Norton 360 Auto Scan

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cgoldman wrote:

I'm sure it wont be long before other contributors make postings. Meanwhile, you will no doubt be aware of two things.

 

1. That the machine needs to be idle for the auto quick scan to cut in, and

 

2. You can change the setting from auto to manual and select frequency.

 

If you are at all concerned that the scan is not taking place, just force a scan and tuneup, or follow 2. above and change to weekly and select a time and turn off "only run at idle time".

 

If this works you have no problem, unless the situation persists, in which case I would suggest looking at Windows Task Manager or use procexp and check out CPU usage and see if the machine goes idle when you do not use it or whether there is some task always running and using resource which is preventing the scan and tuneup from starting.

 

I am sorry that I cannot directly answer your question which I consider to be something along the lines:

 

"what are the parameters against which a scan and tuneup is initiated when the scheduling for PC Security  and PC Tuneup is set to 'Automatic' ?". For example how long does the machine have to be idle, what is the period between attempted scans etc.

 

 


Your first point is probably the most import one. If it isn't idle it really is not working

Hi all,

 

I am running the latest version of N360, on XPSP3. I have noticed the auto quick scan has not run for over 4 days, is this usual and how often should it run? My PC stays on nearly 24/7

 

LU 

 

Live Update set run every 4 hours, all Scheduled Tasks set to run Automatically.

 

Thanks

 

John A

Message Edited by johna on 07-14-2008 11:53 PM

Thanks for the suggestion so far.

 

>>

1. That the machine needs to be idle for the auto quick scan to cut in, and

 

2. You can change the setting from auto to manual and select frequency.>>

 

1. The machine is on 24/7 as I said, no other services running causing drag on CPU, so is 'idle' for many hours at a time.

 

2. With Version 2 you can't schedule Virus Scans in Task Scheduling, only Tune-ups, unlike in Version 1.

 

re your 2., sorry, I do not think that is correct. The wording is PC Security and PC Tuneup schedule.

Chose when to schedule your virus and spyware scans and your system tuneups.

It is true that the scheduling cannot be different for each aspect but you can decide when to schedule both scans and tuneups.

 

Well, I used to do this in version 1, but in Version 2 I cannot see where it gives you the option to Schedule Live Update and Full System Scan. If you look in Scheduling Automated Tasks, I do not see Live Update or Full System Scan in the list. I am on another PC right now, otherwise I would show you what I mean by way of a snap shot, I may add that later. Have a look in the Scheduled Tasks list and tell me if you can see Full Virus Scan in the list of Manually Scheduled Tasks, I would be interested to know.

 

John A

I think you are changing the goal posts. You stated

"With Version 2 you can't schedule Virus Scans in Task Scheduling, only Tune-ups, "

 

You can schedule virus scans.

 

But now you are saying you cannot see the option for Live Update. I did not say you can schedule Live updates.

Neither did I say you can schedule Full system scans; only that you can schedule virus scans. (I have yet to determine what scans each of the options actually performs).

 

Sorry if I did not understand in the first place what you had in mind.

 

Best I can do.

 >>..only that you can schedule virus scans.>>

 

No that's fine. In Norton 360V1, you had the option to schedule "Comprehensive Scan", which includes Live Update just before the Full System Scan (that's why I mentioned Live Update). In N360V2, there is no option to Schedule a  Comprehensive Virus Scan, nor any other type of Virus scan.

 

Can you have a look and show me the steps to schedule a Virus Scan, and the other tune-ups that will be performed under the same schedule (it will show them in the list)?

 

Lets work together on this, because as far as I know, the feature to Schedule a  Virus/Spyware Scan was removed in Version 2, only the tune ups can be scheduled.

 

Let me know.

 

John A

Message Edited by johna on 07-18-2008 02:42 AM

Hi Johna. Delighted to work with anyone. If there is ever a conflict of advice, you will see that I drop out unless directly approached.

 

OK, please go as follows;

 

settings

task scheduling

scheduling tab

the first entry says "Choose when to schedule your virus and spyware scans and your system tuneups."

