AVG 8 Free annoyances

Discussion in 'other anti-virus software' started by Mrkvonic, May 1, 2008.

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  1. Mrkvonic

    Mrkvonic Linux Systems Expert

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    Hi,

    It seems another company managed to turn a perfectly reasonable product into a bundle-all-in-one crap.

    Please advise what can be done to "improve" the baseline installation.

    Except running installation from command line and removing Link Scanner, Search Shield and all that:

    Start > Run:

    avg_free_stf_*.exe /REMOVE_FEATURE fea_AVG_SafeSurf /REMOVE_FEATURE fea_AVG_SafeSearch

    Any other idea? How to kill the bloat?

    Mrk
     
  2. Scoobs

    Scoobs Registered Member

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    Mrkvonic I'll be interested to read the replies to this.

    Is "running installation from command line and removing Link Scanner, Search Shield and all that" the only way to remove these parts? What others are there?

    Is it safe to do so, orcould you compromise other aspects of the package?
     
  3. Mrkvonic

    Mrkvonic Linux Systems Expert

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    Hello,

    I did on in test setup and it works. But still, a few things:

    - You can uncheck LinkScanner when installing but it is still installed; I don't need this POS to check every site I go, slowing the browsing down and annoying me with FP. Or even true positives. I'll go where I want.

    - Command line works, but still ...

    - The memory usage is 25MB. It is relatively low compared to other AV, but it is huge compared to 7.5! I have 4MB in 7.5. This is a 600% worsening.

    - The GUI has been dumbed down for idiots. Looks like all modern, sleek, here's AV for a moron style of thing.

    - Scan parameters have been made unintuitive. For instance, you need to uncheck 10 fields just to scan "system area." Instead of just checking one to do one function.

    - The combined engine (AV + AS) is slow.

    All in all, a perfect AV for people living in the past. Those who think IE is the WEB and fear "malware" intrusions every seconds. For anyone remotely savvy, this will be a Giant AS going Windows Defender.

    Mrk
     
  4. jdenton

    jdenton Registered Member

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    WTF. This is ridiculous. LinkScanner was a very well-regarded product from even before Grisoft purchased it. Just because you don't want to be protected doesn't mean that the protection is a POS. ~Comment removed. - Ron~

    This is true. But does it slow down your computer? I have 768mb, and I only notice slowdowns when I run some very resource-intensive games, otherwise its perfectly invisible.

    Um, yeah, whatever.

    Just because there's no longer the option to easily create a custom scan of running processes and boot sectors doesn't mean that the scanning parameters are unintuitive. People don't usually need to scan the system area anymore since resident scanners are all the rage, mostly they just need on-demand scans for quickly checking new archive files. Removing an outdated feature doesn't make the scan parameters "unintuitive".

    This is true. So don't schedule scans in the middle of the day when you're working on the computer. Schedule them for lunch break, in the middle of the night, or whenever you're not using your computer. The speed is slow, but you get a thorougher cleanup than most AVs do because they simply delete the viruses thanks to their traditional AV roots, AVG has the extra Ewido engine and knows how to completely root out malware and all their traces, the way anti-spyware scanners do it.

    Why? ~Comment removed. - Ron~

    I'm sorry to hear that AVG isn't for you. All the same, it's a free product and a community service of sorts for the general public to protect them against malware. ~Comment removed. - Ron~
     
    Last edited by a moderator: May 1, 2008
  5. Fuzzfas

    Fuzzfas Registered Member

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    The worst part isn't the RAM. It's the CPU that the new scanner eats. CPU time is a bit more than my explorer.exe. I am thinking of running just Returnil with Kerio 2 and Threatfire. Or maybe use Avast in minimal installation.

    a.png
     
  6. 19monty64

    19monty64 Registered Member

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    AVG used to be so light when I used it, that I couldn't resist testing it out. How to kill the bloat? Un-install was the only way for me. Without a re-boot, it just kept getting heavier and slower. Once it (ver.8 ) has been out for a couple of months, maybe they will "trim" things down. I still have LinkScannerLite as a book-mark, so nothing gained...nothing lost.
     
