It is my understanding that auto protect checks every file which is accessed during pc operation which obviously causes performance issues on older systems, In a secure environment where there are no unknown disks accessed by the machine and no downloads from the internet, although there is internet access and email traffic, am I safe to turn off auto protect, I assume that email scanning and intrusion protection will prevent anything getting onto my system by other means so can I survive without auto protect as the Norton message gives the impression that the system is no longer protected at all.
Norton AntiVirus 2009 has no Firewall, so, if you do Turn Off Auto-Protect, expect to get Infected pretty quickly; Norton Intrusion Prevention will catch most of the Attacks. Even if you do use an Anti-Virus Product with a Firewall, it is still Recommended that you have Auto-Protect on because it always Scans Files with which you are using - that is why Auto-Protect is included with the Anti-Virus Products. Yes, you will be At Risk because there is nothing Scanning your system to check for Threats in Real-Time. Also, Norton 2009 Products are the lightest around and, if you are saying that your system is slow, then it must be something else on your computer slowing it down as it will not probably be Norton 2009 Products, although, there still are a few "bugs" about.
It is my understanding that auto protect checks every file which is accessed during pc operation which obviously causes performance issues on older systems, In a secure environment where there are no unknown disks accessed by the machine and no downloads from the internet, although there is internet access and email traffic, am I safe to turn off auto protect, I assume that email scanning and intrusion protection will prevent anything getting onto my system by other means so can I survive without auto protect as the Norton message gives the impression that the system is no longer protected at all.
I would certainly not recommend turning off Auto Protect on a permanent basis. Auto-Protect is a primary line of defense against infections.
If you are experiencing performance issues on an older system, I would recommend reviewing your current running processes and eliminating the unnecessary ones. Does your system meet the requirements for NAV 2009?
Please note what Floating_Red mentioned about NAV 2009 not having a firewall as that is critical and should be taken into careful consideration.
Thanks for that, the systems do meet specs however we have a network accounts package which has been crashing recently and since NAV 2009 was the last software installed it was the first suspect to be thought responsible, I will ensure that all is enabled again and start looking deeper for the culprit, hopefully things may improve over a few live updates if it is still a little buggy.
Auto-Protect is the real-time scanner in Norton AntiVirus. Email Scanning is just another layer on top of this. As Auto-Protect runs in the background, it protects your system by scanning files for viruses, Trojan horses, and worms. Auto-Protect scans all files that are received from any source, such as the Internet, removable disks, or email attachments. It scans files for threats any time that the files are accessed, such as when they are copied, moved, run, or opened. It also intercepts any run, open, or create activity and scans the file before allowing the action to continue. These scans are transparent to the user and have little, if any, noticeable effect on system performance. If Auto-Protect detects a virus, then you are prompted to repair the file.
So, eventhough the email scanning misses any threat, it can be detected when Auto-protect is active and thus ensures more protection to your computer. Better not disable the Auto-Protect. For performance, try to uninstall any other Security programs(AntiSpyware/AntiMalware) if you have any, since some of them may conflict with the Auto-protect in Norton. Also check whether you have all the necessary system requirements such as RAM.
2009 has been on about a week, but the package which is showing issues is known to be buggym it’s almost bespoke so could be coincidence, just wanted to try turning autoprotect off to see if it had any effect, we are going to see what the weekend brings, if need be we will throw the issue back at the software creators for them to look into rather than clutch at straws blindly, thanks for everyones help, will let you know if we find anything out NAV related.