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Introduction to Panda Antivirus Platinum

Welcome to Panda Antivirus Platinum. This program has been designed to be easy and comfortable to use. This Help contains detailed explanations of all the operations and actions you can carry out with Panda Antivirus Platinum. Consult this Help whenever you have any problems or if you don’t know how to perform a certain task or operation.

Panda Antivirus Platinum is designed to run under the following operating systems: Windows XP, Windows 2000 Pro, Windows NT, Windows Millennium, Windows 98 and Windows 95.

The main objective of Panda Antivirus Platinum is to offer the latest antivirus technology to all users, combining powerful detection and disinfection capability with ease-of-use. The ever-increasing threat of computer viruses and the constant use of new technologies by malicious users makes a latest generation antivirus a must for all users.

Panda Software offers a wide range of antivirus services aimed at solving any virus-related problems that occur. The combination of a cutting-edge product and personalized services make Panda Antivirus Platinum one of the best and most complete antivirus solutions on the market.

New technology, new design

Panda Antivirus Platinum includes a new, powerful scan engine capable of seeking out viruses where other antiviruses don’t reach. This makes Panda Antivirus Platinum the ideal product for detecting and eliminating viruses. It does all this without interfering with system processes, integrating with the system without reducing its capacity and resources.

The new design brings the program into line with the latest trends in the IT world, helping to make it comfortable and easy to use while still offering the power necessary.

Protection strategies

Panda Antivirus Platinum offers a combination of protection strategies to ensure that the entry and exit points in your computer are protected.

•	On demand and scheduled scans. These allow you to scan any part of the computer (The whole system, Hard disks, E-mail, Memory, etc) at any time, using the on-demand scans that will take place immediately, or scheduled scans carried out when programmed by the user.

•	Permanent protection. This offers constant, complete protection. This type of protection continually scans files and messages that you work with, protecting your e-mail and files permanently. Panda Antivirus Platinum also includes an excellent firewall that allows you to control access (inbound and outbound access to your computer) through the network and the Internet.

Hospital- Quarantine

Panda Antivirus Platinum includes a new additional protection feature which offers greater security and closer control over the action to be taken on suspicious or infected files. The Hospital is made up of a series of functions and new tools that let you monitor all the files or items that the antivirus considers to be suspicious or infected.  Back-up copies can be made of these elements and they can be kept in Quarantine or sent to Panda Software to be analyzed.

Firewall

This is an additional security systems that is integrated in Panda Antivirus Platinum. It is advisable to use it in order to guarantee the security of computers connected to the Internet or to a network. It consists of a defense system whose aim is to place a control barrier between your computer and the network. It only allows the data that you select to pass through, strictly adhering to the functioning policies that you define.

Services

Panda Antivirus Platinum includes a complete range of services to help you in every aspect of virus protection. In addition to powerful detection and disinfection capacity, all good antivirus tools need to include these kinds of services. Panda Software is well aware of this and offers the following excellent services.

Automatic antivirus update: Antivirus tools use a special file (called the virus signature file or virus definitions file) to recognize and detect each virus.  Every day new viruses appear, which means that their corresponding signatures need to be added to this file so that they can be detected by the antivirus. Panda Software makes sure that this file is updated daily and made immediately available to users. Panda Antivirus Platinum can be updated everyday. You can also indicate that the antivirus program should carry out the updates automatically when it detects a connection to the Internet. If you are the registered user, you can also carry out manual updates from Panda Software's update area.

Send suspicious files to Panda (SOS Virus): With Panda Antivirus Platinum, you can send any file that you think might be infected to Panda Software’s Virus Research Lab. Our team of experts will analyze the files and send you a solution or certification that the file is in perfect condition. If a new virus is detected, within 24 hours we will send you an antivirus that detects and disinfects it.

FAQs (Frequently asked questions and answers): If you have any questions about viruses or the antivirus program, you can consult this Help or access the FAQs included with Panda Antivirus Platinum. FAQs are a series of the most frequently asked question with their corresponding answers.

Send technical inquiries via e-mail: You can always find a solution to your problem using this Help, the manual, or the FAQs. However, Panda Antivirus Platinum also allows you to send any technical questions or problems that you may have to Panda Software, using a simple wizard.

Suggestion box: Any ideas on how we could improve or products or services? Whenever you want you can send your suggestions to Panda Software.

From Panda Antivirus Platinum you can also access information on other Panda Software antivirus, security, or inventory products, such as Panda Antivirus Enterprise Suite, Panda PerimeterScan or Panda Invent.

Technical support: 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, qualified technicians will be on hand to help. We offer you all the means necessary to make it easy and comfortable to contact us: solving problems via e-mail, fax, postal mail, and through our website (www.pandasoftware.com). Internet tech support will help you to contact us and quickly find the solution to your problem, inquiry, etc.


Characteristics of Panda Antivirus Platinum

Panda Antivirus Platinum includes the following features and characteristics.

Status information at startup: When the Panda Antivirus Platinum window is opened - when Panda Antivirus Platinum is run- it will inform you of the current program status and the actions that it is advisable to carry out. You will always know how up-to-date your antivirus is, the number of viruses it detects, the status of the permanent protection (files and mail). Panda Antivirus Platinum will remind you when you should carry out a particular task,  (scan the whole computer, update, create Rescue Disks, etc.).

Custom scans. You can set the characteristics of scan jobs (both on-demand and scheduled), configure, reset the configuration of a previous scan job, delete previous jobs, etc. This means that you can define a series of scan jobs that can be executed at a click.

Information and configuration of permanent scans (Antivirus -resident scans- and Firewall). You can view the current status of the scans being performed continuously without user intervention. Panda Antivirus Platinum, also lets you carry out various operations on these scans: Enable/disable them, and set their characteristics. You can also obtain information about the functioning of the firewall (View network activity) incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum and set its characteristics -configure it-.

Scan from the Windows File Explorer (pop-up scan): Panda Antivirus Platinum, closely integrated with the operating system, lets you perform immediate scans from the Windows Explorer with just a click of a button and without having to open the antivirus. From Windows Explorer you can select files directories and folders. By right-clicking on them, the option Scan with Platinum antivirus will appear. Through this option you can scan files or complete directories.

Report. All incidents related to the antivirus and the functioning of the firewall can be logged in a report. The amount of data that these reports contain is configurable. The information is kept from one antivirus session to the next, so that you can consult the data whenever necessary, provided that you have deleted this information (delete the content of the report).

Updates. The antivirus can update itself automatically and intelligently via the Internet whenever it realizes that it is necessary. You can also carry out the updates manually whenever necessary and enable and disable the automatic updates.

Warnings: When a virus has been detected, a complete warnings system allows you to send a warning through a network (if you are connected to one) or send an e-mail message.

Hospital: You can isolated all infected files or files that you suspect to be infected, in order to prevent them from infecting the rest of the system. This benefit of Panda Antivirus Platinum allows you to isolate or Quarantine files in order to prevent them from infecting others. You can also send these files to Panda Software, who will analyze them and send you an antivirus solution for each one (if they are infected).

The best Panda Software services. Your antivirus Panda Antivirus Platinum includes an excellent range of Panda Software services. You will always have expert help on hand to advise you and resolve any problems you might have.  Panda Antivirus Platinum services include Updates,  FAQs (frequently asked questions and answers, the sending of suspicious files (SOS Virus), Internet tech support, the sending of inquiries and access to the suggestion box feature. For more information on all the services included in Panda Antivirus Platinum, consult the Services section of this Help.

 Note: Panda Antivirus Platinum is designed to run under the following operating systems: Windows XP, Windows 2000 Pro, Windows NT, Windows Millennium, Windows 98 and Windows 95.


Virus entry points

Over the last few years, the trend has been towards increased connectivity between computers. The computer is becoming less of an isolated item with only one entry point. Although this has been beneficial for users and computers in general, it has also multiplied the number of entry points for viruses.

For this reason, it is important to know which entry points a virus can use to access a computer and understand how an antivirus must protect ALL entry points.

In addition to the increase in the entry points for viruses, new types of viruses and new forms of transmitting viruses have also appeared.

It is also important to monitor all outgoing items. This is not usually taken into consideration, as it is thought that a virus cannot enter. It should not be forgotten, however, that most infections occur without malicious intentions. Users can send an infected file, DVD, CD-ROM, floppy disk, etc. without realizing that they are also sending a virus. If all users carefully monitor their outgoing messages as well as the incoming ones, the rapid diffusion of viruses as occurs today could be avoided. Users who send a virus could also be affected under such circumstances.

DVDs, CD-ROMs, Floppy disks and other removable disk drives

In the past, these mediums were the only entry points into a computer that was not connected to a network. Viruses can be included in the files that are stored on any of these mediums or hidden in the boot sector of a disk drive.

Panda Software responds to this entry point in two ways. Firstly, it includes a continuous scan that offers permanent protection. When a file stored on a DVD, CD-ROM, floppy disk or other type of disk is accessed, it is scanned by the permanent protection. Secondly, it offers the option to carry out an on-demand scan of any DVD, CD-ROM, floppy disk or other type of used on the computer in order to check that that it is virus-free.

With adequate permanent protection, an antivirus can efficiently resolve the danger that this entry point poses.

Networks

This entry point has been around for a long time, but has become very widespread over the last few years. Nowadays, wherever there are several computers, there is usually a network that connects them. The main objective of a network is to share information and therefore files. As all types of files are shared in a network, it can transmit file viruses and macro viruses as well as any other type of virus, worm or Trojan.

Panda Software responds to this entry point in two ways. Firstly, the key protection is a continuous scan that offers permanent protection. This is the same protection as that mentioned above, which monitors access to files. If a user attempts to send or receive a file infected with a virus via the network, the permanent protection scans the file and warns the user that the file is infected. As in the previous case, an on-demand scan is also available for scanning any network drive. However, given the sharing capacity of a network, new files can be constantly added, making it difficult to ensure that a network drive is completely virus free.

As in the case above, but even more so in the case of networks, adequate permanent protection is the best way of safeguarding this entry point against viruses.

Panda Antivirus Platinum also incorporates an excellent firewall, which allows you to restrict the rights of certain programs to access certain areas or sections of the network, IP addresses (number or numeric code that uniquely identifies every computer that exists), shared folders, etc.

Internet

Although Internet has been around for a few years, it has only recently become a mass means of communication. Today it is becoming increasingly popular in all environments. The basic function of Internet is to facilitate, and in many cases make possible, the exchange of information. Therefore, Internet also facilitates the exchange of files which, as already mentioned, are a ‘vehicle’ for transmitting viruses. However, Internet is slightly more complicated than a network for the following reasons:

The Internet offers a number of different services, including websites, e-mail, file transfer through FTP, chats or IRC, etc. and each service uses a certain protocol (language). It is essential for an antivirus to be able to read these languages in order to successfully scan this entry point for viruses. E-mail messages, for example, could include a file infected with a virus and as this file is not in its usual format, a conventional antivirus might not detect it. Even if a message does not include an attached file, it could still be infected through the code that it contains or through its MIME format. For this reason, an antivirus must be able to recognize the format in which e-mail messages are received.

The entry points of viruses transmitted via Internet are:

•	E-mail: Viruses can be included in files attached to e-mail messages or in the message body, which means that a message does not have to have an attachment to be infected. It is important to remember that the Internet uses two protocols (sets of code and formats –a language- used by computer to communicate with one another) for e-mail, POP3 for receiving mail and SMTP for sending mail. As already mentioned, it is very important for an antivirus to protect all possible virus entry points and virus exit points. Many of the viruses that have appeared recently exploit certain characteristics and vulnerabilities of certain mail management programs and other types of widely-used programs.

•	News (NNTP): Through this service you can access newsgroups that debate different topics or place messages in certain servers to be consulted and discussed. You can also subscribe to a newsgroup and receive e-mails featuring the latest information on a topic of your choice, these messages could contain infected files. The news managed by Microsoft Outlook Express and Microsoft Exchange/Outlook can be scanned.

•	Downloading files (FTP): This service allows you to download files from Internet and upload files to certain Internet addresses. These files could be infected with a virus.

•	Web pages (HTTP): Web pages (HTML pages) are mainly text and graphics, which do not represent a virus threat. However, an increasing number of Web pages contain other components such as Java Applets or ActiveX controls. These types of components can be infected with a virus and can infect a computer when it accesses the Web page.

To solve such a potentially serious problem, Panda Software offers a range of solutions, which are included in Panda Antivirus Platinum. These are the following:

•	E-mail: A special permanent protection that scans all outgoing messages (SMTP protocol) and incoming messages (POP3 protocol) for viruses. As a result, e-mail messages containing infected files cannot be sent or received. Other antiviruses scan incoming mail only, which is very dangerous as a user can send a virus, with serious consequences for the sender. The e-mail antivirus protection offered by Panda Antivirus Platinum can be used with the most commonly used e-mail programs.

An added danger with e-mail is that all outgoing and incoming messages are stored in a message database. Conventional antiviruses -unlike Panda Antivirus Platinum- do not recognize the format of these databases and therefore cannot scan all of the messages sent and received before the antivirus was installed, nor messages, that for some reason, were not scanned when they were received. To solve this problem, Panda Antivirus Platinum recognizes the format of the message databases in Microsoft Outlook Express and Microsoft Outlook. Panda Antivirus Platinum allows the user to scan any message in the database at any time, offering the guarantee that e-mail is virus-free.

•	News (NNTP): All potentially infected contents (related documents) in a server that provides a news service will be scanned by a special permanent protection that monitors the connection with that server. This guarantees that information is safe to consult, regardless of the news program used.

•	File transfers (FTP): All files downloaded from or uploaded to the Internet through FTP will be scanned by a permanent protection. These files are scanned locally before they are sent, or when they reach your computer. All previously transferred files can be scanned with a file antivirus, avoiding the problem with e-mail messages mentioned earlier. The antivirus protection is independent from the FTP program used.

•	Web pages (HTTP): All Web page or HTML page contents (Java applets, ActiveX, etc.) that could be infected will be scanned by a permanent protection. Sometimes these items are downloaded to the computer that connects to these pages. When these items have been downloaded they will be scanned locally using the permanent protection. This guarantees secure website browsing, regardless of the browser used.

To sum up, it can be concluded that Panda Antivirus Platinum offers the best protection against viruses that could get into your computer through all types of connections. All the data is scanned as it enters or leaves the computer to check that it is not carrying any viruses. It is also possible to scan all incoming and outgoing e-mail messages (Microsoft Outlook Express and Microsoft Exchange/Outlook), guaranteeing a virus-free connection to the Internet.

For more information about the entry points used by viruses consult the Virus Encyclopedia on the Panda Software website www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/encyclopedia.


Why all antiviruses are not the same

It is often thought that, when all is said and done, all antiviruses are the same. Perhaps the most generalized idea is that the only difference between one antivirus and another is the number of viruses that each one can detect.

However, this is not the case. The real difference between antiviruses is the protection that each one provides. An antivirus must do the following:

•	Protect all entry points: The basic characteristic of an antivirus is its ability to protect all points through which a virus can infect a computer.

•	Protect all exit points: It is just as important to avoid spreading viruses as it is to prevent becoming infected. In other words, avoid infecting other users.

•	Constant, intelligent and automatic updates: In order to carry out its basic function, an antivirus needs to be constantly updated, as new viruses appear every day. Without constant and DAILY updates, an antivirus becomes obsolete and is no longer useful. It is also preferable if the antivirus automatically updates itself, when necessary. By doing this, you will have peace of mind that the antivirus detects the latest viruses and you can forget about having to update the antivirus manually.

•	Technical Support: Unfortunately, the situations in which viruses are detected are usually the source of conflict. At times, the virus is detected too late because the user does not have antivirus protection or has not kept it updated. Other times, the virus is detected on time, but the fear of the damage a virus can do causes the user great consternation. In order to solve virus problems you need efficient technical support capable of responding to all virus-related problems. With Panda Antivirus Platinum you will have support that is easily accessible, so that you can get on with your work as usual. The aim of technical support is to help those who unfortunately have been infected by a virus. This support is available 24 hours a day, 365 day a year.

•	Ease and power: In addition to a high capacity to detect and disinfect all known viruses, it must be a comfortable and easy tool to use.

In order to achieve this, Panda Antivirus Platinum offers the following:

•	Permanent protection of each file involved in every operation carried out. This is an automatic and simple way of preventing infected files from entering or leaving a computer. It also prevents all operations from using infected files which, for one reason or another, are already in the computer. The permanent file protection also protects the computer against viruses that could be transmitted through a network.

•	Permanent protection or scan of everything sent to the computer via e-mail (Microsoft Outlook Express and Microsoft Exchange/Outlook) and everything sent from the computer to Internet through SMTP, POP3, HTTP, FTP and NNTP protocols. This means that all incoming and outgoing e-mail messages will be automatically scanned, regardless of the e-mail program used. All files transferred through HTTP and FTP protocols, as well as Java applets and ActiveX controls that could be sent through the HTTP protocol will also be scanned. The permanent protection scans these files when they have been downloaded or before they are sent. This scan is also independent of the browser or FTP program used. Finally, all data sent to or received from newsgroups will also be scanned for viruses.

•	Permanent protection or scan of all e-mail messages received and sent through Microsoft Outlook. This feature is described separately from the permanent scan of e-mail received from Internet because these two programs can receive e-mail from an Exchange server using different protocols (sets of code and formats –a language- used by computers to communicate). Panda Antivirus Platinum can carry out permanent scans of all messages received and sent through this program, regardless of the protocol used.

•	Permanent protection - Firewall for allowing or restricting the Internet access of the programs installed in the computer, the transfer of files through communications ports (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred –inbound/outbound – from the computer to the outside and vice-versa), access to certain IP addresses (number or numeric code that uniquely identifies every computer that exists), the security of shared network folders, blocking intrusion attempts made by other programs or users, etc.

•	On-demand scan of any area of the computer, whenever necessary. Through this type of scan you can check any area of the computer for viruses. It may seem unnecessary if permanent protection is also provided, but this is not the case. If a computer is infected, a simple way to completely disinfect the system is needed. The permanent protection does not do this, because it would have to try to access every infected file. The on-demand scan also scans the whole system, hard disks, floppy disks, the memory, local network drives, messages, etc., together or separately.

•	On-demand scan of any mail folder (place in which messages are stored) managed through Microsoft Outlook Express and Microsoft Outlook. This allows you to scan all incoming and outgoing messages, even if they were received or sent before the antivirus was installed.

Constant update

Panda Antivirus Platinum offers the following update services:

•	Automatic antivirus update: When the antivirus detect an open connection to Internet, it check if it is up to date. If it isn’t, it automatically updates itself, without affecting system performance. When the automatic update is complete, the antivirus will inform you of the results. Forget about it! If the automatic update feature is enabled, forget about updating the antivirus manually, as it will update itself.

•	Daily update via Internet: Every day, registered Panda Software clients can update the virus signature file (the file that allows viruses to be detected), through the updates area on the Panda Software website (www.pandasoftware.com/download/updates/). This file is updated with new viruses EVERY DAY.

•	Complete antivirus update via Internet: The latest version of the antivirus, which is updated every month, is also available on the Internet. If you are a registered Panda Software client, you can update the antivirus program through the updates area on the Panda Software website.

Services that can be accessed through the antivirus

Panda Antivirus Platinum includes a suite of the most popular useful and necessary Panda Software services. Users can access these services once they have registered.

•	Updates: This service allows the virus signature file and the antivirus program to be updated manually or automatically. For more information, consult the section What is an update? section in this Help.

•	FAQs: The Panda Software Technical Support and Customer Service divisions have collected the most frequent questions asked by our users and prepared a clear and effective answer to each. Panda Antivirus Platinum offers you these questions and answers so that you can consult them whenever necessary. Through the Help and the FAQs, you can solve any questions or problems that you may have without needing to make any telephone calls. For more information, consult the Services section in this Help.

•	Send inquiries: If you cannot find the answers to your question in the FAQs or through other means, you can use this service. From Panda Antivirus Platinum you can send us any inquiry that you may have. For more information, consult the Services section in this Help.

•	Internet Tech Support: you can solve your problems by accessing the technical support service that is offered on the Panda Software website. From Panda Antivirus Platinum you can access an area on our website that is especially designed to help Panda Antivirus Platinum users solve their problems, it offers information and solutions for removing the most dangerous virus from your computer, it also allows you to access the updates, the recall username and password section, etc. For more information consult the Services section in this Help.

•	24 hour SOS Virus: Through this service Panda Software promises to come up with a solution for viruses not detected by our latest virus signature file (pav.sig), in less than 24 hours. Thorough the program you can send all of the files that are causing you problems or that you think may be infected with a virus to the Panda Software Virus Lab. For more information, consult the Services section in this Help.

•	Consult information on other Panda Software antivirus, security or inventory products: If you need information about other antivirus, security or inventory tools, Panda Antivirus Platinum can give you information on each solution developed by Panda Software. For more information, consult the Services section in this Help or the Panda Antivirus Enterprise Suite, Panda PerimeterScan, or Panda Invent areas on the Panda Software website.

