Command AV - Update problem

I've installed the demo of Command Antivirus as per advice post in post #19 here https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=56112

When i try to update, it asks for a user name and password. The thing is i never got one. I filled in the details and then it let me download it but never gave me any temporary user/password details. I've not had an e-mail from them providing one as well. If i click the 'ok' button without entering the details then it just asks again. If i click the 'cancel' button then it simply says that the update could not be received. Anyone got any idea's?

muf

 

Never mind, i've uninstalled it for two reasons.

1. It speaks volumes for the company themselves if they can not supply the neccessary information to allow a user to use the application. Without the temporary user/password i am left using an out-of-date definition database. Very poor.

2. There is no way to disable the RTM from the taskbar. Important for me that option.

muf

 

Had the same experience myself years ago, it is a shame they have not learnt the meaning of customer service.

 

Unfortunately, Authentium generally provide an out of date demo, which you cannot update as you have found.

However, if you contact their UK Technical Manager, David Millward, dmillward@authentium.co.uk. he will provide you with a temporary account code which you can use for 48 hours to download the latest version of CSAV.

CSAV is mainly set up to be a primary scanner but you can relegate it to be a secondary AV. You can therefore disable the RTM but the icon remains in the system tray; https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=43483&highlight=Command AV
Look particularly at posts 8 & 10.

As stated above, they can, if you ask them.

In 18 months, I have had no problems with support at Authentium UK, where all my queries have been answered to my satisfaction within hours if not minutes!

Since CSAV is mainly considered a Corporate AV, there are some minor adjustments needed when switching from a 'Home' AV to CSAV but it is worth persevering with, as it is an excellent AV.

 

Blackcat,

Thanks. I have e-mailed that guy asking for a temp user/password. But i still don't like the idea you can't right click the icon in the taskbar and disable/enable the RTM. I am not keen on killing the 6 processes using a process manager. It's a very messy way of doing things. This is something i need to do when either running scandisk or disk defragments. Scandisk just keeps repeating because it picks up something has changed while the scan is in progress. Usually the RTM memory sweap. Also, i never leave RTM's running while defragmenting. Just to make sure that i get all possible files defragmented. Any in use i would think can't be defragmented, so i close down any RTM's to reduce the chance of this happening.

If i do manage to get access to update it then i will give it another try. But with F-Prot you can disable the RTM easily by right clicking the icon in the system tray and selecting 'disable'. Most AV's have this option. Why command doesn't have this is a mystery.

As to other's i've tried in my search for a decent low resource AV to run on my WinME pc:
Antivir - PC crashes regular. Is also unstable and causes lock-ups.
Bitdefender - Bang whollop what a resource hog!
KAV 3 - Same as Antivir which is odd as it runs smoth on my Win95 pc.
F-Prot - 3.15b = fantastic! 3.16b = bitdefender clone.
KAV 4.5 - Resource use not as bad as Bitdefender but still not acceptable. I now use this as my on-demand scanner.
e-Trust - Demanded i uninstall KAV and would not install until i did. That was not going to happen so e-Trust bit the dust before i could even install it.

My search is not going well. At the moment i'm using AVG 7 but it's protection is not that great when you look at a number of independant reviews. I'd like something a little higher up the rankings table.

muf

 

Worth giving CSAV another try

Using your criteria, the other AV's I would recommend testing are Dr Web, NOD32 and KAV 5.

If you have not tried out NOD recently you will notice a huge difference in this AV; much better trojan detection and IMHO, a vastly improved AV over version 1.

Although I did run Dr Web as my main scanner with KAV 4.5 as backup without any problems, it can be sensitive to other installed AV's. However, as with eTrust, you will have to uninstall KAV 4.5, before installing Dr Web.

The other one worth trying is KAV 5. Since you can now disable the startup scan, I am back using it as a primary scanner. There is no noticeable slowdown using it as my RTM on my ancient Pentium II box and it seems 'lighter' than AVP 3.5 and KAV 4.5. Since you already have a license for KAV, it is worth giving this version a trial.

Good luck with your testing, it does take time. When you have chosen, report back on your choice

 

Hi muf

Forget my recommendation of KAV 5 above. I have just seen your posts over on the ICE System Forum where you state the problems you are having with this AV.

 

Try a different antivirus, like avast! antivirus home edition.

http://www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home.html

 

Yeah, it's a real shame. KAV 5 is not heavy at all on my pc. In fact, when i used the first release of version 5 apart from the Arive access problem on boot up it was fantastic. This latest version was accessing my Arive constantly as per my post at ICE Systems. You know, sometimes you have to accept it's just not meant to be, well not on my current set-up. Once i get a new pc with XP on it then i may give it another try. I also have to accept that with my current spec that i only have about 20% of the current mainstream AV's to realistically choose from. I expect it's these:

Antivir
F-Prot
e-Trust
Nod32
AVG
Command
DrWeb

I once considered RAV but they pulled the plug on it before i got chance to download a trial. I heard it was fairly light on resource use.

