Nick S.'s Profile

Recent activity

Subscribe to this feed

Nick S. replied on March 04, 2009 22:59 to the problem "Vipre Enterprised hosed as of 4pm 03/02/2009" in Sunbelt Software:

I have posted Alex (our CEO)'s response below:

--------------------

Over the past several weeks, you probably experienced difficulties or issues with your VIPRE or CounterSpy updates. These problems included false positives, delayed or mis-timed updates, or high resource usage.

These issues were inexcusable.

To provide a bit of context as to why these problems occurred, a bit of background is necessary.

In the many years our team has been involved in security, nothing comes close to the extraordinary amount of malware we now see released daily by malware authors – up to 50,000 individual samples get submitted to our virus labs every single day. Our own malware repository is over 19 million threats and growing rapidly. Our staff has grown considerably as well, with multiple teams running virtually 24 hours a day on a global basis.

The challenges for all antivirus companies in keeping up with this deluge are extreme. The sheer quantity completely changes the normal processes and procedures of a typical security company. Methods of detection, processing strategies, testing methodologies all have to be re-thought in light of the volume. Additionally, antivirus vendors are increasingly leaning on heuristics and behavior detection, as opposed to classic signature detection, in order to protect their customers from emerging threats.

With an eye to dealing with today's threat landscape, we released the 3.2 core engine update on February 20th. This was a major update, which added significant heuristic and behavior detections. It also added a large number of additional signatures (about 5.4 million).

3.2 was in beta testing for weeks. We finally prepared it for release on the 18th of February, but met significant challenges during our testing due to the size of the update. As a result, we decided to split-up 3.2 into more manageable pieces over a week-long period, starting with the initial release on the 20th. Subsequent updates were released which completed the 3.2 update.

Then, on Monday March 2nd, we released a final update which was designed to “clean-up” the pattern database. However, the update itself took a large amount of CPU and RAM to apply, and resulted in systems that had the apparency of being "hung".

We have conducted detailed internal reviews of our processes. It would be a vast understatement to say that we don't want to have these events happen again.

As a result our review, there are a number of changes being made internally in our organization:

1. We have restructured our management layer, so that software development and threat research are now all under one vice president of research and development. This greatly improves inter-departmental communication and processes.

2. Our research services department is now responsible for all customer communication regarding definitions and threat issues; and our technical support department is responsible for technical bulletins. This moves us away from the past practice of having scattered communications coming from product managers, technical support people, and so on. This does not mean that the latter will not be active on our various discussion lists, but it does mean that we will be more consistent.

3. We are no longer going to do "monolithic" updates – large packages which roll up an array of different detection types into one package. These are difficult for our customers, as well for our own testing staff. This is not to say that there won’t be large updates in the future. But the 3.2 update was unique in that it had a lot of moving parts – too many. We also will provide correct advance notice for these updates.

4. We have restructured our internal processes so that we can deliver "rapid-response" updates for enterprise customers, to deal with late-breaking issues and threats.

5. We have instituted firm policy internally in terms of standard testing procedures. It was a break from our standard testing procedure that resulted, for example, in the 5019 definition update that was the cause of so many issues. This will not happen again.

6. We are greatly expanding our false positive test repository. We do test every single detection that goes out to you, but we clearly need to expand our universe of “good” files to test against.

7. We are aggregating our various disparate tools into our new research center and restructuring our technical support portal to provide a richer customer experience, and staffing the area to improve content.

8. Our internal processes are being examined with a fine-toothed comb, to find any further inefficiencies or possibilities of mis-communication.

In addition, we have greatly improved our internal processes to deal with the speed of getting detections out to you. I expect a number of significant improvements over the coming weeks which will continue to evolve VIPRE’s detection capabilities.

I want to assure you that the past 10 days is not in keeping the 14-year tradition of excellence and customer satisfaction that we are proud of as a company. We are committed to your satisfaction and will continue to work to earn it.

You can also reach me personally if you are not ever satisfied with the product, or anything from our company.

Sincerely,

Alex Eckelberry

Do you think this solves the problem? Mark it as solved
Nick S. replied on March 04, 2009 14:34 to the problem "Update 5003 - SBAMsvc.exe clocks 100% CPU utilisation" in Sunbelt Software:

All-

If you're having any troubles after running the fix, please contact us via e-mail- support@sunbeltsoftware.com. In your e-mail, please indicate what version of Vipre that you are using, if it's Enterprise or for Home and contact information so that we can work with you to resolve any lingering problems.