So that is why I say you can schedule virus scans.

In the drop down against "Schedule" you can select weekly, monthly, manual or automatic.

 

Now, as I have posted elsewhere, I am suggesting to our friend at Norton, that they should clarify the function performed by each of the settings here. i.e. If you select automatic is the scan, quick, comprehensive, incremental etc.Equally by tune-ups I would assume that the schedule here will tuneup the features selected elsewhere under PC Tuneup.

 

The fact that this does not work for me and some others, is slightly incidental. I want to refer here to what Norton's in purporting to offer.

 

Hope above helps.

 

 

..................................

On an entirely separate matter, and apologies to all for raising out of context stuff, what Country are you in. I am in England, and I fell upon this beta forum entirely by chance. The UK websites of Norton do not, afaik, direct to this forum in any way. Only the US site.

Did you find the same? Its seems a pity if other Countries are not given the opportunity to participate, or at least are not being made aware of the forum, on the basis that the more the merrier (spell check off).

 

>>.. I am suggesting to our friend at Norton, that they should clarify the function performed by each of the settings here.>>

 

OK, I will try to clear this up. When you open the 'Task Scheduling' page, the first column named from memory 'Automatic Tasks' will list the functions that you can choose to run either automatically or at a scheduled time. This list of tasks are the only tasks that will be performed at the times you select in the 'Scheduling' tab. In 360V1, Live Update and Virus/Spyware Scan were included in this list, but were removed from the scheduling option in Version 2, and there is no other way to include them in the Schedule.

 

Hope this helps

 

John A

 

Edit: When I'm back on my other PC which runs 360 I'll add some screen shots to illustrate my point.

 

Edit 2: To answer your question, I'm in Australia and fell upon this forum by chance whilst doing some research and was linked to it in a Google search. :smileyhappy:

Message Edited by johna on 07-18-2008 03:20 AM

Alas, whilst you may be perfectly correct, that is not what it says and that is not my understanding. Allow me to explain further.

 

I believe that the  tasks listed on the 1st tab under Automatic Tasks, and categorized into PC Security and PC Tune-up, are the events that take place when the automatic background  scanning routines take place. When does an automatic background scanning routines take place? Well, I do not know. I have asked but no answer yet. I suspect that sometime, without our control, automatic background scans take place.

 

However, I do also believe that in respect of the PC Tune-up entries on this tab, that the same selection will be used when you manually, weekly or monthly schedule for a scan and tuneup. That is, I agree completely with you that the PC Tune-up selection are those used by the 2nd tab for Scheduling - whether auto, weekly, monthly or manual.

 

But I do not agree that the selection in the first tab are "the only tasks" that are performed by the 2nd tab - Task Scheduling. Why?

Because it specifically refers to virus and spyware and these are not on the 1st tab. I therefore presume, that task scheduling will carry out tune-ups (as selected) and always virus & spyware.

 

Even if I concede (and I am ambivalent about it) that you are entirely correct that the selection in tab 1 is what affects task scheduling,

I still believe that in addition, task scheduling performs a virus scan.

 

Now I freely see the confusion of the wording. Tab 1 relates to "PC Security and Tuneups" and tab 2 , section 1, is also headed PC Security and Tuneups".

 

Lastly, for the $1mn, if you are entirely right, this would fully explain why I cannot get my PC scanned having set weekly, monthly.

BUT even then, I suspect if I revert to automatic - that the automatic does include virus scanning.

 

I think I just have to wait for a Norton employee to advise - which again is what I have been pushing for.

 

 

 

 

>>..I suspect if I revert to automatic - that the automatic does include virus scanning.>>

 

Yes, it does, even if you have chosen 'Scheduled' for the tune ups etc., the automatic Virus/Spyware scans will continue to run automatically.

 

Message Edited by johna on 07-18-2008 03:43 AM

Sorry my friend, you will have to spell this out for me, please. I do not quite follow your comment.