  7. Firecat

    Firecat Registered Member

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    From what I hear, the CPU usage is almost the same as AVG 7.5, however, due to different structure of resident drivers (I believe the AV drivers were moved from kernel mode to user mode, but I am not sure - ask kodl), some of AVG 7.5's resident shield CPU usage (especially for unpacking operations) would not be reported by the task manager.

    I am unsure about how true that statement is, but its information nevertheless. :doubt:
     
  8. Fuzzfas

    Fuzzfas Registered Member

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    I don't know about that statement, but i know very well the CPU time that AVG 7.5 free was showing in the same task manager and i assure you , that it was always like 00:00:0X. for all processes (no mail scanner installed). It was the reason why i don't use my KAV 7 license. I prefered the light AVG.


    This version seems heavier in all processes. I don't see slowdowns, but the task manager doesn't lie and i am paranoid about CPU Time. I monitor these things specially in security apps that always run. And think that the link scanner doesn't really work on my PC, because i use Opera (it works only with IE and FF). I think i have posted in this forum previous screenshots when i had AVG 7.5 installed and the difference is obvious.

    I guess in a world of bloat, AVG couldn't be left outside forever. It's still lighter than most AVs out there, but it was an unpleasant suprise for sure. Otherwise i like the new interface a lot.
     
  9. Fuzzfas

    Fuzzfas Registered Member

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  10. ccsito

    ccsito Registered Member

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    I disagree with this summarization because AV programs were much more simpler in the previous decade. There was no such thing as AS capabilities, web scanning, script blocking, etc. The reason for all of the bloat is because the company is trying to "cover all of the bases" regarding all of the malware points of entry to a system. The majority of users are not going to install tens of thousands of security related software to a system, so the software writer is attempting to provide an all encompassing single package. They are trying to create something that they believe will be a suitable program for going online. That does not mean that it will be appropriate for someone who has hardened his/her system through other means. Each software writer is creating a product from their own judgement and preferences. That does not mean that that particular viewpoint is right for every potential user of that software. I took an Operating System course in college well before the time of the Apple II PC. The material did not cover the case of interrelated software programs that had to be compatible and tied into the Operating System program. Times have changed, but the "bloat" programs of the present are definitely not for someone living in the past. :isay:
     
  11. Mrkvonic

    Mrkvonic Linux Systems Expert

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    Hello,

    I'll try to explain again:

    There are 2 kinds of people: those who need every web page they visit scanned for whatever - and those that don't. The second kind just lost a free AV candidate.

    I don't need a bot slowing my browsing, checking every page I go. The whole idea of safe browsing is using Firefox or Opera, so you don't have to weigh down your system with AS, script blockers, link scanners etc.

    On the other hand, in order to be responsible, I want a pure AV to scan files when I send to someone or receive from "trusted" parties, for the simple reason that the other side might be having some troubles.

    This is no longer possible for me. AVG have effective killed their simple, fast, completely transparent product and replaced it with a bloatie. While this bloatie is still a light year ahead of other bloaties ... well ...

    When I said AV for people living in the past - I mean people obsessed with 20-30 security tools, those who constantly report malware, positives, negatives, catching the baddies etc. Something that a little bit of foresight and a careful selection of just a few programs (browser, word processor etc) can bring to a quick end.

    Forcing people to use (ergo think) the malware-way rather than malware-free way is a regression - a thing of the past.

    Mrk
     
  12. 19monty64

    19monty64 Registered Member

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    The "bloat-ware" label is one I thought would never be attached to AVG. AVG 8 would surely have brought my old (256Mb/ram) pc to halt. I guess everybody runs a 2gig or more of ram nowadays...
     