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this solves the problem? Mark it as solved
Nick S. replied on March 04, 2009 14:08 to the problem "Vipre Enterprised hosed as of 4pm 03/02/2009" in Sunbelt Software:

GinIT-

5020 is due out later today (Wednesday), due in part to a large testing initiative. We will be testing the distribution and application of these definition files more so than normal releases to ensure that there will be no issues.

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this solves the problem? Mark it as solved
Nick S. replied on March 04, 2009 14:05 to the problem "Vipre Enterprised hosed as of 4pm 03/02/2009" in Sunbelt Software:

Chuck-

I apologize for the trouble that this may have caused, but please be assured that we're auditing our releases to ensure that this doesn't happen again and that support is standing by to help- if you see any troubles at all, please do not hesitate to call us or e-mail.

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this solves the problem? Mark it as solved
Nick S. replied on March 03, 2009 17:35 to the problem "Vipre Enterprised hosed as of 4pm 03/02/2009" in Sunbelt Software:

This was caused by a large removal of CRC8 data, which was done in an attempt to avoid false positives. This update will process eventually, however the load that is created on the machine is simply that of the agent applying the changes to the machine- this will be remedied in 5020.

Thanks!

-Nick

Do you think this solves the problem? Mark it as solved
Nick S. replied on March 03, 2009 17:16 to the problem "Vipre Enterprised hosed as of 4pm 03/02/2009" in Sunbelt Software:

Hello!

To fix this issue do the following:

On the server where your service is located:
- Stop the service
- Delete C:\Program Files\Sunbelt Software\SVE\ThreatDB\CSE3-EN-5019-I.sbr.sgn
- Restart the service

On the agent boxes, do the following:
- Stop the agent service
- Delete C:\Program Files\Sunbelt Software\SBEAgent\DefinitionsDefver.txt
- Restart the agent

Please let us know if we can be of further assistance :)

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this solves the problem? Mark it as solved
Nick S. replied on March 02, 2009 21:32 to the question "Ninja messages stuck in submission queue" in Sunbelt Software:

Byron-

I'd like to have a technician work with you on this issue. Please call us at 877.673.1153 or e-mail support@sunbeltsoftware.com to have a ticket created so that a tech can work with you.

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this answers the question? Mark it as answered
Nick S. replied on February 23, 2009 14:36 to the question "cant install on Vista" in Sunbelt Software:

Ed-

I'd like to get a tech to assist you with this personally. Please call us at 877.673.1153 or e-mail support@sunbeltsoftware.com to have a ticket opened.

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this answers the question? Mark it as answered
Nick S. replied on February 19, 2009 22:44 to the question "Anybody got a good sample anti-spam rules list for import?" in Sunbelt Software:

Curtis-

Rules can be used if you're having a specific problem, however the majority (if not all) of your antispam issues should be handled within the engines and connection filtering. The rules we see used the most are for antispoofing, and are outlined here:

http://support.sunbeltsoftware.com/De...

If you would like assistance with your configuration, please do not hesitate to call us or e-mail us so that we can get a tech to work with you. (877.673.1153 / support@sunbeltsoftware.com)

Thanks!

-Nick
__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this answers the question? Mark it as answered
Nick S. replied on February 19, 2009 20:10 to the question "Yeah, Error 1402 no access to registry key" in Sunbelt Software:

Karen-

Sorry to hear that you are having troubles upgrading! I'd like to have a tech work with you- please call us at 877.673.1153 or e-mail support@sunbeltsoftware.com.

Thanks!

-Nick
__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this answers the question? Mark it as answered
Nick S. replied on February 19, 2009 20:08 to the question "Question on finding latest version of VIPRE" in Sunbelt Software:

To view the latest Enterprise definitions/version:
http://www.sunbeltsoftware.com/Busine...

To view the latest Consumer definitions/version:
http://www.sunbeltsoftware.com/Home-H...

When updates, your Enterprise console will list 5xxxx as the version (the x's being the current version, of course) instead of 2xxx. This release has been delayed. Our current goal for release is 18:00 EST tonight (Thurs, 19FEB09).

