Adding an URL to be excluded from Web Shield scanning doesn’t work during a download.
For example, try to download one of the big .emd data files at http://tablebase.sesse.net/3+3/ which will give you plenty of time to monitor your avast processes. (Don’t worry, those are totally innocuous database files used in the game of chess.) You’ll see that the Avast processes are active, slowing down the download, as well as slowing other computer processes by sucking off processor time. Now add that URL as an exclusion to the Web Shield, and you’ll see that it has no effect whatsoever.
Only disabling the Web Shield stops it from interfering during downloads from the internet. At least that’s what happens on my computer.
(P.S. No, I will NOT disable my ZoneAlarm firewall! I hear that avast may cause a conflict, but that’s unacceptable. It’s up to avast to make itself compatible if it wants my support and usage.)
I don’t remember exactly. I tried several variations, including the URL exactly as given above: http://tablebase.sesse.net/3+3/
and with some wildcards like sesse.net
I also tried entering the file extension being downloaded:
*.emd
The other ones should work (and they do work for me, even though the CPU usage is so small that it’s kinda hard to distinguish).
How much CPU does your AvastSvc.exe process use during the download?
True. It’s 7 years old, and I push it to the limit. I’m normally running apps to use 99% of processor time. One important app that is usually running needs to have 90%+ of processor time available to work well. The avast processes in Web Shield only use about 5-10% of processor time during a download from the internet, but that’s too much for me.
I’ll test the other Exclusion entry format with a wildcard * at the end, as you suggested, after awhile… I need to wait for a big download to complete first, which I don’t want to interrupt.
Well, that’s gonna have to wait for awhile longer, til have a chance to reboot, then I expect things will return to normal(?). My computer now refuses to connect to anything if the avast Web Shield is turned on. No email, no websites with a browser, no nothing. I can’t even connect to my modem’s IP address. For example: Unable to connect
Firefox can’t establish a connection to the server at forum.avast.com.
* The site could be temporarily unavailable or too busy. Try again in a few
moments.
* If you are unable to load any pages, check your computer’s network
connection.
* If your computer or network is protected by a firewall or proxy, make sure
that Firefox is permitted to access the Web.
So I had to turn the Web Shield off just to connect again and post this…
As expected, things returned to “normal” after rebooting my computer. Then I was able to test the Exclusion again in Web Shield, and it definitely does not work. AvastSvc.exe sucks off 5-10% of processor time while a download is in progress, unless I disable the Web Shield.
Disabling Web Shield kills the download that was in progress. Then I can’t resume the download thereafter unless I restart my modem. So it is screwing with my computer’s network configuration. And as noted above, reenabling the Web Shield (after stopping it) kills the network completely, requiring a computer reboot.
Of course disabling the web shield will kill the download in progress as it was to one handling the connection for it. So there would be no way to resume the download as it is essentially linked to the web shield redirection port and the web shield is disabled.
Get rid of ZoneAlarm and you will be amazed at how your system responds and you will be able to run Mail Shield, Scripts Shield, and the WebCal thingie.
As I’ve said before, above, ZoneAlarm stays… I don’t want the WebCal thingie anyway, nor the sandbox, nor the scripts shield, etc etc - just a simple and easy antivirus software. Avast is getting too complicated and trying to do more than it should.
so that’s your problem, you don’t wanna ditch ZoneAlarm, fair enough, accept the consequences : … and no it’s not up to Avast to to make itself compatible with ZA, it’s up to ZA to quit developing software that conflicts with most AVs.
ps: if you didn’t want to discuss anything, why did you even mention ZA… the answers that you got were expected weren’t they… and btw, this thread is public, everyone’s free to discuss the topic “freely”