 

So are you agreeing that

1. if Task scheduling is set to "Automatic(recommended)" then a virus scan takes place, and

2. if Task scheduling is set to manual, monthly or weekly, then no virus scan takes place.

 

 

or are you saying that

 

1. Irrespective of the Task Scheduling setting, automatic (background) virus scanning takes place but independently and at times which may be different to any set under Task Scheduling. 

 

or something else,

 

and whichever is your view, is it now based on your testing, and how can I reproduce your findings to support you.

 

 

 

>>..Irrespective of the Task Scheduling setting, automatic (background) virus scanning takes place but independently and at times which may be different to any set under Task Scheduling."

 

That is correct. The Virus/Spyware scans are completely independent, and are not involved with the Scheduled Tasks, which are listed under the Automatic Tasks tab.

 

I did test this out after I upgraded to Version 2, by setting a time to perform Scheduled Tasks, then checking to see if the Virus/Spyware scan was performed at the set time under Task Scheduling. It wasn't.

 

You can test this yourself, by setting the Scheduled Tasks for say, the next hour. Then come back sometime after the time has passed, and have a look under the 'View Details' section, which drops down from the PC Security box on the interface.

 

It will tell you the last time a Virus/Spyware scan was performed, and may be even days different from the when the scheduled task ran.

 

If you are correct, and I am beginning to come around, then I am not happy about the wording that says

"choose when to schedule your virus and spyware scans...", since you clearly can not.

 

I have of course tested this and no I cannot get the virus scan to cut in, and I have treated this as a failure and reported the same.

Maybe it never does work, I have been wasting my time, and all that is wrong is the desciption in the program.

 

To add to this, I found that the View details under PC Tuneup does not show times, so at the moment I can not even say if the weekly schedule of PC Tuneup and Security is working. I probably need to go back to the drawing board.

 

On another thread please take a look at my last new thread posted about backup settings. Maybe you have a good explanation for what is happening there.

 

I'm going off air for a couple of hours, because I seem now to be working around the clock on this. Its 13:11 in London (must have missed breakfast and lunch.

>>..To add to this, I found that the View details under PC Tuneup does not show times..>>

 

If you click where it says 'More Info...' it should show you the time of the last scan, I am running on memory here as I haven't got N360 installed on this PC, but I think this is correct.

 

Can you give me a link to that thread you mentioned about backup please?

Message Edited by johna on 07-18-2008 05:34 AM

Not as I have said. That is, there is no time under more info for

Disk optimization

Windows temp files

IE Temp files

Live update last run

 

but there is only for virus &  spyware scan.

 

In short so far I have not validated that the weekly, monthly scheduled PC Security and Tuneup is working.

The header is

NEW PROBLEM IN NON REMOVAL OF FILES AND FOLDERS FROM BACKUP SETTINGS

Hopefully, this link works

http://community.norton.com/norton/board/message?board.id=Norton_360&thread.id=2106

 

Where it does not show a time and date of the tune up, it will show that you are protected and up to date. I think this should be enough for most users, if not, then maybe NIS may be a better option for those users who require more interaction.

err, something got lost. The point of the absence of time and date was only to indicate to you, that I have not yet proved that the options in backup are working or that they do either what I think they should be doing, or what you advise me that they do.

Can I suggest we stop here, because I want to ask Mark if he can throw some light on what Norton is or should be doing. Once I know that I can talk from knowledge and not from speculation on my part. I will of course point Mark to this thread and comms between us.

All,

 

Let me hopefully shed some light on the scheduling options in N360. There are separate schedules for Security & Tuneup functions and for Backup functions. In version 2, we only provide the granularity to schedule and run scans for Security & Tuneup functions and for Backup functions, or put another way, you cannot specify that you only want to run disk optimization, but not file cleanup.


Automatic means only run at idle. Manual means only run at the user-specified time whether that’s monthly, weekly, daily, etc. The checkbox for Run at Idle on the Manual schedule does an additional check when running at a manual time slot to make sure it’s not interrupting you.

I hope this clears up some of the confusion on this topic.

 

Mark