 Note: If you have a subscription version or if you have purchased the antivirus through the virtual store on Panda Software website, you will not need to access the Panda Software registration Web page to register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. In these cases, your user name and password will be sent to you without you having to do anything else.

Technical support

One of the fundamental services offered by Panda Software is technical support. Technical support includes the following features:

•	Available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. You can call any time of the day or night and a highly qualified technician will be on the other end of the line, ready to solve any virus-related problem.

•	You can contact technical support by phone, fax, e-mail, regular mail or via our website.

For more information about technical support, consult the Panda Software support Web page.


Where do viruses hide?

It is important to know where viruses can hide. The first thing that must be clear is that in order to carry out its infection or totally or partially damage computer data, a virus must be executed. However, there is an increasing number of viruses (which are usually transmitted by e-mail), that can infect without needing to be executed. For example, there are viruses that propagate in an e-mail message and carry out their infection by simply displaying them in the pre-view pane (if this option is enabled in the e-mail program). In general, viruses hide in strategic places that allow them to spread their infection:

•	Executable files: Viruses insert themselves in executable files in order to be able to control the computer.

•	Documents with macros: Traditionally, non-executable files could not contain viruses or at least there was no point in them containing viruses since a virus in a non-executable file cannot carry out its actions. However, due to the latest technical advances, certain programs such as the Microsoft Office suite have included macros in non-executable files such as documents or spreadsheets. A macro is a set of instructions that can be executed by a certain program. In other words, a Microsoft Word document can contain a set of instructions that Word will run. This has widened the possibility for viruses to infect files, which, despite being non-executable, can contain macros.

•	Files attached to e-mail messages and the body of e-mail messages without attached files: Any type of file (executable or non-executable) can be attached to or included in an e-mail message. All e-mail messages and their attachments are usually stored in a single file. As the structure of this file is not standard and is not necessarily known, an antivirus could treat the message database in the same way as any other file and fail to detect a virus in it. A message could also be infected although it does not contain any attachments. This feature is used by certain types of viruses. The infection is carried out when the message is viewed in the preview pane as the virus is included in the text and not in a file.

•	Boot sector: The boot sector of a floppy disk or of a hard disk contains important information on the type of disk. This section also stores a program that is run when a computer is booted from a disk. Given that the program stored in the boot sector is able to run itself, it is also susceptible to being infected by a virus. A virus in the boot sector is also run if the computer is booted from a floppy disk, whether it is a boot disk or not.

•	Java Applets: Before, Internet pages or websites (HTML pages) could only contain text or graphics. However, due to the need to be able to create more complicated Web pages, this has changed. Today, Web pages can also contain small programs called Java applets. When an Internet browser downloads a Web page that contains these small programs, it executes them, in a similar way to a document that contains a macro. For this reason, Java applets are also susceptible to containing viruses. When they are downloaded to your computer they are scanned by the permanent file protection.

•	ActiveX Controls: ActiveX controls have the same function as Java applets. For this reason and given that they are also executable, they can also be infected by viruses. When they are downloaded to your computer they are scanned by the permanent file protection.

Panda Antivirus Platinum can scan any of the areas mentioned above for viruses, offering the highest levels of protection.

For more information about viruses, consult the Virus Encyclopedia, on the Panda Software website.


Computer viruses, Worms and Trojans

One of the best defenses against viruses is to understand them. By knowing how different kinds of viruses work, what parts of the computer they infect and how they behave, you will be better prepared to protect yourself against them.

Basically there are three types of viruses:

Boot viruses

File viruses

Macro viruses

There are also other threatening ‘species’, which are usually considered viruses. These are:

Worms

Trojans or Trojan horses

These can all use different techniques to carry out their infection, propagate and carry out certain actions in infected computers. Depending on the techniques that they use, some viruses can be included in specific categories: resident, overwrite, encrypted, multipartite, polymorphic, stealth, tunneling, etc. For more information about different types of viruses and the techniques they use, consult the Techniques used by viruses section in this Help file. You can also find information on viruses in the Virus Encyclopedia, on the Panda Software website www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/encyclopedia.


Boot or boot sector viruses

What is the boot sector?

The boot sector is a very important area of a floppy disk (boot) or hard disk (MBR – Master Boot Record) as it contains information on the disk type. This sector contains a program that is run when the computer is started up, and whose function is to determine if the disk contains an operating system and execute it.

When a computer is started up, it first tries to load the program located in the boot sector, so that it executes the operating system. Once the operating system is run, the computer is said to be booted and you can begin to work with it.

What does a boot virus infect?

A boot virus infects the program located in the boot sector. This way, the virus is run every time the computer is started up, either from a floppy disk or the hard disk.

There are some viruses that belong to several categories and which are therefore capable of infecting both the boot sector and files.

How can a computer be infected by a boot virus?

In order to become infected with a boot virus, you must start up or try to start up the computer from an infected floppy disk. It is very important to note that, although a disk may NOT be a boot disk, it can still cause a boot virus infection, since the attempt to boot up the computer alone is enough to produce the infection.

How does a boot virus work?

When you boot or attempt to boot your computer from an infected floppy disk, the virus is executed. The virus then reserves a space in the memory and installs itself there. Then, the virus immediately runs the original boot-sector program so that everything appears normal and the user does not suspect the presence of the virus.

From then on, all access to a hard disk or floppy disk will be intercepted by the virus. It will check whether the disk is infected or not, and if it isn’t, the virus will infect it. This means that if the computer was booted or an attempt was made to boot it using an infected floppy disk, as soon as the hard disk is accessed it will be infected. Then, whenever the computer is booted from hard disk, the virus will be executed and more floppy disks will be infected, ensuring the propagation of the virus.

How to prevent a boot virus infection

The best form of protection is to always have a completely up to date antivirus installed. If the permanent protection is enabled and you scan every floppy disk before you use it, it will be very difficult for a boot virus to get into your computer.

There is a very simple way of providing an additional guarantee against accidentally booting a computer with a floppy disk unknowingly left in the disk drive. This consists of placing the boot sequence in the BIOS in such a way that the computer always attempts to boot from the hard drive first and then from the disk drive.

For more information about viruses consult the Virus Encyclopedia, on the Panda Software website (www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/encyclopedia).


File viruses

What does a file virus infect?

As its name suggests, a file virus infects files stored on any physical support that is not write-protected. A file virus can therefore infect files on a floppy disk or on a hard drive.

There are viruses that belong to several categories, and which can therefore infect boot sectors and files.

How can a computer be infected by a file virus?

A file virus is ‘contracted’ when a previously infected file is executed. For this reason, viruses only usually infect executable files. Macro viruses are an exception, as they infect non-executable files such as documents.

How does a file virus work?

This type of virus infects programs or executable files (with an EXE or COM extension). When one of these programs is executed, intentionally or unintentionally, the virus is activated and carries out its destructive actions. The majority of viruses are this type, which can be classified depending on the actions that they carry out.

Permanent or resident file viruses: First of all, these viruses check that the necessary conditions exist for them to ‘attack’. If they are, the virus triggers its destructive action. If the conditions are not right, the virus reserves a space in the computer’s memory and continues executing the file as normal so that its presence goes unnoticed. From then on, all operations involving files will be intercepted by the virus, which will infect all files that are not already infected.

Direct-action file viruses: These viruses also check that the necessary conditions exist for them to carry out their destructive action. If they do, the virus infects new files. The virus usually infects files in the current directory and directories referred to by the system PATH variable. The virus continues executing the file as normal so that its presence remains undetected. As mentioned earlier, these viruses do not go memory resident but carry out their infection when they are executed.

Companion viruses: These viruses can be permanent (resident) or direct-action. What differentiates them from the others is that companion viruses take advantage of a peculiarity of the MS-DOS operating system. In this system, if two files have the same name but different extensions, COM and EXE, the file with the COM extension will executed first. For this reason, a companion virus does not infect an EXE file, but creates a COM file containing the virus, with the hidden attribute to conceal its presence. When the EXE file is run, the COM file will be executed first and the virus can carry out its actions. Then the EXE file is executed so that the virus presence is not detected.

Overwrite viruses: In all the cases mentioned above, the virus infects files without changing their original content. It simply adds data. Overwrite viruses, however, infect files by partially overwriting the information they contain. The results are: infected files no longer function correctly and they cannot be disinfected, as part of the original data has been lost.

How to protect yourself against file viruses

First of all, the permanent protection must always be enabled. The function of permanent protection is to monitor all operating system operations involving files, in order to scan the files to be used.

Good permanent protection ensures protection against file viruses. In addition, several other measures are strongly recommended. These measures are:

•	Scan all incoming files before using them, regardless of how you receive them: via DVD, CD-ROM, floppy disk, network, e-mail, Internet, etc.

•	Use only original software from a reliable source.

•	Scan the hard drive regularly to make sure that no virus has managed to infect it.

It is essential to have a correctly updated antivirus installed.

For more information about viruses consult the Virus Encyclopedia, on the Panda Software website (www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/encyclopedia)


Macro viruses

What does a macro virus infect?

As a virus is simply a program, it must be loaded by the operating system for it to be able to carry out its actions. This is the reason why viruses only infect executable files. Even if a virus infects a text file, as this file is not executable, the virus cannot take control of the computer and therefore cannot be activated.

Macro viruses have changed all this. The increasing capacity of some applications such as word processors, spreadsheets, etc. has led developers to incorporate an interesting function: macros. A macro is a set of instructions that the program (word processor or spreadsheet, for example) can interpret and execute.

Therefore, if viral code is inserted in a macro, this code will be executed by the program, giving the virus access to the control of the computer.

This means that files handled by these programs (documents, spreadsheets, etc.) can contain viruses and infect other files of the same type.

An additional risk from this type of virus is that they are run ‘inside’ a program. This means that if the program is multiplatform (it can be run on different operating systems), the virus will also be multiplatform, increasing the range of files it can infect.

How does a macro virus infect?

Macro viruses take advantage of a characteristic that is usually included in programs that allow macros to be used. The MS-Word program presents a clear example of this. This program handles two file types: documents and templates. Templates are used to define generic documents and simplify work with documents, as it is not always necessary to start from the very beginning when creating similar documents.

In MS-Word, it is the templates that can contain macros. The problem lies in the fact that, by default, all documents are based on a template called NORMAL.DOT. This template contains a macro that is automatically executed as soon as it is opened.

Virus creators take advantage of this characteristic. By infecting the macro that is automatically executed, the propagation of the virus is ensured, as it will infect every document that is opened.

How does a macro virus work?

As explained above, viral macros are executed and infect all documents opened. It is then the documents that transmit the infection.

One of the most dangerous characteristics of macro viruses is their rapid propagation. For example, an infected document on a company network to which different people have access can infect all of the company’s documents in an extremely short space of time.

As this type of file is very frequently exchanged by e-mail, these viruses can spread throughout the world at astonishing speeds.

Although they are not generally believed to be harmful, these viruses can cause a lot of damage, as much as that caused by any boot or file virus.

How to protect yourself against macro viruses

The best defense against macro viruses is to have permanent protection installed. This way, if you attempt to open an infected document, the permanent protection will warn you and cancel the operation, eliminating the risk of infection.

Given the ease with which this type of virus can spread by e-mail, it is also advisable to install an antivirus that scans incoming e-mail when it is received and before the message is opened.

For more information about viruses consult the Virus Encyclopedia, on the Panda Software website (www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/encyclopedia).


Worms

What does a worm infect?

Although a worm is similar to a virus, they act in a different way. The difference between a worm and a virus is that worms do not try to infect files. The main aim of worms is to spread using advanced propagation techniques, making copies of themselves in order to infect other computers. In most cases, these infections are carried out through e-mail, computer networks and IRC channels on the Internet. Worms can also replicate in the infected computer’s memory.

How does a worm infect and propagate?

Worms that infect other computers copy the program that they use to carry out infection to a certain directory in the target computer. To do this, they spread through any of the possible entry points to other computers. A worm may also consist of several programs. In this case, each program will act under the one considered the main program. This variant is usually called a network worm.

How does a worm work?

Worms carry out infections in the following way:

1.	The worm takes advantage of any security holes or vulnerabilities in the system or in a certain software tool to get into computers or a computer network.

2.	The worm enters the computers that are accessible though a security hole.

3.	From there it makes a copy of itself.

4.	It then tries to enter every other computer it has access to from the infected system (either through a network or the Internet).

When a worm is run, it installs itself and remains inactive until the computer is restarted. However, each worm uses different techniques to ensure that it is run every time the infected computer is started up and a Windows session is started, for example, modifying the Windows Registry.

How to protect yourself against worms

The best way to protect yourself against worms is to seal every possible entry point to the system. These include e-mail and IRC connections. Besides these two– which are the most widely used entry points by recent worms -, every other entry point must also be protected.

Worms also exploit vulnerabilities in certain software tools. In order to protect these possible worm entry points, it is necessary to have the latest versions of the software and update them with the most recent patches.

Types of worms

There are several types of worm depending on the language in which they are written and their means of propagation. These types include:

•	E-mail worms. These worms spread via e-mail messages, using e-mail clients such as MS Outlook Express or MS Outlook.

•	IRC worms (mIRC and Pirch worms). These worms spread via IRC (Chat) channels, using programs such as mIRC and Pirch.

•	VBS worms (Visual Basic Script). These worms have been written or created using the Visual Basic Script language.

•	Windows 32 worms. These worms use Windows API functions to spread.

For more information about viruses consult the Virus encyclopedia on the Panda Software website (www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/encyclopedia).


Trojan or Trojan horses
Trojans or Trojan horses

What does a Trojan infect?

Although Trojans are similar to computer viruses, they cannot be considered as viruses. Trojans try to pass themselves off as harmless programs and get into computers through any of the usual means of propagation. The user, believing this is a useful application or an interesting file will be tempted to run it or open it. If this happens, the Trojan will install a damaging program on the system.

How does a worm infect and propagate?

Trojans ‘drop’ or include programs in infected computers through any of the usual means of propagation. These programs carry out a series of actions aimed at obstructing the user’s work, causing damage to the system and stealing information.

How does a Trojan work?

A Trojan may have entered a computer although it has not yet carried out any actions. Trojans wait for a certain condition to be met  - the trigger condition - to start acting. When the trigger condition is met, the Trojan deletes files, eliminates hard disk information and opens security holes (backdoors), which make the system vulnerable to attack from malicious users.

The main objective of Trojans is to access certain communication ports (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred –inbound/outbound – from the computer to the outside and vice-versa) in order to leave them open and accessible from the outside  (their name, Trojans, comes from the Trojan Horse in Greek mythology). As a result, an attacker could access all the information stored in the system infected with a Trojan through a connection established from another computer in a local network or connected to the Internet and carry out a number of actions on it.

For more information about viruses consult the Virus encyclopedia on the Panda Software website (www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/encyclopedia).


Techniques used by viruses

In order to avoid being detected by antiviruses, virus creators have developed a series of specialized and complex techniques. Antiviruses have had to adapt to these new techniques in order to detect these increasingly complex and perfected viruses.

The following are some of the most common techniques used by viruses:

Overwrite / Overwrite virus: This technique is used on files that have been infected by a virus. The virus overwrites the information that the file contains, or part of it. This information is lost and cannot be recovered. An overwrite virus can also use any of the techniques described below.

Stealth: This technique is typical of resident file viruses. When infecting a file, the virus needs to modify the original file, which makes it possible to see that a virus has manipulated the file. To avoid this, resident viruses monitor all operations designed to obtain virus information and intercept them. It then presents the data of the file before it was infected. This way, the infection goes undetected.

Tunneling: Viruses and antivirus programs use similar techniques. Viruses intercept all operating system operations with files in order to infect the files accessed. The permanent antivirus protection also intercepts operations with files in order to monitor which files and being accessed and to check that they are not infected. Using the tunneling technique, a virus can find the services intercepted by the permanent protection and use them directly without the permanent protection being aware of it. However there are alternative antivirus techniques that allow viruses that carry out this type of operation to be detected.

Self-encryption / Encrypted Viruses: The main goal of a virus is to replicate. Antiviruses detect infections by searching for a particular string (also called signature) which is identical in all copies of a virus. To avoid detection by this virus search mechanism (the most common type), some viruses can encrypt themselves to change each time they infect a file. This way, the virus never replicates in exactly the same way, and the traditional detection method fails. However, the encryption routine used is always the same and can therefore be used by antiviruses to detect this type of virus.

Polymorphism / Polymorphic viruses: In this case, not only do viruses encrypt themselves in a different way in each infection, but they also change the encryption routine. This way, there are no identical copies of a virus as all of its parts differ. To detect this type of virus, decryption simulation techniques are used, which force the virus to show itself.

Multipartite viruses: This type virus can carry out several or multiple infections and different techniques can be used for each infection. Their capacity to combine different infection techniques makes these viruses quite dangerous.

For more information about viruses consult the Virus Encyclopedia, on the Panda Software website (www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/encyclopedia).


How to avoid infection

Below is some advice on how to avoid being infected by a virus, worm or Trojan. Remember that prevention is one of the most efficient tools for combating computer viruses.

Backup copies: Get into the habit of making regular backup copies of your most important data. This is one of the most common pieces of advice in the computer world, but one that is rarely followed. Regular backup copies do not only solve the problem of viruses, but also any other problem that may occur in the computer. By making backup copies of important data only, your copies will be small and quick to make. A backup copy should be made at least once every month.

Scan everything you receive: This is one of the most important forms of prevention. Scan any programs or files that you are going to insert or have inserted in your computer before you run or open them. This will allow you to detect possible viruses before they infect any of your files.

Scan everything you send: Make sure that everything you send to other users or share in a network is totally virus-free. It is as important to make sure that you avoid spreading infection as it is to protect the virus entry points of your computer.

Use active permanent protection: Permanent protection constantly checks all operations carried out in the computer that could allow a virus to infect it. If you have reliable permanent protection such as that included in Panda Antivirus Platinum, the risk of infection is minimal and working with your computer is much easier, as you no longer have to remember to scan everything you receive. Your permanent protection automatically takes care of it.

Regular scans: Scan your entire computer regularly. The scheduled scans in Panda Antivirus Platinum make it easy to carry out regular scans when you are not using the computer. This type of scan will prevent any virus that has entered your computer from spreading too far. It is best to scan the whole system at least once a week, although this depends on how much you use your computer.

Keep up-to-date: Given the number of new viruses detected every month – some 300 – it is essential that you have an update service to keep your antivirus up-to-date. Otherwise your computer will be at the mercy of the new, dangerous viruses that continuously appear.

Clean boot disk (Rescue disks): It is always a good idea to have a virus-free boot disk on hand. This disk will help you to clean the computer if it is infected with a virus. Although you can create this disk yourself, Panda Antivirus Platinum allows you to create several disks during the antivirus installation process or at any other time. With these disks you can boot the computer from a virus-free environment and scan the computer using the antivirus in command line (PAVCL). It is a good idea to create these disks so that you will always have boot disks and disinfection disks (Rescue Disks). These disks are vital for disinfecting a computer that is infected with a virus.

To sum up, in order to avoid viruses you should consider and put into practice a series of tips. If you want to consult these tips, you can find them in the Practical tips to protect yourself against viruses section in this Help file.

For tips on preventing infection and on antivirus protection, consult the Practical tips to protect yourself against viruses section (in this Help file), or visit the Virus encyclopedia, on the Panda Software website http://www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/encyclopedia.


Practical tips to protect yourself against viruses

If you want to avoid viruses, it is advisable to follow these tips suggested by Panda Software:

1.	Use a good antivirus and update it regularly. The best way to avoid viruses is to install a good antivirus program in your computer.

An antivirus is a computer program especially designed to detect and eliminate viruses. As the software can recognize viruses, it knows how they act and how to remove them.

However, more than 20 new viruses emerge every day, which antivirus programs are unable to recognize. Therefore, updating your antivirus frequently becomes fundamental for detecting and deleting these new malicious codes. The efficiency of an antivirus program lies, to a great extent, in its capacity to be updated, preferably daily.

2.	Make sure that your antivirus includes technical support, virus emergency response and a virus alert service.  Although it is true that a correctly updated antivirus program is the best tool to fight viruses, we recommend that you also have some additional services.

A technical support service, via e-mail or telephone, will be very helpful to solve any problem or inquiry that might arise in relation to a certain virus or the antivirus itself.

A virus emergency response service is highly recommendable and plays a vital role in eliminating the new viruses that affect users.

A virus alert system is another essential service that an antivirus program should offer. These are warnings of virus threats circulated, for example, via e-mail.

3.	Make sure that your antivirus is always enabled. An antivirus is active when it has permanent resident protection that constantly monitors all the operations carried out on the computer.

There are two ways of checking that this permanent protection is active; through an icon by the clock in the Windows system tray, or in the antivirus program configuration

Antivirus protection requires permanent file and e-mail protection.

4.	Verify all messages received before opening them. E-mail is the most popular means of virus propagation, therefore we advise you to be particularly careful when using it.

