I understand they are going to stop updating my Norton security for my xp but will the program at least still monitor my pc and let me scan it for viruses. This is a special gaming system I had custom built I don't have thousands of dollars to buy another one I need some type of virus protection and Norton is the best I have been using Norton since the 90's I have Malwarebytes but they don't block viruses. Will they stop it from working or just stop updating it. Thanks Chris
Thanks again, imacri
I appreciate all your guidance in this matter.
imbart:
...What happened was I double clicked on the "My computer" icon on the XP desktop which took me to "shared files" which showed four files which appeared to be installers to me. The bottom one was{INI52250124-SHPD-PSD51083} which may translate to 5.22.0.124 (I don't really know). However clicking on this file did download Norton Internet Security from 2015 (date that shows in the file properties).... Consequently I have uninstalled Norton again....
... The correct route on XP is "My computer-> Shared Documents (not Shared Files)-> Norton -> {NIS2250124-SHPD-FSDS1083}" .
Hi imbart:
I'm not sure which installer files you happened to find at My Computer | Shared Documents | Norton | {NIS2250124-SHPD-FSDS1083} but according to the ProcessChecker.com page at http://processchecker.com/file/FSDUI_Custom.exe.html the files inside the {NIS2250124-SHPD-FSD51083} folder are part of the Norton Download Manager v5.1.0 created in May 2015 (i.e., it's an old version of the download manager / stub installer I mentioned <above>; according to VirusTotal the file FSDUI_Custom.exe is sometimes named NortonNISDownloader.exe) . I'm guessing you found remnants of an old download manager that was pushed out to N360/NIS/NAV v20.x and v21.x users in June 2015 when Norton started automatically upgrading these older products to Norton v22.15.0.124 if users had their Automatic Download of New Version setting enabled or clicked Support | New Version Check - see my June 2015 thread Are N360/NIS/NAV Being Auto-Upgraded to NS v22.5.0.124 as well as Mike Toth's NIS/NAV/N360 22.5.0.124 - WHEN WILL THIS BE FIXED????? for more info about this buggy Norton version.
I wouldn't advise using those old installer files again if you change your mind and decide to reinstall the latest legacy Norton v22.15.5.40 product (rel. Sep 2020) on your Win XP machine. I'd still suggest you download a fresh copy of the download manager / stub installer from your Norton Account at https://my.norton.com/account/subscriptions (save it to your desktop and double-click to run) or contact Norton Customer Support at https://www.norton.com/chat and ask for a link to the latest full offline installer for the specific legacy Norton v22.15.x product (NS, NIS, NAV, etc.) you want to install as suggested <above>.
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32-bit Vista Home Premium SP2 * Firefox ESR v52.9.0 * Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1-1.0.365
HP Pavilion dv6835ca, Intel Core2Duo T5550 @ 1.83 GHz, 3 GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS
Thanks, imacri for that useful information.
I didn't take any of the precautions you describe. I thought I'd cracked it until "system restore" didn't work and "My Subscription" told me that Norton was inactive on my XP although I could see it was. I obviously did something wrong and having these errors after spending several hours on it I got fed up and scrubbed Norton off again. If I have another go I shall bear all your tips in mind. At the moment I am going to give it a rest and leave it for a while but thanks for the sound information and advice.
imbart:
...It all seemed fine but my subscription devices showed it as "Windows XP -2" and inactive for some reason although it appeared active to me and certainly worked.
Hi imbart:
Did you read DavidCoffield's 2017 thread My Services (Correct) My Devices (Wrong) as I suggested <above> on 01-Mar-2021? The devices listed in the Device Security panel of the Norton Account dashboard are notorious for showing incorrect information, and even if the information on the My Subscriptions page looks odd, enabling Remote Management (Settings | Administrative Settings | Remote Management) and then syncing to the Norton license servers (Help | My Account | Subscription Status) can sometimes fix these types of problems with the activation of your installation seat.
...However I then found out that " system restore" didn't work - just the "system restore" box with nothing in it. This could be a mismatch in times I suppose...
