Switching to Microsoft Security Essentials

[SimpleSi]

I'm considering switching teacher laptops to MSE from Sophos but just want to check with people that have been using it for a while to see if they have been happy with it.

 

I know about the licence issues but taking the view that a teacher laptop mainly used at home is a home/home business machine and I don't think MS will send the legal eagles out for me for the sake of a total of 50 machines

 

regards

 

Simon

[SYNACK]

I like it, I use it on my home machines and it is fantasticly light on hardware. It makes no noticable difference to my Atom 330 based media centre pc and takes up very little space. From the reviews that I have seen it seems good with detection but I have not had any incidents so I can't really comment directly on that

[Guest richard_s]

Sorry but you can only use it on home computers and not in a business environment.

 

If you comply with these license terms, you have the rights below for each license you acquire.

 

1. INSTALLATION AND USE RIGHTS.

* Use. You may install and use any number of copies of the software on your devices in your household for use by people who reside there or for use in your home-based small business.

* Separation of Components. The components of the software are licensed as a single unit. You may not separate the components and install them on different devices.

* Included Microsoft Programs. The software may contain other Microsoft programs. The license terms with those programs apply to your use of them.

 

For the full EULA see here

[GrumbleDook]

Yep, agree with Richard here. It is not a home or a home-business machine. You could always go and ask MS if they would allow it for staff laptops, but I wouldn't take the risk.

[SYNACK]

If you have a MS licensing agreement Forfront Client Security is not that much per client and uses the same quick and light engine and deffinitions but adds managment ability and monitering along with legality to alleviate concerns as stated above.

[synaesthesia]

Has that changed recently?

 

Due to various outbreaks I'd hunted around for days after a free all-in-one solutions and MSSE came up as the only one that didn't have a home-use-only licence.

 

dagnabbit - time to hunt further or get people to spend money - downright impossible

[SimpleSi]

ou could always go and ask MS if they would allow it for staff laptops, but I wouldn't take the risk.

 

Your right - I won't take the risk.

 

I won't ask them

 

regards

 

Simon

[sparkeh]

Your right - I won't take the risk.

 

I won't ask them

 

regards

 

Simon

 

Wonder if any employees of MS frequent this website?

[synaesthesia]

I'm 98% certain the licence has "recently" been modified (recently being within the last 3 months) - I've emailed MS to ask for clarification on that. Annoying if that's the case as I'd have expected some form of notification.

Would be annoying if it isn't the case as a) I'd have spent a good half a day pouring over licence agreements for absolutely nothing and b) as a result, I clearly need glasses

[SimpleSi]

Wonder if any employees of MS frequent this website?

 

I'm sure there is but I'd also hope they are really one of us

 

regards

 

Simon

[mattx]

Your right - I won't take the risk.

 

I won't ask them

 

regards

 

Simon

 

Good for you.

[AngryTechnician]

You could always go and ask MS if they would allow it for staff laptops, but I wouldn't take the risk.

I asked when it first came out. Ray Fleming got us an official answer, and it's 'No'.

 

Has that changed recently?

 

There is a 'home-based small business' allowance in the licence, but unless your school is run out of your living room, it doesn't count. It's been that way since launch.

[synaesthesia]

Cheers - time to go to Specsavers

[AngryTechnician]

MSE has actually had quite positive reviews (example). Your comment about OneCare was well-deserved, but I've been running MSE on my personal machines since launch and have not noticed any performance issues.

[farmerste]

i must say i actually like MSE, the interface in my opinion is spot on, no fuss, easy to setup and go. I have been trying to find an alternative or similar product, as microsh@ft have in my opinion made themselves look even worse( if that is possible ?), by not allowing MSE to be used in schools/behind a proxy server.

 

So far i have been testing f-prot

 

Front Page - F-PROT Antivirus

 

and it has been good, and an excellent no fuss interface.

 

i also like the interface for symantec endpoint when you install the anti-virus only at install, you can set that up also and leave it, but it runs too slowly, and clashes with my other security ( cleanslate).

 

i think anti-virus companies need to look at MSE, and produce a product that feels the same for corporate use, instead of the bloated/annoying offerings that i have been testing, all which seem to be aimed at home users.

 

So is anyone here using f-prot on their network?, i am particularly interested how it runs on servers. i may have to start a thread on this product to find users/out more.

[AngryTechnician]

Well if you want something similar, you could always look at Forefront, which is the corporate MS antivirus that MSE is based on...

[tmcd35]

Well if you want something similar, you could always look at Forefront, which is the corporate MS antivirus that MSE is based on...

 

I got a VL license quote for Forefront. Outside of the School's agreement I got quoted nigh on £30 per client per month! Thats £12000 per month for 400 PC's or £144,000 per year!