Every e-mail message received can contain a virus, even if there is no attachment symbol accompanying it (the typical paperclip). Similarly, it is not necessary to run the attachment to become infected; on some systems, simply opening the message or viewing it through the preview pane is enough to trigger the infection.

The best way to avoid infections is to verify all unsolicited e-mail messages or those received from non-habitual sources. An indication of virus presence is text written in a foreign language in the message body.

5.	Avoid downloading items from unreliable websites. Many Internet pages allow users to download programs and files to their computers. However, these files may be virus-infected.

As there is no definite way to know if downloads are safe, users should avoid downloading programs from unreliable websites. Generally, reliable sites are those sites that give clear information on their activity, as well as the products and services they offer. Sites backed by organizations such as publishing houses, governmental organizations, etc. can also generally be considered reliable.

6.	Reject all unsolicited files that you receive in chats or newsgroups. Thanks to the Internet, it is possible to exchange information and have real-time conversations on different issues through newsgroups and chats.

Newsgroups, which are different from mailing lists and use their own Internet transmission system (NNTP), also require constant and effective protection.

Both systems, apart from enabling communication between people, make it possible to transfer files. Therefore, we advise users to be extremely careful and accept only those files sent from known, reliable sources.

7.	Always scan every floppy disk that you use on your computer with a good antivirus. Together with the Internet, floppy disks are one of the most common means of virus propagation.

We recommend that you scan all the floppy disks used on your computer, using a good antivirus utility.

We also advise you to write-protect your floppy disks when using them on other computers. To do this, simply slide the write protect tab on the back of the floppy disk upwards.

8.	Remove all disks from the floppy disk drive on shutting down or restarting your computer. In spite of the fact that the Internet is one of the most common means by which viruses spread, floppy disks are still an important virus entry-point.

Apart from scanning all the floppy disks that you use, another way to avoid boot viruses is to remove all disks from the drives on shutting down or restarting your computer.

For times when you forget to do so, it is a good idea to have an antivirus program that checks for infected floppy disks.

9.	Scan within compressed files. Compressed files, which are very useful as they can contain several files in a reduced space, are a breeding ground for viruses.

It is very important that your antivirus program detects as many compressed formats as possible.

Before directly opening files of this kind, such as ZIP files, we recommend saving them to a temporary folder –whose files can be later deleted- created by the user, instead of opening them in working directories, such as the Windows directory, My Documents folders, the Desktop, etc.

10.	Look out for suspicious virus activities. When using your computer you might notice different symptoms that could be an indication that there is a virus in the system: an increase in the file size, messages warning you of the presence of macros in Word and Excel documents that should not contain them, people receiving e-mail messages from you that you did not send, etc.

The best thing to do in situations like this, is contact the virus emergency response service provided by your antivirus company.

11.	Add the security options of the applications that you normally use to your antivirus protection policies. The most popular computer programs become a target for virus writers. Therefore, software manufacturers usually include antivirus security options in their products.

This is the case with Internet browsers, word processors, e-mail programs, etc. that incorporate features for protecting information. If you are not familiar with these options, you can consult the program Help files and search for the term ‘security’ to learn about these features.

These specific security features are a highly useful addition to having an updated antivirus.

12.	Make regular backup copies. A good way for both home and corporate users to minimize the destructive effect of a virus is to restore backup copies.

Making frequent backup copies of the most important information in the system is an excellent security policy. This way, the loss of data caused by a virus can be solved just by restoring the latest backup copy.

13.	Keep yourself informed. A good way to protect yourself against new viruses is to keep up-to-date with the latest news in the IT sector.

However, considering the information overload from the media it would be advisable to check all this data against the full, expert and up-to-date information provided by certain companies and organizations: antivirus companies, IT security consultants, organizations that circulate virus alerts, governmental organizations, universities, etc.

14.	Always use legal software. The risk of infection will be lower if you only install legal software in your computer.

If the program you are using was installed from a pirated CD-ROM or is legal software, which has been manipulated in order to break the manufacturer’s protection, you cannot be sure if the product is virus-free.

Similarly, in the case of antivirus software, a legal copy of the program allows users to enjoy all the additional services that guarantee its effectiveness and protection.

15.	Demand that software manufacturers, Internet access providers and publication editors get involved in the fight against viruses. Everyone in the IT sector should get involved in the fight against viruses: companies, users, antivirus manufacturers, the media, etc.

As the Internet is the most popular means of virus propagation, collaboration from the Internet access providers in this fight is essential.

Apart from that, it would be a great help if software manufactures and magazines distributing CD-ROMs took the necessary measures to prevent viruses from spreading.

Collaboration from all parties involved would help lessen the problem of virus infections.

 Note: You can consult these tips and other interesting information on computer viruses in the Virus encyclopedia on the Panda Software website www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/encyclopedia.


Rescue disks
Rescue disks (Safedisk)

Sometimes when you are under threat from a certain virus, it may be impossible to start up the computer, or boot it from a virus-free environment. In this case you need to boot the computer from a virus-free boot disk or system disk and scan and disinfect the computer from the floppy disk drive using this floppy disk or others.

Panda Antivirus Platinum allows you to create several disks that will make it possible to boot, scan and disinfect a computer in a virus-free environment. These disks are called Rescue disks. A virus-free environment, refers to a computer that has no viruses resident in memory that could interfere with the scan and disinfection processes.

Panda Antivirus Platinum includes a tool for creating these disks: Rescue disks. Its function is to create several floppy disks that allow the computer to be booted and scanned. These disks allow the computer to be booted and prevent the viruses from going memory resident when the computer is started up (provided that these disks are virus-free). After creating these disks, it is highly recommendable to write-protect them (using the corresponding tab).

Once the computer has started up you can scan and disinfect it using the Rescue disks, as they contain the antivirus in command line (PAVCL).

It is also worth highlighting that the Rescue disks must be created in a virus-free computer. This guarantees that the floppy disks created are also virus-free. If this is not the case, these disks will be useless as they will not allow the computer to be booted in a virus-free environment.

Rescue disks can be created in two ways:

From the Windows Start button

1.	Click on the Windows Start button.

2.	Select Programs.

3.	Access the program group Panda Antivirus Platinum.

4.	Select the option Rescue Disks.

5.	A description of the function of the Rescue disks is displayed. Make sure that you have several blank 3 ½ inch high-density floppy disks to hand in order to create the Rescue disks. Click on Next.

6.	You are prompted to insert a floppy disk in the drive. Insert the floppy disk and click on OK (the content of the floppy disk will be lost and certain files will be copied to it).

7.	When the first disk has been created, the wizard will prompt you to insert the rest of the floppy disks in succession. As the disks are created, label them clearly and write-protect them by sliding the tab upwards (this will prevent them from being accidentally deleted or infected by a virus if they are used on an infected computer).

8.	A message is displayed informing you that the Rescue disks creation process is complete. Click on Close.

From the antivirus window

1.	In the antivirus window, select the Home option in the Control Panel.

2.	If you have not already created Rescue Disks, a message in the Reminders section will inform you. This message will be similar to the following: You still haven’t created Rescue Disks. Create them now! When you have created the Rescue Disks, this reminder will be removed.

3.	If you click on this reminder or suggestion, the Rescue Disks wizard will be launched.

4.	A description of the content of the Rescue disks is displayed. Make sure that you have several blank 3 ½ inch high-density floppy disks to hand in order to create the Rescue disks. Click on Next.

5.	You are prompted to insert a floppy disk in the drive. Insert the floppy disk and click on OK (the content of the floppy disk will be lost and certain files will be copied to it).

6.	When the first disk has been created, the wizard will prompt you to insert the rest of the floppy disks in succession. As the disks are created, label them clearly and write-protect them by sliding the tab upwards (this will prevent them from being accidentally deleted or infected by a virus if they are used on an infected computer).

7.	A message is displayed informing you that the process for creating Rescue disks is complete. Click on Close.

How are Rescue disks used?

If you need to use the Rescue disks to boot your computer from a virus-free environment and scan it, follow the steps below:

1.	With the computer switched off, insert Rescue disk 1 in the floppy disk drive.

2.	Switch on, restart or startup the computer. The computer detects an operating system on the floppy disk in the disk drive and will be booted from it.

3.	Follow the instructions displayed on screen.

How to use the installation CD as a rescue disk

The Panda Antivirus Platinum installation CD-ROM also acts as a rescue disk in computers configured to boot from the CD-ROM. If this is the case and you want to carry out a Full Scan using the installation CD-ROM as a rescue disk, follow the steps below:

1.	Start your computer with the Panda Antivirus Platinum installation CD in the CD-ROM drive.

2.	A screen will appear in which you can select the language. Press Enter to continue.

3.	Then, the welcome screen will be displayed. Press C to continue, or A (Advanced) if the hard disk has more than one partition and you want to select those to be scanned. In this case, after selecting the partition or partitions to scan, press the C key to continue.

4.	After a few seconds the scan will automatically start.

5.	When the scan is complete, information on the files scanned, infected, the viruses detected, etc. will be displayed. If you want to save this information in a text file, insert a floppy disk in the floppy disk drive and press the S key

Press the T key to end. Then, the CD-ROM tray will automatically open. When this happens, remove the installation CD-ROM. The computer will automatically restart and boot from the hard disk in the usual way.


Online Registration

As well as being a tool that can detect and eliminate all viruses, an antivirus should also be accompanied by services that increase its benefits (updates, technical support for virus incidents, the option to make technical inquiries, continuous support, etc).

Panda Antivirus Platinum includes a suite of services that make it much more complete and useful.

In order to access these services and use them correctly, you must register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. Only then will you be able to use them.

 Note: If you have a subscription version or if you have purchased the antivirus through the virtual store on Panda Software website, you will not need to access the Panda Software registration Web page to register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. In these cases, your user name and password will be sent to you without you having to do anything else.

How do I register? Very easily, you can register during the antivirus installation process or after it has been installed. In both cases, registration will be carried out online. This means that it will be done through the registration area on the Panda Software website. If your antivirus includes a registration card, you can also register by filling it out and sending it by e-mail, post or fax to Panda Software.

If you choose to register online, after installing the antivirus, go to the Services section in the Panda Antivirus Platinum window and follow the instructions below:

1.	In the antivirus window, click on the Services option in the Control panel.

2.	A message at the bottom of the screen will inform you that you need to register in order to access and use any of the services in Panda Antivirus Platinum. Click on the Web address to directly access the Panda Software Online registration page.

3.	Once you have accessed this page, select your Country and Language.

4.	Specify if you are going to use Panda Antivirus Platinum in a company or not.

5.	Finally, specify if you have already registered as a Panda Software user at some other time.

6.	Regardless of your answer to the previous question, complete the form and click on Send.

If you decide to register online when installing the antivirus, enable the corresponding checkbox. This will take you to the Panda Software online registration Web page. Once you have accessed this page, select your Country and Language, specify if you are going to use Panda Antivirus Platinum in a company or not, and specify if you have already registered as a Panda Software user at some other time. Regardless of your answer to the previous question, complete the form and click on Send.


Installation requirements

For the correct installation and functioning of Panda Antivirus Platinum, the following minimum software and hardware pre-requisites must be met:

Minimum pre-requisites for installing the antivirus

•	Processor: Pentium 300 MHz.

•	 RAM memory:  128 MB.

•	Hard disk: 50 MB free space.

•	CD-ROM: in order to install Panda Antivirus Platinum the computer must have a CD-ROM drive, as the program is only distributed on this support. If you downloaded Panda Antivirus Platinum from Internet, a CD-ROM drive is not needed.

•	Operating System: Windows XP, Windows 2000 Pro, Windows NT WS 4.0, Windows Me, Windows 98, or Windows 95

•	In the display settings tab, it is necessary to configure it to work with high color (16 bit).

Minimum pre-requisites for installing the firewall

•	If you have Windows NT installed, you must also have Service Pack 5, or later and Internet Explorer 5.01, or later installed.

•	If you have Windows 95 installed, you must also have Dun 1.3 (Dial-Up Networking) and Winsock 2 (WS2_32.DLL) installed.

•	If you have Sygate firewall installed, you must install it.


Install Panda Antivirus Platinum

Before installing Panda Antivirus Platinum, make sure that the minimum pre-requisites are met in order to install the antivirus and for it to function correctly. You can consult these pre-requisites in the Installation Requirements section in this Help.

You may have downloaded Panda Antivirus Platinum from Internet (Panda Software website, or other) or obtained it on the installation CD-ROM. Although the installation process is similar, the process for each version is described below.

If all the installation requirements are met, follow the instructions below:

Installing Panda Antivirus Platinum from the CD-ROM

1.	Insert the Panda Antivirus Platinum CD-ROM in the CD-ROM drive in the computer in which you want to install the antivirus.

2.	An application that allows you to install the antivirus is automatically executed. If the autorun option in your computer is disabled, run the program CDMENU.EXE, which is included on the CD-ROM.

 Note: The Panda Antivirus Platinum installation CD-ROM also acts as a rescue disk in computers configured to boot from the CD-ROM. Provided that this is the case, you will be able to carry out a Full Scan of the computer booted from this Panda Antivirus Platinum installation CD-ROM. For more information, consult the Rescue Disks section of this help.

3.	A menu with different options is displayed. Select the option Install Panda Antivirus Platinum.

4.	If it detects that Panda Antivirus Platinum is already installed, a dialog box with the following options is displayed:

Repair. This option allows you to update and reconfigure the version of Panda Antivirus Platinum that is installed. If you click on this button, the following operations are carried out:

•	The necessary files are copied.

•	You are prompted to confirm if the computer should be restarted when the repair process is complete. Select one of the two options (Yes, I want to restart now, or No, I’ll restart later) and click on Finish.

Remove. This option uninstalls or deletes Panda Antivirus Platinum from your computer. If you select this option, the following operations are carried out:

•	You are prompted to confirm if you want to remove the application and all of its components. Click on Cancel to stop the process, or on OK to remove the antivirus.

•	After installation you are prompted to confirm if you want to restart the computer. Select one of the options (Yes, I want to restart now, or No, I’ll restart later) and click on the Finish button.

5.	If Panda Antivirus Platinum is not already installed, a window welcoming you to the installation process is displayed. This window advises you to close all programs and uninstall any other antivirus programs installed before continuing. Do this and click on Next.

6.	The license agreement is displayed. Accept it by clicking on Yes in order to continue.

7.	A screen appears that allows you to select the type of installation you want to perform: Typical or Customized. In this screen you can also change the installation directory set by default. In order to do this, click on the Browse... button and select the directory. Click on Next to continue.

8.	You can Scan the memory during installation or Scan the hard disk during installation. Select the part you want to scan and click on Next.

 Note: If you have selected Typical installation, this screen is not displayed and the memory will be automatically scanned.

9.	If you selected a scan in the previous step, the corresponding scan will be carried out. When this scan is complete, click on OK.

10.	Enter your User name and Company and click on Next.

11.	Then specify if you want to enable the firewall incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum. In order to do this, check the option Enable the firewall (recommended) and click on Next. For more information about the firewall, click on the option What is a firewall?.

You can enable the firewall now (during the Panda Antivirus Platinum installation process), or you can do it later. In the second case, you can enable through the firewall configuration in the antivirus window (by selecting the Permanent protection menu in the Control panel in the antivirus window and then, the Configure option in the Firewall panel).

For more information about enabling and configuring the firewall, consult the section How to configure Panda Antivirus Platinum’s Firewall?.

12.	If you checked the option Enable the firewall (recommended) and if your computer only has one network adapter (network card through which your computer connects to a computer network), specify if your computer is connected to a computer network. If it is, enable the checkbox This computer is connected to a local network.

 Note: If you are performing a Typical installation the firewall is installed without any prior warning.

If your computer has more than one network adapter (network card through which your computer connects to a computer network), you will be able to select those that will be used to share network files and printers. In this case, a list of all the network adapters (network cards in your computer so that it can connect to a computer network) installed in your computer is displayed. Select the adapters you want  (it is advisable not to select those that allow a direct connection to the Internet -MODEM, xDSL, etc-) by checking the corresponding checkbox. If you are carrying out a Typical installation, this screen will not be displayed and the network adapters will be automatically selected.

 Note: If your operating system is Windows NT 4.0, the list of network adapters is not displayed. The advanced security rules will be applied to all existing adapters not just one. Similarly, the shared folders configuration options will not be enabled (Security tab in the firewall configuration).

Then, click on Next

13.	If you enabled the firewall in the previous steps, you can configure Panda Antivirus Platinum to inform you whenever a common program accesses the network. If you don’t want to be informed, check the option Do not ask when common programs access the network (recommended). You can also consult the list of programs that are considered as common programs in your computer by clicking on View the common programs in your computer. Then, click on Next.

 Note: If you are carrying out a Typical installation, this screen will not be displayed and the firewall configuration will be set automatically.

14.	The antivirus files are copied to the hard disk.

15.	When all the files have been copied, you can register online (via Internet) as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. Select the corresponding option: Yes, I want to register now, or No, I’ll do it later and click on Next.

 Note: In subscription versions, and in those purchased through the virtual store on Panda Software website, you are not given the possibility of registering online during installation.

16.	If you selected Yes, I want to register now in the previous step, you will access the Panda Software Online registration web page. Enter the data requested. You can also register after installing the antivirus.

17.	If you specified that the firewall must be installed or enabled in the corresponding step in the installation process -if you checked the option Enable the firewall (recommended)-, you can select one of the following options: Yes, I want to restart the computer now, or No, I’ll restart the computer later. Then click on Finish. If you checked the first option, the computer will be restarted and the system will be updated so that the antivirus will function correctly.

 Note: Remember that the firewall will only start working when the computer has been restarted. However, the antivirus and its permanent file and mail protections will work correctly. The firewall will be disabled until the computer is restarted.

18.	Finally, you can choose one of the following options: Open Panda Antivirus Platinum now, or Read Panda Antivirus Platinum tips now. If the first checkbox is enabled, the antivirus window will open when you click on Finish. If the second checkbox is enabled, a window with tips to protect yourself against viruses will open when you click on Finish.

Installing the antivirus from a file downloaded from Internet

1.	Run the file that you have downloaded from Internet, by double clicking on it.

2.	If it detects that Panda Antivirus Platinum is already installed, a dialog box with the following options is displayed:

Repair. This option allows you to update and reconfigure the version of Panda Antivirus Platinum that is installed. If you click on this button, the following operations are carried out:

•	The necessary files are copied.

•	You will be prompted to confirm if you want to restart the computer when the repair process is complete. Select one of the options (Yes, I want to restart now, or No, I’ll restart later) and click on Finish.

Remove. This option uninstalls or removes Panda Antivirus Platinum from your computer. If you select this option, the following operations are carried out:

•	You are prompted to confirm if you want to remove the application and all of its components. Click on Cancel to stop the process, or on OK to remove the antivirus.

•	After uninstallation, you are prompted to confirm if you want to restart the computer. Select one of the two options (Yes, I want to restart now, or No, I’ll restart later) and click on Finish.

3.	If Panda Antivirus Platinum is not already installed, a window welcoming you to the installation process is displayed. This window advises you to close all programs and uninstall any other antivirus programs installed before continuing. Do this and click on Next.

4.	The license agreement is displayed. Accept it by clicking on Yes in order to continue.

5.	You can Scan memory during installation and Scan the hard disk during installation. Select the part you want to scan and click on Next.

6.	If you selected a scan in the previous step, the corresponding scan will be carried out. When the scan is complete, click on OK.

7.	Enter your User name and Company and click on Next.

8.	The antivirus is installed in a directory by default. In order to install it in a different directory click on Browse…. Click on Next to continue.

9.	Then specify if you want to enable the firewall incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum. In order to do this, check the option Enable the firewall (recommended) and click on Next. For more information about the firewall, click on the option What is a firewall?.

10.	If you checked the option Enable the firewall (recommended) and your computer only has one network adapter (network card through which your computer connects to a computer network), specify if your computer is connected to a computer network. If it is, enable the checkbox This computer is connected to a local network. Then, click on Next.

If your computer has more than one network adapter (network card through which your computer connects to a computer network), you will be able to select those that will be used to share network files and printers. In this case, a list of all the network adapters (network cards in your computer so that it can connect to a computer network) installed in your computer is displayed. Select the adapters you want  (it is advisable not to select those that allow a direct connection to the Internet -MODEM, xDSL, etc-) by checking the corresponding checkbox.

 Note: If your operating system is Windows NT 4.0, the list of network adapters is not displayed. The advanced security rules will be applied to all existing adapters not just one. Similarly, the shared folders configuration options will not be enabled (Security tab in the firewall configuration).

11.	If you enabled the firewall in the previous steps, you can configure Panda Antivirus Platinum to inform you whenever a common program accesses the network. If you don’t want to be informed, check the option Do not ask when common programs access the network (recommended). You can also consult the list of programs that are considered as common programs in your computer by clicking on View the common programs in your computer. Then, click on Next.

12.	The antivirus files are copied to hard disk.

13.	When all the files have been copied, you can register online (via Internet) as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. Select the corresponding option: Yes, I want to register now, or No, I’ll do it later and click on Next.

