I am a long-satisfied user of “Avast! Antivirus U3 Edition” which is now discontinued.
My subscription expires on 25 October 2011, and there is no way to extend the subscription!
So my question is, what should I be using as an alternative? Is there a generic “USB” version available?
OR…
Do either the “Pro” or “Free” versions have a “green installation” option? That is, can they be configured so they never modify the registry (writing such information to the USB disk, instead)?
Thanks for the very prompt reply, but it wasn’t quite what I had in mind. The Panda tool you quoted is just an autorun blocker. And I’m not at all familiar with MCShield… but you’ve prompted me to do some research on them.
What I’m really looking for, however, is a version of avast! that I can install on my USB stick and run from there without leaving traces on the host computer. This is typically known as a “green install” – where the software stores all its configuration data in a disk file (such as an .INI or .dat file) instead of storing it in the registry.
It has been discontinued…
The alternative, as said, will be ClamAV. But I won’t trust that much in the detection rate.
Are you using this U3 stick in a computer without antivirus?
Virtually all the computers I access at work or at home have some kind of antivirus, and most have comprehensive malware protection.
That is not guaranteed for EVERY computer I might need to use my primary or secondary USB thumbdrives on. (Especially if that computer is owned by a naive user, or a public workstation such as one at the library!)
So, I really need a lightweight but GOOD virus scanner that I can run portably (i.e. “green”) from my USB stick. Avast U3 edition was and still is the best I’ve found.
I’d like to continue using an Avast product. The only other USB-specific products I’m aware of is McAfee (bloated, slow, and overpriced), TrustPort (short history and little information about them), and the previously recommended McShield (even less info).
Sorry, but I don’t quite understand your thinking there. How does “Avast U3 Edition has been discontinued” (which I knew already, read my introductory post) equate to “No other edition of any Avast product has a green installation option”?
Maybe this will clarify the issue.
The following are different things:
Software with a green install
Portable software targeted to use from USB drives
U3-compliant software
Each of the above categories is more restrictive than the ones above it. Portable software must at least have a green install, but a “portable edition” might likely be smaller and have a different feature set, too. Software that was U3-compliant had to additionally meet a BIG laundry list of very restrictive requirements in order to have that label.
It has already been settled that Avast has (understandably!) discontinued its U3 edition, and that there is not some other kind of “portable edition” replacing it. I originally asked about the possible existence of the second of those options. That has been answered. I’m now only asking about the least-restrictive category.
I do apologize. It was never my intent to have a bossy tone.
In particular, it surprises me that my use of formatting and punctuation were interpreted that way. I will curtail my use of both (with one exception below). Thank you for having the fortitude to point out how my posts could be interpreted.
I must also be honest and admit to feeling like I’ve been communicated with in a condescending manner by some [I’m not referring to you, here], and feeling a bit frustrated with the sense that perhaps not everyone was reading particularly attentively. Even though I reminded myself that forums such as these are often staffed by volunteers or others who are quite busy, and that it’s relatively easy both to miscommunicate and to misunderstand, I guess I let those emotions creep into my writing regardless of my desire to suppress them.
forbin, I can say that none of avast programs are prepared to run portable.
I’ll suggest you take further security options through gpedit.msc policies in the public computers.
You can block USB drives in public computers or even forbid write to them.
Sorry, my computer is in Portuguese and it won’t help to post here the entries. Maybe Googling.
Emsisoft Emergency Kit 1.0 (freeware) might work for you. Emsisoft (formerly A-Squared) had a reputation for many false positives, but they have improved and are quick to respond when one is reported.
The OP wants a program that protects the pens when they connect to alien PCs.
I say there is no such a program.
First, they rely on traditional AV software with the obvious limitations of the origional principle.
Second, most of those apps are watered down versions of the mainstream, comercial offer.
I put it to you: let the pen be infected. Worry about only when you stick it into your machine.
And that’s when Sandboxie comes into line.
Force your USB/CD/DVD entries to run sandboxed. Scan the contents of the externals with your resident AV, with Malwarebytes, EAM free, HitmanPro… if all scans come out clean, then take the files out of the sandbox on to your machine.
My approach won’t produce 100% sureness, but it will be the less unreliable option.
So, I really need a lightweight but GOOD virus scanner that I can run portably (i.e. "green") from my USB stick. Avast U3 edition was and still is the best I've found.
What I'm really looking for, however, is a version of avast! that I can install on my USB stick and run from there without leaving traces on the host computer. This is typically known as a "green install" -- where the software stores all its configuration data in a disk file (such as an .INI or .dat file) instead of storing it in the registry.
Tech: Thanks for the definitive response. At least I know not to waste time trying the various Avast products only to find they cannot be portabilized. (Hm. Is that even a word? ;D )
Simeon: Thanks for the suggestion. I’ve used a-squared free in the past as one part of a whole battery of tools to help some friends clean some nasty infections off their machines, so I’m inclined to try them out again for myself.
Haven’t had a chance to try out the other possibilities, but once I do, I’ll try to ensure I post the results here for the benefit of others.
