AVG 2011 Update Causes Widespread Problems For 64-Bit Windows

phx_zs writes "Last night's mandatory update of AVG 2011 Free edition has caused most 64-bit Windows 7 PCs to fail while loading Windows. On their website they have an FAQ with instructions on how to repair the problem using a boot CD or USB device."

Comments

Microsoft Security Essentuals

[Enderandrew]

I used to recommend AVG as the free anti-virus solution to people, but Microsoft Security Essentials has a much smaller footprint, it doesn't harass you to upgrade to a paid version, and it has a better detection rate.

AVG isn't particularly great when comparing free or paid products these days.

Re:Microsoft Security Essentuals

[Anonymous Coward]

Agreed on that one - I've migrated away from recommending AVG or AVAST to Microsoft Security Essentials to any Windows user who doesn't want to shell out for an AV.

(The turning point was the AVG link scanner. That was a terrible idea and a sure sign it was headed for the toilet quickly.)

To any who do prefer higher-quality, paid antivirus software, I've found ESET NOD32 to be consistently excellent, or Kaspersky AV if you want to trade speed for thoroughness on deeply-nested archives (not always a good idea). (I have to begrudgingly admit that the newest Norton is not completely awful like we've come to expect but still isn't something that would ever appear on my recommendation list. McAfee would never appear there under any circumstances.)

Re:AVG? Feh.

[JeffSpudrinski]

I've been discouraging my friends/customers from using it for about 18 months now.

Agreed that it was once awesome, but they took a dive when they starting including that crappy IE plugin tool that pre-verifies all the results of your searches.

They also make it nigh on impossible to find the free version on their site (or it was hard last time I looked, which has been a while).

While all AV programs are prone to screwing something up, this one won't help their already soured reputation.

I've been using Avast and Sophos for a while now and had little issues with either of them.

-JJS

Not suprising...

[Cyno01]

Of course something like this would happen with a free program, you get what you pay for. Nothing like this would ever happen with one of the quality anti virus programs, like McAfee...

Re:WTF?

[olddoc]

Sure they are tested. The problem ONLY occurs on rebooting. Who ever has to reboot a Windows computer?

Re:Antivirus?

[tgrigsby]

You don't get them by opening email or surfing the web these days. Tracking cookies are not viruses.

You absolutely CAN get an infection from simply surfing the web. I was one of the people affected by the AVG Update Of Death, but I recovered and I will continue to use them in part because it integrates with Firefox and has stopped numerous attacks by intercepting seemingly innocuous sites. If you're not aware of the danger involved in simply surfing the web, you should do a little honest research.

Re:Ask a friend

[Fulg]

What's a decent free one to use?

If you have to run Windows, the Microsoft Security Essentials package is excellent. I haven't had the urge to uninstall it yet (unlike Avast and AVG), and it doesn't noticeably slow your system. It's free if you have a valid Windows license...