 Note: In subscription versions, and in those purchased through the virtual store on Panda Software website, you are not given the possibility of registering online during installation.

14.	If you selected Yes, I want to register now in the previous step, you will access the Panda Software Online registration website. Enter the data requested. You can also register after installing the antivirus.

15.	If you specified that the firewall must be installed or enabled in the corresponding step in the installation process -if you checked the option Enable the firewall (recommended)-, you can select one of the following options: Yes, I want to restart the computer now, or No, I’ll restart the computer later. Then click on Finish. If you checked the first option, the computer will be restarted and the system will be updated so that the antivirus will function correctly.

Warning: Remember that the firewall will only start working when the computer has been restarted. However, the antivirus and its permanent file and mail protections will work correctly. The firewall will be disabled until the computer is restarted.

 Note: If you did not specify that the firewall should be enabled during the Panda Antivirus Platinum installation process, you can do it later from the firewall configuration option or from the Windows Start button. In the second case, click on Start, select the Programs group, select Panda Antivirus Platinum and click on Uninstall - Repair. A dialog box is displayed, click on Repair. If you haven’t yet installed the firewall you can do it now.


Uninstall Panda Antivirus Platinum

There are different ways of uninstalling Panda Antivirus Platinum. However, they all carry out the same operations (delete the antivirus files, remove the Registry entries, etc).

Uninstalling the antivirus from the antivirus programs group

1.	Close any mail programs that are open.

2.	Click on the Windows Start button.

3.	Select the option Programs.

4.	Go to the Panda Antivirus Platinum program group.

5.	Select the option Uninstall - Repair. A dialog box with the following two buttons is displayed: Repair (restores the antivirus) and Remove (uninstalls the antivirus).

6.	If you want to uninstall the antivirus click on Remove.

7.	You are prompted to confirm if you want to remove the application and all of its components. Click on OK to remove the antivirus.

8.	You are then given two options: Yes, I want to restart now, or No, I’ll restart later. Select an option and click on Finish.

Uninstalling the antivirus from the Windows Control Panel

1.	Close any mail programs that are open.

2.	Click on the Windows Start button.

3.	Select the option Settings.

4.	Go to Control Panel.

5.	Double click on the icon Add/Remove programs.

6.	Select Panda Antivirus Platinum.

7.	Click on Add/Remove.

8.	All the antivirus files are deleted.


Run Panda Antivirus Platinum

Once the antivirus has been installed, it can be run (an antivirus window is opened, but this does not mean that a scan is carried out) in several different ways.

From the Windows Start button

1.	Click on the Windows Start button.

2.	Select Programs

3.	Go to the Panda Antivirus Platinum program group.

4.	Select the option Panda Antivirus Platinum.

5.	The antivirus window is opened.

From the permanent protection icon

 If the antivirus permanent protection is enabled (as soon as it is installed, it is enabled), the Panda Antivirus Platinum icon appears in the Windows system tray -next to the system clock-. You can carry out several options from this icon: Configure Permanent protection, Launch Panda Antivirus (open the antivirus window), Close permanent protection (disable the permanent protection).

1.	If the permanent protection is loaded, the Panda Antivirus Platinum icon will appear in the Windows system tray, next to the system clock. Right-click on this icon. A menu with several options is displayed.

2.	Select Launch Panda Antivirus.

3.	The antivirus window is opened.

From the Quick Launch bar

 When the antivirus is installed, an access icon for executing the antivirus from the Windows Quick Launch bar is created. The Panda Antivirus Platinum icon is displayed on the Quick Launch bar. Clicking on this icon opens the antivirus window.

For more information about the first window in Panda Antivirus Platinum, how to work with it and the options that can be accessed from it, consult the Main antivirus window section in this Help.


Main antivirus window

You can consult the different ways of opening the antivirus window in the Run Panda Antivirus Platinum section in this Help. The main antivirus window always opens in the same section: Home. This section informs you about the current status of the program and of the permanent protection and might display certain interesting reminders.

Each part of this window is described below. These options work in the same way in the rest of the sections (Full Scan, Permanent Protection, Hospital and Services).

Tool bar or button bar

This bar is located below the title bar and contains several buttons:

 Update. Clicking on this button displays a wizard that allows you to specify how Panda Antivirus Platinum should be updated. From here you can update the antivirus. For more information about updates consult the Update Panda Antivirus Platinum section in this Help.

 Report. A report is displayed that contains every thing that happened during the scans that have been carried out (provided that the content of this report has not been deleted). For more information, consult the Scan report section in this Help.

 Virus list. Clicking this button displays a list of all of the viruses that the antivirus detects and their characteristics. For more information about how to use this list, consult the Virus list (information) section in this Help. For more detailed information on a certain virus, visit the Panda Software Virus encyclopedia.

 General options. A dialog box containing various tabs is displayed: General, Mail profile, Update, Sounds and Restrictions. Each tab contains the options for defining the antivirus configuration of each of these features. For more information about these tabs, consult the General antivirus configuration section of this Help.

 Help. By clicking on this button, a drop-down list is displayed with several options: Online registration (allows you to register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user and access the services it includes), Contents (access to this Help – you can also access it by pressing the function key F1), What’s this? (select this option and click on a section of the window to obtain more information about it), Panda on the Web (shortcuts to the different areas of the Panda Software website), Frequently asked questions (FAQs) (shows the answers to the questions that we are most often asked), Panda Antivirus innovations (access information about the new features of Panda Antivirus), Tips (15 practical tips from Panda Software in order to protect yourself against viruses) and About Panda Antivirus (shows information about the version of the antivirus).

 Note: The option Online registration will not de displayed in subscription versions or in those purchased through the virtual store on Panda Software website.

Control panel

The control panel is located on the left of the window. When the antivirus window is opened, the control panel lists several options or tasks that you can carry out with Panda Antivirus Platinum.

Depending on the section (Home, Full Scan, Permanent Protection, Hospital, or Services), additional options panels could be displayed under the initial Control panel. All of these panels include the initial Control panel and can be expanded and collapsed. This means that by clicking on the double arrow that appears in the right corner or on the title, these panels are expanded (displaying the options) and collapsed (only displaying the title).

 Home. By selecting this option in the Control panel (which is selected by default when the antivirus window is opened), you can consult useful information about the characteristics of the antivirus and of the permanent protection (Antivirus: files and mail and the Firewall). Customized warnings and suggestions generated by Panda Antivirus Platinum are also displayed.

The Home section does not contain any additional options panels. For more information, consult the Antivirus status section in this Help.

 Full Scan. From this section you can carry out any type of scan, by selecting the items to scan and specifying how and when they should be scanned.

The different types of scan displays an additional panel called Scan jobs. From this panel you can Scan, Configure, Create a new scan and Edit a scan and Delete a scan. For more information, consult the Scan types section in this Help.

 Permanent protection. This option allows you to consult the status of the permanent protection or permanent scan (of files and of e-mail) and the firewall. You can also specify their characteristics and enable and disable the protection (Antivirus and Firewall).

If go to the Permanent protection section, two additional panels are displayed, which are called Antivirus and Firewall. From both panels you can Configure, Enable and Disable the permanent protection (resident) of mail and files and the firewall. For more information, consult the Permanent scan or permanent antivirus protection (files and mail) and the firewall section in this Help.

 Hospital. This option gives you complete control over the files that you suspect are infected with a virus. You can put the files in Quarantine to avoid infection, send them to Panda Software to be analyzed, restore them to their original location and make backup copies.

If you go to the Hospital section, a central panel is displayed that contains all of the items included in the Hospital. Through this panel, you can carry out any operation with all items (files) in Quarantine. You can handle the suspicious files placed (automatically or manually) in Quarantine: Send to Panda, Disinfect and restore, Delete file and Add file to Quarantine and get Help on the Hospital. For more information about Quarantine, consult the Hospital - Quarantine section in this Help.

For more information, consult the What is the Hospital? section in this Help.

 Services. Through this section you can access some of the best services offered by Panda Software, which are included with Panda Antivirus Platinum. Don’t forget that in order to use all of the services included with the antivirus, you must register as a Panda Software user.

 Note: If you have a subscription version or if you have purchased the antivirus through the virtual store on Panda Software website, you will not need to access the Panda Software registration Web page to register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. In these cases, your user name and password will be sent to you without you having to do anything else.

The Services section does not contain any additional options panels. For more information, consult the What services does Panda Antivirus Platinum include? section in this Help.

Central area or central section of contents and operations

This is the main section, which displays the content, items, and options that can be accessed from any option in the Control panel (or other panels) with which you are working.

Status and update bar

This bar is located at the bottom of the window -below the Control panel-. This bar shows if the antivirus is up to date or out of date. A green progress bar shows how up to date the antivirus is. If the antivirus is out of date, this bar will be red. In some cases, a phrase on the status bar will inform you which operations Panda Antivirus Platinum is carrying out.


Operations from the Windows taskbar

 Provided that the permanent protection is loaded (permanent Antivirus protection: file and mail and the firewall), the Panda Antivirus Platinum icon will be displayed in the Windows system tray (next to the system clock). Through this icon (shown at the start of this paragraph) you can carry out several operations.

If you right-click on this icon, a menu with the following options is displayed:

•	Configure permanent protection. This option allows you to specify the characteristics of the permanent scan or protection (file and mail antivirus and the firewall). You can also enable and disable each type of protection. If both types of permanent protection are disabled, the icon on the Windows taskbar will be gray. You can also access the configuration by right-clicking on the icon or by double clicking on it. For more information, consult the Permanent scan or permanent protection (files and mail) section in this Help.

•	Launch Panda Antivirus Platinum. This option opens the Panda Antivirus Platinum window. This does not mean that a scan will be carried out.

•	Close permanent protection. If you select this option, you will be asked to confirm if you want to close (disable) the permanent protection (file and mail antivirus and the firewall). If you click on Yes, the permanent protection will be immediately disabled and the icon will disappear from the Windows taskbar. You can enable it again through the Permanent protection option in the antivirus window (the icon will then reappear in the Windows taskbar). For more information, consult the Permanent scan or permanent protection (files and mail) section in this Help.


Pop-up menus

When working with Panda Antivirus Platinum, in addition to the menu options and the buttons on the toolbar, you can also use pop-up menus. In order to use these menus, right-click on any item or section in the main window. These menus are available in the following sections: Full Scan and Hospital.

More information on this type of pop-up menu is available in the following sections of this Help:

Pop-up menu in Full Scan

Pop-up menu in the Hospital

Scans can also be carried out using the pop-up menu from Windows Explorer. In order to do this, follow the steps below:

1.	Select the group of items (files, directories, disk drives, etc) that you want to scan.

2.	Right-click on them.

3.	Select the option Scan with Platinum antivirus.

The items selected will be scanned. When it is complete, the scan results will be displayed. From this dialog box you can consult the antivirus Report, or close the dialog box by clicking on OK.


Pop-up menus in scans
Pop-up menu in scans

From the Full Scan section in the Control panel, you can carry out any type of scan, create new scans (scan jobs), modify existing scan jobs, etc. All of these operations can be carried out through the options in the corresponding panels or through the options in the pop-up menus (these menus vary depending on the section).

Pop-up menu in scan types

The scan section contains three large groups: On-demand scans, Scan other items (in on-demand scans) and Scheduled scans. If you right-click on any of these titles, the option New scan is displayed. Selecting this option allows you to create a new scan job. For more information, consult the How do I create a new scan? (on-demand / scheduled) section in this Help.

Pop-up menus in predefined scan jobs (on-demand / scheduled) and in items to scan

Predefined scan jobs are those scans are defined by default in the antivirus (Scan all My Computer, Scan hard disks, etc). Both the predefined on-demand scan jobs (that appear by default), items that can be selected in Scan other items, and predefined scheduled scan jobs have similar pop-up menus (with the same options). If you right-click on any default on-demand or scheduled scan or on any item in Scan other items, the following options are displayed:

•	Scan. The selected item is immediately scanned.

•	Configure. This option is only available for predefined on-demand scan jobs (not scheduled). It allows you to set the characteristics of the on-demand scan of the selected item.

•	Edit scan. This option is only available for predefined scheduled scans (not on-demand). It allows you to set the characteristics of the scheduled scan job (and its schedule) and the selected item.

•	New scan. This option allows you to create a new scan of any item.

Pop-up menu for new scans created by the user

From the Full Scan you can create new scan jobs, both on-demand and scheduled and configure and delete existing scan jobs.

 Note: You can only delete the new scan jobs that the user has created. Predefined on-demand scans cannot be deleted: Scan all My Computer, Scan hard disks, Scan all e-mail, Scan the floppy disk drive or Scan other items. It is also impossible to delete the predefined scheduled scans: Scan at system startup and Scan at Windows startup.

If you right-click on this type of scan (those created by the user), the following options are displayed:

•	Scan. The selected scan job immediately starts.

•	Edit scan. This option allows you to specify the characteristics of the scan job that you have selected. This is the scan configuration.

•	Delete scan. This option allows you to delete the selected scan job. As mentioned earlier, this option does not appear in the pop-up menu for predefined scans, as they cannot be deleted.

•	New scan. This option allows you to create a new scan job (on-demand and scheduled).

For more information about creating scan jobs (on-demand and scheduled, not predefined), consult the Scan types section in this Help.


Pop-up menu in the Hospital

If you go to the Hospital section in the Control panel, you can carry out several operations on files that you consider suspicious: put them in Quarantine, scan them, send them to Panda Software to be analyzed, restore them to their original location, delete them, etc.

All of these operations can be carried out through the options in the corresponding panels or through the options in the pop-up menus (these menus vary depending on the section).

By clicking on the main or right panel in the Hospital section (which shows the file list) the corresponding pop-up menu is displayed:

Pop-up menu for files in Quarantine

Any file in a directory on the hard disk can be put in Quarantine (manually or automatically by the antivirus). This means that it is moved from its original location to the group of files that you have quarantined (isolated from the rest).

This tool is used for suspicious files (possibly infected) to prevent them form being used and to isolate them from the rest (for more information about quarantined files, consult the Hospital - Quarantine section in this Help). When a file has been put in Quarantine (it appears in the panel on the right when Quarantine is selected in the Hospital), you can carry out certain actions on that file using the pop-up menu, or through the control panel on the left. These actions are:

•	Disinfect and restore. This option checks the selected files for viruses (it scans them) and disinfects them if they are infected. This operation can also be performed using the function key F8. If the file is not infected or if it has been disinfected, it can be restored in its original location (directory or folder). A dialog box prompting you to confirm this operation will be displayed. If you confirm the operation, the file will leave Quarantine. In other words, it is ‘discharged’ and goes to the directory in which it was originally stored (before it was sent to Quarantine). This operation can also be carried out through Disinfect and restore in the Quarantine panel.

•	Refresh. Updates or shows the current information on each file in the list. The same operation can be carried out through the function key F5. This option is only available in the pop-up menu, not in the Quarantine panel.

•	Show information. Shows additional data about the file selected in Quarantine. This option is only available in the pop-up menu, not in the Quarantine panel.

•	Delete. The selected file is permanently deleted and cannot be recovered. It is deleted from Quarantine and from its original directory. This operation can also be performed through the Delete file option in the Quarantine panel.

•	Send. This option allows you to send the quarantined file to the Panda Software Virus Laboratory. Our antivirus experts will study the file in order to find a solution to the problem the file is causing. You can only send the quarantined file if the antivirus is correctly updated. The file will be scanned and whether it is infected or not you can send it to Panda Software for analysis. This operation can also be performed through the Send to Panda option in the Quarantine panel.

For more information about each action that can be carried out on the files in Quarantine, consult the Actions on quarantined files section in this Help.


Current antivirus status

When the Panda Antivirus Platinum window is opened the Home section is displayed. If the window is already open but you are working in another section (Full Scan, Permanent protection, etc), you can consult the antivirus status by selecting the Home option in the Control panel on the left.

This section shows the most important characteristics of the status of the antivirus program and of the permanent protection (file and mail antivirus and the firewall). Certain reminders or suggestions could also be displayed.

The antivirus status is defined in two sections of the central panel

Program status

This section informs you of the current status of Panda Antivirus Platinum. The following data is displayed in this section:

•	Date of the virus signature file: This is the file that allows viruses to be detected. It is important to keep this file updated in order to detect new the viruses that have appeared. The date shown in this section indicates the date that this file was last updated.

•	Total number of virus signatures: This shows the number of viruses that can be detected (and therefore disinfected), with the current version of the virus signature file. The number of viruses that Panda Antivirus Platinum can eliminate increases every day, for this reason it is important to update this file every day, either automatically or manually.

•	Automatic update: The antivirus updates both the virus signature file and the antivirus program when it detects a connection to Internet. You can decide when an update must be carried out or you can leave it to Panda Antivirus Platinum, through the Automatic update. This section indicates whether this type of update is enabled or disabled.

Permanent protection status

This section indicates whether the permanent protection (file and mail antivirus and the firewall) is Enabled or Disabled. If you want to modify the status (enable or disable it or set the characteristics), click on the Configure permanent protection option. Then, the following dialog box is displayed (for more information about configuring the permanent protection, consult the Permanent scan or permanent antivirus protection (files and mail) and the firewall section in this Help).

This dialog box allows you to specify if the permanent protection (Permanent file protection, Permanent mail protection and the firewall) should be Enabled or Disabled. You can also Configure the properties or characteristics of each type of permanent protection (resident). For more information about the configuration of the permanent protection, consult the  Permanent scan or permanent antivirus protection (files and mail) and the firewall section in this Help.

Reminders
When necessary, this section displays notes advising you to carry out a certain operation. By clicking on these notes you can immediately carry out the action suggested. For example, if you still haven’t scanned all of the items in your computer, the corresponding reminder will be displayed (You have never scanned all of your computer. Scan now!), or if you still haven’t created the Rescue Disks (You still haven’t created Rescue Disks. Create them now!). This section also indicates the number of days since the antivirus was last updated.

Finally, a progress bar is displayed in the bottom left of the Panda Antivirus Platinum window (in the status bar, under the Control Panel). This bar is always displayed, regardless of the section in which you are working (Home, Full Scan, Permanent protection, Hospital or Services). This bar shows how up to date Panda Antivirus Platinum is. When the antivirus is completely up to date, this bar is green. If the antivirus is out of date, it appears in red. If you click on it, a dialog box appears which informs you about the update status of Panda Antivirus Platinum.


Permanent scan or permanent Antivirus protection (file and mail) and the Firewall

Panda Antivirus Platinum allows you to carry out on-demand and scheduled scans (which can be predefined, created by the user or scans of individual items). In addition Panda Antivirus Platinum constantly protects you from viruses that might be included in or get into your computer through:

•	Files (permanent file protection).

•	E-mail (permanent mail protection -Microsoft Outlook Express and Microsoft Exchange/Outlook-).

•	Firewall (permanent protection of certain program’s access to the Internet, blocks, program or user attacks, etc).

The files that you use and those that get into your computer through any communications port (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred -inbound/outbound - from the computer to the outside and vice-versa), as well as messages and files received via e-mail and access through the firewall are constantly scanned.

In order to do this, enable the permanent protection (file and mail antivirus and the Firewall) and configure them as required (Panda Antivirus Platinum must also be up to date). This protection continually scans ALL files involved in any operation that you carry out.

This type of protection or scan is called Permanent Protection (also known as resident scan) and is applied to all files, e-mail messages and information accessed or transferred through the firewall. There is permanent protection for e-mail, files and information accessed or transferred. The objective of permanent protection is to monitor all of the operations carried out in a computer and search for viruses or unauthorized access. By doing this, every time you try to run or copy a file, or access or send a message, the corresponding permanent protection will scan it in order to check that it is virus-free and disinfect it if it is infected.

The permanent Antivirus protection (file and mail) / Firewall offers constant protection (provided that it is enabled and up to date) of all operations that involve handling files, messages and access. This includes all files that are copied to or from a computer connected to a network, Internet, etc.

Although this type of scan constantly checks the status of files, messages and communications ports (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred –inbound/outbound – from the computer to the outside and vice-versa), it has a minimum effect on the system performance and offers the highest level of protection (provided that it is enabled and the antivirus is up to date). As a result, it is advisable to keep this protection enabled at all times. From the moment it is enabled to the moment it is disabled, the permanent file and mail protection and the firewall will start working every time the computer is started up.

In the Windows system tray (next to the system clock), you can see the panda icon that represents Panda Antivirus Platinum. This means that the permanent protection is loaded. You can carry out operations from this icon by right-clicking on it. When you click on this icon, several options are displayed:

•	Configure permanent protection: This option allows you to specify how the permanent protection (resident) should work. You can also access the configuration by right-clicking or by double clicking on the icon. For more information, consult the How to configure a scan (on-demand / scheduled / permanent) section in this Help.

The configuration options for the firewall included with Panda Antivirus Platinum will only be available if you have installed it.

•	Launch Panda Antivirus Platinum: This option runs Panda Antivirus Platinum  –opens the window-, from the Windows taskbar.

•	Close permanent protection: This option stops the permanent protection (file and mail antivirus and the firewall).