  13. vlk

    vlk AV Expert

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    What a great example of how subjective this "lightness" feeling is.:)

    In AVG 6.x and 7.x the on-access scanner was implemented in a kernel-mode driver. The file system filter driver was performing the scan in the context of the calling thread (program), hence all the CPU usage extras were added to the process which was accessing the files (not an AVG process).

    Now, in AVG 8, this has changed; the scans are now taking place inside the AVG service, and that's why you're seeing its CPU time go up much faster than in the previous versions.

    In any case, the impact on the system is practically the same - it's just that you can now see how much cycles AVG actually eats.;)

    Take care
    Vlk
     
  14. 19monty64

    19monty64 Registered Member

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    and mem-usage
    It had been several months since I used AVG, so "lightness" comparison was from memories of AVG. In all fairness, I was probably comparing with the AV from just before (and after) AVG...
     
  15. Fuzzfas

    Fuzzfas Registered Member

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    @Vlk

    Of course lightness is subjective. Not everybody is a professionist in the AV sector. At least i don't look just the RAM usage, but also CPU time (and not CPU%). AVG did feel light also , in the sense that didn't slow down anything, unlike other avs that you can sense the lag with opening a folder with many files in it.

    In any case, your explanation is the expert one, so it must be true. However, i still think the new version is heavier, because if you look at my screenshots, i don't see where this CPU time went. I mean, my screenshots are full of 00:00:xx. With your explanation, i would expect to see some other process showing the increased CPU time. I mean, since AVG wasn't eating, SOMETHING else, should be eating it, right? I don't see that something in the screenshots, or at least, not in such degree. When the old AVG was showing 00:00:0X and the new 00:03:XX for example, i would expect to see another process having + 3 minutes of CPU time more than i have now. I don't see it. That's all.

    Thank you for your explanation.
     
  16. bamaman66

    bamaman66 Registered Member

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    I downloaded and ran avg 8. It came up with quite a bit of malware but I did not see anyway that you could remove it. Am I missing something?
     
  17. ccsito

    ccsito Registered Member

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    I still run on 160MB on one of my systems (MOBO limitation). :cool:
     
  18. 19monty64

    19monty64 Registered Member

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    I have a 1gig that couldn't handle AVG, let alone the 256meg. Maybe development will change this over the next few months...
     
  19. Firecat

    Firecat Registered Member

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    AVG 8 worked great on my previous 1GB rig......:doubt:
     
  20. 19monty64

    19monty64 Registered Member

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    Wasn't just browser-related either, so it wasn't just LinkScanner. Opening any app. was noticeably slower. I trialled Ewido (pre-AVG) and experienced the same lag, but with active-protection turned off it was just fine...
     
  21. bobgott

    bobgott Registered Member

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    Well .. I'm seeing the same problem w/AVG 8.0 .. So I filed a customer support request and sent up the appropriate dump information .. and here is what the kind folks at AVG are saying about this ..

    Task manager shows that AVG 8.0 takes up almost 10x more memory. Go Figure.
     
  22. jdenton

    jdenton Registered Member

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    I guess the memory usage for AVG 8.0 is a bit higher than many people are comfortable with. But I don't notice slowdowns, so I don't really mind. Remember the Firefox memory leak fiasco that the developers were claiming as a "feature"? I certainly didn't buy 512 MB just to let them sit around doing nothing. At the end of the day, as long as it doesn't degrade system performance, then I guess that's what counts.
     
  23. Bunkhouse Buck

    Bunkhouse Buck Registered Member

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    There is a noticeable slowdown- so I will wait until the current slowdown is diminished or eliminated.
     
  24. Kerodo

    Kerodo Registered Member

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    Well, I thought I'd give AVG 8 Free a try on a new clean Xp install, but unfortunately I got a nasty BSOD during the latter part of the install before it was even done. So that went nowhere for me. I'll have to wait for a newer version and try again sometime.
     
  25. mercurie

    mercurie A Friendly Creature

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    uh! No need for me to put it on my old Compaq that a relative now uses. PC 1. :p Will stick with the Red Umbrella for that machine. What a shame. :( :(
     
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