I know i wasn't given the option when updating from 2014 to 2015.
And I didn't have it installed in Avast 2014.
As far as I know, i shouldn't even be able to get that tool with the free version.
They try to sneak Chrome in, but that is the only option i could opt out of...
If you do a clean install of Avast you should get a screen where you can select or unselect all the optional "Bloat".
I would unselect everything, i don't want any of the extra stuff, but that's my personal choice.
I feel i have other programs to do what i want, i don't want my AV doing all kinds of other things...
Doing an in-program update i didn't get that screen...
Yup, that's what happened to me and it seems the same thing happened to LF.
Avast SHOULD carry forward settings and options when doing a program update (imho), but ...
Anything new or different, the user should be given a choice (imho).
I guess there are 3 scenarios:A new clean installI decided to try the in-program update for my last version update...and that's when it installed the "NG/VM/Sandbox" tool.
Running the latest installer to install a new version "over-the-top" of an existing version.
Doing an in-program update from within Avast while Avast is running
Looks like I'll use a 4th option: Avoid Avast until and unless they sober up.
Honestly---what's the thought process of programmers who would not carry over old config settings---unless of course an order came down from on high to drive people toward a paid product or? Certainly it's intentional, not a mistake/bug.
I can't argue with you on any of that.
When I saw what happened to me updating the other day, my first thought was get rid of Avast.
I decided to try uninstalling the VM/NG tool, and that was an easy fix that works without issue for me so far ...
I've used Avast for many years, so I'm stubborn or leary of replacing it completely ...
I use/test other AV's on some of my test systems, but i don't want to get into a "what's the best AV".
I've read some people think Avast is now being "controlled" by marketing.
That's why they are adding all these features (bloat), and not concentrating on "basic AV" as they did in their younger days.
The new features increase sales and profits ...
For what it's worth:
I maintain 4 PCs here. All have Win 7 HP, all have Avast Free. All Avast settings are identical.
2 PCs developed the 50% System restore "bug". 2 did not. Deleting all restore points and setting System Restore back to 3% worked and has stuck on both (going on 4 weeks now).
Probably not as simple as it JUST being Avast. Like many computer issues the problem is most likely a combination of things.
Still, not as serious a bug as the current Panda Free Antivirus issue.
Panda antivirus mistakenly flags itself as malware, bricks PCs
Yes, imaging is more reliable. But unless you make daily images, you can still lose work when you have to set back to last weeks image. In that case a quick system restore is helpful (if it works).
It is also useful for retrieving lost files with Shadow Explorer. That's why I also have restore points in my data partitions.
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