[dba-Tech] Mcafee Viruscan Central slows down closing form from 1 to 40 seconds.

Gustav Brock Gustav at cactus.dk
Thu Sep 13 03:08:28 CDT 2007


Hi Erwin

It is for a reason that we do not recommend our clients to run this package, not even the OEM version supplied with some machines. If they insist, we stress that they must be prepared for all sort of troubles. That said, some machines run nicely with the package.
The situation is the same for Symantec/Norton.

Our first choice is CA E-trust which costs a little but never has caused trouble for us.

/gustav

>>> Erwin.Craps at ithelps.eu 13-09-2007 09:06 >>>
Hi
 
I found this pretty gross of McAfee so I wanted to know if someone had
the same issue and what you done to resolve it.
 
I have written an application in Access for inventorising a real estate
property in order to generate a value estimation of the property.
The application keep a list of question and answer and generates a form
to display on a tablet pc which is carried around the property by the
expert.
 
The form is pretty large around 16 tabs and a combined number of +/- 500
questions and their answers. It is mainly this form that causes a
problem with McAfee anti virus.
The form is unbound and loads/saves data when opening/closing (only
saves date when a change is noticed).
 
The application was running very smootly on three computers (2 tablets,
one desktop) until a certain McAfee update about 1,5 year ago. 
Suddenly, after this update was installed, closing the form took a huge
time even without saving the data. Instead of 1 or 2 seconds, the form
took 40 seconds to close, without saving data!!!
We quickly found that it was the virusscanner that caused the issue. I
tried to add an exclusion for MDB, but that is not posible in that
Virusscanner.
So we decided to deactivate the viruscanner. 
Yesterday, one and a half year later, I installed the latest version
(11.x) Mcafee Anti Virus, and the problem still is present.
I contacted McAfee support, several times, the frontline people where
not really knowledgeable about there own soft and my case was escalated
to a higher level.
In the meanwhile I supplied them with some additional information where
I believe the problem is situated.
 
Apparantly, when I open this form, Access creates 508 temporary file in
the "local settings\temp" folder. I suspect 1 for each control.
The file are named "~[random].TMP". The virusscanner does not slow down
the opening and getting data very much (and creating those 508 tmp
files), let's say 1 or 2 seconds, for which I'm ok with.
But closing the form (without saving data), delays the form from 2 to 40
seconds, it freezes Access. When I take a look at the temp folder, I see
that deleting those tmp files, or whatever is related to that action, is
what causing the delay. Files are fully deleted after those 40 seconds.
 
What is causing the delay of 40 seconds, is it deleting those 508 tmp
files or is it some MDB updating that is done before deleting each file?
 
Because the form has worked perfectly for a period of 2 years togheter
with Mcafee, until a certain update, I suspect McAfee added the TMP
extension to the "document and programs" list (the virusscaner has
always been set to doc and prog).
But then again, why is McAfee freesing Access for 40 seconds while
DELETING the files???
 
The response from McAfee was that they are aware that using MDB's with
the virusscaner are problematic and they do not have a solution for it,
since 1 year and a half!!!
They found it was not that problematic. I told him that if the users
opens this form 100 times a day (which is probably the case) he had to
wait 1,5 hours per day....
 
I asked if I could add an exclusing to the virusscanner but this is not
posible. So I said that I then my only option is to install another
brand of virusscaner, he answered that the user could turn of the
virusscanner off/on while he uses the form...
100 times a day!!!
 
Great support :-(
 
I used to love McAfee, but the problems I have with them and the level
of support in the last 2 or 3 years are sickening.
 
 
 

Erwin Craps

Zaakvoerder 





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