Little Server Guy -
Info from a Guy Trying to Run a Little WS2003 Server on the Cheap
Virus Scanning
At first I thought I must have virus scanning. Quickly I realized that no one allows
their workstation scanners to install on server 2003. AFter all, why sell a $30
program that works when you can force someone to pay $500? If you know, let me know.
Searching for a server virus scanner was a challenge. Most of the vendors don't
sell them directly and expect you to go through their distributors. I don't really
understand.
A few companies actually advertise their prices and sell their server tools for
download online. Using the maxim that if I had to ask, I couldn't afford it, I skipped
the distributors and found a download. The product I settled on was AVG "file
server" product. they also make a "mail server" version, but I found that the gateway
filter I chose was far better for mail scanning. The file server version is not
a gateway product, but simply a scanner which can be scheduled and scans any file
when it is used. This ran fine on my server. I installed a free evaluation copy.
On another page I talk about gateway filters. Actually, I started with a virus scanning
function alone, and realized my system was drowning in virus email. Not that any
of it was being executed on the server, but who wants that crud there at all. The
AVG scanning I had would purge it, but it didn't purge the spam mail.
At that point I knew I needed a gateway filter. See the page on that: I selected
Trend Micro's Virus Wall. Surprisingly, the spam filter stopped 99.9% of virus email,
and probably 95% of the spam.
After installing Virus Wall, I continued running AVG and found that it did nothing
except the empty the quarantine folder that Virus Wall had dropped virus emails
into. Eventually I am going to license this, just so I don't feel like I left a
back door open, but for now I have decided that the likelihood of infection through
Virus Wall is small. AVG file server scanner costs I believe about $70 for a two
year subscription.
Comments? Combine the word "richard" with the words "server guy" with no spaces
or punctuation and stick it in front of the domain this page is hosted on. That
should get an electonic message to me.
(c) 2006 Richard Skerritt