Avira AntiVir personal.

Evermore,

 

I thought that you were able to get IE to work with avast's webshield, by removing the '80' parameter [which you did accidentally by MISreading my suggestions].   Did something change, that it doesn't work anymore?

 

I believe there are several forum members here who have tried both avast, and antivir, and will hopefully be able to help you compare them.

 

[Note:  I realize that other people reading this thread [out of context] may have no idea what I'm referring to... but since it's a continuation of a previous conversation, I'm sure evermore knows what i'm referring to.]

Hi Evermore:

 

I've been following your problems with avast with some interest. Might I ask what anti-virus you were using prior to avast? Some AVs are notorious for being difficult to uninstall cleanly, and interfering with installation of a subsequent AV. Many of these have uninstall tools you can download to clean up the registry mess left behind.

 

As far as AntiVir goes, I have used both the free and the paid (trial) versions, as well as avast (free). All of these kept me clean of viruses. AntiVir Personal lacks some anti-spyware capabilities that the Premium (paid) version has, and it had some nag features (to upgrade) that I found a bit bothersome. Other than that, AntiVir worked just fine, and I have no trouble recommending it. It consistently gets good marks at independent testing sites.

 

Folks have been complaining recently about AntiVir problems with updating definition files, related to server congestion. This problem arose from time to time with all the free AVs I have used, and was always temporary. 

 

I think though, before you switch, you should make sure that your previous AV was cleanly uninstalled.

 

 

 

k331; Yes avast does work by removing the 80 out of "redircted HTTP port(s)": But it looks like I don't have surf protection when this is removed. This is what the 80 does: WebShield scans inbound traffic through port 80 and stops undesireable traffic. I found lots of information on Webshield and it appears you need it for protection when you surf the web. I'm just uncomfortable using it without the default settings. I found lots of information on the avast forum. It must be some of my settings but we are unable to find it at this time. You were alot of help. Thanks for your interest.

I switched from AntiVir to Avast last Friday on this XP machine. A minor problem with the initial updates was solved by just letting it update automatically. Did the standard or default install and no problems so far. What I wrote last week in another post about browsing problems turned out to be something else.

 

On a related note...went to Online Armor about the same time, as Comodo constantly alerted on Avast and associated files during the install and the attempts to update manually. Online Armor seems to go about its business quitely and effeciently so far. If it is supposed to be as good as or comparable to Comodo I am satisfied with it.

 

As far as AntiVir goes I was satisfied with it except I sometimes started to doze off waiting for it to start the updates. If it has an automatic update feature I must have missed it. And the nag screen is a minor annoyance but the 'price' one pays for a free product.

I've been using Avira (on XP) and can only echo whats been said already, a good program with only minor annoyances, but as dalem said "the price one pay's for a free product."

 

As far as the advert displayed when downloading update's goes, ensure anyone who uses the PC knows about it. A recent one said "hi! I'm a hacker, i'm watching you" The wife got quite a fright, i can tell you!:smileywink:

 

If the download servers are ever slow, as they have been recently with a big update, there is the manual update which i outlined here:

 

 http://www.dellcommunity.com/supportforums/board/message?board.id=si_virus&message.id=69174#M69174

 

I've been using it in Expert mode and found it easy to use and configure. Its real-time guard fits in well with other programs (defender ,BoClean, Online Armor,spywareblaster etc) with minimal conflicts. I've read of some conflict's with spybot s&d , but haven't experienced any yet with teatimer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Evermore,

 

just taking a completely wild stab here, but did you [or your ISP] set up a "proxy server"?

 

here's one way to check [i think]:

 

open internet explorer,

click on TOOLS

INTERNET OPTIONS

CONNECTIONS
LAN SETTINGS...

 

is there a check in the box USE A PROXY SERVER FOR YOUR LAN  ???

if so, is there a number specified there for its PORT ???

 

if it specifies a port number, other than 80, try setting avast's port to be the same number, and see if that makes a difference....

 

ky331; Your thinking is a good place where problem could be. Avast forum had me check the same thing. No there isn't a check there. I see 80 there in the port setting but it's real faint until I check "use a proxy server for your lan" Is yours checked? If so when you click the advanced button whats the settings on that page. I have tried about everything in there, but it could be there if I put the right information here. First I will see if yours is checked so the 80 is high lighted. I like your thinking.

ky331; Yes i had a previous firewall, PC security shield. I just uninstall it before installing Avast. I will see what I can find in that area. I'm using these third party utilities: Super Antispyware, MBAM, Spyblaster, windows defender, Webroot spysweeper (paid version), Win Patrol and ccleaner. I have tried disabling all of these and it didn't solve the problem. I have sent a message to my ISP to see if they had any ideas. Thanks for information on the proxy server. I didn't know what all of this meant. 

No, I'm not using a "proxy server" (so the box is NOT checked for me). 

 

And I don't believe the "average" user is set-up for a proxy server:

Unless your ISP required a special arrangement --- which presumably, they would have done when they first set you up for their usage --- this should be left alone.  

 

My "wild stab" was wondering if perhaps you had to set up the proxy a while back, and had just forgotten about it.

 

So we've now ruled out both a windows firewall "conflict", as well as interference with a proxy server....

 

Joe's suggestion about your prior anti-virus[es] being only partially uninstalled is certainly something to continue looking into.

 

DID you ever have another firewall on that PC (besides the windows firewall?)

what other security programs (such as anti-spyware) are you running?   I don't know that we'll have a conflict here --- but I'm running out of ideas.

 

 

ky331 and all who were reading this post; I think I got it!! I reinstalled my old PCShield firewall and disabled the windows firewall and it is now working. Don't ask me how or why but Avast WebShield now has all the default applications installed the 80 after "redirected HTTP port(s):" and Webshield enabled.

 

The windows firewall must have been blocking something or I may of had some remnants of the old firewall still in there that was blocking Avast. I had disabled the windows firewall before but it didn't work. Trial and error and persistence sometimes pays off. Also everyones help. We just kept trying. Thanks everyone for your help. I don't see any way to look at the widows firewall and allow or disallow necessary files (files may not be the right term) to pass. Does any one know how to do this? I know Avast has to allow a couple of files to pass. I would have to look them up to verify what they are.

Evermore,

 

let me applaud you on your persistence in finding a solution that works for you.   As you (and others) can see, given all the possible competing/conflicting programs [and keep in mind, I'm working "blindly" here, not knowing what programs you've currently installed (or previously installed and removed)], it can be an awesome task to diagnose what's gone wrong.  

 

you should only use one firewall... so if the PCShield firewall (which you're presumably familiar with) is up and running well, and without conflicting with avast!, it's probably a good idea to leave well-enough alone.   while you might be able to pursue the matter, and find out how to get Windows firewall to "cooperate", I don't know that it will give you any additional protection.

ky331; Yes I will keep my pcshield firewall for the time being. I have shut windows firewall off. Avast is working fine I don't want to do anything now that will foul it up. I'm on an learning curve with avast so I will try to get use to it. Thanks for help and interest.