Norton SystemWorks review

Norton Uninstall Deluxe

Although it can't beat CleanSweep Deluxe 4 (reviewed issue 52, p205), Norton Uninstall Deluxe (NUD) still provides a healthy list of features designed to keep your hard disk free of unwanted software. There are a number of similarities. Like CleanSweep, NUD uses a background utility to look for installation programs starting and to record changes made when a new application is copied down. One unique feature is InstallGuard, which records all changes made during the installation process and stores them in a backup file. Should you want subsequently to remove the new software, InstallGuard can return your system to its previous condition, although this will only work for the last application you installed.

NUD can also uninstall applications by analysing them and removing all associated files and Registry entries. A backup copy is maintained so you can restore the software if you later change your mind. Alternatively, you can relocate programs onto anotheræhard disk or partition using the Move option. The Copy option is very similar to CleanSweep's Transport, since it allows applications to be packaged into self-extracting archives for installation on another system. Do be careful with this option, though. While it can deal with small applications, I found that it made a mess of large program suites.

There's a certain amount of duplication of labour across NUD and Norton Utilities, as the former also offers a Disk CleanUp option. Both will identify temporary and infrequently used files as candidates for deletion, while NUD goes one step further, by emptying browser caches and looking for lost clusters, duplicate files and unused Registry entries.

Norton AntiVirus

Anti-virus software is fast becoming a must-have utility, and Norton AntiVirus (NAV) is one of the best. Your system is protected by an Auto-Protect real-time scanner that can be accessed for configuration from the System Tray. Any files that are opened, copied or moved are checked first before you can access them, and executables won't be allowed to run if Auto-Protect spots any viral code in their make-up. Internet downloads get the same treatment, and NAV includes Netscape Navigator plug-ins plus protection against dubious ActiveX code and Java applications. Auto-Protect also scans the floppy disk drive at system shutdown to make sure you haven't left a disk loaded.

For greater protection, NAV includes Symantec's Bloodhound heuristic scanning technology, which looks for strange behaviour and may identify a new virus not in the signature file. The inoculation feature has been cut down. Previous versions of NAV let you create a checksum of program file contents for verification when accessed. If the result didn't match, then the file must have been modified. This is now missing, although NAV still uses inoculation to protect the hard disk boot records.

The main NAV program provides on-demand scanning that can be extended to mapped as well as local drives. NAV acquitted itself well during testing, as it identified all 50 test viruses thrown at it, which included boot sector, multipartite and polymorphic varieties. Word and Excel macro viruses were also dispatched efficiently, leaving genuine macros intact. However, it was unable to repair a number of files and it's here that the value of backup becomes apparent. The only way to clean them is to restore them from a clean copy.

If an infection does occur, a Wizard will guide you gently through the repair process. Unfortunately, when an infected floppy disk is identified, you get an ugly DOS screen menu allowing to you run immediate repairs or ignore the problem. Choose the latter and NAV grants full access to the disk, so allowing the virus to live another day to cause potential mayhem.