McAfee 2010 update and Dell PCs - issue?

Hi SimonEC,

McAfee's product range received a major revamp this year, both to the inner workings and the user interface. When such big changes are made to any program (not just McAfee), an automatic (over-the-top) update can often cause problems, especially if the user is running other programs at the time of the update.

A clean install of the program will usually fix it.

How to uninstall or reinstall supported McAfee consumer products using the McAfee Consumer Products Removal tool (MCPR.exe)

Hi Chall - I am NOT one of the experts on this forum, keep that in mind. I got my new Dell in March of this year. It came with a 15 month McAfee service. I thought... What the heck I'll try it. I don't have time to list all of the strange and unusual problems I had. Everything from BSOD's to random rebooting. After hours and hours of trouble shooting with and without Dell Techs; nothing solved the problems. I had one of "those feelings" and uninstalled McAfee. That helped considerably. Then I went to the McAfee website, downloaded their uninstall tool, ran the tool, rebooted and the system worked as it should.

I have no technical explanation for this. But it worked like a charm for me.

Jeff :emotion-22:

I'm not one to slag any particular reputable security program, paid or free, but I must say I have been impressed with the multitude of complaints with pre-installed security programs and AVs we have seen in these forums.

I don't think it is vendor specific. My own personal experience is that I've always ended up uninstalling them, every time, sooner or later, because of the grief they gave me. And lately, it's been sooner.

It's not always easy to abandon a security program that is paid up for free for x number of months, but that is what I now do. With my most recent purchase, I dumped Trend Micro's Internet Security suite (pre-paid for 15 months) without ever installing it, just on principle, in favor of MSE and Win 7's firewall. No regrets.

At the same time I protect my workhorse desktop with a paid AV and Firewall (neither came pre-installed).

The pre-installed products never seem to be quite up-to-date/in synch with the product from the vendor. I'm not suggesting this route for everyone, particularly if you have no problems.

It's just that pre-installed security products, in my limited experience over many years, are not worth it.

There is no question that there is a HUGE problem with McAfee AV software pre-installed on Dell computers.  My 5 month old Inspiron recently began multiple incidents of BSOD after a McAfee update; Dell washed it hands and would offer no assistance.  I spent 6-7 hours on the phone with McAfee tech service (incompetent) before completely removing McAfee and buying Norton AV for installation.  I am left to ask: if a chip in the motherboard of my Inspiron fails, will Dell kick me over to the chip manufacturer for resolution?

There appears to be a conflict between McAfee and your particular computer and its configurations. Dell is not responsible for any and all the possible conflicts that could occur between its products and the programs that users install. In the opinion of many regulars here on the forum, McAfee is not a particularly good or reliable product (nor is Norton) and you are better off going with the free security products that  do their jobs more than adequately.

pondviewer:

If any of your hardware (including your motherboard) should fail while under warranty, I believe you are covered by Dell. That said, in 10 years the only Dell hardware I've had replaced under warranty is a TV monitor (4 times- it was a particularly bad product!) Dell did not refer me to the maker, but replaced each unit without question. The last unit has worked well for the last 3+ years.

As far as Norton AV goes, I think you have a good product. Norton once sold a bloated AV, but have in recent years cleaned up their act. I'm on record hereabouts as promoting free AVs (avast, Avira, or Microsoft Security Essentials) as more than sufficient for most home users, but I have  no problem recommending NAV these days. It does provide a few bells and whistles that the freebies do not.

I'm going from memory here and things may have changed since, but AFAIK Dell only covers Hardware and Software support for the first 30 days of the warranty, after which only hardware support is covered for the remainder of the warranty.

I guess I wasn't clear that I didn't install McAfee--Dell did.  The only 'program' I installed was Microsoft Office.  So my particular computer is all Dell, minus Office.  The point here is that if you buy a car, and the sound system (which is manufactured by someone other than the car manufacturer) fails, the car dealer doesn't tell you to chase after the sound system manufacturer; you bring the car in and they fix it.  Dell tech service spent about 3 minutes and then cut me loose without so much as a hint that they knew that this was a problem, or a suggestion about a rememdy.  Sorry, BAD tech service!

Similar to other resellers of software and peripherals, Dell does not warrant software and third-party peripheral products. Software and third-party peripheral products are covered by the warranties provided by the original publisher or manufacturer only. Third party publisher and manufacturer warranties vary from product to product. Consult your product documentation for specific warranty information. More information may also be available from the publisher or manufacturer.

While Dell offers a wide selection of software and peripheral products, we do not specifically test or guarantee that all of the products we offer work with any or all of the various models of Dell computers, nor do we test or guarantee all of the products we sell on the hundreds of different brands of computers available today. If you have questions about compatibility, we recommend and encourage you to contact the third-party software and peripheral product publisher or manufacturer directly."

It is pretty much the same for all the other major manufacturers of computers.

Thanks, guys, for the warranty (non-warranty) info.  Definitely a learning experience!

The warranty limitation may or may not hold legally for major software promoted by Dell that cause widespread problems such as BSOD with a particular model.  Without regard to the legalities, when a problem becomes widespread and causes widespread problems with the customer's experience with a Dell computer, Dell should create a technical bulletin for its support personnel to help them help customers.  This is just good business. 

Dell tech service spent about 3 minutes and then cut me loose without so much as a hint that they knew that this was a problem, or a suggestion about a rememdy.  Sorry, BAD tech service!

 If the issue appears to becoming from McAfee's software, that's McAfee's responsibility because they wrote the software that has your alleged "huge problem". If McAfee techs are incompetent, that's McAfee's problem too.

As far as those bulletins, information is sometimes posted as Announcements for customers by Dell Liaisons in the pertinent forums, and the techs do receive bulletins. However, often by the time issues show up, each computer has been configured differently with software and additional hardware installed by the customers. When that happens it is like trying to find a needle in a haystack to pinpoint and resolve the problem. If these problems are happening right out of the box for many customers, it is a bit easier to diagnose.