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Security software changes in Windows 7 RC

Apr. 25, 2009 Paul Thurrott | Paul Thurrott's Supersite for Windows

I had noticed in one of the previous post-Beta interim builds of Windows 7 that ESET NOD32 was throwing up an Action Center message to the effect that it was incompatible with the way security software communicates its status; previously, NOD32 worked just fine. In the RC build, this has been formalized with an appearance by the familiar Program Compatibility Assistant window shown here. There's no fix as of yet, but I suspect this change will affect more than just NOD32. I will check.

I don't see any documentation about what's changed with regards to security software, but I'll ask Microsoft during our Windows 7 RC briefing early next week.

UPDATE: I should note that this is NOD32 3.x. I've been told that 4.0 works without complaint.

Discuss this Article 12

Waethorn
on Apr 25, 2009
@Paul: It's likely the anti-spy/malware section of Windows 7 Action Center. Windows Vista and XP don't have those sections.
Waethorn
on Apr 25, 2009
Sorry, my mistake. Vista does have the anti-malware stuff. I bet it's a different API though.
darkmax
on Apr 25, 2009
I use Comodo Internet Security and it has been giving me, upon installation, a message telling me the way it reports to Windows 7 is no longer supported (or something to that effect). These did not exist in 7057, it started in 7077. I guess these compatibility issues are more wide-spread than just a few anti-malwares.
Waethorn
on Apr 25, 2009
Let's play "Where's Morro?" instead.
mikegalos@msn.com
on Apr 25, 2009
Waethorn Just as an FYI, even Windows XP SP2 had a section where anti-malware apps reported their status. Of course the Action Center's Security section in Windows 7 is a LOT more sophisticated than Windows Security Center that was introduced five years ago with XP SP2.
Waethorn
on Apr 25, 2009
"even Windows XP SP2 had a section where anti-malware apps reported their status." I thought it was only anti-virus....
mikegalos@msn.com
on Apr 25, 2009
Wae Anti-virus is a type of anti-malware. If I remember back that far, SP2 didn't report on anti-spyware (another type of anti-malware) but it's been many years since I've used XP SP2. XP SP2 Security Center was a huge step forward in integrating firewall and software update and anti-virus status all in one place but it was much, much less sophisticated than what came in Vista which is much less sophisticated than what comes with Windows 7.
subzerohitman721
on Apr 25, 2009
It is very nice to know that Microsoft is getting better at addressing incompatibilities and informing users of known issues. The more information users have, the better they can make informed decisions. I also commend them for the speed in which they have been addressing incompatibilities in Windows 7 and Vista.
robertsjoe
on Apr 25, 2009
There's no change in Windows' security. It's still really bad. And you still need to run anti-virus, anti-spyware, anti-rootkit et al on your system. Otherwise it'll be hosed within minutes.
Waethorn
on Apr 25, 2009
@mike: That's what I meant. So how different is Action Center from Security Center as far as the comm/reporting API's?
mikegalos@msn.com
on Apr 25, 2009
Waethorn Just from looking at it from an end-user point of view, they've obviously increased the messages that can be sent. What can be controlled from inside Action Center without having to launch the AV/AS/FW is much more powerful than it used to be. From a security point of view, I'd assume that there's been an ongoing hardening of the communications paths to make sure they stay secure but as a user you'd never see that. Needless to say, those communications have always been very securely locked down.
pthurrott
on Apr 26, 2009
Waethorn, instead of playing "Where's Morro?", why don't we just play "Pay attention"? Microsoft previously announced that it would ship a beta version of Morro at the end of 2009 and the final version in 2010. Given that it's April 2009 now, I guess one could say that Morro is right on schedule. Certainly, we've heard nothing to contradict that. Moving on.

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