You can also consult every incident that has occurred, the status of the permanent protection (file and mail antivirus and the firewall) and carry out operations with this type of protection by clicking on the Permanent protection option in the Control panel (in the antivirus window).

This displays a list of the incidents that have occurred. Information on each incident is displayed in the central panel in the following columns: Incident, Notified by, More information, Date-Time, and Results. At the bottom of this window is a summary of the files checked by the permanent protection of files and mail and the firewall:

Permanent protection

File protection. This specifies the No. of files scanned and the No. of viruses neutralized in these scans.

Mail protection. This specifies the No. of messages scanned, the No. of files scanned and the No. of viruses neutralized in these scans.

Firewall. This specifies the No. of viruses neutralized and the No. of attacks neutralized

In order to expand or collapse the information displayed in this section, click on the double arrow that appears next to the title: More information and Collapse. If the information is collapsed, only the number of No. of files scanned will be shown.

You can also find out the status of the permanent protection and set the characteristics (configure) from the Panda Antivirus Platinum window. By selecting Home in the Control panel in the antivirus window, you can check (in the Permanent protection status section) whether the different types of permanent protection (file protection, mail protection and the firewall) are Enabled or Disabled. From this section you can also Configure the permanent protection.

Using the permanent protection (also known as permanent scan, or resident –file antivirus and mail antivirus- and the firewall), you can carry out several operations. These operations can be carried out through the corresponding panels in the Control panel on the left: Antivirus (configure the file and mail residents) and Firewall (Configure and View network activity) or through the options in the corresponding pop-up menu:

Operations that can be carried out through the Antivirus protection (file) panel

How to configure the permanent file protection (resident)

How to enable / disable the permanent file protection (resident)

Operations that can be carried out through the Antivirus protection (mail) panel:

How to configure the Permanent mail protection (resident)

How to enable / disable the Permanent mail protection

Operations that can be carried out through the Firewall panel:

How to configure the firewall

How to enable / disable the firewall

How to View network activity through the firewall


Scan types (Full Scan)

Panda Antivirus Platinum allows you to carry out different types of scan, specify which items should be scanned in each one, create customized scans and specify the characteristics of each one.

Panda Antivirus Platinum displays a tree containing all of the possible scan types and the items that can be scanned. This tree consists of two sections or scan types or jobs, which can be accessed through the Full Scan section in the Control panel.

•	On-demand scans. These scans are carried out as soon as their characteristics are defined, or when indicated to start, once they have been created. This means that they do not automatically start at a specified time.

•	Scheduled scans. These scans automatically start at a certain pre-established time or with a certain frequency, depending on the characteristics specified when they were created.

Panda Antivirus Platinum also carries out other types of scan that keep you protected at all times: Permanent scan or permanent antivirus protection (files and mail) and the firewall.

It is also possible to carry out an on-demand scan of any item (file, directory, disk drive, etc) that can be accessed from Windows Explorer. In order to do this, select the items and right-click on them. The option Scan with Platinum antivirus is displayed, by selecting this option the selected items will be scanned.

 Note: Although this Help refers, in most cases, to scans in Panda Antivirus Platinum they can be though of as Scan jobs. The reason for this is that these scans can be, modified / edited, configured, deleted, etc.


On-demand scan

On-demand scans allow you to scan a part of the computer or an item in the computer for viruses, when necessary. On-demand scans offer you the option of selecting which area/s or item/s you want to scan and are carried out immediately. These characteristics make these scans very useful for checking that there is not a virus in the files that you receive through any medium such as a floppy disk or e-mail, or in files that you have downloaded from Internet.

Panda Antivirus Platinum includes certain typical on-demand scans, established by default: predefined on-demand scans or predefined. These are the scans that are most commonly used, so the antivirus offers them by default. This makes it must easier, more comfortable and quicker to scan certain items in the computer for viruses. These scans can be defined as on-demand scan jobs, like the following:

•	Scan all My computer. When this predefined scan or scan job is started, all of the items in the following areas are scanned (see right panel): memory, 3 ½ floppy disks (disk drives), local disk (all the hard disks in the computer), compact disk (all the CD-ROM drives in the computer), network drive (all disk drives accessible through a network), Microsoft Outlook (if this e-mail program is installed in the computer), Microsoft Outlook Express (if this e-mail program is installed) and Lotus.

•	Scan hard disks. When this predefined scan or scan job is started, all of the files stored on the hard disks in the computer are scanned (not those accessible through a network).

•	Scan my documents. When this predefined scan or scan job is started, all the files stored in the My documents folder are scanned.

•	Scan e-mail. When this predefined scan job is started, all e-mail folders (the messages and files included in them) managed by the e-mail programs installed in your computer are scanned.

•	Scan disk drive. When this predefined scan job is started, all of the files stored on the floppy disks inserted in the floppy disk drive of your computer are scanned.

•	Scan other items. When this branch is expanded, the following items will be displayed: memory, Desktop, My Documents, local disk drive, compact disk, network drives and Outlook and Outlook Express mail folders. You can select which files or folders you want to scan in these items. In order to do this, expand the list of folders and files by clicking on the + sign and double clicking on the file or folder to scan.

 Note: You can also perform a scan through the pop-up menu. In order to do this, right-click on the file or folder you want to scan and select the Scan option (or press the function key F8).

When you click on one of these scan jobs or predefined scans, the items that will be checked when the scan is run are displayed in the panel on the right.

Clicking on the On-demand scans title or section of the tree allows you to create a new on-demand scan. You can do this through the Create new scan option in the Scan jobs panel or through the New scan option in the pop-up menu.

Different operations can be carried out on the predefined on-demand scan jobs. These operations can be accessed through the panel on the left: Scan jobs, which is displayed when you select a predefined scan or item, or through the options in the corresponding pop-up menu:

How to perform an on-demand scan

How to configure an on-demand scan

How to create a new on-demand scan

How to edit or modify an on-demand scan

How to delete or remove an on-demand scan

The on-demand scans section also has a special section: Scan other items. This section allows you to specify isolated items to scan (independently of the predefined scan types), or create new on-demand scan jobs.


Scheduled scan
Scheduled scans

Scheduled scans allow you to automatically scan any item in the computer for viruses at pre-established times (frequently or not).

The main use of scheduled scans is to indicate to the antivirus that it should scan certain items for viruses at certain times. You can set a scan calendar to greatly facilitate the task of keeping your computer virus-free.

Scheduled scans work in the same way as on-demand scans. It could be said that a scheduled scan job, is actually a set of on-demand scan jobs that are automatically run at certain times.

As scheduled scans are similar to on-demand scans, both types have similar configuration options. Both scan jobs give you the option to select the area or areas you want to scan. When creating, defining or editing scheduled jobs, an additional configuration tab is displayed: Scheduler. Scheduled scan jobs are carried out at the specified time. These characteristics make scheduled scans ideal for scanning a computer on a regular basis, keeping your computer virus free.

As with on-demand scan jobs, the program also includes predefined scheduled scan jobs (defined by default by the antivirus). You can select one of these scans or create a new scan depending on your needs. You can also vary the scan options. These options allow you to configure the scan to suit your needs.

Panda Antivirus Platinum includes certain typical scheduled scans, which are defined by default, predefined scheduled scans. As these scan jobs are the most frequently used, the antivirus presents them in a list by default. This list makes it much easier, more comfortable and quicker to scan specific items in the computer for viruses. These scans can be defined as scheduled scan jobs, like the following:

•	Computer startup scan. When this predefined scheduled scan job starts, it scans the computer boot system. This means that all the files that are involved in the functioning of the floppy boot sector (Boot) and of the boot sector of the hard disk (C: boot) are scanned. This scan guarantees that Windows 98/95 computers start up correctly, ensuring that all viruses are detected and cleaned.

•	Windows startup scan. When this predefined scheduled scan job starts, the computer memory, and the files involved in the functioning of the operating system are scanned when Windows starts. This scan guarantees that your Windows starts up correctly, ensuring that all viruses are detected and cleaned.

When you click on one of these predefined scan jobs, the items that will be checked when this scan is run are displayed in the panel on the right.

By clicking on the title or section Scheduled scans in the tree, you can create a new scheduled scan. You can do this through the Create new scan option in the Scan jobs panel or through the New scan option in the pop-up menu

Different actions can be carried out on the predefined on-demand scan jobs. These actions can be accessed through the panel on the left: Scan jobs, which is displayed when you select one of these scans, or through the options in the corresponding pop-up menu:

How to perform a scheduled scan

How to configure a scheduled scan

How to create a new scheduled scan

How to edit or modify a scheduled scan

How to delete or remove a scheduled scan


How to perform a scan (On-demand / Scheduled)

As you know on-demand and scheduled scan jobs can be predefined and you can perform an on-demand or a scheduled scan of independent items (memory, disks, etc.) and create new on-demand and scheduled scan jobs.

All of the items to be scanned in on-demand scans or scheduled scans can be checked (the scan job can be started) whenever necessary. In order to carry out an on-demand or scheduled scan job at a given time, follow the steps below:

1.	Whether you want to carry out an on-demand or a scheduled scan, select the items to scan through:

•	Predefined scans. Both the on-demand (Scan all My Computer, Scan hard disks, Scan my documents, Scan all e-mail, Scan the floppy disk drive), and the scheduled (System startup scan, in computers running Windows 98/95- Windows startup scan).

•	Any independent item (memory, Desktop, My Documents, disks, etc.), that appears in the section Scan other items.

•	Scans that the user has already created (on-demand or scheduled).

2.	Start the scan (scan job), by selecting the option Scan. This option can be selected in several ways:

•	From the Scan jobs panel, by clicking on the Scan option.

•	From the pop-up menu, by right-clicking on the corresponding scan and selecting the Scan option.

•	Through the function keys. In this case, after selecting the scan type, press the function key F8

In both cases, on-demand and scheduled, the scan will start. If a virus is detected, Panda Antivirus Platinum will inform you and carry out a certain action (disinfect, delete, etc.) depending on the action you have specified in the configuration. For more information about the scan process, consult the Scan process and possible incidents section in this Help.


How to configure a scan (on-demand / scheduled / permanent)

The scan options allow you to configure how the search for viruses should be carried out. In order to access these options, select the scan type or item to scan (except for the permanent protection) and click on the corresponding option in the Scan job panel.

If you have selected a predefined on-demand scan job, or want to scan selected items, click on the Configure option. If you have selected a predefined scheduled scan job or one created by the user, select the option Edit scan.

In order to configure the permanent protection, select the option Configure, in the Antivirus panel, or in the Firewall panel, depending on the permanent protection you want to configure.

The scan options are grouped in the same window but divided into different tabs to facilitate management. These tabs can vary depending on the scan (on-demand, scheduled, permanent protection, etc.), or the item to scan (memory, hard disk, etc).

Although the configuration options for the different scan types are similar, the following table shows the configuration options available for each type:

Configuration options for on-demand scans, scheduled scans and the permanent protection (file and mail antivirus and firewall)

On-Demand configuration

Scan

Actions

Exclusions

Warnings

Scheduled configuration

Scan

Actions

Exclusions

Warnings

Scheduler

Permanent Protection configuration (Antivirus)

File

Scan

Actions

Exclusions

Warnings

Mail

E-mail news

Actions

Warnings

Permanent Protection configuration (Firewall)

Access

Security

Phone connections

Rules

Programs


How to create a new scan (on-demand / scheduled)

The on-demand and scheduled scans carried out by Panda Antivirus Platinum can thought of as scan jobs that you can create, modify and delete (remove). The predefined scans –the on-demand and scheduled scans that the antivirus has already defined-, however, cannot be created or deleted, but they can be configured. New on-demand or scheduled scan jobs can be defined with similar or the same characteristics as the others.

In order to create a new on-demand or scheduled scan job, just follow the steps below:

1.	In the Control panel in the antivirus window, click on the section Full Scan.

2.	In the Scan jobs panel, select Create new scan. This opens the wizard for creating a new scan job (which is used to create both on-demand and scheduled scans). You can also launch the wizard by right clicking on any scan type and selecting the option New scan.

3.	A screen welcoming you to the wizard for creating new scan job is displayed. Click on Next to continue.

4.	Specify the items (drives, files, directories, etc.) you want to scan in the job that you are creating. In order to do this, click on Add.

5.	Using the + symbols in the list (or tree), select each item you want to scan one by one and click on OK. The items will be added to the list of items to scan one at a time. If you want to delete an item from the list, select it and click on Remove.

6.	When you have added all of the items you want the new scan to check, click on Next.

7.	Specify the characteristics of the scan and indicate whether it should be scheduled or not.

Configuration button. Click on this button to access the scan configuration options. Using the tabs Scan, Actions, Exclusions and Warnings, specify the characteristics or properties of the new scan. For more information about configuration, consult the How to configure a scan (on-demand / scheduled / permanent), section in this Help.

Checkbox I want this scan to be carried out frequently. Check this box if you want the scan to be scheduled to be automatically carried out with a certain frequency. If this checkbox is enabled the Schedule button is activated. Click on this button to set how frequently the scheduled scan should be automatically run. For more information consult the Configure scheduled scans - scheduler tab section in this Help.

8.	Enter a name for the scan job you are creating and click on Next.

9.	To finish the defining the scan job, click on Finish.

10.	The name of the job that you have just created will appear at the end of the on-demand or scheduled scan job list (depending on the option chosen in the wizard). If you did not set a schedule for the scan, it will appear at the end of the on-demand scan jobs list. If you did establish a schedule, this scan will be added to the end of the scheduled scan jobs list.

You can consult the properties of a scan job by selecting it. When a scan is selected, its properties will be displayed in the panel on the right: Items that will be scanned and other Details (this is only available for scheduled scans).

If you want to change the name of a scan job that has been defined, click on it once and when it is selected, click on it again. This allows you to edit the name in the text box. Modify its title and press the enter key.


Scan progress and possible incidents

By clicking on Scan, the type of scan selected or the scan of the items selected will start. A dialog box with a progress bar will be displayed. This bar indicates the percentage of the scan that has been completed and the items being scanned.

While the scan is being carried out, the progress bar advances, displaying data on the number of items (Memory, System, Boot, Messages or Documents) that have been scanned, infected, disinfected, put in Quarantine, deleted and marked as suspicious in each section.

The bottom section of this dialog box shows, when applicable, all the incidents that have occurred. The name of the Incident, the Job in which it occurred, the Date – Time, the Path or place where it occurred and the Action carried out will be specified.

When the scan is complete, the Report and OK buttons are activated. If you click on Report a list of information on the scans carried out is displayed. For more information on the results of a scan that has been carried out, go to the Report section in this Help. If you click on OK, the scan progress dialog box closes.


Scan configuration - Scan tab (on-demand / scheduled / permanent file protection)

This tab contains many options for configuring or setting the properties of the scan. These options are displayed in several groups to make them easier to manage.

 Note:  This configuration tab is NOT available in the permanent e-mail protection.

The tab corresponding to the scan configuration in the case of on-demand and scheduled scans

Scan section

This section includes all of the options that allow you to specify the file types to scan and specify whether reports should be generated.

•	Compressed files: If this option is selected, all compressed files (ZIP, RAR, ARJ, LZH, LZA, etc.) will be scanned. These files will only be scanned if this option is checked; they will not be scanned if only the option corresponding to all extensions is selected. In the configuration of the permanent file protection, this option is called Compressed.

•	E-mail files: If this option is selected, the antivirus will scan all e-mail files (messages and attached files), regardless of the options selected in the Extensions section. The antivirus can scan e-mail files corresponding to several e-mail clients including Microsoft Outlook -PST files- and Microsoft Outlook Express, etc. These files will only be scanned if this option is selected; they will not be scanned if only the option that corresponds to all extensions is selected. This option is NOT available in the permanent protection of mail and files.

•	Generate report: This option is only available for the permanent file protection. If this option is selected, data on the scan will be logged in a report.

•	All files: Selecting this option scans all files, regardless of their extension –except compressed files, system files and e-mail files, which must be selected separately in order to be scanned.

•	Only my extensions: This option allows you to specify that only the files whose extension is included in the list of extensions should be scanned. In order to access this list, click on Extensions, which will be activated when the checkbox Only my extensions is enabled.

The permanent file protection configuration section includes an additional button called Advanced options. By clicking on this button you can define how the permanent file protection should operate in the Network drives.

This section is ONLY available for permanent file protection. It is NOT available for the configuration of on-demand and scheduled scans nor for mail protection (this configuration tab is not available in this type of protection). Through the checkboxes in this section you can specify the functioning of the permanent protection in the network drives that you can access from your computer.

•	Scan: If this checkbox is selected the network drives that you can access from your computer will be scanned (by the permanent file protection).

•	Block if infected: If this checkbox is selected and a virus is detected (in a network drive that can be accessed or any item in the local computer), access to the network will be blocked. This prevents the virus from spreading to the rest of the computers connected to the network.

 Note: The two options above are displayed in Windows 95, Windows 98 or Windows Me computers. In Windows NT, Windows XP or Windows 2000, the following options are displayed:

•	Microsoft network: If this checkbox is enabled, the network drives will be scanned, provided that the network is a Microsoft network.

•	Novell network: If this checkbox is enabled, the network drives will be scanned, provided that the network is a Novell network.

Additional section

This section is NOT available for permanent mail protection and permanent file protection, but it is available for on-demand and scheduled scans. This section includes complementary options for improving the scan characteristics and performance.

•	Enable sounds: If this option is selected, sounds are enabled during the scans that are carried out depending on the configuration established in the section General antivirus configuration.

•	Generate report: If this option is selected, data on the scan will be logged in a report.

•	Multiple floppy disks: This option allows you to specify that you want to scan several floppy disks consecutively. By checking this option, once a floppy disk has been scanned, you will be prompted to insert the next floppy disk in the disk drive.

•	Minimize while scanning: If this option is selected, the antivirus window is automatically minimized when the scan begins (it will be displayed as a button on the Windows taskbar), monitoring the progress of the scan until it is complete.

Heuristic section

This section is NOT available for the permanent protection of files or mail, but it is available for on-demand and scheduled scans. Scans that use heuristic techniques allow potential new viruses to be discovered and located. These viruses are unknown and cannot be identified by the current version of the antivirus signature file.

•	Enable: If this option is selected, an additional scan will be carried out on each file, which searches for potential new viruses. This scan is based on techniques designed to detect unknown viruses.

•	Configure button: This button allows you to configure the heuristic scan, provided that the Enable checkbox is selected. You can choose from three different levels of sensitivity: Maximum sensitivity, Medium sensitivity (recommended), or Minimum sensitivity.

The tab corresponding to the scan configuration in the case of on-demand and scheduled scans

Scan section

This section includes all of the options that allow you to specify the file types to scan and specify whether reports should be generated.

•	Compressed files: If this option is selected, all compressed files (ZIP, RAR, ARJ, LZH, LZA, etc.) will be scanned. These files will only be scanned if this option is checked; they will not be scanned if only the option corresponding to all extensions is selected.

•	Generate report: . If this option is selected, data on the permanent file protection will be logged in a report.

•	All files: Selecting this option scans all files, regardless of their extension –except compressed files and system files, which must be selected separately in order to be scanned.

•	Only my extensions: This option allows you to specify that only the files whose extension is included in the list of extensions should be scanned. In order to access this list, click on Extensions, which will be activated when the checkbox Only my extensions is enabled.

Script blocking section

Through this section, which only appears in the permanent file protection configuration tab, you can prevent files written in the Script language (VBSsript or JScript) from being run.

•	Prevent script files from being run: If this option is checked, Panda Antivirus Platinum will prevent files written in a script type programming language  (Visual Basic Script or Java Script) from being run.

Several useful buttons appear at the bottom of the configuration screens:

OK: The changes to the configuration will be saved and applied.

Default: This option allows you to restore the default settings of the scans. You will be asked Are you sure you want to restore the factory settings?. Click on Yes (the antivirus will be configured as it was after it was installed), or No.

Cancel: The changes to the configuration will be neither saved nor applied.


Scan configuration - Actions tab (on-demand / scheduled / permanent file protection)

Through this tab you can specify the action that the antivirus must carry out if a virus is detected. Depending on the action selected, you will be given certain options.

 Note: The list of actions to be carried out always includes the same options for the on-demand and scheduled scans (whether they are predefined or created by the user). However, this list varies for the permanent protection (or resident) of files and mail.

When the list of actions is extended, you will be see the following options (remember that these option vary depending on the scan type):

Prevent access to the file

This option is ONLY available for permanent file protection, it is NOT available for Permanent mail protection or any other scan type (nor on-demand or scheduled, whether they are predefined or created by the user).

The option Prevent access to the file specifies that the antivirus must not stop the scan if a virus is detected in an infected file and that the file cannot be used. This means that information on the incident will be displayed but no other action will be carried out.

Ignore and continue scanning

This option indicates that the antivirus should not carry out any action when it detects a virus. The scan will continue as normal. The checkbox Cancel the scan and notify if any other incident occurs is also displayed (not for the permanent protection). If this checkbox is selected, the scan will be temporarily stopped if an unexpected problem arises to inform you of the incident. If you click on OK the scan will continue as normal.

