The most lightweight antivirus?

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blackzero

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Could anyone please tell me which one is considered the most lightweight (uses the least RAM/proc) with real time scanning (or resident shield in AVG) feature only?

No need to consider the capability, features (firewall, antimalware etc).
 

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Microsoft Security Essentials :)
 

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Here is mine, I am not really in a position to pass comment on other AV's as it has been so long since i have used any other.
 
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If this is for the machine listed in your system specs then the amount of processes and RAM is not going to to cause system slowdown. There are more important factors such as CPU usage, I/O Reads and I/O Writes.

ESET NOD32 has often been considered very light over the years and it uses 40-50MB. Some find Microsoft Security Essentials heavy but most don't. It uses 50-60MB or sometimes more.

Avast! and Norton are two of ones that use the least amount of RAM. I don't notice either of them on my low specced machine. The last time I used Avast! it tended to use a few MB more when surfing with Firefox but on average they use about the same. Norton currently running:

nis999.png
 
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The best advice is to try and see what you like best. I have run into instances where software appeared to be using very little resources but would affect the time that it took for a browser, email client, or software to open and run. It is all about personal preference. I have heard very good things about MSE and run Avast personally.
 

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you can remove the virus yourself, thats as lights as it gets ;)
 

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hmmmm.....the quest to find the lightest av is an endeavor in vain....for it takes more than just ram usage...to label an av as light...it depends on your OS/other security apps/Disk I/O/no.of processes....an av with a web guard might slow your browsing speed...but its a trade off for better security....some claim to just scan on execution other realtime that would affect your systems response....but which is safer ? that's debatable...so try and settle for one that you and your system likes...
 

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MSE's installer is lightweight but I cannot say that it's light on system resources. On my PC, it eats up like 50-70mb. You might want to consider other AV's out there which consumes less RAM and are more effective than MSE.
 

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Windows 7 Ultimate x64Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Quad Q8200 @ 2.33 GHz2x2GB Kingston DDR21GB AMD Radeon HD 5450
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Custom Built
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Windows 7 Ultimate x64
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Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Quad Q8200 @ 2.33 GHz
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Asus P5KPL-AM SE Motherboard
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2x2GB Kingston DDR2
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1GB AMD Radeon HD 5450
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VIA Technologies High Definition Audio Device
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Samsung SyncMaster 733NW
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1440x900
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SEAGATE 320GB Barracuda® 7200.12, SATA 3 Gb/s, 7200 RPM, 16MB cache x 2
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Custom Casing
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Ice cubes from the freezer ;)
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Generic Plug & Play Keyboard
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Optical Mouse
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Very slow
Avast 5 uses less RAM than MSE

KIS2011 uses 13MB
 

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blackzero said:
Could anyone please tell me which one is considered the most lightweight (uses the least RAM/proc) with real time scanning (or resident shield in AVG) feature only?

No need to consider the capability, features (firewall, antimalware etc).
Click to expand...

if it's not capable, it's not worth having!

however, avira, is widely regarded as being lite.
 

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antec 550
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antec three hundred
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i'm a cooling fan
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saitek eclipse ii
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logitech g3
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about 4 Mbps
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i love win7
mickey megabyte said:
blackzero said:
Could anyone please tell me which one is considered the most lightweight (uses the least RAM/proc) with real time scanning (or resident shield in AVG) feature only?

No need to consider the capability, features (firewall, antimalware etc).
Click to expand...

if it's not capable, it's not worth having!

however, avira, is widely regarded as being lite.
Click to expand...

But Avira is a well known BSOD causer
 

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Windows 10 Pro x64, Arch LinuxIntel Core 2 Quad Q8200 OC'd 3.08GHz8GB DDR2 900MhzMSI GT730 2GB GDDR5 (Kepler)
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PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom Build
OS
Windows 10 Pro x64, Arch Linux
CPU
Intel Core 2 Quad Q8200 OC'd 3.08GHz
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Asus Rampage formula LGA775
Memory
8GB DDR2 900Mhz
Graphics Card(s)
MSI GT730 2GB GDDR5 (Kepler)
Sound Card
Supreme FX2
Monitor(s) Displays
Samsung LS22F350 LED
Screen Resolution
1080P
Hard Drives
Kingston SSDNow UV400 120GB, 500GB Hitachi, 2TB Samsung, 500GB Seagate FreeAgent, 640GB Samsung, 160GB Toshiba (Arch)
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AeroCool 500W Bronze
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Cooler Master V6 + 3X fans
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Prolink keyboard
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Logitech M705
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1MiB/s
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Chrome Beta
yowanvista said:
mickey megabyte said:
blackzero said:
Could anyone please tell me which one is considered the most lightweight (uses the least RAM/proc) with real time scanning (or resident shield in AVG) feature only?

