NortonAntivirus & WinXP(User acct)

Hello,

I'm building a computer for a friend. With his old computer he was using freeware antivirus software that permitted him to do automatic live updates.

On his new machine I have setup Administrative & User accounts in Win XP Pro. I have some misgivings about the setup since it appears that tne Norton Antivirus 2003 software, for some reason or another, is unable to do automatic live updates in either account, as I know it can do with a single account system.

Further, I am wondering if manually udating Live Update as administrator actually protects a limited user's "My Documents" files when logged in as limited user, even though manual updates of definitions appear to be mirrored in the Norton window in the limited user's account.

I have lost some face here in indicating to him that Norton Antivirus is a professional program that appears unable to do automatic live updates that his admittedly single account sytsem on 98SE could do with his freeware virus program.?

Any thoughts on this so I might try and regain some credibility?.

Thanks all for any inputs.

 

When 'Live Update' is run under an administrator's account it will protect all accounts on the system. Live Update can not be ran from a 'Limited Account'. However, you can configure 'Live Update' from the 'Administrator's Account' to automatic update the virus definitions. This way no matter who is logged into the system, 'Live Update' will run and update the virus definitions.

BTW, if I may ask. Why, are you installing NAV 2003 if the user was satisfied with the "Freeware" AV program? There are a few 'No Cost' AV solutions, that are just as good a NAV if not better.

 

In answer to your question I have used NAV for the past 10 year without any major traumas. All I know is it that it has worked fine for me. I don't know if the specific freeware AV software being used by my friend on his old machine is any good so I would rather stick with what I know because at the end of the day I am responsible for his machine working properly and I really don't have the time to reformat and get his machine back to its current state, with all that involves, in the event that he has a catastrophic crash. I've been there with other people who are just basic users and not particularly versed in computer configuration issues.

I don't want to get into the pros and cons of which AV software is best as I am sure there are many people out there who have had a range of experiences and have made their choice-good on them!. Like brands of cars people tend to have there pet views. At the end of the day it really needs a competent lab type professional review to compare and analyze the various AV software side by side and to make unbiased conclusions and I am sure that has already been done. Even then there will be non believers, on the basis that what they have got is the best and then again others can come up with professional reviews that counter others. Thats life I guess.!

Getting back to my original question: Typically the administrative/limited user type configuration would be used in the corporate sphere where I imagine IT people wouldn't be leaving their inhouse network open to hackers by downloading live updates for any purpose - they would presumably have other inhouse secure methods in place. However, a SOHO user has to be in Administrator mode and online for, in this case NAV automatic liveupdates. The specific problem I see in this situation is that any time on the Internet as Administrator should be strictly limited, for obvious reasons, and in the periodic, say 3 weekly 1/2 to 3/4 hr or so needed to download a number of system utility upgrades (such as MS security updates and other spyware/adaware updates) is often not often sufficient time for Norton Antivirus Live Update to activate. In the couple of weeks since setting up the machine in question, and notwithstanding NAV being configured for automatic live updates live updates are not occuring and have to be manually downloaded as Administrator.

So it seems from this point of view this type of configuration of Win XP Pro for the SOHO user is unsuitable and inappropriate, quite apart from its other foibles in relation to the installation (as Administrator) of 3rd party software that it often doesn't like to run in limited user mode, and despite the inconvenience of using the optional 'run as' command, which may or may not be a work around in specific instances.

 

Hi again,
Just a further comment-in limited user mode, using Mozilla Thunderbird, NAV 2003 isn't showing that it is checking incoming and ougoing emails,which it does do as administrator-this appears to be an another anomoly with this configuration.!!!

 

This is from Symantec:

Can you run LiveUpdate or Automatic LiveUpdate as a user under Windows NT/2000/XP

Situation:
You have a small home network or a Windows NT/2000/XP computer with multiple user accounts. You want to configure the system to run LiveUpdate or Automatic LiveUpdate when someone is logged in as a user.

Solution:
Because of the security restrictions of Windows NT/2000/XP, a user account cannot run LiveUpdate or Automatic LiveUpdate. You must be logged in using a computer administrator account, or part of the Administrator group.

Short answer: Live Update won't run on a 'Limited' user account.

My recommendation is to either grant the account administrator rights or pick a different AV solution for your friend. If your friend is the only user of the system then making that account part of the 'Administrator Group' shouldn't be a problem.

If you choose a different AV solution any of these are good and no cost for home use:
AntiVir Personal Edition
Avast! Home Edition
AVG Free Edition

 

Yes I've seen that Symantec article before and I already know that Norton live updates (manual or auto) can't be run in limited user mode, but virus scans can be run there.-.

My point was that live automatic updates aren't activating in the short time (1/2-3/4hr) that I am periodically online (Internet) as administrator. The consequence of this is that I am required to log on as Administrator, at least on a weekly basis, to do manual live updates in order to keep reasonably up to date with definitions. This is a bit of a hassle because other utilities/downloads as Administrator, from experience, only need to be done on a 3 weekly basis. My other point was incoming/outgoing emails don't appear to be checked as limited user but they are as Administrator. I'm not quite sure what that means. I would have thought that the Win XP Pro operating system in this admin/user configuration would be doing global checks!.

If Norton doesn't run automatically at all as administrator, and I suspect this may be the case, I don't think other AV software would run automatically either, as Administrator. I could be proven wrong on this. However, logic seems to dictate to me that Win XP Pro, being essentially designed for professional/corporate use would not from a security standpoint allow any AUTOMATIC downloads in the administrative mode, in other words there would have to be actual administrative intervention to do so, as I am finding and doing.

Incidentally, my friend rang me today to say that he couldn't log on to the Internet on his old machine anymore. I already had reconfigured his network settings to get him back on line a few weeks ago, on the day we were discussing the build configuration for his new machine. It turns out that exactly the same thing happened then as happened today-he tells me that his user name and password have been corrupted. I've seen this before and it sounds terribly like a Trojan or Worm virus. So his freeware AV may not be up to the job and it does say that not all AV software is built equal. There may be a wide gap between free and professional designed AV software, so accordingly I am sticking with what I know (NAV) for the new machine I am building him.

 

Schedule 'Live Update' to run when you go online, that way when you log into your 'Adminstrator Account' it will run and update the AV definitions.

Try this as a workaround, change the account to administrator, configure the options for Norton, change the account back to limited. See if the scans will run. Norton doesn't 'Play Well' on Windows NT/2000/XP unless it is being run from an 'Admininstrator' account. Norton products are designed for use on machines that are 'Single User', 'Single Account' machines. Computers set up as single user have account types that belong to the 'Administators Group' Symantec products are 'Corporate/Enterprise' solutions and are designed for use on Windows NT/2000/XP systems that use multiple accounts.

I can tell you this, that the issues you are experiencing are being caused by Norton and not Win XP Pro. I use XP pro and all scheduled updates run under administrator accounts without fail.

You are correct when you say that "not all AV software is built equal," some are better than others. That's does not necessary mean a 'Paid' program is better than a 'Free' program. How quickly or if a machine becomes infected with a virus depends on ones personal computer habits. As far as your friends problem, he could have a trojan on his system; or his hosts file is corrupt, thus 'can not log onto the internet'.

 

Sorry, no. Norton Live Update will only run and update AV defs from an 'Administrator' account. What I was suggesting is he change the account type to administrator, configure the scanning options for Norton, then change the account back to limited; and see if that works. I really am not sure if that will work. I've always used Symantec Corporate for systems with multiple accounts.