What is VirusScan for Mac?
VirusScan for Mac virus-protection software that is available for use on College-owned and personally-owned
Apple computers of faculty, staff and students running Mac OS X version 10.4 or later.
VirusScan for Mac or Virex (VirusScan's predecessor) is standard software on every public and office
Macintosh. If VirusScan for Mac is not already on your Mac running Mac OS X version 10.4 or later,
you can install the software using the instructions below.
VirusScan for Macs is the latest version of software previously known as Virex.
Even if you have VirusScan for Mac installed on your computer, you must still update your
VirusScan for Mac virus definition files regularly to keep your virus-protection software up-to-date.
The instructions for installing VirusScan for Mac 8.5 will include information on how VirusScan for Mac 8.5 will
automatically download and install the latest virus definitions available for your computer.
Installing VirusScan for Mac 8.5
To install VirusScan for Mac on your computer, you must have Mac OS X version 10.4 or later
installed on your computer.
To make sure that your computer is running Mac OS X version 10.4 or later, go to the Apple Menu
in the upper left corner of your computer and select "About this Mac." Under the words
"Mac OS X" it will list the version number. If you are running a version of Mac OS X
that is earlier than version 10.4, you cannot install VirusScan for Mac 8.5.
This install will take approximately 10-30 minutes, depending on
the speed of the computer and the number of files on the
computer.
- Before you install VirusScan for Mac, make sure your operating system is
up-to-date and any previous versions of Virex are uninstalled. If you have a previous
version of Virex
installed on your computer, the VirusScan for Mac Installer displays a message
and aborts its installation. You can use the uninstaller that is included
as a part of the installation program for the version of Virex you have
installed on your computer (copies of the Virex installers can be found on the ResNet
Software drive, mentioned below).
- If you have virus protection software other than Virex
installed on your Macintosh, please refer to the documentation that
came with that software to uninstall it.
Having multiple copies of virus-protection software installed on a computer
can cause severe performance problems.
If you do not have the original software manuals for your existing non-Virex
virus-protection
software, you may want to refer to the software manufacturer's web site for
instructions.
- You must have administrative privileges to install this software.
Obtain VirusScan for Mac 8.5
(These instructions must be completed on the Saint Mary's Campus.)
- Print a copy of these directions so that you can reference
them during the install.
- Log into Diamond and mount the ResNet Software volume if it isn't already mounted.
- From the Go menu, select Connect to Server...
- In the Address field,
type diamond.saintmarys.edu and click Connect.
- When prompted, type in your Saint Mary's login and password.
(This is the same login and password that you use to
check your Saint Mary's e-mail.) Then click OK. When you are successfully
logged in, another dialog box
will open.
- Note that you will need to use the scroll bar on the right of the
list of names to see all these items.
Some of the items may be greyed out; this is normal.
One of the options will be ResNet Software - click once of ResNet Software
to highlight it and click OK.
- The ResNet Software icon will appear on your desktop.
- Insert a CD-R or CD-RW into your Mac's CD-R or CD-RW
drive. If your Mac on campus does not have a CD-R or CD-RW drive, all of the Macs
in Trumper have CD-RW drives, and you can complete this section of the VirusScan for Mac instructions
on one of those Macs.
NOTE:You can obtain the VirusScan for Mac software from any Mac OS X
computer, but you cannot install on any computer not running Mac OS X version 10.4 or later.
- Double-click on the ResNet Software icon on your desktop.
- Double-click on the For Mac OS X Users folder.
- Drag the VirusScan for Mac 8.5 folder to your to the icon of the CD you inserted
and wait for it to copy over.
- Eject the CD by dragging the icon of the disk to the
Trash/Eject/Disconnect icon in your dock.
You will be asked if you would like to burn the
data onto the CD. Click OK (or Burn) and wait for the information to be copied onto the CD.
When the CD is done burning, you can eject it.
- Drag the ResNet Software icon on your desktop to the Trash/Eject/Disconnect icon
in your dock to unmount the network drive.
Install VirusScan for Mac 8.5
(These instructions should be completed on your off-campus Macintosh.)
- Restart your Macintosh (and log in when prompted).
- Insert the CD you burned using the instructions above.
