Norton Internet Security / Norton AntiVirus

[mdoc7]

Anyone know what the blue color in the folder/filer names symbolize?

<<Edit: Image resized for better fit>>

Message Edited by JerryM on 10-09-2009 09:31 AM

[floplot Norton Fighter]

Hi mdoc 7

I believe those are the items that have been quarantined by Norton's.

[SendOfJive Norton Fighter]

Blue text denotes a folder or file that has been compressed to save disk space.  This is true of any folder on your system that has been compressed, not just the QBackup folder.

[mdoc7]

You're right, the folder is compressed as indicated by this box from the properties here:

Question now is what are the parameters that caused this QBackup dir to be compressed?  I didn't do this.  Apparently it was done automatically or it was done on installation of NIS.  About 19% of my HD is freespace.

[SendOfJive Norton Fighter · Accepted solution]

Mine are also compressed.  Must be a Norton thing.

[mdoc7]

Cool.  Thanks.

[dbrisendine Norton Fighter]

They are compressed because compressed files can "lock in" their contents.  If the Quarantined files are malware then by compressing the folder, Norton locks the malware in an inactive state.

[mdoc7]

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dbrisendine wrote:
They are compressed because compressed files can "lock in" their contents.  If the Quarantined files are malware then by compressing the folder, Norton locks the malware in an inactive state.

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Suppose the rest of my drive is compressed.  Are the malware still locked inactive?

[dbrisendine Norton Fighter]

Yes.  The Qbackup files are encrpyted and compressed.  Norton encpryts them so they can not be accidently opened by something else.  Any unzip / uncompress utility can open / expand compressed files but then they (the utilities) could not get past the encryption.

Compressing your entire drive will save you drive space but slow you system down considerably as the OS has to expand files and then recompress them when they are no longer in use.

[TomiRed Super Spam Squasher]

I would tend to disagree with dbrisendine there. NTFS compression is transparent to the file system and neither the user nor any other application 'notice' the compression or are in any way 'blocked' by it. NTFS compressed files are uncompressed 'on the fly' on the system level.

I'd be inclined to think that the Quarantine is compressed simply for the sake of saving disk space.