 Note: This option (Ignore and continue scanning) is NOT available for permanent file protection but it IS, however, available in the On-demand and Scheduled scans (predefined scans and those created by the user).

Disinfect automatically

This option allows you to specify that the antivirus must automatically disinfect all the infected files it detects.

If the virus cannot be disinfected, the infected file is automatically moved to the Quarantine area of the Hospital. This means that this file will disappear from its original location.

Selecting the option Automatically disinfect from the drop-down menu displays two checkboxes at the bottom of the tab:

•	Make a backup copy of the file before disinfecting it. If the antivirus tries to disinfect a file, it will create a copy of it before trying to disinfect it, so that if the file resulted unusable after disinfection, a copy would still be available. You can access the copy of the file, restore it in its original location, etc. It uses the Hospital section of the antivirus.

•	Cancel the scan and notify if any other incident occurs. This checkbox is NOT available for the permanent protection of mail and files. It is ONLY available in on-demand and scheduled scans (whether they are predefined scans, scans created by the user or scans of individual items). If this checkbox is selected, the scan will be temporarily stopped if an unexpected problem arises to inform you of the incident. If you click on OK the scan will continue as normal.

Delete infected file

Selecting this option deletes all infected files detected by the antivirus. The checkbox Cancel the scan and notify if any other incident occurs is also displayed. If this checkbox is selected, the scan will be temporarily stopped if an unexpected problem arises to inform you of the incident. If you click on OK the scan will continue as normal.

Move infected file to Quarantine

Selecting this option moves all of the infected files detected from their original location. These files will be moved to the directory in which the antivirus keeps files in Quarantine. The checkbox Cancel the scan and notify if any other incident occurs is also displayed. However, although the action Move the infected file to Quarantine does appear in the permanent protection configuration (file and mail), the option Cancel the scan and notify if any other incident occurs does NOT appear in permanent protection of files and mail. If this checkbox is selected, the scan will be temporarily stopped if an unexpected problem arises to inform you of the incident. If you click on OK the scan will continue as normal.

Ask what action to take

This option allows you to specify that the antivirus should ask what action to take when a virus is detected. This option allows you to select different actions in the same scan. In order to make the configuration more flexible, you can choose the options that will be displayed when a virus is detected. The checkboxes selected will be the actions that you will be able to choose from when the antivirus asks what action it should carry out. The checkboxes available will vary depending on the type of scan being configured (on-demand, scheduled, or permanent protection).

 Note: This option is NOT available for permanent file protection or the predefined computer startup scans.

•	Move to Quarantine: If this checkbox is selected, all infected files will be moved to the Quarantine section of the Hospital.

•	Delete: If this checkbox is selected, all infected files will be deleted.

•	Disinfect: If this checkbox is selected and a virus is detected in a file, it will be disinfected.

Make a backup copy of the file to be disinfected. If the antivirus disinfects a file, it automatically puts it in Quarantine. This is where the antivirus keeps suspicious files. For more information about this feature, consult the Hospital, section in this Help.

Cancel the scan and notify if any other incident occurs. If this checkbox is selected, the scan will be temporarily stopped if an unexpected problem arises to inform you of the incident. If you click on OK the scan will continue as normal. This checkbox is NOT available for the permanent protection of mail or files.

There are several other useful buttons at the bottom of the configuration screens:

OK: The changes to the configuration are saved and applied.

Default: This button allows you to apply the default configuration to the scans. You will be asked Are you sure you want to restore the factory settings?, click on Yes (the antivirus will have the same settings as it did when it was installed), or No.

Cancel: The changes made to the configuration will be neither saved nor applied.


Scan configuration - Warnings tab (on-demand / scheduled / permanent)

Warnings are the messages generated by the antivirus to inform you that it has detected a virus. Given the importance of this type of warning, its configuration is flexible and powerful in order to ensure that the virus warning reaches the right person.

This configuration tab is the same in the on-demand and scheduled scans (predefined or created by the user) but different in the configuration of the Permanent file protection. However, there are some exceptions:

•	The permanent file protection can ONLY display warnings in the computer (no other type of warning message can be sent) in Windows Me/98/95 computers. The characteristics of the warnings displayed in the computer cannot be configured. In Windows XP/2000 Pro/NT, you can also send warnings by e-mail.

•	The permanent mail protection can display warning messages in the computer or send any other type of warning message (by e-mail). The characteristics of the warnings displayed in the computer cannot be configured.

•	The warnings configuration tab is not available for computer startup scans.

Note: This image corresponds to the configuration in Windows Me/98/95 computers.

In order to enable a specific type of warning message (In the computer, By e-mail), select the checkbox that is next to the option. If you want to control how the warning will be generated, click on the Configure button. The warning message options can vary depending on the scan type. The warning types that can be displayed are:

In the computer. Through this option you can select how the virus warning will be displayed in the computer in which a virus has been detected. If you want the warnings to be displayed in that computer, select the checkbox Display warnings in the workstation and click on Configure to specify the format of the warnings, through the following sections:

 Note: In the permanent protection of files and mail, you can enable and disable these warnings but you cannot configure the functioning.

Audio warning

•	Audio warning: A sound is played when a virus is detected.

•	Beep: A beep will sound when a virus is detected.

•	WAV file: When a virus is detected a WAV audio file will be played. You can select the WAV file through the button on the right.

Warning message

•	Show next warning message: Select this checkbox to specify that the text in the box will be the warning text. Enter the text you want to include in the warning message in this box. This message will be displayed when a virus is detected.

•	Delete the warning message after "N" seconds: If this checkbox is enabled, you can specify how long (in seconds) the warning message must be displayed in the workstation.

By e-mail. This option allows you to send virus warning messages to a computer via e-mail. If you want the warning messages to be sent as e-mails, select the checkbox Send warning to e-mail address and click on Configure to specify the message format through the following sections:

 Note: The option to send messages by e-mail is not available in the permanent file protection in Windows Me/98/95, but is available in Windows XP/2000 Pro/NT.

Address

•	Send warning message to the following address: This option allows you to indicate that an e-mail message should be sent whenever a virus is detected. In the text box, enter the address to which you want to send these messages.

•	Send warning message to sender: The warning message will also be sent to the user that has sent the infected message, if the virus is detected in an e-mail message.

•	Send warning message to the rest of the recipients: The warning message will also be sent to the rest of the users to whom the infected message has been sent, if the virus is detected in an e-mail message.

•	Warning message: This is the message that will be shown when a virus is detected.

Protocol and server

•	Drop-down list of protocol types (sets of code and formats –a language- used by computers to communicate): From this list you can select the type of protocol that will be used to send the warning message: MAPI or SMTP (outbound mail).

•	Server: In this section you can enter the name of the server through which the warning messages will be sent.

To the network. This type of warning message is only available in computers running Windows XP, Windows 2000 Pro, or Windows NT. If a virus is detected in a computer, this option allows you to send a warning to the other computers in the same network. If you want to send virus warnings through a network, select the checkbox Send warnings to network workstations and click on Configure to set the format of the warnings, through the following sections:

 Note: The option to send warnings through the network to which the infected computer is connected is not available for Permanent file protection.

Scan

•	Send message: You can send a virus warning message to a specific workstation in the network. In the text box, enter the workstation to which you want to send the message.

•	Warning message: This is the message that will be displayed when a virus is detected.

•	Send message to domain: You can send a virus warning message to all of the workstations in the same domain. In the text box, enter the domain to which you want to send the message.

•	Domain warning message: This is the message that will be displayed when a virus is detected.

Server

•	Server: Enter the name of the server through which you want to send the warning message.

To Lotus Notes. This option allows you to send a virus warning message to a Lotus Notes system. The message can be sent to the document author, to the user of the document or to other users.

Recipients: In this text box you can enter the names of the users, separated by commas, who will receive the warning message.

Send warning to document author: The user that created the document will receive a warning message.

Send warning to document user: The user working with the document will receive a warning message.

Warning message: This is the message that will be sent to notify users that a virus has been detected.

Two other useful buttons are displayed at the bottom of the warnings configuration screens: OK (saves and applies the changes to the configuration) and Cancel (the changes made to the configuration will be neither saved nor applied).

These two buttons also appear in the window from which you can specify the types of warning you want to enable, along with another button: Default. Clicking on this button loads the antivirus default configuration or factory settings. You will be asked Are you sure you want to restore the factory settings? click on Yes or No.


Scan configuration - Exclusions tab (on-demand / scheduled / permanent file protection)

The exclusions configuration allows you to indicate which directories, files and/or extensions the antivirus should not scan. This tab allows you to select which ones.

 Note: This configuration tab is not available in permanent mail protection.

This exclusions configuration tab consists of three sections:

Directories

As part of the exclusions you can indicate entire directories that should not be scanned by the antivirus. You can exclude a directory only or a directory and all its subdirectories.

•	Add…: Clicking on this button opens a window in which you can specify the directories that will not be scanned. On the left is the disk drive Selection tree. Click on the + sign to the left of the disk drive to display the directory structure. In order to go to the preferred directory, expand the directory structure (path) until you reach the target directory. When you reach this directory, click on the button of an arrow pointing to the right. When you have finished selecting directories, click on OK. For more information consult the How to prepare the exclusions lists? section in this Help.

•	Remove: This button is used to remove directories from the list of directories not to be scanned. In order to do this, select a directory and click on Remove.

Files

You can also add files to the exclusions list so that the antivirus will not scan them. You can indicate that a certain file should not be scanned or that it should not be scanned whenever it is found during the scan. This means that you can specify that the antivirus should not scan a file the first time it finds it and that it should not scan it whenever it detects it during the scan. For example, if you have a file called EXAMPLE.EXE in several locations, you can exclude one of the occasions on which it is found or all of them.

•	Add…: Clicking on this button opens a window in which you can specify the files that will not be scanned. On the left is the disk drive Selection tree. Click on the + sign to the left of the disk drive to display the directory structure. In order to go to the preferred file, expand the directory structure (path) until you reach the directory containing the file, select the directory and then the file. When you reach this file, click on the button of an arrow pointing to the right. When you have finished selecting files, click on OK. For more information consult the  How to prepare the exclusions lists? section in this Help.

•	Remove: This button is used to remove files from the list of files not to be scanned. In order to do this, select a file and click on Remove.

Extensions

You can also exclude all files with a certain extension from the scan. In other words, you can exclude certain file types from the scan. This involves indicating which extensions (file types) should not be scanned.

•	New extension: In this edit box, enter the extension that you want add to list of extensions excluded from the scan.

•	Add…: Click on this button to add the extension entered in the edit box to the list of extensions excluded from the scan.

•	Remove: Click on this button to remove the extension selected in the list (only those that are selected).

Several useful buttons appear at the bottom of the configuration screens:

OK: The changes to the configuration will be saved and applied.

Default: This option allows you to restore the default settings of the scans. You will be asked Are you sure you want to restore the factory settings?. Click on Yes (the antivirus will be configured as it was after it was installed), or No.

Cancel: The changes to the configuration will be neither saved nor applied.


How to prepare the exclusions lists

The Exclusions list (directories, files and extensions that the antivirus should not scan) can be defined from the scan configuration. The permanent mail protection however does not allow exclusions to be configured.

Through this exclusions configuration tab you can prepare and customize the list of items (directories, files and extensions) that Panda Antivirus Platinum should not scan. In order to include any of these items in the corresponding list of extensions, click on Add.

For directory and files, a dialog box containing two columns with several buttons between them will be displayed. The left column shows the Selection tree. This tree is used to select the items (directories and files) that you do not want the antivirus to scan. The right column shows the Items to exclude. This list shows the items (directories and files) that you have just added so that they will not be scanned.

How to add items to the list of Items to exclude

1.	Using the + symbols on the left of each disk drive and directory, open the directory path until you reach the preferred item (directory or file).

2.	When you have selected an item, click on the [image] button. The item selected in the Selection tree will be added to Items to exclude.

How to remove items from the list of Items to exclude

1.	Select an item (directory or file) in the list of Items to exclude.

2.	In order to delete the selected items from the list, click on the [image] button.

If you want to delete all of the items from the list, click on the [image] button.

Excluding extensions works in a different way. Simply enter the extension in the New extension text box and click on the Add button to include this extension in the list of exclusions.


Scan configuration - E-mail - News tab (permanent mail protection)

This section contains the configuration options for the scan of e-mail and newsgroups.

Antivirus scan

Through the options in this section you can specify which operations the permanent scan should control and the file types that should be scanned:

•	Incoming: If this option is selected all incoming e-mail message (messages received) will be scanned.

•	Outgoing: If this option is selected, all outgoing e-mail messages (messages sent) will be scanned.

•	Compressed: If this option is selected, all compressed files associated to a message will be scanned.

•	Generate report: If this option is selected, information on the scan will be logged in a report.

•	All files: If this option is selected, all files will be scanned, regardless of their extension.

•	Only my extensions: This option allows you to specify that all of the files whose extension is in the list must be scanned. This list is accessed using the Extensions button. For more information, consult the List of extensions to scan, section in this Help.

Potentially dangerous attachments

In this section of the tab you can specify if you want the permanent mail protection to block attached files considered dangerous (if they are included in e-mail messages).

•	Enable dangerous attachment blocking: Check this option if you want the permanent mail protection to block files considered dangerous, provided that they are included in e-mail messages (attachments).

•	Advanced options button: Click on this button to specify the files that must be considered dangerous. You have the following options:

Files with incorrect MIME type: Files attached to e-mail message that are considered suspicious because they have an incorrect MIME type will be blocked.

Files with a double extension: Files with two extensions (for example, NAME.EXE.VBS) will be blocked (provided that the option Enable dangerous attachment blocking is checked).

Files with the following extensions: The file types whose extension you add to the list by clicking on the Extensions button will be blocked (provided that the option Enable dangerous attachment blocking is checked).

Several useful buttons appear at the bottom of the configuration screens:

OK: The changes to the configuration will be saved and applied.

Default: This option allows you to restore the default settings of the scans. You will be asked Are you sure you want to restore the factory settings? Click on Yes (the antivirus will be configured as it was after it was installed), or No.

Cancel: The changes to the configuration will be neither saved nor applied.


Configure the extensions to scan

Panda Antivirus Platinum includes a default list of extensions. This list includes all of the extensions (file types) that the antivirus should scan.

You can add other extensions to this list or remove any of the types included in the list. This is done through the scan configuration (on-demand, scheduled, permanent, etc), by enabling the checkbox Only my extensions and clicking on Extensions.

In order to add a new extension to the list, write the extension in the New extension section and click on Add.

In order to delete an extension from the list, select it and click on Remove.

If you want to remove all of the extensions from the list, click on Clear list. You can always restore the original list (default list), by clicking on Default.

Scan files without extension. Select this checkbox if you want the antivirus to scan files that have a name but not an extension (as well as those whose extension in included in the list).

When you have finished modifying this list, click on OK to exit and save and apply the changes. Click on Cancel to exit without applying the changes.


Scan configuration - Scheduler tab (Scheduled)

The objective of the scheduler tab is to set the frequency with which a certain scheduled scan will be run (whether it is the System startup scan -only in computers running Windows 98/95-, the Windows startup scan or a scan that has been created by the user). In addition to the frequency you can also set a range of dates during which the scheduled scan will be enabled.

The Scheduler configuration options are accessed in the same way as in the predefined scheduled scans and the scheduled scans created by the user:

•	Through the Scan jobs panel. Select the predefined scheduled scan (the system startup scan -only in computers running Windows 98/95- or the Windows startup scan) and click on Edit scan in the Scan jobs panel.

•	Through the pop-up menu. Right-click on the predefined scheduled scan (the system startup scan or the Windows startup scan) and select Edit.

The same options are also displayed in the dialog box that is displayed in the predefined scheduled scans and the scheduled scans created by the user:

•	Configure the schedule. In order to specify when and how this scheduled scan should be run, click on Schedule. A tab is displayed, which may vary depending on the scheduled scan type (predefined -system startup and Windows startup-, or scheduled scans created by the user).

•	Edit items to scan. If you want to modify (add or remove) the items that the selected scan should check, click on Edit. For more information about items to scan, consult the  How to perform a scan? (On-demand / Scheduled) section in this Help.

•	Configure a scan. If you want to define the general scan characteristics, the actions that should be carried out, the exclusions and warnings (depending on the scan type), click on Configuration. For more information about items to scan, consult the  How to configure a scan? (on-demand / scheduled) section in this Help.

The difference between configuring the schedule for predefined scheduled scans (system startup -only in computers running Windows 98/95- and Windows startup) and the scheduled scans created by the user are evident after selecting the checkbox Enable (the task will be run according to its schedule), in the Schedule configuration tab, and clicking on Schedule.

Schedule predefined scans (system startup and Windows startup)

Schedule the scans created by the user


How to edit or modify a scan? (On-demand / Scheduled)

In addition to allowing you to create new scans (both on-demand and scheduled), Panda Antivirus Platinum treats each scan that you create as a scan job that you can configure, modify (edit) and delete (remove). Once you have created a scan job (on-demand or scheduled) with certain characteristics, you can modify it by following the steps below:

1.	In the scan jobs list, select the scan defined by the user that you want to modify, which can be one of the programmed or on-demand scans configured by the user.

2.	Select Edit scan (for schedules scans) / Configure (for on-demand scans) in the Scan jobs control panel or the option accessible by right-clicking on the scan you want to modify.

3.	A dialog box containing the following sections is displayed:

•	Edit items to scan (in on-demand jobs and scheduled jobs). Clicking on Edit displays a list of all of the items (memory, disks, etc.) that the selected scan job must scan. You can add any other item you want to scan to this list using the Add button. You can also delete an item you do not want to scan by selecting it and clicking on Remove.

In order to add an item to the list click on Add and use the + signs in the list (or tree). Select the items you want to scan one at time and click on OK. The items will be added one by one to the list of items to be scanned.

•	Scan configuration (for on-demand and scheduled jobs). In order to set the scan properties, click on Configure. Although the scan types have some common characteristics, some configuration characteristics are different for on-demand scan and scheduled scans. For more information about configuring scan jobs, consult the How to configure a scan (on-demand / scheduled) section in this Help.

•	Configure the schedule (scheduled scans only, not on-demand). If you are editing a scheduled scan, this section will appear. Through this tab you can modify the frequency characteristics, a special feature of scheduled scans. If you click on the Schedule button, the Scheduler tab for scheduled scans will be displayed.. For more information about configuring scan jobs, consult the Scan configuration - Scheduler tab (Scheduled) section in this Help.

4.	When you have finished editing the scan characteristics, click on OK to apply the changes. If you click on Cancel, the changes to the scan properties will not be applied.


How to delete or remove a scan? (On-demand / Scheduled)

As already mentioned, on-demand and scheduled scans can be thought of as scan jobs and each one can be created (not the predefined scans), edited (not the predefined scans), configured, etc. You can also delete any programmed scan that you have created, but not the predefined jobs (on-demand and scheduled).

In order to remove or delete a customized scan that you have created, follow the steps below:

1.	In the scan list (on-demand or scheduled), select the scan you have created that you want to delete.

2.	In the Scan jobs control panel, click on the option Delete scan. You can also delete a scan by selecting the same option in the pop-up menu (right-click on the scan to delete).

3.	You will be prompted to confirm that you want to delete the selected scan job. Click on Yes or No.


How to enable / disable the permanent scan or protection

After installing Panda Antivirus Platinum, the permanent protection (file and mail antivirus and the firewall) is always enabled. This ensures immediate protection after the antivirus has been installed. Remember that if the permanent protection is not enabled, you are not protected against viruses.

As you know, the permanent protection has several jobs: antivirus protection - mail (continuous antivirus protection for all messages and files transferred via e-mail) and file (continuous antivirus protection for all files used on the system) as well as the firewall (continuous protection for programs that can access the Internet, blocking attacks, etc).

When one or several types of permanent protection (mail and file antivirus and the firewall) are loaded, the Panda Antivirus Platinum icon appears in the Windows system tray (next to the system clock). From this icon you can enable and disable (and configure) the permanent protection (resident). For more information about the Panda Antivirus Platinum icon in the Windows system tray, consult the Operations from the Windows taskbar section in this Help.

You can disable or enable the permanent protection (mail and file antivirus and the firewall) at any time and through various means.

How to enable / disable the permanent file antivirus protection

You can also enable / disable the permanent file antivirus from the antivirus window or from the permanent protection icon in the Windows system tray. Remember that if the permanent protection is not enabled, you are not protected against viruses.

In order to enable / disable the protection from the antivirus window, follow the steps below:

1.	In the antivirus window, select the Permanent protection option in the Control panel.

2.	Click on Configure in the Antivirus panel.

3.	In the Permanent file protection section, check / uncheck the Enabled option.

4.	Click on OK.

You can also enable / disable this protection from the antivirus icon in the Windows system tray (next to the clock). If the antivirus icon in the Windows system tray appears in color, this means that one, several or all types of permanent protection is enabled (at least one type). If the icon appears in shades of gray, this means that the different types of permanent protection are disabled. In order to enable or disable the permanent protection types from the tray icon, follow the steps below:

1.	Right-click on the tray icon.

2.	Select the Configure permanent protection option. This opens the dialog box shown below:

The configuration options for the firewall incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum will only be available if it is installed

3.	In the Permanent file protection section, select the checkbox Enabled or deselect it (depending on the operation you want to carry out). If you want to configure the functioning of this file protection, click on Configure.

