About Content Cache Control

Products

• Endpoint Protection

Issue/Introduction

You want to know more about controlling the content cache.

Resolution

Symantec Endpoint Protection supports updates to its data and engines in the field. These updates are collectively referred to as "content".

More information: Content Delivery to the Symantec Endpoint Protection Client

Symantec Endpoint Protection Clients cache their installation files to improve product update performance at the expense of client disk space. This can be optionally disabled.

Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager Capabilities

• You can control the number of content revisions that Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager stores for each content type. The setting is global, you cannot set each content type individually.
  Admin > Servers > Local Site > Edit Site Properties > LiveUpdate (tab) > Disk Space Management for Downloads
   
• You can configure the Symantec Endpoint Protection client policy to use an older revision of content from the Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager cache.
  Policies > LiveUpdate > LiveUpdate Content (tab) > LiveUpdate Content Policy > Edit the Policy > Windows Settings > Security Definitions > Select a Revision*
  *If it's grayed out, then Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager does not have any revisions of that content stored.
   
• You can configure Symantec Endpoint Protection Clients to not cache their full installers at install time:

1. Export a package from Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager (exploded, non-single .exe)
2. Edit setup.ini.
3. Add CACHE_INSTALLER=0 at the end of the line that begins CmdLine=.
   ​Note: CACHE_INSTALLER replaces CACHEINSTALL, which was used in 11.0x.

• You can control where Symantec Endpoint Protection stores its install cache.

1. Export a package from Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager (uncheck Create a single .EXE file for this package).
2. Edit setup.ini.
3. Add CACHED_INSTALLS="PATH" at the end of the line that begins CmdLine=.
    

Symantec Endpoint Protection Client Capabilities

• You can configure Symantec Endpoint Protection Clients to not cache their full installers at install time.
  Open a command window, and enter the following command:
  msiexec /i "Symantec Antivirus.msi" CACHE_INSTALLER=0
   
• You can control where Symantec Endpoint Protection stores its install cache.
  Open a command window, and enter the following command:
  msiexec /i "Symantec Antivirus.msi" CACHED_INSTALLS="PATH"
   
• You can control the number of content revisions that the Symantec Endpoint Protection client stores for each content type. Each content type can be configured individually.

1. Click Start > Run, then enter regedit.
2. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\SYMANTEC\Symantec Endpoint Protection\Content\.
3. Open the folder with the intended content moniker name.
4. Depending on version do the following:
   1. In Symantec Endpoint Protection 11.0 MR1 and older, adjust the "CacheEntries" DWORD value to the # of cache content revisions to keep.
   2. In Symantec Endpoint Protection 11.0 MR2 and newer, adjust the "CacheEntriesEx" DWORD value to the # of cache content revisions to keep.
      • Default value: CacheEntriesEx=0x00000003 (Increasing the value will require additional drive space)
      • NOTE: Setting CacheEntriesEx to 0x00000000 will disable the delta creation process. The client will always download a full content package for the moniker.