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Question/Issue:
Symantec AntiVirus correctly detects certain behaviors as virus-like activity. Sometimes these behaviors are a normal part of a program's operation. You need to exclude specific drives and folders from scans.


Solution:

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Before you begin: Exclusions that you set for Auto-Protect and for scheduled scans do not apply to the Quick Scans in Symantec AntiVirus 10.x. Quick Scans scan a limited number of files, and in most cases, you should not need to disable these scans. If Symantec AntiVirus 10.x detects an excluded file after the computer starts or after virus definitions update, see the References section of this document to find the correct document for your product version.

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Symantec AntiVirus uses an exclusion list to manage exceptions for those normal program operations that are detected as virus-like activities. Items in the exclusion list are ignored entirely. Consequently, Symantec Technical Support recommends caution when you set exclusions. If it is possible, you should schedule special scans for these items at times or on days when a scan does not interfere with normal operations.

To set up Auto-Protect exclusions for Symantec AntiVirus clients by using Symantec System Center

1. Right-click a server group, server, or client group, and then click All Tasks > Symantec AntiVirus > Client Auto-Protect Options (or Client Realtime Protection Options).
2. Check Exclude selected files and folders and then click the lock icon so that it appears as locked.
3. Click Exclusions.
4. If you use Symantec AntiVirus 8.x, check Check for exclusions before scanning and then click the lock icon so that it appears as locked.
5. Click Extensions, and follow the on-screen instructions.
   Add the extensions without punctuation.
6. Repeat the previous steps for as many extension exclusions as necessary, and then click OK.
7. Click Folders, and follow the on-screen instructions.
8. To exclude a drive, type the drive letter followed by a colon.

To set up Auto-Protect exclusions for Symantec AntiVirus servers by using Symantec System Center

1. Right-click a server group or server and then click All Tasks > Symantec AntiVirus > Server Auto-Protect Options (or Server Realtime Protection Options).
2. Check Exclude selected files and folders.
3. Click Exclusions.
4. If you use Symantec AntiVirus 8.x, check Check for exclusions before scanning.
5. Click Extensions, and follow the on-screen instructions.
   Add the extensions without punctuation.
6. Repeat the previous steps for as many extension exclusions as necessary, and then click OK.
7. Click Folders, and follow the on-screen instructions.
8. To exclude a drive, type the drive letter followed by a colon.

To set up exclusions for scheduled scans by using Symantec System Center

1. Right-click a server group, a server, or a client group, and then click All Tasks > Symantec AntiVirus > Scheduled Scans.
2. Create a scheduled scan, or edit an existing scan.
3. Click Scan Settings.
4. Click Options.
5. In the Scheduled Scans dialog box, check Exclude files and folders, and then click Exclusions.
6. If you use Symantec AntiVirus 8.x, check Check file for exclusion before scanning.
7. Click Extensions.
8. Type the extension without punctuation.
9. Click Add, and then click OK.
10. Do one of the following:
    • If the scan affects one computer, click Files/Folders, and then check the folders to exclude.
    • If the scan affects more than one computer, click Folders, and then type the drive letter and full path of each folder to exclude.
      Computers that do not have the excluded folders ignore the exclusion.
11. Click OK four times to save the scan and return to Symantec System Center.
    

To set up Auto-Protect exclusions on an individual computer

1. Start Symantec AntiVirus.
2. Click Configure > File System Auto-Protect (or File System Realtime Protection).
3. Check Exclude selected files and folders.
4. Click Exclusions.
5. If you use Symantec AntiVirus 8.x, check Check for exclusions before scanning.
6. Click Files/Folders.
7. Check the folders that you want to exclude.
8. Click OK.
9. Click Extensions.
10. Type the extension without punctuation, and then click Add.
11. Click OK.

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Notes:
You cannot exclude drives from within clients.
You cannot use environmental variables, such as %windir%, to exclude folders. You must use the full path, such as C:\Winnt\.
You cannot use the wildcard characters * or ? to set exclusions.
When you exclude a folder, you also exclude all objects within that folder, including files in subfolders.

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References:
For help with security risk scans in Symantec AntiVirus 10.x, read the document for your program version:

• Creating exceptions to security risk scanning in Symantec AntiVirus 10.1 and Symantec Client Security 3.1
• Creating exceptions to security risk scanning in Symantec AntiVirus 10.0 and Symantec Client Security 3.0

To learn how to disable the Quick Scan that runs when the computer starts, read the document for your program version:

• About the Quick Scan feature in Symantec AntiVirus Corporate Edition 10.1 and Symantec Client Security 3.1
• About the Quick Scan feature in Symantec AntiVirus Corporate Edition 10.0 and Symantec Client Security 3.0

To learn how to disable the Quick Scan that runs after virus definitions update, read the document for your program version:

• Disabling the Quick Scan that runs after virus definitions update in Symantec AntiVirus 10.1 and Symantec Client Security 3.1
• Disabling the Quick Scan that runs after virus definitions update in Symantec AntiVirus 10.0 and Symantec Client Security 3.0

 

Document ID: 2002092413394848
Last Modified: 11/06/2006
Date Created: 09/24/2002
Operating System(s): Windows 2000, Windows XP Home, Windows XP Professional Edition, Windows XP Tablet PC, Windows XP 64-Bit Edition 2003, Windows Server 2003 32-bit Edition, Windows Server 2003 64-bit Edition, Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005, Windows 98, Windows Me, Windows NT 4.0 SP6a, Windows 2000 Professional, Windows 2000 Server
Product(s): Symantec AntiVirus Corporate Edition 10.0, Symantec AntiVirus Corporate Edition 8.0, Symantec AntiVirus Corporate Edition 9.0, Symantec Client Security 3.0, Symantec AntiVirus 10.1, Symantec Client Security 3.1
Release(s): SAV 10.0 [All Releases], SAV 8.0 [All Releases], SAV 9.0 [All Releases], Symantec Client Security 3.x [All versions], Symantec AntiVirus 10.1, Symantec Client Security 3.1

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