Author Topic: what kind config can use SBC in workgroup?  (Read 11525 times)

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Offline AlvinHuang

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what kind config can use SBC in workgroup?
« on: March 29, 2011, 07:08:00 PM »
most small company use workgroup, not AD,
so we need to know what kind of config can use SBC,
or, at least, how to find the problem,
anyone can help?

BTW,
is there anyone use SBC to deply avast client successful in workgroup network?


Offline lukas.hasik

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Re: what kind config can use SBC in workgroup?
« Reply #1 on: April 16, 2011, 02:55:27 PM »
The deployment in WORKGROUP enviroment is really complicated. There might be a different user at each computer (and probably is). Therefore you cannot deploy the clients just with one user/passwd. And the machines in workgroup might not be discovered or reached correctly sometimes.

From our experience it seems that the safest way of deployment in WORKGROUP enviroment will be the Email deployment(not there yet). You'll sent email with download link to the users in your workgroup. And when they click it the installation starts. The user just runs it then it install automatically. When installation finishes the avast! client connects to the server.
Quality is also a feature.

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Re: what kind config can use SBC in workgroup?
« Reply #2 on: April 16, 2011, 06:17:32 PM »
if you have 5 or more users, its really advised to use a central database for user management... meaning active directory or a linux realm with windows clients. (Microsoft Small Business Server is not that expensive as it sounds and has all you would want as a small business)

Like lukas says, administrator is very hard on a workgroup. If you want to deploy on a workgroup your better of putting the non-manage client on the computer then the managed one.
The e-mail way to install is new to me, and sounds actually nice, but still it needs an administrative account for installing the software.
so why would you want to centrally manage your AV if it gives you probably more headaches then relieve because you dont have your basis environment in order....
You will also lose a lot of functionality of the SBC. for example  In a workgroup environment you highly probably dont have a mail server either, so mail wont be send unless you use an external server

in a less then 5 station workgroup its not worth the trouble of installing (see my opening sentence then from here)
sounds harsh, and a lot of people will disagree with me i know, but above is my opinion....

Offline scythe944

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Re: what kind config can use SBC in workgroup?
« Reply #3 on: May 02, 2011, 08:00:34 PM »
if you have 5 or more users, its really advised to use a central database for user management... meaning active directory or a linux realm with windows clients. (Microsoft Small Business Server is not that expensive as it sounds and has all you would want as a small business)

Like lukas says, administrator is very hard on a workgroup. If you want to deploy on a workgroup your better of putting the non-manage client on the computer then the managed one.
The e-mail way to install is new to me, and sounds actually nice, but still it needs an administrative account for installing the software.
so why would you want to centrally manage your AV if it gives you probably more headaches then relieve because you dont have your basis environment in order....
You will also lose a lot of functionality of the SBC. for example  In a workgroup environment you highly probably dont have a mail server either, so mail wont be send unless you use an external server

in a less then 5 station workgroup its not worth the trouble of installing (see my opening sentence then from here)
sounds harsh, and a lot of people will disagree with me i know, but above is my opinion....


I wouldn't disagree with you, I agree completely.
For generic computer (not avast) problems, you can also visit my forum for help: http://www.jacobytech.net/forum

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Re: what kind config can use SBC in workgroup?
« Reply #4 on: May 03, 2011, 12:29:41 AM »
if you have 5 or more users, its really advised to use a central database for user management... meaning active directory or a linux realm with windows clients. (Microsoft Small Business Server is not that expensive as it sounds and has all you would want as a small business)

Like lukas says, administrator is very hard on a workgroup. If you want to deploy on a workgroup your better of putting the non-manage client on the computer then the managed one.
The e-mail way to install is new to me, and sounds actually nice, but still it needs an administrative account for installing the software.
so why would you want to centrally manage your AV if it gives you probably more headaches then relieve because you dont have your basis environment in order....
You will also lose a lot of functionality of the SBC. for example  In a workgroup environment you highly probably dont have a mail server either, so mail wont be send unless you use an external server

in a less then 5 station workgroup its not worth the trouble of installing (see my opening sentence then from here)
sounds harsh, and a lot of people will disagree with me i know, but above is my opinion....


