I has been taking hours to comlete a quick scan on my WinXp Sp1 system. The cpu is at 100% as well. I never had this problem with the previous version. I have one gig ram on this machine and pentium 1.8 gig. Any help will be appreciated. Thanks.
At a guess I would say you are doing a Thorough scan, I don’t know if you are also selecting Archives to be scanned ?
With 4.8 avast is doing a little more on the on-demand scan, the improved anti-spyware and anti-rootkit are integrated into the scan.
I see an increase in the duration of the scan from a little over 11 minutes to 15 and that is for a Standard scan without Archives. So if that is the kind of increase for me when only scanning 8GB of files, I can imagine what it might be for thorough and a lot of data being scanned (?), none of which to mention. Your system is broadly the same as mine no speed demon.
Archive (zip, rar, etc.) files are by their nature are inert, you need to extract the files and then you have to run them to be a threat. Long before that happens avast’s Standard Shield should have scanned them and before an executable is run that is scanned. Thorough is also by its design very thorough and perhaps a little overkill for routine use, were a Standard scan without archives should be adequate.
I have only ever done a through scan with archives once shortly after installation just to ensure a clean start state, but with XP for example avast will do a boot-time scan after installation if you select it, this I believe will be quicker and reasonably effective. Like everything in life things are a compromise.
Something is definitely wrong with the length of my scans as well!! It took me 23 minutes to do a “Quick Scan” without checking archived files! Yesterday, it took me less than that to do a “Standard Scan”, also without checking archived files!
What is going on?
Thanks!
Marshall, really, don’t worry. Scanning speed depends of a lot of factors (computer temperature, other programs running…). If you’re clean, keep cool 8)
Please see my new post, which also notes a discrepancy in the reporting of scan times!
I felt that I shouldn’t have mentioned that here; I may have been wrong.
Thanks!
49 mins 18 secs for a quick scan of 15.5 gig of files with avast! 4.8 on my XP SP2 laptop. That’s slow!
Good grief … that’s slower than my normal weekly ashquick.exe scan of all 5 drives on my system.
Is your ashquick.exe scan still the same ?
That is slow when my Standard scan no archives 8GB in 15 minutes if I doubled that for your data size (very rough guestimate) it is still quicker and it is for a Standard scan and not a Quick scan.
Is your scan with archives (wouldn’t seem you would if doing a Quick scan) ?
I haven’t tried an ashquick scan.
Scan is without archives.
I think David was asking about my ashquick scan. I had not run it with 4.8.1169 yet …so running it now.
Yes the poorly directed question on ashquick.exe was for Alan.
Without archives makes the results even worse.
I shudder to ask you to try a Standard Scan without archives when you have a spare couple of hours if it is as slow as the quick scan.
No problems… I’ve found your other thread… but here seems just a complain and a stress situation. I suggest the use of avast screensaver time scanning or running when you’re not using the computer (at night). I have scheduled scans (with Pro versions) weekly.
Interestingly enough my ashquick.exe scan has just completed in its normal time range 33 minutes.
Could be we will have a lot more using ashQuick.exe is is, well, quick ;D
What is “ashquick.exe”? I only have the free version. Is this something only found in the paid version? Or does it go by a different name within the programs themselves?
From what I infer, you’re referring to the “Thorough” Scan.
Thanks!
The Anxious One
Check your avast folder and it will be there.
It is the quick scanner of avast.
Thanks!
We aren’t referring to the Thorough scan which takes a very long time as it is at the opposite side of the scale to Quick.
The ashQuick.exe is in all versions of avast it is normally used to scan downloaded files or single files, etc. but some avast 4 Home users like Alan use it to scan their system in conjunction with windows task scheduler. The Home version doesn’t have a scheduled scan function, so they use this as a workaround to do scheduled scans.
Check this work around out for general information - HOWTO: Scheduled Automatic Scans avast! Home Version!
There are some pros and cons and you shouldn’t use this without knowing them.
MarshallO,
I am not only not a member of the avast team I am cheap too. avast does not provide the ability to schedule a scan in the Home version. So some of us use the features of the ashquick module to run a scheduled task to scan.
ashquick is the program that runs when you right click on a file in the explorer file listing and allows you the option to scan the file with avast. It is also the program that is often used in conjunction with downloaders to immediately scan a newly downloaded file.
Thanks again, guys!
TAO