Question Business and Home Network AV concern.

[Jonny Quest]

Hello

I'm just wondering if I should be concerned at all with not having an AV installed on one of my work PCs. Yesterday, my mill stopped during a project and just sat there, in one position with the spindle turning, but going nowhere (example of the milling process shown below).

It has happened to me before and I even had a note on my monitor to unplug any USB backup (WD Passport) and to not have any 3rd party AV installed. I called support, and he said it's the PC not transferring the data to the mill, it is being interrupted and it could be the USB cable. So I uninstalled F-Secure, unplugged WD Passport, and blew out the USB connections, and the mill ran normally.

This PC is part of a home, and business network, so I can send the files to mill from this main PC where I design my work. I have F-Secure installed on this one which is my main PC for receiving .stl files from my accounts, as well as sending files through the vendors portal for designs and milling. This PC, as well as the others, are behind a cheap but up-to-date Linksys router with updated firmware and security settings in place. The other PC is only getting files shared from this PC. Since it's just a task-orientated (the mill PC) is Windows 11 Security good enough and that my real concern should be the "main" PC, as to not spread any malware I could possibly get through to the other two PCs that are connected as well? (3 total PCs that are used daily or routinely)

I do have Kaspersky Plus, which plays nicely with this "main" PC, should I be using that instead of F-Secure for possibly better security? An Enterprise type of AV would be over my head and maybe overkill for my needs.

Thanks for any thoughts or suggestions you may have, I appreciate it

 

[Ink]

Is the Business Network connected to the Internet?

Secondly, does the 1st PC connected to the Mill need Internet-access? Or can it receive files over the local network from the 2nd PC?

If the 2nd PC is Internet-connected then it needs active protection such as Microsoft Defender Antivirus.

What purpose does the 3rd PC serve? Email communications?

 

[Jonny Quest]

Is the Business Network connected to the Internet?

Secondly, does the 1st PC connected to the Mill need Internet-access? Or can it receive files over the local network from the 2nd PC?

If the 2nd PC is Internet-connected then it needs active protection such as Microsoft Defender Antivirus.

What purpose does the 3rd PC serve? Email communications?

Thank you, friend, good questions asked.

Yes, all of the 3 PCs are connected to the internet and have that capability. But, the mill PC does not need internet access, just the ability to share files from the main PC through the router. The only time I need to connect online is for TeamViewer support like I did yesterday, and to get any mill updates...which are rare.

The 3rd PC is used occasionally and is another PC I use for backup milling. It has never had an issue with AV's and is a Windows 7 PC with Avira free running on it.

 

[Jonny Quest]

And maybe this thread started by @vtqhtr413 answers my question since I already have a subscription to Plus.

Kaspersky is AV-Comparatives’ Product of the Year for 2023, having taken the highest Advanced+ award in all seven tests. It additionally receives Silver Awards for the Real-World Protection Test, Malware Protection Test, and Advanced Threat Protection Test along with Bronze Awards for Low False Positives and the Performance Test. In our checks, source malware samples were deleted from USB drives network shares and network shares before they could be copied.

That since everything coming into my network from my main PC would be scanned by Kaspersky, that I wouldn't need to worry about a 3rd party AV on the mill PC. I'm not going outbound with it, or downloading files to it. So, it may have just been resolved?

 

[Guilhermesene]

@Jonny Quest Bitdefender?

 

[Jonny Quest]

@Jonny Quest Bitdefender?

Unfortunately, BD was to heavy handed on two of my work PC's, the one being the main workhorse and it was throwing up errors I had never seen before from the CAD software itself, even though all of those files were in BD AV and ATD Exceptions. Thanks for thinking of me though, my friend

 

[blackice]

USB works great until it doesn’t. Likely just a hiccup with windows USB and the software.

 

[Jonny Quest]

USB works great until it doesn’t. Likely just a hiccup with windows USB and the software.

Thanks for considering that angle, but with Kaspersky and F-Secure, I never got those error messages. Currently, I'm using F-Secure on all the work PC's except the little used Windows 7 PC, and I'm in the process of looking into getting a better router.

 

[Guilhermesene]

Unfortunately, BD was to heavy handed on two of my work PC's, the one being the main workhorse and it was throwing up errors I had never seen before from the CAD software itself, even though all of those files were in BD AV and ATD Exceptions. Thanks for thinking of me though, my friend

When I saw your message, I already remembered the BD (you know why)

Well, if you want a third-party AV I recommend ESET.

ESET is light as a feather, small updates (kb's) and always up to date

I used it for 3 years without interruption and I never got infected or had any problems