The only one's i haven't tried out of those listed above are DrWeb & Nod32. The problem with DrWeb is that it apparently doesn't play well with other installed AV's. As i am not willing to relinquish KAV 4.5 then i daren't try it in case it kills my pc. I may have to give Nod32 a try. It's never been high on my list as it only ever seemed to favour well at VirusBulletin which i honestly believe is flawed in it's testing methodology. It used to do quite average in other tests. But recently i have noticed it's climb up the ladder at these other test sites. I may try it. I'm not immune to holding up my hands and saying "Ok, i was wrong". But if i do try it and it proves worthwhile will i feel a little foolish for previously discounting it. But hell, i'd get over it pretty quick.

muf

 

NOD in real time and KAV 4.5 as backup would be a very good combination; great heuristics, frequent updates and a very large database

Do not forget to take a look over on the NOD forums here; particularly BlackSpear's sticky on extra settings; https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=37509

 

muf,

I've run the NOD32/KAV 4.5 combo with decent success in the past. Generally they're reasonably friendly together.

On whether your previous assessment of NOD32 could be wrong - it does appear that Eset has altered it's pure AV approach to one more generally directed at malware. In the past, NOD32's trojan coverage was weak relative to KAV's. This coverage has been greatly expanded over the past 6-9 months. It's not that you were wrong, but more that NOD32 changed significantly of late, rendering your impressions out of date. That can be true of any of these programs for any of us at any given point in time. NOD32 still trails KAV a bit in some respects (this is true of the rest of the pack as well). For most, the coverage differences are inconsequential, while the local machine performance differences can drive the final decision on path to follow.

Blue

 

Well i think my response from Authentium regarding my temporary user/password was very funny.

"Hello

As you have tried the demo, you will not be able to update unless you
purchase a licence.

Price are:

59.90 for 3 years

29.95 for 1 year

If you would like to go ahead and purchase, drop me an e-mail back with your
credit card details and I will get back to you with your user name and
password.


With Kind Regards
Lucy Tucker
Sales Administrator
Authentium UK
Tel: +44 (0) 207 931 9301
Fax: +44 (0) 207 788 4115
www: www.authentium.co.uk"


1. Send my credit cards details through the e-mail?
2. Tried the demo?
3. They expect me to use it for 30 days with no updates?

I've responded by telling them they can take a run and jump. Sorry, but i had to check i hadn't sent it to Disney by mistake as i thought the response was from Mickey Mouse!!!

muf

 

How sad. Authentium has a good product, but seems clueless about marketing it.

Even their websites are clumsy & confusing. Quite the opposite of certain AVs that have poor products, but offer excellent websites for buying their stuff. {Can anyone think of an example? }

 

Muf

Sorry to hear about this response. This was not the response I received from Authentium 2 months ago;

I would not have given you this lead otherwise.

Authentium are obviously concentrating on the corporate field and not giving Home Users much initiative to choose their AV. A shame as it is a good product.

Hopefully my other suggestions for a low resource AV turn out a little better!

 

I think Norton is the KING of advertising. NAV is bulky, slow, and has a horrible signature update subroutine. It takes more than a few keystrokes to remove NAV. I refuse to work on any PC with NAV.

Symantec paid PC vendors to include a trial version of NAV with the new PC. Clearly this is an attempt to handicap lesser financed competitors.

 

Blackcat,

I was very very disappointed with that response. I was willing to give it a shot but i won't hold any grudges. I'm currently trying nod32 and i have to say it's playing pretty well with my current setup. It has a bag load of configuration and is very easy to navigate around(once you've learned to navigate your way around KAV 4.5 then everything else is a breeze). I'm not running IMON or EMON just AMON with advanced Heuristics against 'all files'.

With IMON and EMON disabled, the memory useage is pretty much comparable to F-Prot 3.15b and AVG 7. I'll continue my assessment, but so far it's got the thumbs up.

muf

 

I agree. There is no reason in the world to tell someone trialing, no updates unless you purchase that is absolutely ridiculous.
I have never had a problem with my purchased Command, but I am not going to renew as I have stated here before. I do not like how they have treated my friends here and I'm sure they will treat me no differently if I have questions of problems.

 

I was a little surprised by Authentium's response to muf's request so I sent them an email this morning. I received the following reply back, within the hour;

Which is a better offer than the 48 hour license I was provided with before.

Overall, IMHO, Authentium UK support, have always provided me with excellent support, on par with Kaspersky UK.

I do not know whether muf contacted sales and not support, or whether his request was passed on to sales! Either way if you contact the right person, I have always found that the support provided is always on a high level.

So Authentium UK support are still recomended. Further, you can update their demo to the latest version/definitions.

If anyone would like the code number for the updated demo(valid for 14 days from to-day), send me a pm.

 

Hi All,

I am a support technician at Authentium Ltd. There seems to be some major mis communication here. Firstly, if you are using an offer version of CSAV, then you should have been given a registration URL. All required username and passwords will stem from you registering. Have you registered yet? if so what is the URL used?

Regards.
AK Visram
UK Support Technician

 

Could you be talking about this one?

I actually like Command AV, but I did't got good answers about a few things from their customer service the last time I tried (last year). Things may have changed, but it looks like they could use some work on a better web site and customer service.

You can get similar protection with F-Prot, but Command AV has more features.

 

I would give it a try.I would never of thought of trying it,but now get it free with Ntl.No problems,regular updates,lightest i have used.