Hello all, Today I am happy to announce that the limited beta testing phase is now ended and we are beginning the full public beta feedback phase of the development schedule. The software has proven to be extremely stable and is performing exceptionally well in all available, supported testing environments. In this phase we are looking for user feedback on the following: • Ease of use • Performance • GUI and installer text and layout • User wish lists • Any/all issue reports Quietzone RC15 official public beta release Version information: 4.0.16994 RC15 Download: Please go to http://qz.returnilvirtualsystem.com/ to get the new version, or just upgrade your installation manually (UI -> Help & Support -> Product Upgrades), or it will be upgraded automatically within a week for those already using the software. Change Log: • Updated Privacy Browser, which simplifies configurations and usage • Enhanced One-Time Quietzone to preserve Windows desktop settings when the protection starts • Fixed automatic GUI refresh when the language is changed • Updated copyrights, trademarks, licensing information • Minor usability improvements: Better GUI layout and updated/corrected English text Kind regards Mike
Do I need to purchase two separate copies for my PC and laptop or can I use single license for both. And what about its license after format do I need to follow the same steps to get the registration cleaned at server like before?
Hi, The licensing is the same as the older 3.2x generation in that you will need a license per OS (IOWs, you would need two licenses for a multi-boot Win XP/Win 8 system for example). The process is also the same for moving a current license to a new copy of the software: 1. Consumers without a Returnil Commander account will need to contact support and request that their current license assignment be cleared so it can be reassigned to a new copy of the software. 2. corporate/business/multi-seat customers with a RC account can assign, clear, and reassign seats as required themselves. Of note: The current QZ builds do not yet completely support the RC management console with "Enterprise" level licensing. This not because there is a any issue with the integration; rather, the integration is delayed pending final gold release to keep the testing and feedback focused on the client software. The RC itself will not require changes to incorporate the new QZ client management as it well tested and proven over many years of continuous operation. Also note that the RC, when integrated with the new QZ will support mixed licensing for those who still have 3.2x licensing at that time. That is, the customer with an RC license will be able to see and manage both 4x and 3.2x clients without issue. Mike
Mike, Congrats on the hard work. To long without new releases is bad for business. In hinsight the credit crunch/crisis might have been favourable during the long wait (few corporate users will have planned an infrastrure change just to replace a security application). Regards Kees
Hi Kees, the delay was in relation to the changes Microsoft made under the hood of Windows 8. The changes were extensive enough to require a complete redesign of our virtualization driver. As Drivers are not simple and any changes made in them can have unexpected results if not tested thoroughly, we took about a year an a half to complete the redesign and more time to perform internal lab testing before moving to the limited beta testing phase last year (2013). With that phase successfully completed we have moved to the final beta phase with the public release for additional feedback as noted above. Mike
So what's new in the virtualization driver compared to Returnil v3? Also what happened with Returnil Multi-Snapshot project? Thanks.
Hi Pliskin, The RMSE project was actually related to the eventual driver upgrade and survives in part in the new 4x generation. The primary focus of the RMSE was to prove that many of the proposed changes to the driver would still be backward compatible with older versions of Windows so we could also simplify and condense our virtualization solutions going forward. The primary change in the driver was to create a compatible, Windows 8 disk level virtualization solution that would also be backward compatible with the older versions of Windows supported by the previous 3x generations. The answer may seem circular, but really isn't as the changes in Windows 8 were actually that substantial... Kind regards Mike
I went to Returnil's website today to see if there was a new version of Returnil Virtual System to find quietzone instead. It keeps talking about protecting one's privacy, but I don't see it saying anywhere how it accomplishes that. How does Quietzone work?
It uses the Tor browser bundle. One way to think of Quietzone is that it combines RVS and Tor into an integrated workflow on entry to the virtual system, plus secure deletion on exit from the virtual system so that no traces of the browser session survive on the disk. It's a very stripped down version of RVS though as there are no anti-execution or folder protection features.