Whether you are enabling or disabling the protection through the options in the antivirus window or through the tray icon, the section at bottom of the central panel indicates whether the permanent file antivirus protection is Disabled or Enabled.

In order to enable the protection again, carry out the same steps as for disabling it. When you have done this the section at bottom of the central panel will indicate that the permanent file antivirus protection is Enabled.

How to enable / disable the Permanent mail antivirus protection

You can also enable / disable the permanent mail antivirus protection from the antivirus window or from the permanent protection icon in the Windows system tray. Remember that if the permanent protection is not enabled, you are not protected against viruses.

In order to enable / disable the protection from the antivirus window, follow the steps below:

1.	In the antivirus window, select the Permanent protection option in the control panel.

2.	Click on Configure in the Antivirus panel.

3.	In the Permanent mail protection section, check / uncheck the Enabled option.

4.	Click on OK.

You can also enable / disable this protection from the antivirus icon in the Windows system tray (next to the clock). If the antivirus icon in the Windows system tray appears in color, this means that one, several or all types of permanent protection enabled (at least one type). If the icon appears in shades of gray, this means that the different types of permanent protection are disabled.

In order to enable or disable the permanent protection types from the tray icon, follow the steps below:

1.	Right-click on the tray icon.

2.	Select the Configure permanent protection option. This opens the dialog box shown below:

The configuration options for the firewall incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum will only be available if it is installed

3.	In the Permanent mail protection section, select the checkbox Enabled or deselect it (depending on the operation you want to carry out). If you want to configure the functioning of this mail protection, click on Configure.

Whether you are enabling or disabling the protection through the options in the antivirus window or through the tray icon, the section at bottom of the central panel indicates whether the Permanent mail antivirus protection is Disabled or Enabled.

In order to enable the protection again, carry out the same steps as for disabling it. When you have done this, the section at bottom of the central panel will indicate that the Permanent mail antivirus protection is Enabled.

How to enable / disable the firewall

You can also enable / disable the firewall from the antivirus window or from the permanent protection icon in the Windows system tray. Remember that if the permanent protection is not enabled, you are not protected against viruses.

In order to enable / disable the protection from the antivirus window, follow the steps below:

1.	In the antivirus window, select the Permanent protection option in the control panel.

2.	Click on Configure in the Firewall panel.

3.	Check / uncheck the Enabled option.

4.	Click on OK.

You can also enable / disable this protection from the antivirus icon in the Windows system tray (next to the clock). If the antivirus icon in the Windows system tray appears in color, this means that one, several or all types of permanent protection enabled (at least one type). If the icon appears in shades of gray, this means that the different types of permanent protection are disabled. In order to enable or disable these types of protection from the Windows system tray, follow the instructions below:

1.	Right-click on the icon in the Windows system tray.

2.	Select the option Configure permanent protection. This opens the following dialog box:

The configuration options for the firewall incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum will only be available if it is installed.

3.	In the firewall section, check or uncheck the Enabled option (depending on the operation you want to perform).If you want to configure the functioning of this protection, click on Configure.

Whether you are enabling or disabling the protection through the options in the antivirus window or through the tray icon, the section at bottom of the central panel indicates whether the firewall is Disabled or Enabled.

In order to enable the protection again, carry out the same steps as for disabling it. When you have done this, the section at bottom of the central panel will indicate that the firewall is Enabled.

As well as enabling / disabling the permanent protection from one of the options accessible through the antivirus icon in the Windows system tray, you can also close the permanent protection. This is done in the following way:

1.	Right-click on the antivirus icon in the Windows system tray.

2.	Select the option Close permanent protection.

3.	You are prompted to confirm that you want to close the permanent protection: file and mail antivirus and the firewall.

4.	If you click on Yes, both types of permanent protections will be automatically disabled and the antivirus icon will disappear from the Windows system tray. You can only re-enable this protection from the antivirus window (Permanent protection section, Enable, in the corresponding control panels.


General antivirus configuration

Through the general antivirus configuration you can centrally set each of the antivirus capability, options or characteristics, with which it can work.

From this section you can configure a series of general options, the update options and the e-mail profiles (Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Outlook Express). Similarly, you can configure the sounds that the antivirus will play and the password for accessing the program options, as well as the general characteristics (items to scan, CPU load control or Boot scan).

In order to access the general antivirus configuration, click on the General options button on the toolbar in the Panda Antivirus Platinum window. This displays a dialog box containing several tabs. Each tab allows you to set the characteristics of certain aspects of the antivirus. These are:

General

Mail profile

Update

Sounds

Restrictions


General antivirus configuration - Mail profile

Panda Antivirus Platinum can show the folders that contain e-mail messages in the programs Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Outlook Express, so that they can be selected to be scanned. These e-mail programs allow users to define various profiles, each with its own characteristics. Through this configuration tab you can indicate which of the existing profiles the antivirus must select in each case.

In each case or e-mail program (both Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Outlook Express), the configuration options are the same. These options are displayed in two sections: Microsoft Outlook profiles and Outlook Express profiles.

•	Default profile. This option specifies that the default profile of the configuration of the mail program Microsoft Outlook or Microsoft Outlook Express will be opened.

•	Ask on entering. The antivirus will ask which profile it must open when the program is accessed, offering a list of all of the profiles defined in the e-mail programs Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Outlook Express.

•	Specified profile. This option allows you to select a specific profile with which the antivirus will always work.

The drop-down list that appears in each section (Outlook profiles and Outlook Express profiles) allows you to specify the profile with which you want to work (provided that the checkbox Specified profile is enabled).

Several buttons appear at the bottom of this tab. By clicking on OK, the changes to the configuration will be saved. By clicking Default, the default settings of the tab after the antivirus was installed will be restored. By clicking on Cancel, the changes to the configuration will be neither saved nor applied.


General antivirus configuration - General

This section allows you to select which of the items specified below should appear in the items to scan selection tree. This section affects every part of the program in which the possible scan areas appear. Its configuration can be accessed through the General tab, which is displayed on clicking on General options, on the antivirus toolbar.

Items to scan. Select, from those available, the items that you want to include in the lists of items that can be selected in order to carry out a scan.

•	CD-ROM drives. When this checkbox is enabled, it means that the CD-ROMs must be displayed. If it is disabled, they will not be displayed in the list of items to scan.

•	Network drives. When this checkbox is enabled, it means that the network drives must be displayed (the network drives that are accessible from the computers in the network). If it is disabled, they will not be displayed in the list of items to scan.

•	E-mail folders. When this checkbox is enabled, it means that the e-mail folders (corresponding to the programs Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Express) must be displayed. If it is disabled, they will not be displayed in the list of items to scan.

•	Lotus Notes databases - Local. When this checkbox is enabled, it means that the Lotus Notes databases and items in the local computer (in which the antivirus is installed) must be displayed.

•	Lotus Notes databases - Server. When this checkbox is enabled, it means that the Lotus Notes databases and items in the Notes database server must be displayed.

CPU load control. By enabling the checkbox Enable CPU load control, the CPU will be relieved of part of its load, facilitating other tasks carried out during the scan.

Boot scan

The boot or boot sector of the floppy disks in the disk drive when the computer is shut down or restarted is automatically scanned when this checkbox is enabled. If you do not want to scan the boot sector of floppy disks in these situations, disable the checkbox Scan the boot sector of floppy disks on restarting.

Several buttons appear at the bottom of this tab. By clicking on OK, the changes to the configuration will be saved. By clicking Default, the default settings of the tab after the antivirus was installed will be restored. By clicking on Cancel, the changes to the configuration will be neither saved nor applied.

Operating systems

This option only appears for Windows XP or Windows Me computers. If this option is selected, the Restore folder will not be included in the scans performed.


General antivirus configuration - Sounds

You can specify and define sounds that Panda Antivirus Platinum must emit under certain circumstances. The aim of the sounds section is to allow you to select which antivirus events will be accompanied by sounds. A different sound can be selected for each event. Similarly, and in order to complete the function of this section, there is a button that allows you to play each sound so that you can choose the ones you want to use. In order to access the configuration of the antivirus sounds, go to the Sounds tab, using the General options button on the antivirus toolbar. The following tab is displayed.

In this tab, select the sounds that you want to be emitted for each event: the events displayed in the list can be associated to a sound. This way, the specified sound will be played every time the event occurs. If you want a certain event to be associated to a sound you must check the event. If you do not want an event to be associated to a sound, leave the event unchecked.

Disable sounds: If this checkbox is enabled, the antivirus will not emit the sounds associated to each event in the list. This means that the antivirus will not emit any sounds under any circumstances.

Name: This is the name of the sound file (WAV file) that will be associated to the event that is selected in the list at that moment.

Browse button: This button shows the standard window for selecting files so that you can select the sound file (WAV file) that you want to associate to a certain event.

Test button: If you click on this button, the sound that you have selected will be played so that you can test it without needing to provoke the event with which the sound is associated.

Several buttons appear at the bottom of this tab. By clicking on OK, the changes to the configuration will be saved. By clicking Default, the default settings of the tab after the antivirus was installed will be restored. By clicking on Cancel, the changes to the configuration will be neither saved nor applied.


General antivirus configuration - Restrictions

This section allows you to password protect certain antivirus sections or items, in order to This section allows you to password protect certain antivirus sections or items, in order to ensure that nobody modifies these sections without your permission. In order to set passwords for certain antivirus sections (scheduled scans, startup scans, permanent scans, etc), go to the Restrictions tab, by clicking on General options on the antivirus toolbar. A screen like the one below appears.

Sections to restrict. This shows the different antivirus sections or items that can be password protected. Each of them can be selected by enabling the checkbox on the left of the item.

•	Panda Antivirus: If this checkbox is enabled, the whole antivirus program is protected, no unauthorized user will be able to handle Panda Antivirus Platinum

•	Permanent: If this section is password protected, no unauthorized user can change the configuration or disable the permanent protection (mail and file antivirus and the firewall).

•	Updates: Access to this section of the antivirus can be blocked, in order to prevent any unauthorized user from modifying the data necessary for updating the antivirus.

Password. This section allows you to enter a password to protect the selected items.

•	Password: Enter the password you have assigned or want to assign.

•	Confirm password: Repeat the password you have entered in Password.

If you want to set a new password, click on Change password. The following options will be displayed.

•	Enter previous password: If a password has already been set, you can change it, but first of all you must enter the previous password in this section.

•	New password: Enter the password that you want to use to protect access to certain antivirus sections or items (those checked in the previous list).

•	Confirm new password: If you have entered a password for accessing these items and their configuration and you want to modify it, you can do so through this option.

Several buttons appear at the bottom of this tab. By clicking on OK, the changes to the configuration will be saved. By clicking Default, the default settings of the tab after the antivirus was installed will be restored. By clicking on Cancel, the changes to the configuration will be neither saved nor applied.


What is an update?

An antivirus is a program (software) that allows you to detect and eliminate other programs which are damaging, destructive or at the least, annoying, called viruses. Viruses are recognizable and can therefore be detected through a series of special characteristics of each one. These characteristics or properties are known as virus identifiers or virus signatures.

Antivirus programs can locate the signature of the viruses that the program can detect. But, where are the signatures of the virus that the antivirus program can detect kept? They are stored in a specific file known as the Virus Signature File. This file must always accompany the program as it cannot detect viruses without this file.

New viruses appear every day. What does this mean? It means that if you have a virus signature file today, tomorrow it will not identify the viruses that have appeared over the last 24 hours, which are around 20 every day.

Panda Software updates its virus signature file DAILY, with the new signatures, strings or identifiers that appear every day (new viruses). This means that every day the characteristics of every new virus that appears are included in this file. If you have the latest virus signature file, you will always be up to date and protected against the new viruses that appear. EVERY DAY Panda Software makes the new virus signature file available to its registered clients. This file can be downloaded every day from the updates page on the Panda Software website. When a new virus signature file is added to the antivirus, the antivirus is updated. This is known as an Update.

As an antivirus is software, its scan engine, configuration options, format, etc can also be changed. The full antivirus (the program and the virus signature file) must also be updated. This means that any changes to the program since you installed it or last updated it (from one version to a later version) must also be incorporated. This is known as an Upgrade.

Panda Antivirus Platinum is always completely updated (whether the update is carried out manually using the corresponding options, or automatically). This means that, Panda Antivirus Platinum carries out the Updates and Upgrades simultaneously, always being COMPLETELY updated.

We will now look at different aspects of the Panda Antivirus Platinum update in more detail.

How to configure the antivirus update?

How to update the antivirus (Update wizard)?

Automatic antivirus update


How to update the antivirus (update wizard)

Before describing how to update the antivirus, the following must be considered:

•	The antivirus update is a Panda Software service that is included in Panda Antivirus Platinum.

•	In order to carry out an update, you must have previously registered as a Panda Software client. For more information on registration, consult the Online registration section in this Help.

 Note: If you have a subscription version or if you have purchased the antivirus through the virtual store on Panda Software website, you will not need to access the Panda Software registration Web page to register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. In these cases, your user name and password will be sent to you without you having to do anything else.

•	The update via Internet is only carried out if it is correctly configured (registered user name and password) and when you connect to Internet.

•	The antivirus should not already be up to date. Before starting the update process, Panda Antivirus Platinum will automatically check if it needs updating or not.

In order to carry out a manual update at any given time, follow these instructions:

1.	In the main antivirus window, click on the Update button on the toolbar.

2.	This opens a wizard that will guide you through the antivirus update process, so that it is carried out correctly.

3.	If you want to set the characteristics of the update, click on the option Configure updates.

4.	Whether you have set the update characteristics or not, click on Next in the wizard.

5.	The antivirus update process will then start, searching for the virus signature file (and other necessary files) in the specified location. If the update needs to be carried out, the necessary files will be copied and updated in the computer in which the antivirus is installed.

6.	When the update is complete, the virus signature file will be reconstructed. This is done because the antivirus only downloads the differences between the current file and the new one. By doing this, the update process is much quicker and uses fewer resources.

7.	Finally the results of the update are displayed. The number of virus signatures that have been added (number of new viruses that the antivirus detects) and the total number of viruses that the program now detects are displayed. Click on Finish.

If the manual update process cannot be performed, a dialog box will inform you. In this dialog box you can select the option Configure now, or try to perform the update again, by clicking on Try again.

Panda Antivirus Platinum can also automatically update itself. For more information about automatic antivirus updates, consult the Automatic antivirus updates section in this Help.


Automatic antivirus update

For Panda Antivirus Platinum to be able to automatically and intelligently update itself, whenever necessary and when it detects an open connection to Internet, some requirements must be met. These requirements are:

•	You must have registered as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user (Online registration).

 Note: If you have a subscription version or if you have purchased the antivirus through the virtual store on Panda Software website, you will not need to access the Panda Software registration Web page to register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. In these cases, your user name and password will be sent to you without you having to do anything else.

•	The checkbox Enable automatic updates must be enabled in the corresponding section of the configuration (Updates configuration).

•	A connection to Internet must be open.

•	The antivirus must not already be up to date. Before starting the update process, Panda Antivirus Platinum will check if it needs updating or not.

If you want the antivirus to carry out an automatic update, whenever necessary and when it detects an open connection to the Internet, follow these steps:

1.	In the antivirus window, click on General options on the toolbar.

2.	Go to the Update tab, by clicking on its title.

3.	In the Automatic updates section, enable the checkbox Enable automatic updates.

4.	If you want the antivirus to show a message informing you that the update has been carried out and the result, enable the checkbox Notify me when updating automatically.

The automatic updates system is executed whenever Panda Antivirus Platinum detects an open connection to Internet and when it needs updating (remember that in order to carry out an update you must have previously registered). This process is transparent to the user so that it does not show any visible symptoms until the process is complete (or if an incident occurs). Neither does it affect system performance or the tasks that are in progress at the time. The update is incremental, this means that only certain parts of the files are updated, making the process much quicker and relieving the computer in which the antivirus is being updated of unnecessary load.

For more information on the automatic update, consult the General antivirus configuration - Update section in this Help.


What is the Hospital?

Sometimes there may be files that you considered suspicious or that cannot be disinfected. New viruses could also appear. If the antivirus has not been updated daily and correctly, the new virus will not be detected (it is advisable to perform an update at least once a week).

In order to deal with these situations, Panda Antivirus Platinum includes a very useful tool for handling suspicious files: the Hospital. The idea behind this is the same as hospitals that treat people. The only difference is that it is a hospital for preventing and curing file infections not human infections.

The Panda Antivirus Platinum Hospital is a health clinic that allows you to admit files that you suspect to be infected. The aim of the Hospital is to take care of patients (files that could be infected with a computer virus -suspicious-), monitor their evolution, find a vaccine or solution to their illness and keep them isolated from others (in Quarantine) in order to avoid their hypothetical infection from spreading.

When Panda Antivirus Platinum performs a scan and finds an infected file or a suspicious file, it must carry out an action on it. The action the antivirus carries out on the file depends on what is specified in its configuration. In the Action tab in the configuration, you can specify –for example- that the antivirus must Move the infected file to Quarantine, or Delete the infected file etc. Some of the actions defined in the actions configuration directly affect the Hospital.

In order to correctly treat infected files, or suspicious file, the Hospital includes what is known as Quarantine. This is a section of the Hospital where suspicious or infected files are kept (those that you add manually or that the antivirus adds automatically). By doing this, these files are isolated from the rest, preventing their infection from spreading to others. For more information, consult the Hospital - Quarantine section in this Help.

As mentioned earlier, certain actions can be carried out on the files in any of the "wards" or sections of the Hospital or Quarantine: disinfect, send them to Panda Software for analysis, delete, or add them to Quarantine.

Through the scan configuration you can Make a backup copy of the file to be disinfected. This means that if an infected file is detected during the scan, it will be disinfected and that a backup copy will be made before it is disinfected.

When this happens and when a previous backup copy of a file exists, Panda Antivirus Platinum will display a new area in the Hospital. This area will be called Backup. From this section you can scan these copies and restore the original files.


Hospital - Quarantine

The main objective of the Quarantine section included in Panda Antivirus Platinum is to isolate all files that are suspected to contain a virus, or any other file put in Quarantine (automatically by the antivirus, or manually by the user).

By adding a suspicious or infected file to Quarantine, you can prevent the infection from spreading to other files (in the computer or through connections to it). Quarantined files cannot be used (only from the antivirus program) and therefore cannot infect other files.

 Note: All files that are added to Quarantine (manually by the user or automatically by the antivirus), disappear from their original location, until they are restored.

When files are moved to the Quarantine section of the Hospital, they are moved from their original directory (in which they were stored), to the directory that the antivirus uses to Quarantine files. This means that these files can no longer be used. It is as if they did not exist for other applications. They only exist for the antivirus, which handles them in a special way.

When there are files in Quarantine, they are displayed in a list with some of their characteristics divided into columns:

•	Name. This column is the name of the quarantined file.

•	Original location. This column specifies the directory or folder in which the file was stored before it was quarantined. Remember that when a file is put in Quarantine, it disappears from the directory in which it was stored.

•	Quarantine date. This column specifies the date and time the file was added or moved to the Quarantine section.

•	Date sent to Panda. This column specifies the date and time the quarantined file was sent to Panda Software for analysis.

•	Status. This column shows information on the clinical status of the file. It could be disinfected or not infected. Its current clinical status could also be unknown if no operation has been performed on it.

•	Suggestions. This column shows the action that the antivirus suggests carrying out on the quarantined file.

It is possible to perform several actions on the files in the Hospital. You can find out more about these actions in the Actions on the files in Quarantine section in this Help.


Actions on the files in Quarantine

You can make multiple-selections of the files in Quarantine, meaning that you can select several files from the list in order to carry out operations on them. In order to select a file, click on it. If you want to select consecutive files, click on the first, press the SHIFT key and click on the last file you want to select. If you want to select alternate files, click on one and then hold down CTRL and click on the other files that you want to select.

Once you have selected the files, specify the action that you want to perform on them. When several files have been selected, the actions will be applied to all of them. The actions can be selected through the Quarantine control panel or using the pop-up menu (by right-clicking on the selected files). Below is a description of the actions that can be performed on these files:

•	Disinfect and restore. The files selected in Quarantine will be scanned. If they do not contain any viruses or if they are not considered suspicious, they will be restored to their original location.

This action can also be carried out from the pop-up menu (by right-clicking on the selected files) and selecting the Disinfect and restore option or by pressing the function key F8.

 Note: If a quarantined file is scanned and it is not infected, it will be automatically removed from Quarantine and restored in its original location. A dialog box will be displayed, prompting you to confirm that you want to restore it in its original location.