Did you disable Norton Product Tamper Protection as instructed in the Norton support article Fix System Restore Problems with Norton Installed before you tried your system restore? Many antivirus programs with a self-protection module (this includes your Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1 - see Settings | Protection | Startup Options | Enable Self-Protection Module) can cause system restores to fail. It might not be necessary, but I usually go one step further and uninstall any third-party antivirus or security programs that runs in real-time protection mode (e.g. Norton, Malwarebytes Premium, etc.) before attempting a system restore and then reinstall them later just to avoid an incomplete system restore. I also use Macrium Reflect Free to create the occasional full disk image of my entire hard drive so that I can roll back my entire Vista SP2 system to a previous date if anything goes wrong.
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32-bit Vista Home Premium SP2 * Firefox ESR v52.9.0 * Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1-1.0.365
HP Pavilion dv6835ca, Intel Core2Duo T5550 @ 1.83 GHz, 3 GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS
CORRECTION to last post of mine above. I misread the file number. The correct route on XP is "My computer-> Shared Documents (not Shared Files)-> Norton -> {NIS2250124-SHPD-FSDS1083}" . I hope I've got it right. You'll see I messed up in my first post about this. In any event anyone interested only has to click on the numbered file to load. Apologies - my eyesight is not that good.
Just F.Y.I. concerning my last post atlhough what follows didn't turn out to my liking so be warned..
I am a technophobe with no real technical experience and most of my solutions in this forum are from trial and error alone. What happened was I double clicked on the "My computer" icon on the XP desktop which took me to "shared files" which showed four files which appeared to be installers to me. The bottom one was{INI52250124-SHPD-PSD51083} which may translate to 5.22.0.124 (I don't really know). However clicking on this file did download Norton Internet Security from 2015 (date that shows in the file properties). It took a long time with 65 updates (over 500 MB) and two restarts to bring it up to date. It all seemed fine but my subscription devices showed it as "Windows XP -2" and inactive for some reason although it appeared active to me and certainly worked. However I then found out that " system restore" didn't work - just the "system restore" box with nothing in it. This could be a mismatch in times I suppose
Consequently I have uninstalled Norton again. I have probably done something wrong somewhere but at present I am happy for my XP to be protected with legacy Malwarebytes 3.5.1 (paid), AVG (free) Spywareblaster (free), Windows firewall and a router firewall.
Thanks for all that, imacri.
I shall have a look at what there is but if it doesn't work for me I am prepared to leave things as they are. I have added AVG free to cover the antivirus aspect which Malwarebytes may not have and I very seldom use XP. It is kept mainly for all the valuable and usable legacy stuff I have on it.
imbart:As mentioned I deleted legacy Norton Internet Security for XP as it was announced that it was ending 28th Feb. I went over to paid Malwarebytes Premium 3.5.1. Is that sufficient protection?...
Hi imbart:
Your choice of security software depends in part on how you use your Win XP / Vista computer and how many other computers you have in your household. I already posted comments <above> about Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1 and its lack of a user-friendly firewall, and Porthos has posted additional comments about the pros and cons of using Malwarebytes Premium as your only AV protection <here> in the Malwarebytes forum. If you were happy before with your legacy Norton v22.15.x product (I personally wasn't, but that has more to do with NortonLifeLock's recent business practices than the product itself) and you have an unused installation seat that you can use to re-install Norton on your Win XP / Vista machine at no additional cost then why not use it? According to the support article Malwarebytes for Home Refund Policy you have 60 days to request a refund if you purchased directly through Malwarebytes' online store.
... I have lost my information as to NIS version number and other details of legacy Norton and there does not appear to be a download that I can find. It it possible to resurrect NIS Legacy Maintenance Mode?
Are you thinking about re-installing the legacy Norton Internet Security (NIS) v22.15.x or are you happy trying a newer Norton Security (NS) v22.15.x product? I switched from NIS to NS Deluxe on my Vista SP2 machine in 2017 (both products have Norton Smart Firewall but no Norton Backup feature like the "old" N360 Premium / NS Premium v22.15.x products) and everything about NIS and NS are identical as far as the user interface and scan engine are concerned - only the subscription licenses differ. See my 02-Apr-2018 post in Earthnet's What Are the True Differences Between NIS and NS? for more information.
