The best antivirus

[netadmin]

Hey guys what is the best antivirus software for a small to medium sized business to run?
We have about 25 computers and 1 file server. Our web and e-mail servers are outsourced.
I would like to be able to scan e-mail for viruses. I would also want the server (RedHat 9) to be able to scan file shares.


Thanks.

[Cybr1d]

I would go with: Symantec AntiVirus v8.1 Small Business Edition Desktop & Server


Details Product Features
General information
Marketing information: Symantec AntiVirus small business Edition 8.1 Is a Complete, license-in-A-box Solution that protects Workstations and Network servers with The world's best-selling virus protection. With its unique navex and Digital immune System technologies, it provides fast, reliable, and hands-Free virus detection, analysis, and repairs via an Easy-to-use central management console.
Delivers immediate protection with a Complete license-in-A-box Solution.
Protects Workstations and Network servers against viruses, trojan horses, malicious ActiveX code, and Java applets.
One-Year maintenance agreement provides Technical support and Product updates at NO Additional cost.
Software information
Software Type: AntiVirus
Software name: Symantec AntiVirus V.8.1 small business - Complete Product
Features & benefits: Key Features:
Digital immune System automation delivers fast and reliable virus detection, analysis, isolation, and repair
LiveUpdate automatically delivers New virus definitions
Exclusive navex technology updates Scanning and virus repair engines
Compatibility: - Windows
NetWare
Distribution Media/method: CD-ROM
Package Type: (Retail-box)
license informaton
license Type: Complete Product
license pricing: Standard
license quantity: 5 Users
Physical characteristics
Shipping Dimensions: 2.7, (height) x 7.8, (width) x 9.6, (Depth)
Shipping weight: 1.2 lb
Miscellaneous
Additional Info.: The Symantec small business 5-packs Carry a full, Year of Upgrade insurance





This might help you out:

http://www.symantec.com/product/index_smallbiz.html


Cheers,

[slick8790]

How about if you just have all the computers download Avast or AVG? My guess is that it would be a hell of a lot cheaper than Symantec's.


slick

[g00n]

well, it may be cheaper, but it breaks their TOS. AVG is free to non-commercial use. Using it at work would make it commercial use.

separate those 2 roles, firewall and virus scanning. IPCOP http://ipcop.sourceforge.net/cgi-bin/twiki/view/IPCop/WebHome, it's simple to use and provides IDS and logs for your viewing.

Then you'd want to put your symantec AV server on the network where it has access to all the pc's and install the client on all the pc's.. from there you can setup the access scanning, and routine scans on the hdd's and automatic updates.

that help?

[netadmin]

does symantec have a good track record? I have been told that there are other solutions that provide much better scanning and detection rates than symantec.

Thanks for the info. this helps.

[Agent_Steal]

Have you visited any of the virus vendor websites to see what they offer? It might just be a good idea if you did. Just do a search on Google and see what everyone else has to offer.

That's just my own thoughts ......

[netadmin]

I have been to eTrust, Kapersky, and McAffee. I'm just not finding the info I'm looking for exactly.

[Cybr1d]

Take a look at the symatec website I posted. They have several options for small and large businesses. Sometimes, a Large corporation AV might give you what you need, which a small business one wouldnt carry. Worth investigating all your options before making a decision on this. It will save you further headaches.

Good Luck

[netadmin]

does this link work for anyone else?

http://www.symantec.com/smallbiz/sav_sbe_mt/index.html

click on the 25 user license.

thanks.

[Cybr1d]

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[netadmin]

i have tried this on multiple machines with cookies wide open and it still doesn't work.
thanks though.

[Agent_Steal]

Well I did some googling and I came up with this :
List of Antivirus Software Vendors (http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=49500)

Hope that link helps you in some way or another ...

[anjali]

Netadmin....

First thing is what is that u want to secure against..... Is it only viruses or even attempts to break into ur network...

I guess ur setup of 25 PC's does not have any public facing server... even ur mails are on hosted server...

Now how r u retriving the mails... does every user have a separate mail account created on the hosted server.. in this case u will need to have the mail scan program installed on the mail server..

