JAHAYES%MIAMIU.BITNET@OHSTVMA.IRCC.OHIO-STATE.EDU (Josh Hayes) (12/04/90)
Since posting my innocent suggestion for eliminating WDEF (rebuilding the desktop), and a minor complaint about the idiots in my department who continue to re-infect themselves, time and time again, I've gotten lots of mail on the subject. In the hopes of stemming that tide, and maybe even passing on some useful information, here are several of the things people have told me to use, as I remember them: 1) Gatekeeper / Gatekeeper Aid. This will detect any disk that is infected and remove the infection while u wait, apparently very efficiently. Several reports swear by it for eliminating the kind of recurrence that has been plaguing my department. 2) Of course, Disinfectant 2.3 (indeed, I think 2.x) detects and can remove the virus from any disk, if the init is installed or on regular scans of a series of disks. 3) SAM (Symantec's product) also received a couple of plaudits, but of course, it's commercial, unlike the first two. 4) Finally, the solution I used, a nice little INIT called Eradicat'em, kindly sent me by Dave Platt (platt@coherent.com; I sent thanks, Dave, but my mailer is too stupid to find you. Thanks!) which, once installed, quietly and in the background MURDERS infections of WDEF. Hah! I went around about a week ago in the dead of night and installed it on every machine I could get my hands on -- and this is the moderately unethical part -- I convinced the icon not to show up on startup. Shhh. Don't tell anyone. But magically, we have no more WDEF troubles. And that's not my job, anyway; I'm supposed to be using my computers to model acid rain-induced changes in lake water chemistry....now I can get back to work ( :-), I think....) Again, thanks to all who sent replies and comments. You can stop now. Josh Hayes, Zoology Department, Miami University, Oxford OH 45056 voice: 513-529-1679 fax: 513-529-6900 jahayes@miamiu.bitnet, or jahayes@miamiu.acs.muohio.edu "I am the Supreme Being, you know; I'm not completely dim."
mike@pyrite.SOM.CWRU.Edu (Michael Kerner) (12/06/90)
And, for those of you who are relatively ignorant on the Macs, don't forget VirusDetective/Virus Bockade.... Mikey.