Test thoroughly on Windows 10 and 11
5. Submit a pull request with a detailed description

Development Guidelines

• Follow existing code style and conventions
• Comment complex logic
• Test with both Python script and compiled EXE
• Verify admin and non-admin scenarios
• Update documentation for user-facing changes

Acknowledgments

• pystray - Excellent system tray library
• Pillow - Powerful image processing
• Windows PowerShell Team - Network adapter cmdlets
• Community Contributors - Bug reports and feature suggestions
• No internet icons created by Yudhi Restu - Flaticon

Support & Community

• Issues & Bugs: GitHub Issues
• Discussions: GitHub Discussions
• Latest Release: Releases Page

Star This Project!

If you find Network Kill Switch useful, please consider:

• Starring this repository
• Reporting bugs or suggesting features
• Sharing with others who might benefit
• Providing feedback

Your support helps improve the project for everyone!

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Made for the Windows community

_{Network Kill Switch v2.0.0 | Windows 10/11}