- Double-click on the icon of the CD.
- Double-click on the VirusScan for Mac 8.5 folder.
- Double-click on the VSM85LML.zip file. It will expand, giving you a VSM85LML
Folder on your desktop.
- Double-click on the VSM85LML Folder.
- Double-click on the VirusScan 8.5.dmg file.
- Double-click on VirusScan 8.5 disk that appears on your desktop.
(A window for that folder should automatically open.)
- Double-click on VirusScan.pkg file.
- The installer will launch, and you will be asked if you would like to
run a program to determine if the VirusScan software can be installed.
Click Continue.
- In the McAfee VirusScan for Mac 8.5 window, click Continue.
- In the Release Notes for McAfee VirusScan for Mac window, click Continue.
- Read the software license agreement and click Continue.
- Click Agree.
- Select a destination volume for VirusScan for Mac 8.5 by clicking on the icon of
the drive you choose.
(You should select your hard drive - Macintosh HD - as the destination volume.
If your hard drive is partitioned or if you have more than one hard disk installed,
you should install VirusScan for Mac 8.5 on the same partition Mac OS X is installed on.)
- Click Continue.
- Click Install.
- Type in the administrator username and password when prompted. Click OK.
- The software will install and optimize your system performance.
- When the installation is complete, you will be asked to configure the On Access Scanner.
In most cases, the best option for users is "Write Only" - this option has less impact on system
performance and still offers strong anti-virus protection. Select your option and click
Continue.
- Click Restart to finish the software installation on your computer.
- After the computer has restarted, log in as normal.
- Launch VirusScan for Mac - it will be where you selected it to be installed earlier in
this process. In most cases, you can launch it by double-clicking on the Macintosh HD icon on your
desktop, double-clicking on the Applications folder, and then double-clicking on the
VirusScan icon.
- Click on the eUpdate button near the bottom of the VirusScan for Mac window.
- Click the green Start
button to download the latest virus definition (DAT) files available.
Please be patient as this process downloads and installs the update.
- In the VirusScan for Mac window, you can tell how current your virus definitions (DAT)
are - it will list both the DAT version and the date of the DAT installed.
- By default, VirusScan for Mac will automatically check for virus definition (DAT) updates
and download any definitions that are more recent than the ones you already have.
- It is recommended that you place an alias to VirusScan for Mac 8.5 in your Mac OS X
Dock. To do this, locate the VirusScan for Mac 8.5 application icon
(double-click on the Macintosh HD, double-click on the Applications folder). Click once on the
VirusScan icon and drag it to
the Dock. Release the mouse button to place the icon for VirusScan for Mac 8.5 in the Dock.
- Congratulations! You finished the VirusScan for Mac installation.
- Scan your computer now that you have the latest virus protection.
- You can initiate a scan on your Mac at any time by opening VirusScan for Mac,
making sure the Scan & Clean button in the window is selected, and
dragging the file(s) you wish to scan into the center pane of the console,
dropping them into the Drop items or click here box, then clicking the Start button.
You can drag the icon of your hard drive (Macintosh HD) to scan your entire hard drive.
Please be patient as the scans run - the length of time it takes to scan your files
will vary based on the speed of your computer and the number of files you are scanning.
Using VirusScan for Mac
VirusScan for Mac 8.5 automatically scans every file that you write to your computer's disk.
Launching VirusScan for Mac 8.5
- Double-click on the Macintosh HD
(or the drive you installed VirusScan for Mac 8.5 on).
- Double-click on the Applications folder.
- Double-click on the VirusScan icon.
OR
- Click on the VirusScan icon in your Dock.
- Locate the VirusScan for Mac 8.5 application icon
(double-click on the Macintosh HD, double-click on the Applications folder). Click once on the
VirusScan icon and drag it to
the Dock. Release the mouse button to place the icon for VirusScan for Mac 8.5 in the Dock.
Manually scanning your hard drive and disks
Whenever VirusScan for Mac is newly installed or updated you should scan your hard drive immediately.
Information Technology recommends scanning your hard drive regularly, at least once a week.
To scan for viruses after launching the VirusScan for Mac application:
- Launch VirusScan for Mac 8.5.