I'm not certain, but I think if you log in to your Norton Account at https://my.norton.com/account/subscriptions from your Win XP / Vista machine and use the yellow Download button on the My Subscriptions tab to download the small "stub" installer, that stub installer should be smart enough to detect your OS and download and install a legacy v22.15.x product. Just note that if you have a subscription for the "new" Norton 360 for Win 7 SP1 and higher that includes Norton Backup (i.e., you do not have a subscription for Norton Internet Security) I believe the stub installer will install a legacy Norton Security (NS) Premium product, and not Norton Internet Security (NIS). If you get NS Premium v22.15.x and don't want to use Norton Backup you can simply disable this feature in your Norton settings.
If you want to use a full offline installer to install a specific legacy product like NIS or NS Standard/Deluxe I'd advise that you contact Norton Customer Support via Live Chat at https://www.norton.com/chat and ask them for the correct download link for the latest available full offline installer. I posted download links for offline installers for older Norton Security v22.15.0.88 products (English-US) in my Dec 2018 thread Download Links for NS/NSBU v22.15.1.8 Installers (XP and Vista) but those offline installers are quite old now and would require several manual LiveUpdates and re-boots to get you patched back to the latest legacy NS v22.15.5.40.
It would be helpful if someone from NortonLifeLock could post links to full offline installers for legacy products in a support article and/or suggest the best way for users to re-install their preferred legacy v22.15.x product. I'm sure lots of Win XP/Vista users are going have the same problem as you once they realize NortonLifeLock has changed their mind about ending support for these older operating systems as of 28-Feb-2021.
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32-bit Vista Home Premium SP2 * Firefox ESR v52.9.0 * Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1-1.0.365
HP Pavilion dv6835ca, Intel Core2Duo T5550 @ 1.83 GHz, 3 GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS
As mentioned I deleted legacy Norton Internet Security for XP as it was announced that it was ending 28th Feb. I went over to paid Malwarebytes Premium 3.5.1. Is that sufficient protection? I have lost my information as to NIS version number and other details of legacy Norton and there does not appear to be a download that I can find. It it possible to resurrect NIS Legacy Maintenance Mode?
Norton employee Gayathri_R pinned a new announcement Maintenance Mode for Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7 SP0 for Norton Security Software today (08-Mar-2021) at the top of this board that states in part:
Why is there a change in the End of Life plan for Windows XP and Windows Vista?
We have decided to continue supporting Windows XP/Windows Vista and Windows 7 SP0 operating systems as there are still good number of customers using these Operating systems. We want to keep them protected and give them more time to move to a supported OS version.
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32-bit Vista Home Premium SP2 * Firefox ESR v52.9.0 * Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1-1.0.365
HP Pavilion dv6835ca, Intel Core2Duo T5550 @ 1.83 GHz, 3 GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS
Just a warning to everyone that the following paragraph was recently removed from the support article Maintenance Mode for Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7 SP0 for Norton security software.
"Norton protection will stop supporting Windows XP and Vista in early 2021. An exact end-of-support date will be communicated soon and your Norton protection will continue to function normally until then. After the end-of-support date, computers running unsupported operating systems will no longer receive product, service and protection updates, and virus definitions. For more information, read End-of-Support announcement for Norton protection on Windows XP and Windows Vista."
However, that paragraph is currently still included in the support articles End-of-Support announcement for Norton protection on Windows XP and Windows Vista and Norton ongoing protection for Windows XP after Microsoft ends support.
Has anyone seen an official statement from NortonLifeLock suggesting that they've changed their mind about ending support for Win XP and Vista as of 28-Feb-2021 (i.e., "early 2021")?
If you have removed the XP device from the My Subscriptions page in your Norton Account, have you restarted your XP computer? That may update the information in your Norton product and will in fact disable the Norton product on that computer.
