For one thing, the name is different (previously 'McAfee VirusScan Plus'). More importantly, the user-interface has received a major overhaul to make it more intuitive and user-friendly. Because the appearance is so radically different, the product includes links to instructional videos and online help.
The new interface is brighter and friendlier than the old beige, gray and black interface, and is designed to give the user the exact information he needs in any given situation. The old "green for safe" indicator is still present, but McAfee has taken notice user surveys and focus group feedback, and added "(no action required)" to this indicator.
At the top is a status panel providing quick access to information about updates, subscription, scanning and firewall. That's right - although not a full Internet security suite, this antivirus software offers firewall protection. Also included on the status panel is a set of rotating statistics, including the number of viruses found during the last scan, and the number of PCs on the network protected by McAfee. A full security report can also be invoked.
It takes just a couple of clicks to access all the features, and there are multiple routes to many of them. An on-demand scan, for instance, can be triggered by clicking on the Virus and Spyware Protection strip in the features area, or by clicking on the top panel. You can also launch a full scan from the "Navigation Center", which also gives access to several more obscure features.
We installed McAfee Antivirus on our malware-infested test systems, but the installation completed successfully on only few of them. On the other systems, installation was blocked, or the installed program was unable to run properly. The good news is, McAfee comes with a set of tools to help in these situations. The bad news is, fixing the problems on all systems required every tool available.
McAfee's Virtual Technician is your first point of call for any installation problem. This tool will check for problems with McAfee, or, if McAfee is not yet installed, for any malware which might interfere with the installation. We found that Virtual Technician solved the installation problem on one of the problematic systems.
Stinger is a McAfee tool which can see off some common threats without needing a lengthy installation process. We found that Stinger resolved issues on several of their problematic systems. After running it, McAfee was successfully installed on two more systems, but it wasn't able to run on one of those systems. McAfee's online FreeScan and pre-scan preparation tool cleared up a few more problems, but we were still left with two problematic machines. On one, McAfee would simply not install, on the other, it installed but did not work.
The first-level agent manning McAfee's chat-based support was unable to resolve the issues on these two computers, so the issue was escalated to McAfee's virus removal service. McAfee's virus removal experts remotely connected to the two computers, and, after a few hours, they eventually managed to install the antivirus software.
If you're trying to install antivirus software on a system you know is already infested with malware, McAfee may not be the best choice for the initial cleanup. However, using all the available tools, and the excellent support, we finally managed to install McAfee on all our test computers.
The new interface is brighter and friendlier than the old beige, gray and black interface, and is designed to give the user the exact information he needs in any given situation. The old "green for safe" indicator is still present, but McAfee has taken notice user surveys and focus group feedback, and added "(no action required)" to this indicator.
At the top is a status panel providing quick access to information about updates, subscription, scanning and firewall. That's right - although not a full Internet security suite, this antivirus software offers firewall protection. Also included on the status panel is a set of rotating statistics, including the number of viruses found during the last scan, and the number of PCs on the network protected by McAfee. A full security report can also be invoked.
It takes just a couple of clicks to access all the features, and there are multiple routes to many of them. An on-demand scan, for instance, can be triggered by clicking on the Virus and Spyware Protection strip in the features area, or by clicking on the top panel. You can also launch a full scan from the "Navigation Center", which also gives access to several more obscure features.
Installation can be Difficult on Malware-Infested Systems
Unlike many antivirus products, McAfee's installer downloads the latest product code and virus definitions during the initial installation. This means that the installation can be quite a lengthy process. On the other hand, once it's installed, you have immediate access, without having to subsequently download the updates. Also, the new user interface appears immediately when you call it up, which is a big improvement over earlier versions.We installed McAfee Antivirus on our malware-infested test systems, but the installation completed successfully on only few of them. On the other systems, installation was blocked, or the installed program was unable to run properly. The good news is, McAfee comes with a set of tools to help in these situations. The bad news is, fixing the problems on all systems required every tool available.
McAfee's Virtual Technician is your first point of call for any installation problem. This tool will check for problems with McAfee, or, if McAfee is not yet installed, for any malware which might interfere with the installation. We found that Virtual Technician solved the installation problem on one of the problematic systems.
Stinger is a McAfee tool which can see off some common threats without needing a lengthy installation process. We found that Stinger resolved issues on several of their problematic systems. After running it, McAfee was successfully installed on two more systems, but it wasn't able to run on one of those systems. McAfee's online FreeScan and pre-scan preparation tool cleared up a few more problems, but we were still left with two problematic machines. On one, McAfee would simply not install, on the other, it installed but did not work.
The first-level agent manning McAfee's chat-based support was unable to resolve the issues on these two computers, so the issue was escalated to McAfee's virus removal service. McAfee's virus removal experts remotely connected to the two computers, and, after a few hours, they eventually managed to install the antivirus software.
If you're trying to install antivirus software on a system you know is already infested with malware, McAfee may not be the best choice for the initial cleanup. However, using all the available tools, and the excellent support, we finally managed to install McAfee on all our test computers.
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