Norton AntiVirus Corporate Edition (NAVCE)
Installation and Setup

The British Institute – Bandung
Last Updated November 16, 2001
By Matthew Arciniega

This document outlines a procedure for installing and configuring NAVCE v7.5x at TBI Dipatiukur, Bandung. It can also serve as a quick introduction for anybody who must administer the NAVCE system in the absence of a knowledgeable SysAdmin.

Before you start installing, have a look at the NAVCE Pre-Installation Guide from Disk 1. Then, to make sense of that, and to see how I recommend it be applied at TBI, come back to this document.

NAVCE Components

NAVCE consists of several components. You must understand their basic functions and decide where you are going to install them before you do anything.

Symantec System Center (SSC)
This is a management console snap-in for the Microsoft Management Console, so it should be installed on a computer running the MMC, such as Windows 2000 Pro or Server. It allows the administrator to define server groups, establish settings on those groups (such as frequency of updates and scans) and manually initiate virus sweeps on those groups and on individual computers. There are optional components that let you remotely install the Antivirus Server or Client to Windows NT/2000 machines. The Central Quarantine Console and the Alert Management System console (discussed below) are also part of the SSC. To centralize administration of the network, I recommend installing the SSC on our primary domain controller. However, installing it to the same system as the NAVCE Server is another option.

NAVCE Server
This is used to protect the computer on which it is running, to download program and virus definition updates using the Norton LiveUpdate program, and to distribute the virus def files to other machines on the network.

The NAVCE Server should reside on a computer running Windows 2000 Pro or Server. It is not necessary that the computer be devoted exclusively to this function; it can easily double as a workstation if needs be, and if the workstation hardware is powerful enough. However, because of its central role, there are advantages to having it on an admin-only machine where it can be closely monitored and updates initiated without disturbing a workstation user. At the very least, I don’t recommend installing the service on a computer that supplies file services, user authentication, or DHCP because of the potential for network congestion. For the time being, I recommend installing the NAVCE Server on one of the Internet servers.

Norton AntiVirus CE Desktop Client
Installed on any Windows machine, this is the engine that does the work of virus scanning. It can be administered from the client machine by the individual user and used to initiate manual and scheduled scans. However, it can also be remotely administered from the SSC—which is what we generally want at TBI. The client can be remotely installed from the SSC to any computer running Windows NT/2000. It can be automatically installed on Windows 9x clients through logon scripts.

Central Quarantine
There are two components to this, a Server and a management Console. The Quarantine Server provides a central location for client computers to forward copies of virus-infected files for review and submission to SARC, the Symantec AntiVirus Research Center. You will probably not be using this feature—unless you have a licensed copy of NAVCE. However, this component also allows you to set policy options for what happens to files when newly-arrived virus def files are able to clean them.

Hard disk space on this computer should be sufficient for quarantined files (500 MB – 1 GB is probably sufficient for TBI). The Quarantine Console is installed as part of the SSC to establish quarantine settings and work with quarantined files. I recommend installing Central Quarantine to the same computer as NAVCE Server. The Quarantine Console must reside on the same machine as the SSC.

Alert Management System (AMS)
This is an optional component of both the SSC and NAVCE Server installations. It allows the Norton AV Server and Quarantine components to generate status and error messages, which can then be forwarded to the SSC computer and displayed in a number of ways, including as pop-up windows and as System Event messages.

LiveUpdate Administration Utility
This is an optional component that is really only useful if you have a number of different Symantec/Norton products and want to be able to update them all from a central location on a local file server. At TBI it will probably never be necessary to install this component.

Installation of Components

Installation will disrupt the network for a few minutes during each reboot of the DC (2x) and Internet server (1x). The order of installation is important, as some components simply will not install unless others have been installed previously. The install location will follow the recommendations made above.

  1. Install Symantec System Center (Disk 1)
    Install to the primary domain controller. Note that of the three sub-components you can choose to install, the Microsoft Management Console (MMC) will already exist on the domain controller, and the checkbox should be deselected. DO NOT reinstall the MMC! DO install the other two sub-components. You’ll be asked for the name of a default Server group. Just call it TBI Group. Reboot the computer when the install is finished.
     
  2. Install Norton Antivirus Snap-in (Disk 2)
    Install to the primary domain controller.
     
  3. Install Symantec System Center Console Add-ons (Disk 2)
    Install to the primary domain controller. Reboot the computer.
     
  4. (Optional) Install LiveUpdate Administration Utility (Disk 1)
    Install this to a file server if you want to set up a Central LiveUpdate. Again, at TBI this component will probably never need to be installed, as we can use a simpler and more direct means of updating our virus definition files.
     
  5. Install the Quarantine Console Snap-in (Disk 1)
    Install to the primary domain controller.
     
  6. Install Central Quarantine Locally (Disk 1)
    Install to the Internet server that will also host the NAVCE Server component.
     
  7. Install Norton Antivirus to Servers
    Install to the Internet server where you previously installed Central Quarantine. Reboot the computer. You should now see the NAVCE shield icon in the System Tray.

Configuration of Components

You’re now ready to configure NAVCE and get familiar with the components. Start by opening Norton AntiVirus Corporate Edition on the NAVCE Server machine (the Internet server, if you’ve followed the above recommendations). You’ll have to provide the default Server Group password, which is “symantec”. Click on the Configure node in the tree on the left. Have a look at the available options, but you probably won’t need to change the default settings. Go back to the root node and click the LiveUpdate button to run LiveUpdate and update your virus definition files. When that’s finished, click on the Scan node, click Scan Computer, check the My Computer box, and click the Scan button to run a full system scan.

