FILEnetworks Blog: McAfee VirusScan Enterprise 8.7i

If I ever liked a McAfee product, that was their VirusScan Enterprise (VSE) series of Anti Virus software. Although the Enterprise series is designed with large corporate and networks in mind, I used VSE 8.5i for over an year on my desktop PC at home. First thing I liked about VSE is it’s bloat free interface and the fact that it did not come with crapware such as McAfee Security center (which got installed by default with other fancy McAfee home edition products). Second, VSE’s memory resident scanner (called activeshield) did not consume half my RAM in real time protection. Finally, VSE updated like a charm; I did not need to bother with keys getting blacklisted, update servers going offline or update servers blocking client access (nod32 anyone?).

That being said, McAfee’s detection engine seemed to miss a few viruses here and there as of late. For example it did seem to miss that pesky amvo.exe virus which finally forced me to switch to Kaspersky Anti-Virus. Apart from several rare misses McAfee VirusScan Enterprise is still a good AV product. If you are a fan of McAfee products, this is definitely one software that’s worth checking out.

Developer Description

McAfee VirusScan Enterprise is an innovative technology for PCs and servers. It proactively stops and removes malicious software, extends coverage against new security risks, and reduces the cost of responding to outbreaks. Enterprises cannot afford to wait for every threat to be identified and a signature file to be released. The time between attack and subsequent identification is critical, and the shorter, the better. It's better yet if your protection technology identifies new, unknown threats.

Features:

Cover all the bases
Block a broad range of viruses and malicious code—even those hidden in compressed files; find new, unknown viruses with advanced heuristics and generic detection
Defend against threats that target Microsoft
Protect against exploits targeted at Microsoft applications and services—especially for Microsoft Windows OS services, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Outlook, and SQL server
Curb outbreak damage
Limit outbreak damage, even before DAT files are issued; close ports, monitor applications and email engines, block files and directories, and trace and block infection sources
Scans memory for malicious code
Detect threats that write to memory rather than disk, such as CodeRed and SQLSlammer
Protect email programs
Detect and scour viruses in Microsoft Outlook and Lotus Notes—including HTML text and attachments
Keep script-type threats at bay
Prevent threats that exploit JavaScript or Visual Basic from executing
Optimize updating for remote systems
Tailor field updates to physical locations and connection speeds: resume updating after a broken connection is re-established
Lock down files
Keep VirusScan Enterprise files from being altered with enhanced access protection rules
Advanced rootkit detection
Scan system memory for installed rootkits, hidden processes, and other concealed malicious code