OR r u using a software to pull all messages using softweare like postmaster etc. An then users accounts are created on postmaster server.. whioch will then route the messages to valid users.. in this u can think of installing MAILSCAN on ur Postmaster server....

Also remember what is the capacity planning and business goals over a period of atleast one and a half year...

If ur organization is plaaning to open up some of its server to the worls..

I guess it would be a good move to go for symantec product.. which has all features inbuilt into a seperate hardware box.. I dont remember the name .. but it will give u protection against virus , Hacking attacks, Intrusion detection and prevention , mail filtering, internet proxy filtering with the same box...

Remember u may have to spend a huge amount as one time investment but if u break individual services and amount that u would spend to upkeep those services and annual maintance for above services.. I guess symantec would be a better choice.. If ur company has the money to invest in current scenario.....

Regards

Kalp

[mystic7]

In PCUtilities (issue 41?) they've recently runned a few tests in order to find the best AV around. They give full details e the % of virus & worms found by each. For a Desktop situation (don't know if there is a corporate/server version) the best one is Kaspersky AV. I've been noting that Norton alone (without a router/firewall) is performing rather poorly and I'm quiet unsatisfied with the product. The expert pro's also recommend to have more than one brand of AV in order to cross the Av scans.

[Chuck56]

I run Kaspersky 4.5, which is excellent for multiple computers. It's a slight challenge to set up, but not overwhelming. The Kaspersky site (Moscow) http://www.kaspersky.com isn't the most user friendly I've ever visited, but the information is there. Kaspersky, along with AVK and F-Secure consistently rate 1,2,3 in all the tests. AVK and F-Secure use the Kaspersky engine. I guess you might say that, taking that into account, Kaspersky is 1,2,3.

[ruffasdagut]

Hey, I have been running Norton Corperate edition on my network of about 40 machines. I have found it to run very well. Some of the features that it has are over kill for a network of that size, but it does a good job automating everything, and gives me one place to check for errors. I also like it becuase it gives me the ability to lock out people. The clients cant make and changes only the server can. All of the rules on how to deal with a virus are set by the server all the user gets is a window that says it found one, and you can even turn that off I believe. Currently I am running it on my file server, but you could also run in on a seperate server, and have it manage the file server from there. I hope that was helpfull :)

[netadmin]

Ok guys here is my setup.

First my web and mail servers are both outsourced and offsite. The only server I am running is a Dell 2600 Rackmount with RedHat 9 installed. This server does domain logins and file storage. I would like this server to also be able to scan for viruses on all shares.

We have around 23 computers using domain logon and half of them actually do any type of regular work with network shares. I would like to protect all 23 of these machines as best as possible against viruses, adware and spam. Currently spam blocking is not needed, but I'm sure it will be soon.

Users have seperate accounts on the outsource mail server. This may endup being changed to a postmaster server depending on the problems i have implementing a spam blocker system. Currently the provider does not scan any e-mail for anything. Users get their e-mail through (gag) Outlook.

I am using a Netgear FR114P router to connect to our broadband connection. This router has a builtin firewall and IDS (using Stateful Packet Detection).

I would love central management of the antivirus system. I want to use our server to do this, so it appears to me norton may not work. I have not found anywhere where it says there is a scanner for Linux systems or central management on a Linux server. I would even go with web based central management if necessary, but I really dont want to add a second box using windows just for antivirus management.

Thats my story need any more info just let me know.

Thanks for all the help and attention guys.

[MURACU]

We use Norton CE. It gives some very good centralisation and it is normally fairly good for the updates. The only problem is the price. The TCO (total cost of owenership) isn’t too bad for us as we are a corporate sizes company but it may be a bit much for a small - medium sized company. Another point to consider is, what is a good antivirus today may not be up to scratch tomorrow. In the space of a couple of years we have passed from Norton to McAfee to Norton. In between we have also looked at other antivirus solutions. In general it is a good idea to review your antivirus software periodically. How often depends on the size of your infrastructure. Changing your antivirus is a major investment but it can be worth while. I would not say there is a best antivirus out there. It all depends on what you need and the resources available to you (money, time, servers, network,etc).
i know this dosent answer the question but I hope it helps somewhat.

[netadmin]

MURACU,

Any advice I can get will help me out. Thanks for the post.