Installation couldn't have been easier with just two self-extracting executable files. One for the AVG Build (core software) and the second for the AVG Remote Administration (network administration tool).
NOTE: Before I continue, it's important to note that I do not have my own LAN environment in which to test the AVG Remote Administration tool so this review will focus mainly on the features and performance of the core build software. However, I will touch on the Remote Administration GUI and utilities in the User Interface section.
So let's begin with the specs of my test system:
- Dell XPS 410
- Intel Core2 DUO 6600 (2.40GHz)
- 2.00GB RAM
- 250GB Hard Drive
- Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition (SP2)
The AVG Build installation is quick (no more than 5 minutes) and takes you into the First Run Wizard upon completion. The wizard walks you through configuring scheduled scans. Next the setup asks you for permission to collect certain types of information from your system in order to help AVG identify potential threats on the web. Call me paranoid but I elected to skip this step. The setup then takes you to an update screen that searches the AVG servers for critical "threat detection updates." Interestingly enough the program was already up to date and no updates were needed. (In my 2 weeks of testing, I only had to update twice.) Finally, a system restart was required and setup completed. The entire process took less than 15 minutes. See below for screenshots.
The AVG Remote Administration installation is quick as well (also taken less than 5 minutes). Upon completion, the AVG Admin Server Deployment Wizard launches and walks you through creating a deployment database and an UpdateProxy role. The wizard gives you four different database options to choose from for your deployment database:
- Firebird
- Microsoft SQL Server
- Oracle 10g
- SQL Server 2005 Express
After selecting your database system the wizard creates the database and stores access and mirroring settings to it. Then the wizard takes you through creating the UpdateProxy role. This simply tells the software where to gather (and store) updates for distribution to licensed PCs. The wizard gives you the ability to select the update locations but I simply went with the defaults. See below for screenshots.