No go to your primary DC and open the Symantec System Center Console. Expand all the nodes under the Symantec System Center node. You’ll be asked for the default password (“symantec”) to unlock the TBI server group. Right-click on TBI Group and select Configure Server Group Password. Enter a new password, if the default is not to your liking. After that, right-click on System Hierarchy, select Properties, and uncheck the Lock all server groups when exiting console box. We won’t have a need for such security precautions as long as the SSC is on a domain controller accessible only by SysAdmins.

In the SSC console, under Symantec System Center/System Hierarchy/TBI Group, you should see an icon for the NAVCE server. If you don’t, you’ll need to run a “network discovery”. Look for the Tools menu in the SSC console, and select Discovery Service. Click the Run Discovery Now button. While you’re there, set the Discovery Interval to 1440 minutes (the maximum). This will reduce network traffic, since our network rarely changes, and once our server has been discovered the information is cached for subsequent use.

Once you can see the NAVCE Server, you can start installing clients. However, it’s best to tweak some administrative settings before you do that, so as to avoid extra reboots for your clients.

Set Administrator Only Options
In the SSC console, right-click the server icon. Select All Tasks/Norton AntiVirus/Client Administrator Only Options. I recommend checking all boxes except Display message when definitions are outdated. There is no real need for this, since a SysAdmin can see immediately from the SSC which clients are using outdated definitions and which are current.

Set Realtime Protection Options
Now right-click the server icon again. This time, select All Tasks/Norton AntiVirus/Client Realtime Protection Options. You can accept the default protection settings, but click all the padlock icons so that workstation users cannot change your system-wide settings. In Drive Types, you may want to clear the Network checkbox.

Configure Virus Definition Manager
This is a crucial area. Right-click the NAVCE Server name in the SSC console. Select All Tasks/Norton AntiVirus/Virus Definition Manager. Notice that there are two parts to this window. The top half is for configuring NAVCE servers, while the bottom half is for configuring clients.

In the server section, select Update the Primary Server of this Server Group only, and click Configure. Notice the Update Now button; this is another way to update your virus definitions. Click the box that says Schedule for Automatic Updates if it’s not already checked. The default update interval is one week, which should be fine. You might want to change the day and hour, though. Click OK until you’re back to the Virus Definition Manager main window.

In the client section, check Update Virus Definitions from Parent Server. Uncheck Schedule client for automatic updates using LiveUpdate. Check Do not allow clients to launch LiveUpdate. Click the Settings button and enter the update check interval. Once per day (1440 minutes) should be enough. Click OK until you’re back to the SSC console.

Configure Central Quarantine and set  Quarantine Options
From the SSC console, right-click Symantec Central Quarantine and select Attach to Server. Enter the NetBIOS name of the Quarantine Server in the first blank (the same computer as the NAVCE Server, if you’ve followed my recommendations). Click OK.

Right-click Symantec Central Quarantine again and select Properties. In the Protocols section, check Listen on IP, and enter a port number of 1500 (or another number over 1025 if port 1500 is being used for other purposes on the network). Click OK.

Now right-click the TBI group folder and select All Tasks/Norton AntiVirus/Quarantine Options. Check Enable Quarantine or Scan and Deliver and select Allow Forwarding to Quarantine Server. Enter the Quarantine Server name, the port number (1500) and select IP as the Protocol. Now select your policy choice for what happens When new virus definitions arrive. I recommend Repair silently without restoring. This gives the SysAdmin a chance to review the file to determine if it really warrants restoration. Click OK, and you’re done.

Schedule a Server Group Scan
Right-click the TBI group folder and select All Tasks/Norton AntiVirus/Scheduled Scans. Click New. Set the frequency of network-wide scans (at least once a week). Before you click OK, click Scan Settings, then Options. Set the CPU Utilization checkbox, and move the slider a notch or two to the left. This will insure the system doesn’t become too sluggish if the scan is run during normal usage hours. Naturally, if you intend to run these scans during off-hours, you can set the CPU utilization higher, and the scan will complete more quickly. Click OK until you’re back to the console.

Installing Clients

For NT/2000 machines, select NT Client Install from the Tools menu and follow the directions to remotely install the NAVCE client simultaneously on all computers. You may have to reboot those computers before the NAVCE service can start.

For Win9x machines, copy Disk 2 of the NAVCE installation set to a network share, then run the cdstart application from each Win9x client. Choose to install the NAVCE client locally. When asked, specify that you want to use a “managed” client, and select an NAVCE server. You’ll have to reboot these clients before the NAVCE service starts.

Note: It is also possible to automate the installation with logon scripts, but this only works if an NT domain is up and running. The procedure is not covered here, but I’ve attached a Symantec KnowledgeBase article that explains how to do it.

That’s all there is to it. In less than 15 minutes all your clients should appear in the SSC when you click on the server name. And pretty soon the server will push the new virus definition files onto your clients. When you see in your SSC console that this is the case, it would be a good idea to run a virus sweep to make sure the network is starting out clean. Obviously, if the network still contains many slower machines, then off-hours would be best for this. To run the sweep, right-click on the server name and select All Tasks/Norton AntiVirus/Start Virus Sweep. There is no need to change the default parameters.

For further information, such as how to configure the very useful Alert Management System, refer to the product documentation.

A final note of caution: what you do in the SSC can affect the virus-detecting capabilities of your entire network. Make sure you know what a setting does before you start tweaking.

 

END OF DOCUMENT