Author Topic: avast Free Antivirus v5.0.545 slow to protect on Startup  (Read 8613 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

nautilus_project

  • Guest
avast Free Antivirus v5.0.545 slow to protect on Startup
« on: June 27, 2010, 07:39:54 AM »
AV: avast Free Antivirus v5.0.545 (Virus definition: 100626-1)
My OS: MS Windows XP - Home Edition (SP3)
Firewall: Windows Firewall
Problem:When I restart my computer the overall boot is relatively quick to display my desktop. Once there I have several issues
  • avast icon has an exclamation mark and indicates it is not fully protected. When I click on the avast icon it shows me that the Webshield and Mailshield are not enabled. This typically takes about five to ten minutes to go away.
  • Windows Firewall also warns me I am not protected as the firewall is not on.
  • A number of my desktop icons display default MS stand-ins until everything sorts itself out.

These things would be fine and I wouldn't be concerned if it fired up even a minute after startup...the issue is it sometimes takes ten minutes to sort itself out.

I have run avast to see if theres any viruses, trojans etc. on my machine and it doesnt find anything but I'm a bit concerned about this extended period of vulnerability on startup.

Any advice??


Gargamel360

  • Guest
Re: avast Free Antivirus v5.0.545 slow to protect on Startup
« Reply #1 on: June 27, 2010, 07:53:18 AM »
Any other security oriented programs installed?

Maybe you have too much running at startup?
« Last Edit: June 27, 2010, 08:04:06 AM by Gargamel360 »

nautilus_project

  • Guest
Re: avast Free Antivirus v5.0.545 slow to protect on Startup
« Reply #2 on: June 27, 2010, 08:16:05 AM »
Thanks for the quick reply Gargamel360. I have no other security but do have a number of things I didn't need on startup. I've run msconfig and disabled about six pointless startup slugs since you pointed in that direction...I'll do a restart and see what kind of results I get.

Offline Vlk

  • Avast CEO
  • Serious Graphoman
  • *
  • Posts: 11658
  • Please don't send me IM's. Email only. Thx.
    • ALWIL Software
Re: avast Free Antivirus v5.0.545 slow to protect on Startup
« Reply #3 on: June 27, 2010, 09:10:52 AM »
This is a classic problem, discussed many times already.

Let me recap: the avast Mail and Web Shields are implemented as standalone Windows services. (Windows services are special programs that support a specific interface and that can be controlled via Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Services). Now, system services generally cannot be started in parallel (that is, they are started one by one). In other words, if it takes a long time to start a service (I mean any service), all the other services that were scheduled to start after this service have to wait till the slow service reports it has started.

Now, on surprisingly many systems, some system services take ages to start. Typical examples are the "Workstation" and/or "Universal Plug and Play" services. These often take minutes to start - depending on the network connection you are using etc.

As a result, the system will not start the avast Web and Mail shield services before these offending/slow services complete their startup, and during that time, the avast taskbar icon indicates the warning status.

It has been like this since avast 4.0 (roughly 2004). In v5.1, we're finally solving this problem by not making Web and Mail Shield system services at all. Their startup/shutdown will be controlled internally by avast only, effectively resolving the issue.

Thanks
Vlk
If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving's not for you.

Offline RejZoR

  • Polymorphic Sheep
  • Serious Graphoman
  • *****
  • Posts: 9406
  • We are supersheep, resistance is futile!
    • RejZoR's Flock of Sheep
Re: avast Free Antivirus v5.0.545 slow to protect on Startup
« Reply #4 on: June 27, 2010, 09:26:11 AM »
Is there any technical reason that services cannot be started in parallel? I mean everything is parallelized these days, yet services have to start one by one.
Visit my webpage Angry Sheep Blog

nautilus_project

  • Guest
Re: avast Free Antivirus v5.0.545 slow to protect on Startup
« Reply #5 on: June 27, 2010, 10:47:29 AM »
msconfig>startup changes helped. I will poke around startup and see what else might be good to stop. Perhaps if I kill those offending slowpokes, avast won't get bottle-necked in that single wide doorway while trying to get in and do his job.  :)

Offline Vlk

  • Avast CEO
  • Serious Graphoman
  • *
  • Posts: 11658
  • Please don't send me IM's. Email only. Thx.
    • ALWIL Software
Re: avast Free Antivirus v5.0.545 slow to protect on Startup
« Reply #6 on: June 27, 2010, 01:55:41 PM »
Is there any technical reason that services cannot be started in parallel? I mean everything is parallelized these days, yet services have to start one by one.

One of the old Windows legacy issues dating back to NT 3.1 days (try Googling "SCM database lock" for more info).
Starting with Vista, there were some improvements in this matter but it's still far from being ideal.
I think the main reason for this is compatibility - I can imagine that changing these types of things can typically break a lot of programs that rely on the existing behavior.
If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving's not for you.

steverf

  • Guest
Re: avast Free Antivirus v5.0.545 slow to protect on Startup
« Reply #7 on: July 18, 2010, 10:34:55 PM »
Problem:  SLOW AVAST Startup....

I suppose this topic has been hashed over and over but I still find no solution or maybe there is not one.

I have the same trouble on either Win7/64 or WinXP Pro.  Both are up to date.
When booting to WinXP Pro...I sit for mionutes and minutes with Avast "not in the ready condition"
After about 30seconds after startup, the Task Manager shows CPU usage 99% IDLE...and it just sits there ready to go to work and AVAST is still not ready.  Finally after a few minutes, Avast will get to work and shortly it will be ready....

If the processor is Idle, then what is avast waiting for?  I see no pending services...nothing going on...
This is very annoying... I do not want to engage e-mail or the browser until avast is ready...

Cannot Avast startup services be forced to the top of the heap after essential windows services?

The computer is doing Nothing...and I am doing Nothing...while we both wait and wait on avast...

Many Thanks and any ideas or suggestions would be very welcomed.

Steve
Perdido Beach, AL


 

YoKenny

  • Guest
Re: avast Free Antivirus v5.0.545 slow to protect on Startup
« Reply #8 on: July 18, 2010, 10:41:46 PM »
@ steverf

I have no problem with avast! on Win7/64 and WinXP Pro but then I have plenty of RAM and a suitable CPU.

steverf

  • Guest
Re: avast Free Antivirus v5.0.545 slow to protect on Startup
« Reply #9 on: July 19, 2010, 12:03:31 AM »
YoKenny,
Well I am running with Core 2 Quad, 2.66 g, 4gig mem, evga 260, 2ea TB, 32meg 7200rpm seagate HD's....
Seems like plenty of power to start up Avast to me.... especially when the CPU is sitting there at 99%idle...
I killed everything in the startup except the bare essentials and it made no difference at all....  hummm...
and yours just starts right up with no delay....???   If it was only my machine, there would not be a thread on this issue...

Granted, if my computer was busy, then I see why Avast would be waiting... but it is not busy... An Intel Core 2 Quad sitting at 99% idle is definitely not very busy....

I guess I must have something making Avast wait... but if so...why would the processor be at 99%idle?

Steve
Perdido Beach, AL
« Last Edit: July 19, 2010, 12:07:44 AM by steverf »