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this answers the question? Mark it as answered
Nick S. replied on February 13, 2009 17:30 to the question "Recommended AP on Servers?" in Sunbelt Software:

The recommended settings for server AP are to Enable AP with the Monitors set to Security Level: Default. Please remember to exclude any necessary processing folders (Exchange, MSSQL, Ninja, etc...) as required by the manufacturer. If you would like help with this setup, please feel free to e-mail support@sunbeltsoftware.com or call us at 877.673.1153.

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this answers the question? Mark it as answered
Nick S. replied on February 12, 2009 13:35 to the question "Vipre Enterprise DNS issue" in Sunbelt Software:

I'd like to get a tech to work with you. Please send an e-mail to support@sunbeltsoftware.com and include your Vipre Server version, Vipre Agent version, Windows version for the agent install and contact information- a tech will be in contact ASAP!

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this answers the question? Mark it as answered
Nick S. replied on February 12, 2009 13:34 to the problem "VIPRE Enterprise and DNS and DHCP Server." in Sunbelt Software:

Wes-

I'd like to get a tech to work with you. Please send an e-mail to support@sunbeltsoftware.com and include your Vipre Server version, Vipre Agent version, Windows version for the agent install (DNS/DHCP server) and contact information- a tech will be in contact ASAP!

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this solves the problem? Mark it as solved
Nick S. replied on February 06, 2009 17:42 to the question "Ninja Antivirus Module STOPPING all emails from being received!" in Sunbelt Software:

Craig-

I'd like to get a tech to work with you on this- please e-mail us: support@sunbeltsoftware.com.

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this answers the question? Mark it as answered
Nick S. replied on February 03, 2009 20:13 to the question "Vipre is causing outlook error with acrobat attachments." in Sunbelt Software:

Shane-

Unregistering this DLL will stop Vipre from being able to scan Outlook e-mail. Do you have an existing ticket for this issue? If not, I'd like to open one with a tech so that you can be alerted when a fix is released. Please e-mail support@sunbeltsoftware.com and reference this post. Also, include your server/agent versions, Outlook version and Windows version.

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this answers the question? Mark it as answered
Nick S. replied on January 28, 2009 14:04 to the question "VIPRE Ent. Uninstall is grey" in Sunbelt Software:

If you are running a demo without a key, this is by design. To remove agents, please use the Add/Remove programs function on the workstations.

If you are having any troubles getting agents uninstalled, please contact us at support@sunbeltsoftware.com or call 877.673.1153 so that we can get a tech to work with you.

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this answers the question? Mark it as answered
Nick S. replied on January 27, 2009 18:03 to the question "In Vipre Enterprise, will admin known good prevent the area from scanning?" in Sunbelt Software:

This is correct- you would want to exclude any files/folders that the software provider recommends.

Exchange- http://support.microsoft.com/default....
MSSQL- http://support.microsoft.com/kb/309422/ (Scroll Halfway Down)

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this answers the question? Mark it as answered
Nick S. replied on January 27, 2009 17:25 to the question "In Vipre Enterprise, will admin known good prevent the area from scanning?" in Sunbelt Software:

Solace-

Admin known good is just like white-listing- Vipre Enterprise will not scan any listed files/folders.

__________

Nick Shorts
Tier 2 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this answers the question? Mark it as answered
Nick S. replied on January 26, 2009 18:42 to the question "Internet Explorer will not launch when VIPRE Enterprise is loaded" in Sunbelt Software:

Hello, Brett!

I'd like to get a tech to work with you. Please e-mail support@sunbeltsoftware.com with the OS and Vipre version for your workstation so that we can help :)

Thanks!

-Nick

__________

Nick Shorts
Lead Tier 1 Enterprise Support Technician

Sunbelt Software
Support E-mail: Support@SunbeltSoftware.com
Voice: 877.673.1153 x500
Fax: 727.562.5199
Web: www.Sunbelt-Software.com
33 N Garden Ave - Suite 1200
Clearwater, Fl 33755 - USA

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you do not want further emails from us, please forward
this message to listmanager@sunbeltsoftware.com with
the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject of you email
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you think this answers the question? Mark it as answered

Nick S.'s dashboard

About me

Products & companies I use

Recent activity