not each and every shield should be reactivated/re-enabled

Avast Free Antivirus / Premium Security
1

I have 2 shields disabled permanently, since I don’t need them (mail and P2P).

When I go to the Avast tray icon → shields control, and disable all the shields, all the remaining enabled shields are paused. That’s OK.

But then, when the shields are re-enabled (according to the event - 10 minutes; 1 hour; until computer is restarted), the two shields I want permanently disabled are re-enabled together with the rest.

The behaviour is as if I’ve clicked on “enable all shields”, which I didn’t.

I think that the “correct” behaviour (if I may use this expression in this context) should be to return to the previous “standard” state for my configuration, which is “2 shields permanently” stopped.

Currently, the behaviour is “re-enable each and every shield”. There is already an option called “Enable all shields”. There is no point to disable all shields for 10 minutes, then automatically return to enable ALL of them, but having to go and stop 2 shields manually again.

The same goes to “disable 1 hour” and to “disable until next restart” options.

Moreover, since there is an option to “enable all shields”, maybe there should be an option to “re-enable the shields as previously configured before pausing them”.

I don’t know if the described behaviour is intentional, or a bug, or something else. In any case, IMO as a user, this behaviour should be revised and improved in the near future.

TIA.

2

Hi ady4um, if you wish to disable these shield’s perminitly go to add remove program’s, click on avast then click change and untick the shield’s you don’t want and reboot.

3

@ ady4um

Please go to PROFILE then Modify Profile then Forum Profile Information then select your country in Please select your country: then update your Signature: with information like my signature and craigb as this helps the helpers offer pertinent advice.

4

Craigb, thank you for your answer.

I apologize if I wasn’t clear enough.

  1. I don’t want to completely uninstall those shields. I have my reasons not to constantly run them, but I also have my reasons not to uninstall them.
  2. I already opened the Avast Free UI and stopped those 2 shields, using the option “stop permanently”.
  3. Usually, I use Avast Free at this state, with all but 2 shields (P2P and mail).
  4. The ONLY issue is when I have to temporarily disable the currently-running shields, and then when they are being automatically reactivated, ALL shields return to the “running” state, not JUST the previously-running ones.

So, I don’t want to uninstall those 2 shields, and I don’t need/want “workarounds”, like manually stopping again those 2 shields.

For those exceptional situations when I temporarily disable the running shields, I just need Avast to return to the previously correctly-configured state, instead of just “deciding” by itself to activate all the shields it “wants”.

As I expressed in my previous post, I think this behavior should be improved in the near future.

Since I don’t know if this current behavior is intentional, or maybe a bug, or maybe not enough “well” thought through, I thought I could comment this issue so other users could comment about it too.

Like, just for example:

Does anyone saw this behavior also?
Is this behavior bothering anyone else?
Does anyone else think that this behavior should/could be improved?
Does any user has any comments or ideas on how to improve it?
Does anyone agree/disagree with me about my suggestion on how this behavior should be improved?

And a very important question:
Does this current behavior, as I described it, have any current solution, so to make it work as desired?

Any ideas/suggestions/comments are very welcome.

TIA.

5

Craigb probably had the best answer … I did the same with the P2P and Outlook shields, since I have no use for either, so there’s no need to shut them down again when you reboot and/or otherwise re-enable all other shields.

I get the impression that if you remove them via Add-Remove-Change, a backup copy of each is saved, possibly in driver backups. Possibly this changed from 4.8 to 5, but back on 4.8, at one time I also removed the IM shield after taking out all my IM clients … when I re-activated Y-Messenger and needed to put that shield back in (via the same route, Add-Remove), it went quite quickly and didn’t seem to require internet connection for the reinstallation.

6

ady4um, have you tried going in to setting’s then status and unticking them from there, not sure if this will cause a yellow exclamation mark over the avast icon in the tray though.

7

Craigb, unfortunately, that setting has nothing to do with the current behavior I described.

Let me explain, for those that don’t know about it.

As I said, the “normal” state of Avast in my system is with 2 shields stopped; “P2P” and “Mail” shields.

If I had just stopped those shields, the Avast’s tray icon indeed would have displayed a little yellow exclamation mark, stating that my system is unprotected.

But we know that statement is not really accurate, don’t we? I just don’t need those 2 shields running all the time, and the system is actually protected.

So I didn’t just stopped those 2 shields. I also used that precise setting you mentioned to also stop “monitoring” those 2 shields, meaning that Avast and Windows won’t bother to check the state of those 2 shields.

This setting remains as I configured it, and I didn’t have the need to change it again since I configured the first time. Avast “respects” this setting.

So as long as all other “monitored” shields are running, both Avast and Windows will state that my system is appropriately protected.

I have set this settings a long time ago, together with stopping those 2 shields.

I hope I was clear enough for those reading about this setting (and the behavior I described in my previous posts).

So, in conclusion, the setting you mentioned has nothing to do with the unwanted behavior I described.

I’m still hoping to receive feedback on this issue.

TIA.