You can also try clicking on Help > Subscription Status to have the computer sync with the Norton subscription servers.
Just FYI
The My Subscriptions of my Norton Account told me correctly that I was using 1 out of 3 devices so no obvious way out there. My XP seemed to have fallen off the radar because Norton was still showing as operating there - icons and window all there - making 2 devices. I've solved it now by clearing Norton out with XP Control Panel's Add/remove programs. I've finished with Norton and XP now.
Thanks, imacri.
I removed the device on XP as shown in My Norton which now tells me I only have1 device (my Win 10). The Norton window which still appears on my XP (as I mentioned) tells me I have 2 devices. I used to have another Win 7 device which took my third allocation under my 3-device licence. When Microsoft stopped support a while back for Win 7, I gave that laptop to my daughter and removal of the device from My Norton in the same way as today was sufficient to clear it that time. I shall see what happens.
imbart:Legacy Norton for XP is finished now so we were told....
Hi imbart:
I don't think we'll have any clarity until the product update announcement at https://community.norton.com/en/blogs/product-update-announcements/norton-protection-end-support-announcement-windows-xp-and-windows is re-posted. I checked this morning and that link is still throwing an "Access Denied" error.
I suspect that Win XP and Vista users are going to see their legacy Norton v22.15.x products disabled over a period of time (i.e., similar to the way that products updates are rolled out) to avoid having Norton Customer Support swamped with service calls. I don't know why NortonLifeLock chose to discontinue support for Win XP and Vista about the same time that they ended their partnership with Comcast/Xfinity, but Comcast users were told their Norton Security Online (NSO) and Norton Security Suite (NSS) subscriptions would be terminated on 01-Jan-2021 (see End-of-Service Announcement for NortonLifeLock Subscription Offered by Comcast). According to yank's 11-Jan-2021 post in Norton From Xfinity Norton predicted it was going to take at least two months to deactivate subscriptions for all Comcast customers and that deactivations were being throttled to manage call volumes to support.
....I went into My Norton account and removed it from my XP or so I thought. My Norton account tells me I have one device out of three protected now which should be correct and also shows correctly just my Windows 10 laptop and the XP is gone in the protected device section. However my XP claims Norton is still there by virtue of it still listed in my programs (add/remove) list and icon still showing in systray and desktop. Furthermore the systray icon still brings up the Norton window where I tested live update and it downloaded two updates although it is supposed to have gone.
Did you deactivate the license for your XP device on the My Subcriptions tab of your Norton Account at https://my.norton.com/account/subscriptions? If you remove the device from Device Security panel on the Norton Account dashboard I don't think that actually deactivates the license for your device. See my old post in DavidCoffield's 2017 thread My Services (Correct) My Devices (Wrong) - the screenshots are a bit outdated but I think the information about My Subscriptions (which used to be called My Services) vs. My Devices is still correct.
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32-bit Vista Home Premium SP2 * Firefox ESR v52.9.0 * Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1-1.0.365
HP Pavilion dv6835ca, Intel Core2Duo T5550 @ 1.83 GHz, 3 GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS
Legacy Norton for XP is finished now so we were told. Accordingly I went into My Norton account and removed it from my XP or so I thought. My Norton account tells me I have one device out of three protected now which should be correct and also shows correctly just my Windows 10 laptop and the XP is gone in the protected device section. However my XP claims Norton is still there by virtue of it still listed in my programs (add/remove) list and icon still showing in systray and desktop. Furthermore the systray icon still brings up the Norton window where I tested live update and it downloaded two updates although it is supposed to have gone.
anon743:I'm not sure if SoulAsylum's claims are all correct, especially regarding running manual Intelligent Update. I'm just hoping that NLL would at least continue to allow for the client software to run on these "unsupported" systems under valid subscriptions, and allow for manual Intelligent Updates...
