2010-09-02, 02:32 AM
I use the following tools for my clients and my home PCs and a few reviews on some of them I've had experience with. Most of these are free tools by the way.
Anti-Virus/Anti-malware/Firewall:
Microsoft Security Essentials - Free and has a low footprint to the memory. Works well and has daily updates. I haven't had any customers call me with complaints yet.
Avast! Free Home - Free and my normal inclusion with customized or restored PCs. Daily updates are a plus as well as being free and easy to register. Has a low footprint in the memory and has a Silent/Gaming mode to make updates quiet and less noticed when gaming. My top pick for Anti-Virus software.
Symantec EndPoint Protection - Not free but you can get a cheap copy off newegg.com for about 50 bucks or less. Normally this is sold in bulk packs of 5 or more. Has a low memory footprint and includes a Software Stateful Packet Firewall as well. Boot time scan is great for keeping the nasties off the system. Oddly this is the same as Norton Internet Security but without the memory hogging effects and flashy interface.
*Normally I recommend sticking to Windows Defender for anti-malware but some Anti-Virus software includes a malware scanner and active detection tools. Some will disable Windows Defender, others won't allowing for extra protection.
Spybot Search and Destroy - One of the best anti-malware tools I've used. Includes a few system tweaking tools, a registry cleaner, and an active scanner as well (if you install it). Has a tool to immunize the system to prevent malware from attaching to and infecting files. My top pick for malware removal and prevention.
MalwareBytes - Free if you need a standalone scanner, but the active scanner and website blocking tool is not free. Still good for finding deeply buried malware in a system.
SuperAntiSpyware - Corny name but great at finding malware. Free as a standalone scanner but not free for it's advanced tools.
*Normally I suggest people use the built-in Windows Firewall not only to save money, but keep the excess software off the system unless absolutely needed. Plus if you have a Router you should use it as a Hardware Firewall anyway.
Agnitum Free Firewall - I only recommend this Firewall as an additional tool to keep your PC safe and only if you're anti-virus did not include one already.
PC Tuning Tools:
CCleaner - One of the best tools I have used for cleaning up a PC. Great for cleaning the Registry, and includes some optimization tools as well. Also includes variated levels of file overwriting for security.
Steven Gould's CleanUp! - *For XP Only* Quick and dirty but it can find all sorts of garbage files to toss out. Do not use this on Vista/7.
Defraggler - From the same makers of CCleaner. It's not the best, but it does a lot better than the DeFrag tool included with Windows.
Misc:
Recuva - One of the best file recovery tools I've used. It's free and does deep scanning for lost and deleted data. Great for PC techs needign to recover deleted or lost files.
*Also word to the wise... You see a lot of these so-called one click fix products advertised on TV at times such as MyCleanPC, FinallyFast, and StopSign. As a licensed PC technician, I recommend avoiding these at all costs as most of these tools do little more than scan a computer and generate false positives and false reports of problems, and are little more than scams promoting scare-ware and fake anti-virus products that are loaded with malware. Great PC tools do not need to be advertised on TV.
Anti-Virus/Anti-malware/Firewall:
Microsoft Security Essentials - Free and has a low footprint to the memory. Works well and has daily updates. I haven't had any customers call me with complaints yet.
Avast! Free Home - Free and my normal inclusion with customized or restored PCs. Daily updates are a plus as well as being free and easy to register. Has a low footprint in the memory and has a Silent/Gaming mode to make updates quiet and less noticed when gaming. My top pick for Anti-Virus software.
Symantec EndPoint Protection - Not free but you can get a cheap copy off newegg.com for about 50 bucks or less. Normally this is sold in bulk packs of 5 or more. Has a low memory footprint and includes a Software Stateful Packet Firewall as well. Boot time scan is great for keeping the nasties off the system. Oddly this is the same as Norton Internet Security but without the memory hogging effects and flashy interface.
*Normally I recommend sticking to Windows Defender for anti-malware but some Anti-Virus software includes a malware scanner and active detection tools. Some will disable Windows Defender, others won't allowing for extra protection.
Spybot Search and Destroy - One of the best anti-malware tools I've used. Includes a few system tweaking tools, a registry cleaner, and an active scanner as well (if you install it). Has a tool to immunize the system to prevent malware from attaching to and infecting files. My top pick for malware removal and prevention.
MalwareBytes - Free if you need a standalone scanner, but the active scanner and website blocking tool is not free. Still good for finding deeply buried malware in a system.
SuperAntiSpyware - Corny name but great at finding malware. Free as a standalone scanner but not free for it's advanced tools.
*Normally I suggest people use the built-in Windows Firewall not only to save money, but keep the excess software off the system unless absolutely needed. Plus if you have a Router you should use it as a Hardware Firewall anyway.
Agnitum Free Firewall - I only recommend this Firewall as an additional tool to keep your PC safe and only if you're anti-virus did not include one already.
PC Tuning Tools:
CCleaner - One of the best tools I have used for cleaning up a PC. Great for cleaning the Registry, and includes some optimization tools as well. Also includes variated levels of file overwriting for security.
Steven Gould's CleanUp! - *For XP Only* Quick and dirty but it can find all sorts of garbage files to toss out. Do not use this on Vista/7.
Defraggler - From the same makers of CCleaner. It's not the best, but it does a lot better than the DeFrag tool included with Windows.
Misc:
Recuva - One of the best file recovery tools I've used. It's free and does deep scanning for lost and deleted data. Great for PC techs needign to recover deleted or lost files.
*Also word to the wise... You see a lot of these so-called one click fix products advertised on TV at times such as MyCleanPC, FinallyFast, and StopSign. As a licensed PC technician, I recommend avoiding these at all costs as most of these tools do little more than scan a computer and generate false positives and false reports of problems, and are little more than scams promoting scare-ware and fake anti-virus products that are loaded with malware. Great PC tools do not need to be advertised on TV.