Quick questions about NOD v4 and also external HDD scanning...

Hi everyone. Sorry for the disarrayed and probably stupid topic, but I just made the migration to Windows 7 and NOD v4 and I have some questions and concerns I was hoping some folks might have answers for.

First, is there a guide for the best settings in NOD v4? I remember seeing some for v3 and v2, but I've not noted one for v4. Migrating over from NOD v2.7 is a bit intimidating, since everything looks so different to me now. I'm also a bit hesitant regarding putting everything up to full - I game a whole lot, and I'm hoping I can avoid undue strain on the system. The number of posts in this forum about huge CPU and memory usage are a bit distressing...

Second, I just reformatted an XP system running NOD v2.7 because of potential rootkit concerns. I backed up my data beforehand, but now that I have installed windows 7 and am ready to migrate my data back, what's the best course of action to ensure my data isn't infected? It's on a 500 GB USB HDD, and I'm hoping I can plug it in and have NOD scan the whole thing. Will plugging it in be enough to infect my computer, if there's anything nasty on the HDD? I know some bugs can jump over USB that way... Also, if I can scan the data on the external drive, and it comes up with threats found on the external drive, can I clean / delete the files there without worrying about my new system getting tainted? I'd like all my files back, but I just want to be sure I don't infect myself again, and I don't know the best course of action.

Also, is there a way to download definitions for NOD v4 directly? The package I installed is dated back to May 2009 sometime, and I'm warry of hooking my machine up to the internet without more current definitions to begin with.

Thanks for any help!

 

1. There is a PDF User Manuel v4 http://www.eset.com/download/index.php
Eset gaming configuration PDF http://www.eset.com/solutions/gaming.php
BTW the default configuration is pretty safe IMO, but you may want to tweak it for gaming.

2. Autoplay is disabled in Win7, you shouldn't have any problems deleting infected files on
the usb drive.

3. ESET does not provide offline definition downloads. Being online for a few minutes with
your firewall enabled waiting for your av definitions will not hurt a thing. I have done it
a lot of times. Make sure your firewall is on.

 

You learn something new everyday. I didn't know there was a gaming configuration I guess because I don't play many games.

 

I don't game too much either. I came across that skimming through ESET's knowledgebase one day. Most of the time when I'm playing a game I block network connections and turn Nod off.

 

Wow, thanks for the help! I managed to get the database updated last night without issue, as you said. MalwareBytes AntiMalware came up with an entry later on, but I think it's a Win7 false positive based on google results.

I didn't know there were gaming profiles/settings, either! Using 2.7, I just kept everything on maximum all the time, and never even noticed when NOD was doing it's thing. I tend to favor security, but I'm thinking shying away from the advanced Heuristics.... Thanks for the link and the info. I do appreciate it!