Hi pegr, We are going away from integrated antimalware as there are just too many options out there to support an independent project on our part. As for the folder protection, that was an old hold-over from an earlier time when multi-disk virtualization was not available. If you are instead referring to the lack of a File Manager feature, it is actually still there but is subservient to the convenience of an exclusions process. What this means is that, like the FM, all files and folders added to the exclusions list are protected by the Quietzone protection (Virtual Mode) and only released to Windows when a change needs to be saved to the real disk and then immediately protected again at the moment Windows releases the file from editing. You can still add the odd file and folder to the Exclusions list in QZ by right clicking the target and then selecting the "Add to Library" option in the right click menu. You have to do this when the virtualization is deactivated as you would in the older 3x versions with File Manager and the new process will actually save the target within the default folders offered in the exclusions list menu in QZ. Mike
Sorry to be negative, Mike, but when I trialled Quietzone, I couldn't see anything to justify the price tag. The Tor Browser Bundle is freeware that can be used with any light virtualization solution. Just about all of the features that made RVS and RSS different to the competition have been removed, so I can't see that Quietzone offers any advantage over other light virtualization programs, at least one of which is freeware.
That's great news! That's why I quit using RVS. I know many others here will be glad to hear that as well. I switched to Shadow Defender because of Returnil integrating an Antimalware solution into RVS. I will always prefer to have the option to choose which Antimalware solution I like best. Not only did Returnil integrate an Antimalware product into their Virtual System, but IMO they chose the worst one on the market! It never showed good testing results from independent testing. It was always last in all the independent test results I saw before Returnil adopted it.
I understand what you are saying but you also have to live with the fact that you get what you pay for and what you would be paying for are the many years of active development, dedication to mission, and on-going technical support. While there may be alternatives, just how do they stack up? How quickly (or ever) do you get tech support assistance that is relevant, much less effective? And of the paid versions, how do their prices stack up against our current pricing with or without the promotional discount currently in effect? Of the free alternatives, how many provide corporate level remote management? There is a great deal of value in and behind our products... Kind regards Mike
The fact remains that the features where RVS had most potential for future development have now been dropped. Returnil's goal for a long time was to create a one-stop security solution. I feel that had Returnil gone in the right direction that was achievable. RVS already had the basic elements of anti-execution and folder protection. All that needed to be done was to work on the rough edges and enhance these key features in order to create a world-class product. Instead, a third-party antivirus was licensed and incorporated into RSS (and not a particularly good one at that). If the small numbers of malware capable of bypassing the virtual system was a concern, surely the anti-execution feature with its default-deny could have been developed to deal with that. I always thought that adding an antivirus to RVS to create RSS was a mistake, and said so at the time. Especially disappointing is the decision to abandon the development of a multi-snapshot feature. Adding multi-snapshot to RVS would have been the jewel in the crown. RVS would have been able to be used to test software that requires a reboot: something that other similar lightweight virtualization programs haven't been able to achieve. And all of this using Returnil's virtualization technology, without resorting to the sector mapping mapping technique used by snapshot programs such as Rollback Rx. I really hope that Returnil does reconsider the direction it is taking. Even if Returnil is a small development house with limited resources, you had all the elements of a complete one-stop security solution in place IMO. It just needed a little more work without going down the blind alley of antivirus. I am not saying any of this out of any desire to be negative because RVS 2008 was my first disk virtualization program and I would love to see RVS regain the top spot as the lightweight virtualization solution of choice. Kind regards pegr
Adding multi-disk virtualization was of course a step in the right direction, but folder protection should have been retained and developed to provide data security. Folder protection is needed to prevent applications such as browsers, that present both a security and a privacy risk, from having read access to folders containing private and confidential data.
The only options for file and folder exclusion I saw in the beta that I tested were the Tor browser profile folder and My Documents. This has to change for the final release. The user must be free to exclude any application data files and folders, wherever located. Just to give one example: In order to use Quietzone with a POP3 email client, e.g. Thunderbird, it would be necessary to exclude the application mail folders from virtualization.
What you are missing here is that all content whether file OR folder is protected on the virtualized (sandboxed) drive(s). As far as removing read access to any folder, there are performance and operational consequences that may cause some programs to fail. For folders that you determine as the system owner that need to be restricted this way, you can do so quiet easily through native Windows features.
You need to look closer for the right click menu option I described above when the Quietzone protection is deactivated. Also note that custom folders would need to be created and maintained in the library directory (for XP that would be "My Documents").
I'm aware of how virtualization works. What I'm referring to is preventing read access to private and confidential data for certain applications (mainly browsers), possibly resulting in data theft. Regarding performance consequences it doesn't seem to be an issue with AppGuard or Sandboxie, which have this feature. I know that but I want some programs to have automatic access while others are blocked. Sandboxie can do this, so can AppGuard. I don't want to have to fiddle with Windows settings to manually turn access on and off for individual programs. In any case, all of this is only relevant in the context of a one-stop security solution, which you seem to have abandoned.
