What to do when Norton expires

[Bongtrees]

I have an HP computer and the Norton virus has expired.

Is there a free virus download that i could use as dont fancy giving card details to renew Norton if no protection.

OR:::.if no free download Is there anything cheaper than Norton?


TIA

[Enrique]

Hi Bongtrees,

"Norton virus has expired".....................

If it was Just Norton AV then download and use Avast! AV..............

http://www.avast.com/free-antivirus-download

What Firewall are you using

[knowal]

There's not much wrong with AVG Free is there?
http://free.avg.com/es-en/homepage

[Enrique]

Hi White Horse,
Nothing wrong with AVG Free either.................have known it not to work with a certain combination on Windows XP SP3
Used it for years until I switched to Avast last year.

[Bongtrees]

What Firewall are you using

I dont know

I usually use a MAC but have had to dig this HP out of the cupboard as has some particular software on it that I need to use that dont have on the MAC.

Also the HP is a Spanish one with Windows XP so even more complicated for me to get to grips with as Spanish not that good.

[Enrique]

Hi Bongtrees,
Start -> Run -> Control Panel-> Firewall ...........and see if windows Firewall turned on...........if its off you may have another Firewall on the system.............

Start -> Run -> Control Panel->Security Centre............if On, highlight arrows and it will say which Firewall is running.

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/usin ... ewall.mspx

"If you don't know if a software firewall is on your computer, you can check in the All Programs folder. Click Start, and then click All Programs. Look for a firewall program. Some common brand names for software firewalls for home users include McAfee, Symantec"

[patchdog]

Microsoft Security Essentials is available from the Microsoft website and is good.

[El Cid]

I agree with that. Microsoft Security Essential does the job, is not intrusive and doesn't slow down the PC when it does a scan.

Sid

[.Griff.]

What to do when Norton expires

In a word.. Celebrate

Good riddance basically for a truly nasty piece of bloatware.

Microsoft security essentials will do everything you need at no cost. If on the other hand you fancy paying then NOD32 is widely accepted as a leader in the AV industry.

[pigs-might-fly]

Do NOT forget to completely remove Norton from your PC, as it has the reputation of leaving bits behind which have been known to cause problems with an alternative security set-up.
Just using the remove program facility in Control Panel is not enough. Restart your PC after un-installing.
Go to Norton's site and download their removal tool - run it and restart your PC before installing your new AV & firewall.

[Enrique]

The Tool.....................

http://www.symantec.com/norton/support/ ... 10133834EN

[Martin Page]

I would defy anyone to compleetly remove Norton, once installed.

I have spent many an hour trying to cleans the registry, remove legacy spooks and all ... It just cant be done without the ubiquitous " Format c:\ " and then theres a chance it will have already migrated to d:\ an e:\ hard drives. The uninstalation tool does what it says, but it also sets the symantic update to kep polling the web - you have to remove that as well !

Norton is arguable one of the worse programe to escape from - even when you think you have got rid of it (and all its symantic links) it will keep going to the web and nag you to reinstall it. Its a Pain !

Good luck in getting rid !

[markwilding]

I've been meaning to download the Microsoft antivirus software for my wife's laptop for a while now. This post has prompted me to do it .
However, it seems a bit light..I would be glad of some more opinions.

On my PC and my son's laptop I've done as Enrique and gone down the Avast route and on my own laptop I have AVG and am happy with both of them.

[Mowser]

I am using Microsoft Security Essentials and can recommend it.

[Campo Steve]

I also use Microsoft Security Essentials. It is free and seems to work well.

AVG free also does the job. An ex-neighbour of ours in Scotland recommended AVG and used it himself, despite working for McAfee!! That was 4 years ago, pre-Microsoft Security Essentials

[El Cid]

The problem with McAfee is that it can take ages to do a scan and it slows down the PC while it does it - Microsoft Security Essentials does not do this.

Sid

[pigs-might-fly]

I'm trying MSE 2.0.375.0 Beta. It's running fine with Comodo Firewall & Defence Plus.
A complete scan took over an hour and a half on a 300GB hard drive with 70GB used.
Rather slower than Comodo Anti-virus, but agreed, the impact on other applications which are in use at the same time is acceptable.
I'm not yet sure whether the very long interval between updates has been addressed. That is something I am going to keep an eye on.
(There is no right click scan option for individual files on this beta, unlike the regular MSE)

[lulubel]

The problem with McAfee is that it can take ages to do a scan and it slows down the PC while it does it - Microsoft Security Essentials does not do this.

I've never noticed McAfee slowing down my computer, although I admit the full scan takes ages (by which I mean several hours). I think the version I have may prioritise everything else over the scan, which is why it takes so long. I have it set to run late in the evening, so I just check the box to shut down automatically when it's finished and go to bed. Works fine for me, and I also like the way it just gets on and does its job without having to tell me what it's doing all the time, unlike some other AV software I've used in the past.

[El Cid]

Well you probably were not trying to do much at the same time as it was scanning. If you have an old PC then it really stops it in its tracks.

Like Norton, just junk it and get Microsoft Security Essentials.

Sid