No need to consider the capability, features (firewall, antimalware etc).
Click to expand...

if it's not capable, it's not worth having!

however, avira, is widely regarded as being lite.
Click to expand...

But Avira is a well known BSOD causer
Click to expand...

Avira is also a well-known nagger and has high detection rates at the price of high false positive alarms.
 

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Windows 7 Ultimate x64Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Quad Q8200 @ 2.33 GHz2x2GB Kingston DDR21GB AMD Radeon HD 5450
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PC/Desktop
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Custom Built
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Windows 7 Ultimate x64
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Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Quad Q8200 @ 2.33 GHz
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Asus P5KPL-AM SE Motherboard
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2x2GB Kingston DDR2
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1GB AMD Radeon HD 5450
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VIA Technologies High Definition Audio Device
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Samsung SyncMaster 733NW
Screen Resolution
1440x900
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SEAGATE 320GB Barracuda® 7200.12, SATA 3 Gb/s, 7200 RPM, 16MB cache x 2
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Custom Casing
Cooling
Ice cubes from the freezer ;)
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Generic Plug & Play Keyboard
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Optical Mouse
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Very slow
You could always try a 30 day trial of Norton AV or IS and see how you like it. Their 2011 products seem to be light on system resources.
 

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ASUSTeK Computer Inc.
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8 GB
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Intel(R) HD Graphics Family, NVIDIA GeForce
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Hitachi HTS547575A9E384
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XFINITY
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Trend Micro
Avast and Norton uses the least RAM.
 

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Samsung Electronics
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AMD Radeon™ HD7550M 1GB DDR3 (Ext. Graphic)
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Realtek High Definition Audio
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35.56cm (14.0) SuperBright 300nit HD LED Display
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1366x768
Hard Drives
1TB S-ATA II Hard Drive (5400RPM) with ExpressCache 16GB SSD
Internet Speed
sucks
Antivirus
Microsoft Security Essentials
Browser
Google Chrome (Sync enabled)
I use Eset NOD32 on my gaming machine, doesn't slow me down one bit and it appears to be very small.
 

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HAL-9000
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Asus Sabertooth Z77
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XFX HD6950 2GB EyeFinity
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Antec True Power New 650watt
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Cooler Master HAF-932
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Corsair H60 Hydro Cooler, 3x 230mm Fans, 2x120mm Fan
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Logitech G15 and G13
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Logitech G700 Gaming Mouse
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50/10 Mbit
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Windows® 8 Pro (64-bit)Intel® Core™ i5 Processor 2467M (1.60GHz, 3MB...6GB DDR3 System Memory at 1,333MHz (on BD 4GB...AMD Radeon™ HD7550M 1GB DDR3 (Ext. Graphic)
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Samsung NP530U4B-S02IN
OS
Windows® 8 Pro (64-bit)
CPU
Intel® Core™ i5 Processor 2467M (1.60GHz, 3MB L3 Cache)
Motherboard
Samsung Electronics
Memory
6GB DDR3 System Memory at 1,333MHz (on BD 4GB + 2GB x 1)
Graphics Card(s)
AMD Radeon™ HD7550M 1GB DDR3 (Ext. Graphic)
Sound Card
Realtek High Definition Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
35.56cm (14.0) SuperBright 300nit HD LED Display
Screen Resolution
1366x768
Hard Drives
1TB S-ATA II Hard Drive (5400RPM) with ExpressCache 16GB SSD
Internet Speed
sucks
Antivirus
Microsoft Security Essentials
Browser
Google Chrome (Sync enabled)

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 7 Ultimate (x64) SP1Intel 3770k 4.6GHz8GB (2x 4GB) Crucial BallistixSapphire 7950 (1060/1600)
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
tw33k
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate (x64) SP1
CPU
Intel 3770k 4.6GHz
Motherboard
ASUS Maximus V Formula
Memory
8GB (2x 4GB) Crucial Ballistix
Graphics Card(s)
Sapphire 7950 (1060/1600)
Sound Card
On Board Realtek HD Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
27" Acer B273HU (via HDMI)
Screen Resolution
2048 x 1152
Hard Drives
Crucial M4 128GB
2TB WD Black
1TB Samsung F3 SATA
1TB WD Elite External
2TB WD USB 3.0
PSU
Corsair AX750 Gold
Case
Corsair Obsidian 800DW
Cooling
Corsair H100 (2x AP-121/2x UK-3000 push/pull)
Keyboard
Microsoft Wireless 5000
Mouse
Microsoft Wireless 5000
Internet Speed
5mb/s
Other Info
Logitech z-2300 2.1 speakers
Lamptron FC-5 v2
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