I wouldn't disagree with you, I agree completely.

great minds think alike, right :)

Offline Infratech Solutions

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Re: what kind config can use SBC in workgroup?
« Reply #5 on: May 03, 2011, 04:57:44 PM »
Sorry, but I’m not fully agree with you.  ;)
 
We have a lot of customers working in a workgroup environment with more than 100 PCs, especially in an education environment where an administrator need a central management to know what is happening in every classroom. Currently these kinds of customers are using ADNM.

The problem is not the installation procedure; in a workgroup environment you have a public folder in a server where you can put a setup file to install the clients. This is the easy way that people is using now with ADNM. Why SBC hasn’t a MSI procedure to create a setup file for clients like ADNM?

When you have more than 10 PCs and you are the administrator you want to know what is happening in your network. SBC must be the tools to help administrator to manage his network, not only to install, to know how many virus are in the net, to know how many PCs are protected, to know the source of the virus: email, pen drives, Internet… to know what the AV solutions is doing with a virus: delete, move… to schedule regulars scan on the network… To do some of this managed task is not important is you are in a domain environment or if you are in a workgroup.

If in a workgroup of 10 PCs you use a non-manage clients, maybe the installation procedure is easy, but then you don’t know what is happening. Who has a virus? The virus is deleted? Where is the source of the infection? How can I schedule a boot-time scan in all the machines?

Offline scythe944

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Re: what kind config can use SBC in workgroup?
« Reply #6 on: May 03, 2011, 05:19:02 PM »
All that I can say is that I feel for you!

Maybe people do things differently in Spain, but having over 100 PCs in an educational environment with no central security system must be the biggest pain in the rear.

It might not be too bad if you have computers setup with the same Username and password on each one and use something like steadystate or deepfreeze to keep them clean, but what about your user's files? What happens when you have 10 students assigned to each PC and one of them goes down?  How do you keep their files backed up (a backup for each computer? TimeMachine for Macs?) or do you let them use flash drives (what if they lose them)?

I just can't even fathom how much extra work you'd create for yourself if you didn't have a domain or some set of central management to keep user ID's, passwords, and files in and to keep them safe.

In a domain, any student can login to any computer and have access to their files, which are backed up three times a day (two shadow copies and a full backup at night).  If a computer goes down, they just login to another one and continue working.  We can audit the computers to find out what student was logged in when they do something wrong, and we have the power to leverage software like ADNM to push out Avast and monitor each computer, not to mention the power of Group policy to lock down the computers for certain users and push out other software like Microsoft Office.

Sorry, I just can't see anyone trying to use a workgroup with that many computers.  Your customers must be in the minority, and most companies / organizations with 15 users or more must have the foundation (of a domain or other central system)in place already and can use the SBC or ADNM solutions.

I'm not saying you're wrong, but I don't think it's Avast's fault that their "Managed Product" doesn't work well in your customer's non-managed organization.  
« Last Edit: May 03, 2011, 05:21:35 PM by scythe944 »
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Re: what kind config can use SBC in workgroup?
« Reply #7 on: May 03, 2011, 11:42:33 PM »
i too feel for the administrators of that setup....

its probably a case of IT bein the unwanted child... its needed but investing is not wanted....


i remember jx said something about the MSI feature was still in internal tests at Avast for SBC... so its possible it still gets in there...
i believe its in the EARLY BETA RELEASE thread.....

Offline Yanto.Chiang

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Re: what kind config can use SBC in workgroup?
« Reply #8 on: June 15, 2011, 08:43:21 AM »
Hi Ryan and WPN,

I dont think this is only happened in Spain, but also in my country Indonesia.

Either corporate or organization, mostly our customer still using workgroup domain. So each time we go down to the customer site, what we do is:
1. Create MSI package installation
2. If possible to do push installation, then we randomly push installation
3. If not possible to do push installation as edj said we share in public server or copy the MSI packages to pendrives

But sometimes eventhough the customer already AD server, each user still have a different user login....that is happened in Indonesia.
Yanto Chiang | IT Security Consultants | AVAST Premium Security | GarudaSinatriya

Offline scythe944

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Re: what kind config can use SBC in workgroup?
« Reply #9 on: June 15, 2011, 03:57:32 PM »
Yeesh.  Sorry about that then, it seems that you all are really missing out on what a server is supposed to do for you!
For generic computer (not avast) problems, you can also visit my forum for help: http://www.jacobytech.net/forum