 

So far the best deal I've found is AVG at around £12k every 2 years for the same number of machines. Did think about Avast but the quote was $$$'s even with an education discount.

Edited February 1, 2010 by tmcd35

[SimpleSi]

Outside of the School's agreement I got quoted nigh on £30 per client per month! Thats £12000 per month for 400 PC's or £144,000 per year!

 

Shurely shome mistook

 

Si

[rayfleming]

Sorry all, but have been offline today, so tardy in my response!

 

The Security Essentials licence doesn't cover school use, unless it is on a student-owned or staff-owned laptop that just happens to be used in school at some of the time. And "no", it hasn't changed recently, as it has always been like that since launch.

 

Although I don't have Forefront figures to hand, the pricing quoted is either completely wrong, or we've lost some marbles! As we don't set pricing directly ourselves - it's our partners that set the prices you buy at - the best bet would be to get a quote from an authorised EdLAR or AER.

 

Ray

[tmcd35]

Although I don't have Forefront figures to hand, the pricing quoted is either completely wrong, or we've lost some marbles! As we don't set pricing directly ourselves - it's our partners that set the prices you buy at - the best bet would be to get a quote from an authorised EdLAR or AER.

 

Anyone wanting any Microsoft (or any other companies) product should obviously get an official quote from their own authorised EdLAR or AER. A lot will depend on the licensing system you are on and the level of licensing (open, select, schools, etc) so other peoples pricing will vary.

 

As for me. Yes I got that quote from an authorised EdLAR - no I'm not going to embarrass them here!

 

In one column it says "Forefront Client - Per Month - Academic - Volume License" and in the next it says "£30.17"!

 

Now thinking about it logically the £30.17 is almost certainly an annulalised figure and the license is probably around £2.51 per month. But since their competitors come in at around £8-£12 per year, and I'm not due to upgrade AV till next year, I decided to leave it there.

[BrianG]

We were going to use MSE in our schools because, for some of the older kit, symantec antivirus is slowing them down.. so much so that they are becoming un useable. If it's the case that we can't use MSE in schools does anyone know of a free antvirus that we can use in school that's good?

[AngryTechnician]

Now thinking about it logically the £30.17 is almost certainly an annulalised figure and the license is probably around £2.51 per month.

 

Event that sounds far higher than the prices I was talking about with resellers last year. Never got a formal quote, but I'm pretty sure it's much cheaper than that.

[farmerste]

i guess the problem with the fact that MSE has been restricted, from updating behind a proxy, leaves me, and other admin with a problem if it is installed on a laptop-

If someone who uses MSE outside school, on their 'home network' brings that laptop/computer into school, and wants to transfer files to the school network, i cannot ask them to update their virus definitions from within school and scan the files about to be copied, now can I?

it is time that this product, or something similar to it was available under the microsoft select licensing scheme etc, for schools

[tmcd35]

it is time that this product, or something similar to it was available under the microsoft select licensing scheme etc, for schools

 

Erm, would that be Forefront?

 

Event that sounds far higher than the prices I was talking about with resellers last year. Never got a formal quote, but I'm pretty sure it's much cheaper than that.

 

I suspect you're right. However since my AV licence is due for another year and I'd already tied the supplier in knots with various (endless) quotes on all the different MS options (for office and windows), I thought it best to leave it there and not argue any further.

 

Still, it is the official quote I got for Forefront licensing - £30.17 per client per month

Edited February 2, 2010 by tmcd35

[rayfleming]

Although I'm trying to answer earlier queries in this thread, I'm aware it may well cross the boundaries into becoming a commercial, so I'll write carefully! If there are specific follow up questions, which aren't of interest to the whole EduGeek community, I'm happy to respond by PM if there's a follow up

 

Just had the chance to chat to the Great Mark A'Bear on Forefront pricing, and he checked the price list, which contains the mythical "ERP" figures (Estimated Retail Price), which is normally the top-end price. He's explained enough that now I know why the misleading price of £30 a month may have appeared!

 

All the following prices are ERP's on the Select Price list:

 

"Forefront protection client" has an ERP of 17 pence per month

"Forefront protection suite" has an ERP of 72 pence per month

 

And there is something called "Forefront Client Management Console" (which also includes SQL Server), which has an ERP of £33 a month. But this is the central control system (think top deck of the USS Enterprise) and you would only run that on one machine in your IT-nerve-centre! I think that's what was quoted for every single client.

 

So I think we're to blame here for the confusion, by having too many products on our price list, and too many product names which confuse (eg start the name with "Forefront Client", and people think it's a client!). But hopefully there's enough info above to help clear things up a bit