Hi anon743:
Even if Win XP / Vista users are able to update their SDS (virus) Definitions for "traditional" file-based scanning using the Intelligent Updater after 28-Feb-2021, that still means that all the other protection updates listed on Broadcom's Virus Definitions & Security Updates page like the network-based Intrusion Protection System (IPS) engine and definitions, behaviour-based heuristics algorithms, and reputation-based (Insight) definitions will be out-of-date since these definitions can only be updated via LiveUpdate. The old "traditional" method of storing SHA256 hashes of known malware in a virus/malware definition database and then scanning files to look for a match with these blacklisted SHA256 hashes isn't going to catch zero-days and new variants released into the wild that will likely infect your system long before the malware's SHA256 hash is added to the SDS Definitions set. Most malware attacks these days are caught by newer technologies like heuristic (behaviour-based) scanning and other protection layers rather than "traditional" file-based scanning, and running the Intelligent Updater once or twice a day to keep the Norton SDS Definitions updated isn't a viable solution for Win XP and Vista users in the long term, even if it's allowed.
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32-bit Vista Home Premium SP2 * Firefox ESR v52.9.0 * Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1-1.0.365
HP Pavilion dv6835ca, Intel Core2Duo T5550 @ 1.83 GHz, 3 GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS
I'm not sure if SoulAsylum's claims are all correct, especially regarding running manual Intelligent Update. I'm just hoping that NLL would at least continue to allow for the client software to run on these "unsupported" systems under valid subscriptions, and allow for manual Intelligent Updates. And when you browse that Broadcom Intelligent Update page, there's no notice whatsoever regarding ending XP/Vista support and such. In addition, that page also lists all the older software versions which those update patches are compatible with. (That's that first hint of conflict of interest between the now BC/Symantec and NLL...)
Why NLL has become what it is today is beyond understanding. When you look at other companies like Avast and Kaspersky, even though they stopped releasing client software for XP/Vista some time ago, they still allow customers to download the final send-off versions and use them under valid subscriptions, and to receive definitions updates. More importantly, both business and consumer divisions are under one company roof. Such is the spirit of a security company which puts customers' computer security to priority, NOT company ego.
But what about NLL? The now BC/Symantec and NLL only maintain loose relationships (if not none). Big problem for running a security company. And as consumer division, what NLL has been doing is to force customers update, update, update and such, as well as forcing existing customers with premium subscriptions with excessive gunkware which they do not want nor appreciate -- using all the rogue methods possible. They probably think catering legacy customers are a hassle and such. And perhaps, that's the difference (or conflict in interest) in values between a business division vs. a consumer division? I'm quite sure that this was not what the Symantec back in the old era would like to see.
And as long as BC/Symantec is related to NLL in terms or resources sharing, things are going to be worse in the long run,as long as NLL is let aloof and does more damage to the legacy customer base (who lived with the old Symantec fame and reputation), thereby hurting the BC/Symantec brand as well. As such, I feel that NLL is going nowhere and should be eventually taken over by BC, to be restructured and placed alongside with Symantec, under the same BC roof. Because in this security software/service category, certain checks and balances regarding software/service development and values need to be carried out.
The logic is simple. As long as there's the absolute need to retain older machines running on the affected older systems (and with a lot of manual file input and output even with the machines put offline), having a valid AV/firewall software running (even a basic one without any expanded functionality) would still be better than having nothing at all. What NLL is doing (or has been doing during these 1-2 years) is simply shooting themselves in their feet. No one knows what they're thinking, but one thing for sure: they're being more and more disrespectful and inconsiderate to the existing customer base. Very sad indeed.
Thanks for that, imacri
Very useful information and advice as always. When Norton finishes I shall switch the Windows firewall on and hope it works after about fifteen years of Norton firewall superseding it. I have found out that my ISP Plusnet also has a firewall on their router which can be controlled at "Off", "Low" and "High" from their web site. "Low" claims to block access to ports that are linked with viruses and hackers which sounds good to me. I shall probably then activate my Malwarebytes 3.5.1 - 1.0.365 Free (currently a stand alone scanner) to Premium which actively operates and protects and pay for it. I hope that will bring me close to similar protection as Norton. If it all goes pear-shaped I shall just disconnect and can still use most of my legacy software off-line.