- Making sure the Clean & Scan button in the VirusScan for Mac window is selected.
- Drag the file(s) you wish to scan into the center pane of the console,
dropping them into the Drop items or click here box.
You can drag the icon of your hard drive (Macintosh HD) to scan your entire hard drive.
- Click the Start button.
- Please be patient as the scans run - the length of time it takes to scan your files
will vary based on the speed of your computer and the number of files you are scanning.
To scan for viruses without launching the VirusScan for Mac application first:
- Select one or more items you want to scan with VirusScan.
- Drag the item(s) onto the VirusScan icon in the Dock.
You can drag many types of items, including documents, files, folders or volumes.
You can also scan files by dragging them onto the VirusScan for Mac 8.5 icon in the Applications
folder.
- Click the Start button.
- Please be patient as the scans run - the length of time it takes to scan your files
will vary based on the speed of your computer and the number of files you are scanning.
To configure your computer to automatically scan for viruses with VirusScan for Mac on a schedule:
The VirusScan Schedule Editor allows you to create repetitive scans on a group of files or folders.
You can schedule daily, weekly, and monthly scans.
- Launch VirusScan for Mac 8.5.
- Go to the View menu and select Scheduled Tasks...
The VirusScan Schedule Editor dialog box appears.
- Click the New Scan Task button. The New Scan Task window appears.
- Name the task you will be creating.
Use a name that describes the scan you are scheduling ("My Weekly Virus Scan").
- Click on the Set button to specify the Date & Time of the first scheduled scan.
You can choose Local Time (Eastern time) or UTC. UTC is Universal Time Coordinated (Greenwich Mean Time).
VirusScan for Mac 8.5 uses a 24-hour clock, so scheduling a scan to start at 5:00pm would be set to
start at 17:00.
- Identify the items you want scanned. You can do this by:
- Dragging and dropping items into the Scan Items box.
- Clicking on the Scan Items pane. A Choose Item dialog box appears.
Click Choose when you have selected the file(s) to scan.
- Choose how often you want the scan to run from the Recurrence pop-up menu. Choose from:
- Daily: Type the sequence of days that the scan will perform.
- Weekly: Select the day(s) of the week on which you want the scan to occur.
- Monthly: Select the day(s) of the month the scan will occur, and the sequence of months.
- Never: Select this option if you do not want the scan to reoccur.
- Specify when the schedule will end (or select No end date).
- Click OK.
- Your new scan task appears in a list of all scheduled scans and eUpdates in the VirusScan
Schedule Editor. To enable or disable scheduled tasks, select the check box next to the task item.
- Close the VirusScan Schedule Editor window.
Note: If the computer is turned off during a scheduled task, VirusScan will skip the task
when the computer is turned back on.
- Please be patient as the scans run - the length of time it takes to scan your files
will vary based on the speed of your computer and the number of files you are scanning.
Quitting VirusScan for Mac
While in the VirusScan application, go to the VirusScan menu and select Quit VirusScan.
Manually updating Virex Virus Definitions
A new virus definition is written for every new virus.
New virus definitions are available on a regular basis by McAfee (The writers
of VirusScan) in order to be effective against the latest viruses.
To check which virus definitions you have, launch VirusScan for Mac 8.5 and note
the date of the Virus Definitions in the Results box in the center of the splash window.
VirusScan for Mac 8.5 will let you know if there are newer virus definition files available
and allow you to download and install them.
You can also force an update of your virus definition files by launching VirusScan for Mac.
In the VirusScan for Mac window that apears, click on the eUpdate button. Click the green Start
button to download the latest virus definition (DAT) files available.
Please be patient as this process downloads and installs the update.
Configuring VirusScan for Mac to automatically update its Virus Definitions
If you installed VirusScan for Mac 8.5 from Saint Mary's College and left the preferences at their default
settings, the software should automatically update its virus definitions.
To restore the default preferences for VirusScan for Mac 8.5:
- Launch the VirusScan for Mac 8.5 application.
- In the VirusScan for Mac window that apears, click the Preferences icon.
- Check the box next to Automatically check for virus definition updates.
(You may need to click on the lock icon in the lower left corner of that window
and type in your administrator username and password before you can check the box.)
- Close the Preferences window.