Scanning of CDs and DVDs in Endpoint Protection

Products

• Endpoint Protection

Issue/Introduction

How do I scan a CD or DVD?

Resolution

When media is inserted into a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive, the drive is excluded from Auto-Protect scans*. Infected files found on the media (CD or DVD) cannot be altered by Symantec Endpoint Protection, because the media is readonly.

* "Excluded from Auto-Protect" means that the CD/DVD is not scanned as soon as it is inserted into the drive, but the files on the CD are scanned by Auto-Protect as soon as they are accessed as long as Auto-Protect is configured to scan files upon access. See steps below to confirm that Auto-Protect is configured to scan files upon access.

Auto-Protect will block the files from accessing the hard drive, so there is no threat to the system. However, the only way to remove the original infected file is to take the media out of the CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive and physically destroy it.

If you want to scan CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drives, you have two options:

• Right click the drive and click Scan for viruses.
• Start a manual scan and include the CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive.

 

How to configure Auto-Protect to scan files upon access from within the Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager:

Note: This option is better if you need to change this setting for managed Symantec Endpoint Protection clients.

1. Login to the Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager (SEPM)
2. Click Policies
3. Click Virus and Spyware Policy
4. Right-click your policy and click Edit
5. Click Auto-Protect
6. Click Advanced Scanning and Monitoring...
7. Confirm that Scan when a file is accessed or modified is selected. If it is not, select this option.
8. Click OK
9. Click OK

 

How to determine whether Auto-Protect is configured to scan files upon access from the Symantec Endpoint Protection client:

Note: This option is better if you need to change this setting for unmanaged Symantec Endpoint Protection clients.

1. Open the Symantec Endpoint Protection client
2. Click Change Settings
3. Next to Virus and Spyware Protection, click Configure Settings
4. Click the Auto-Protect tab
5. Click Advanced
6. Confirm that Scan when a file is accessed or modified is selected. If it is not, select this option.
7. Click OK
8. Click OK