•	Refresh. This option can only be performed through the pop-up menu or by pressing the function key F5. In order to do this through the pop-up menu, right-click on the file list and select the Refresh option. The information on the files in the Quarantine panel (Name, Original location, Quarantine date, Date sent to Panda, Status and Suggestions) will immediately be refreshed, if it has changed.

•	Display information. This option can only be accessed through the pop-up menu. Select one of the files in the Quarantine panel (this option will not be active when several files are selected) and consult the information on the selected file (you will be informed if it contains a virus or not).

•	Delete file. This option permanently deletes the selected files from Quarantine and from their original location. Before doing so, you will be prompted to confirm that you want to perform the action, as the files cannot be recovered. This action can also be performed through the pop-up menu, by selecting the Delete option.

•	Send to Panda. This option allows you to send the suspicious files selected in Quarantine to Panda Software to be studied and analyzed. If the file selected in the Quarantine list is not considered suspicious, it will be restored in its original location. If the antivirus is not up to date (if the version of the virus signature file is not the most recent) you will not be able to send the suspicious files. This operation can also be performed by selecting the Send option in the pop-up menu.

•	Add file. This operation can only be carried out from the Quarantine control panel, not from the pop-up menu or using a function key. This option allows you to add file to the Quarantine section in the antivirus. Remember that by doing this, they will disappear from their original location (they are moved to the directory in which the antivirus stores quarantined files, disappearing from the directory in which they were located).

A dialog box is displayed, which is used to access the disk drive on which the file that you want to add to Quarantine is stored. Go to the disk drive on which this file is stored, select the directory and full path to the file and select it. Then, click on Open or double click on the file you want to add. The file will automatically appear on the list of files in Quarantine.

•	Hospital help. By selecting this option in the Quarantine panel (not available through the pop-up menu) you can obtain information on the Quarantine tool.


What are the services and how can I use them?

 Notes:

•	Before using the services included in Panda Antivirus Platinum, you must register as a user in order to obtain your user name and password. You must enter this data in order to use the services. For more information about registration, consult the Online registration section in this Help, or visit the online registration Web page on the Panda Software website in order to register. You can also register online by clicking on the Web address that appears at the bottom on the services screen.

•	If you have a subscription version or if you have purchased the antivirus through the virtual store on Panda Software website, you will not need to access the Panda Software registration Web page to register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. In these cases, your user name and password will be sent to you without you having to do anything else.

Panda Antivirus Platinum includes the services mostly frequently demanded by users (home users and corporate users). These services complement the excellent capability and advantages of the antivirus, making Panda Antivirus Platinum a live antivirus! This combination makes Panda Antivirus Platinum one of the most complete, powerful, versatile and useful tools. An antivirus without services is a dead antivirus.

At Panda Software we work hard to offer unparalleled antivirus solutions, accompanied by excellent services. The combination of a good antivirus tool and excellent services is the main objective of Panda Software.

What are the services? Services can be thought of as additional support that gives the user more help, capability and advantages than the antivirus alone. By using these services, you will never be alone. You will always be supported by a team of experts that will evaluate your needs, answer your questions and solve any problems you have with viruses.

Who can use the services and when? During the antivirus installation process you can register online as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. After registering you will receive your User name and Password. Only then will you be able to benefit from the services included with Panda Antivirus Platinum, entering this data when prompted.

 Note: The option Online registration will not de displayed in subscription versions or in those purchased through the virtual store on Panda Software website.

Online registration. In order to be able to use all of the services included in the antivirus, YOU MUST PREVIOUSLY REGISTER. This means that, from then on you will be an official user of Panda Antivirus Platinum and you will receive your user name and password for accessing all of the services that accompany the antivirus

 Note: Consult the Panda Antivirus Platinum registration card to find which services you can use, the validity period and the additional services that you can contract.

In order to access the services included in your Panda Antivirus Platinum, select the Services option in the Control panel in the antivirus window. Panda Antivirus Platinum incorporates an excellent suite of services that will be of great use to you. You can consult these services in the What services does Panda Antivirus Platinum include? section in this Help.


What services does Panda Antivirus Platinum include?

In order to access the services included in Panda Antivirus Platinum, select the Services option in the Control panel in the antivirus window. The services available are displayed in the central panel, from where you can directly access each one by clicking on it.

•	Update the antivirus. This service allows you to manually update the antivirus, enable and disable the automatic updates and set the characteristics of each one. For more information, consult the What is an update? section in this Help. You can carry out manual updates through the Panda Software updates Web page

•	FAQs (frequently asked questions and answers). These are the questions that other users have asked along with the corresponding answer. This service may help you to solve a problem that arises. In order to access this section, select the Services option in the Control panel in the antivirus window and click on the option FAQs (frequently asked questions and answers). An index of the FAQs available is displayed. Click on the FAQ that corresponds to your question in order to see the answer. In order to return to the index or the Services menu, click on Back, which is at the bottom of this section.

•	Send suspicious files to Panda (SOS Virus). If the scan detects files that it considers suspicious, they could be affected by a new virus. In this case, send the files to Panda Software, who will quickly come up with an antivirus solution, or certification that the files are in perfect condition. Select the files and instruct Panda Antivirus Platinum to send them to the Panda Software Research Laboratory. Our experts will study them and detect the virus (if there is one), remove it and send you the corresponding antivirus solution. For more information, consult the Send suspicious files to Panda (SOS Virus) section in this Help.

•	Internet tech support. Without a doubt it is extremely important be able to count on someone to help you to immediately resolve any virus incident or problems with the antivirus program. Panda Antivirus Platinum allows you to directly access the Technical Support area on Panda Software’s website (www.pandasoftware.com/support/). You can access this page by clicking on the Internet Tech Support option in the Panda Antivirus Platinum program group or through the Services menu in the antivirus window. For more information consult the Internet tech support section in this Help.

•	Send technical inquiries via e-mail. After consulting the FAQs included with the antivirus, through the FAQs (Frequently asked questions and answers) service, you should have solved your problem. If you haven’t, you can send us any other questions through this technical support service or technical inquiries via e-mail. For more information about this service, consult the Send technical inquiries via e-mail section in this Help.

•	Suggestion box. Your opinion is very important to us! This service allows you to directly contact Panda Software, sending us any ideas, comments or suggestions that you may have for improving your Panda Antivirus Platinum, the services that it includes, or any other matter. For more information, consult the Suggestion box section in this Help.

From the Services section you can also access complete information on Other Panda products and services.


Send suspicious file to Panda (SOS Virus)

This is one of the services included in Panda Antivirus Platinum. In order to use it, you must register as a Panda Software user. If you have already registered, you can send the files that the antivirus considers suspicious or those that cannot be disinfected (new viruses, etc.) to Panda Software.

These types of files must be controlled and isolated from the rest, so that if they are infected, their infection is prevented from spreading to other files. For this reason, Panda Antivirus Platinum includes a Hospital. Through this section you can Quarantine all suspicious files. For more information about the Hospital and Quarantine, or about how to Quarantine files, consult the Hospital - Quarantine section in this Help.

You can also send these files to Panda Software to be studied and analyzed. If a file is infected with a new virus, we will send you the corresponding antivirus solution in order to disinfect it. It is important to update the antivirus before sending us suspicious files.

How can you send suspicious files to Panda Software? By simply following the steps below:

1.	In the Panda Antivirus Platinum window go to the Hospital, in the Control panel.

2.	If there are already files that the antivirus considers suspicious, they will appear in the list of files in Quarantine. The files that you have included in Quarantine in the Hospital will also appear in this list. If you want to Quarantine another file, you can do so using the option Add file, in the Quarantine panel. For more information, consult the Actions on the files in Quarantine section in this Help.

3.	If you want to send a file from the list to Panda Software, select it. You can select several files using the mouse and the CTRL and SHIFT keys.

4.	Click on the option Send to Panda, in the Quarantine panel. You can also do this using the Send option in the pop-up menu (right-click on the selected file).

5.	The file is immediately scanned and whether it is infected or not a dialog box will inform you and prompt you to confirm that you want to send the file.

6.	Read the information displayed carefully and click on Next.

7.	In the box Enter your e-mail address, write your e-mail address and check that it is correct. In the section Description of the problem, explain what has happened, how the scan was performed, which files have been renamed, etc. Explain what has happened CLEARLY and PRECISELY. Then, click on Next. If you want to go back to the previous step, click on Previous. If you click on Cancel, you will go back to the services menu. Clicking on the option Legal notice displays a note about the legality and protection of confidential data. Click on Next to continue.

8.	A list of the selected files is displayed. If you do not want to send any of the files in the list, select it and click on Remove files.

9.	You can make multiple selections of files (select several files at the same time), using the mouse and the SHIFT key (to select consecutive or adjacent files) or the CTRL key (to select alternate files). When you have selected all of the files that you want to send, click on Next to continue. Panda Antivirus Platinum will now compress the files that you want to send us.

10.	A screen indicating the size of the message that is going to be sent is now displayed. You can continue sending the message by clicking on Send, or go back to the Previous step.


FAQs (Frequently asked questions and answers)

In this section you can find the answers to many questions related to the functioning, configuration, installation and uninstallation of the antivirus. You can also find the answers to your questions about viruses. If you want to consult the answer to one of the questions in the list, click on it.

 Note: If you want to print ALL the FAQs (frequently asked questions and answers), click on print ALL FAQs (below), or click here. Only available for the Help in HLP format.

1.	I have another antivirus installed; can I install Panda Antivirus Platinum?

2.	Why isn't the installation process automatically run when the Panda Antivirus Platinum CD-ROM is inserted?

3.	How do I run the installation process manually?

4.	What if Panda Antivirus Platinum is already installed on my computer?

5.	Which language should I select at the beginning of the Installation process?

6.	What happens if I do not accept the License agreement?

7.	Do I have to scan the memory and/or the hard drive before starting installation?

8.	What if I perform a scan before the installation process and a virus is detected?

9.	In which directory do I have to install the antivirus?

10.	What does "Scan memory at startup" mean?

11.	Is it necessary to create Rescue Disks?

12.	What are the Rescue Disks?

13.	What is the Online registration? Why do I have to register?

14.	Do I have to restart my computer when the installation process is complete?

15.	How do I perform a predefined scan?

16.	How do I know which items will be checked by a predefined scan?

17.	Can I create a New scan job? How?

18.	Can I delete a scan job I created?

19.	How can I scan a single folder or file?

20.	How can I perform a full system scan?

21.	I want more information on a virus. Where can I find it?

22.	What can I do if a file is considered suspicious?

23.	How can I send a file to Panda?

24.	I have disinfected a virus. Why does its name still appear in the report?

25.	What happens if I disable the permanent protection?

26.	How do I know if the antivirus is up-to-date?

27.	How do I configure the antivirus update?

28.	Does the antivirus update itself automatically or do I have to update it manually?

29.	How often should the antivirus be updated?

30.	What is a predefined scan? How do I execute it?

31.	How do I select the items I want to scan?

32.	Can existing scan jobs be deleted? How?

33.	How do I uninstall Panda Antivirus Platinum?

34.	How do I know which version of Panda Antivirus Platinum I have?

35.	More information about access to shared folders


Send technical enquiries via e-mail
Send technical inquiries via e-mail

This is one of the services included in Panda Antivirus Platinum. In order to use it, you have previously registered as a Panda Software user. If you have already registered, select the option Services in the Control panel and click on the option Send technical inquiries via e-mail.

Then, follow the steps below:

1.	From the Panda Antivirus Platinum window, access the Services menu, in the Control panel.

2.	Select the option Send technical inquiries via e-mail. A wizard will appear that will guide you step by step through the process of sending your technical inquiry to Panda Software.

3.	The first screen of the wizard, which explains the objective of the wizard is displayed. It is advisable to consult the FAQs before sending an inquiry, the solution to your problem could be explained in this section. In order to do this, click on the option FAQs (Frequently asked questions and answers).

4.	If you have checked the FAQs and not found an answer that adapts to your needs, click on Next.

5.	In the box Enter your e-mail address, write your e-mail address and check that it is correct. Then select the country to which you want to send your inquiry. In the Inquiry section, explain you problem or question CLEARLY and PRECISELY.

The Add file button also allows you to select any file that you think may help us.  After selecting the file, click on Next. If you want to go back to the previous step, click on Previous. If you click on the option Legal note, a note about the legality and protection of confidential data is displayed. Click on Next to continue.

6.	A screen indicating the size of the message that is going to be sent is now displayed. Click on Send, in order to send us your problem described in Inquiry. When this has been done, a dialog box informs you of the progress delivery of the message. In order to go back to the services menu, click on Back.

7.	At any time you can click on Cancel to end or stop the process of sending inquiries.


Suggestion box

This is one of the services included in Panda Antivirus Platinum. In order to use it, you must have previously registered as a Panda Software user. If you have already registered, select the option Services in the Control panel and click on Suggestion box.

In order to use this service, follow the steps below:

1.	From the Panda Antivirus Platinum window, go to the Services menu in the Control panel.

2.	Select the option Suggestion box.

3.	The first screen explains the objective of the wizard. It is advisable to consult the FAQs before sending a suggestion. In order to do this, click on the option FAQs (Frequently asked questions and answers).

4.	If you have checked the FAQs and not found an answer that adapts to your needs, click on Next.

5.	In the box Enter your e-mail address, write your e-mail address and check that it is correct. In the Suggestion section, enter you comments or ideas for improving the antivirus or the services that it includes. These suggestions will be carefully considered and will help us to improve. Explain each suggestion CLEARLY and PRECISELY.

The Add file button also allows you to select any file that you think may help us.  After selecting the file, click on Next. If you want to go back to the previous step, click on Previous. If you click on the option Legal note, a note about the legality and protection of confidential data is displayed. Click on Next to continue.

6.	Click on Send, in order to send us your comments described in Suggestion.

7.	When this has been done, a dialog box informs you of the progress delivery of the message. In order to go back to the services menu, click on Finish.

At any time you can click on Cancel to end or stop the process of sending suggestions.


Information on other Panda Products and Services

Although it is not a service as such, it is important to be informed about the other antivirus, network auditing and security products and services.

Panda Software has several products and services that meet these needs. In order to access information on these products, click on Services in the Control panel. At the bottom of the central panel there is a section called Information on other Panda products and services.

This section is sub-divided into several sections, where you can find information on the product that you select. You can do this by accessing the tabs for each product, on the Panda Software website (www.pandasoftware.com).


Scan and permanent protection report (Antivirus and Firewall)

The report contains information on all scan (on-demand and scheduled) operations carried out by the antivirus and the permanent protection (file and mail antivirus and the firewall). Its main objective is to act as a history of all of the scans and log all incidents with the permanent antivirus protection and the firewall. You can consult the results of a scan in two ways:

•	Just after the scan has finished. When the scan finishes, click on the Report button that is displayed in order to access the full report window.

•	At any other time. The report can be displayed whenever necessary by clicking on the Report button on the toolbar in the antivirus window. A report on all of the incidents that have occurred will be displayed, provided that the content has not been deleted.

The incidents are listed in the report with a column for each field. The fields are:

Incident: This field specifies the action performed during the scan, or while one of the types of permanent protection (antivirus and/or firewall) has been enabled.

Notified by: This field specifies the scan type (on-demand, scheduled, etc), permanent protection or operation (update, etc) that has led to the incident entry being inserted in the report.

More information: This field specifies the directory and path (location) of the file that has caused the incident (in the antivirus scans), or the type (name) of the scan in which the incident has occurred.

Date-time: This field displays the date and time the incident occurred.

Results: This field shows the action performed in the incident.

At the top of the report window there is a toolbar or button bar. These buttons allow you to carry out the following operations:

 Print: The report can be printed by specifying the name of the printer, the page range and the number of copies.

 Find: This button allows you to search the report. After accessing this option, enter the word or Words you want to look for and the place (field or column in the report) you want to look in: Incidents, Jobs, Path, or Actions. You can select all fields. After entering this data, click on OK.

 Export: Through this tool you can save the report in a text file (.TXT, in ASCII format), in order to store it, consult it or export it to another computer. Enter the file name, the disk drive and the directory in which to save it.

 Delete report: This button permanently deletes the content of the report. You will be prompted to confirm that you want to delete it.

 Filter: The objective of his button is to present a summary of the information. Through the filters you can specify which data should appear in the report.

By clicking on the Filter icon, a screen will be displayed in which you can select the type of incidents that will appear in the report. Similarly, you can also filter incidents by the date they occurred.

If you click on the inverted arrow button in the Filter button, the following options will appear:

•	All incidents: If you select this option, no filter will be applied and therefore, all the incidents that have occurred will be displayed.

•	Virus incidents: If you select this option, the report will only show the incidents related to viruses.

•	More filters: If you select this option, a screen is displayed that allows you to select the type of incident you want to appear in the report. Similarly, you can filter the incidents by the date they occurred.

It is also possible to arrange the report list (in ascending or descending order) by any column. In order to do this, simply click on the title of the column.


Virus List (Information)

The Virus list button on the Panda Antivirus Platinum toolbar or button bar allows you to access the list of viruses detected by the antivirus. You can get detailed information on every virus in the list by selecting it.

The drop-down list in the section Show virus types gives you the option to display All viruses Program viruses, Boot viruses, Macro viruses, a list of the Most common viruses or Search by content. The viruses displayed in the list will vary depending on the option selected.

You can also enter the name of a virus in the section Find virus in order to easily search for a specific virus. The virus list is also arranged in alphabetical order to facilitate the search for specific viruses.

When you select any virus in the list, detailed information about that virus will be displayed in the section Virus description. The data displayed includes: Name, Alias, Origin, Date (when the virus was detected), Size (of the virus) the areas that it Infects and if it is Disinfectable. This section also specifies if the virus has certain characteristics. These characteristics include:

•	Resident: When it is executed, the virus reserves a small space in the memory and carries out its infection from there.

•	Stealth: This is a technique used by some resident viruses. This technique involves camouflaging the changes that the virus makes to the files that it infects. When the user tries to consult the characteristics of the file that the virus has modified, the virus, which is memory resident, intercepts the inquiry and presents the data before it was modified.

•	Encrypted: Viruses that use this technique can encrypt or encode themselves. Those that encrypt themselves in a different way every time they infect a file are polymorphic viruses.

•	Overwrite: Overwrite viruses, which may be resident or not, overwrite the file that they infect. The file is therefore unusable. The file size does not vary unless the virus is larger than the file. The only way to eliminate these viruses is to delete the infected file and replace it with an uninfected copy.

•	Polymorphic: Polymorphic viruses are advanced versions of encrypted viruses. Polymorphic viruses can change their encryption routine every time they are generated.

•	Companion: Companion viruses are viruses that in order infect an EXE file, create a COM file with the same name and with the hidden attribute. If two files have the same name but different extensions, COM and EXE, the MS-DOS operating system executes the COM file first. By doing this, when the program is run (EXE file) the virus (COM file) is run first, which is loaded in memory, and then the EXE file is executed so that the user does not suspect anything.

The Print button allows you to print out a copy of the information on the virus that is displayed.

For more information on viruses in general, or on a specific virus, visit the Virus encyclopedia (www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/encyclopedia), on the Panda Software website.


Schedule predefined scheduled scans (System startup scan and Windows startup scan)

The predefined scheduled scans (defined in the antivirus by default) are the system startup scan –only in computers running Windows 98/95- and the Windows startup scan. The frequency or schedule (defines when they should be run) is set through the Scheduler tab in the configuration (consult the Scan configuration - Scheduler tab section in this Help).

The Scheduler tab allows you to schedule the startup scans (system and Windows) so that these predefined scans are executed at certain times. The options available are:

•	Always: The startup scan is carried out every time the computer is booted, or every time Windows starts (depending on the scheduled startup scan selected).

•	Every "n" startups: The startup scan (system or Windows) is run when the computer or Windows is started up the specified number of times.

•	Every "n" days: The startup scan (system or Windows) is run according to the number of days specified here.

•	Every "day of the week": The startup scan (system or Windows) is executed on the day of the week specified here.

Temporarily disable the task. If this checkbox is enabled, the scheduled scan will not be carried out until it is disabled.


Schedule scans created by the users

The frequency of scheduled scans created by the users (New scan) is handled differently from predefined scheduled scans. These scans can be created and deleted by users whenever necessary. The frequency or schedule (which defines when it should be run) is set through the Scheduler tab in the configuration (consult the Scan configuration – Scheduler tab section in this Help).

Frequency

Through this drop-down list you can specify when the scheduled scan should be executed. Scheduled scans can be run once or every certain number of hours, days, weeks or even on specific days of the month. The options available in the Frequency drop-down list are: Once, Hourly, Daily, Weekly, Monthly and Annually. This means that you can specify whether the scan should be carried out once only, every certain number of hours, days or weeks, on certain days of the month or on a certain day of the year. Depending on the scan frequency selected in the drop-down list, you will be prompted to enter certain data in the central section of the screen:

•	Day the scan will be launched: If you select Once in the Frequency list, you can specify the date using a calendar.

•	Hourly intervals: If you select Hourly in the Frequency list, you can schedule the scan to be executed every certain number of hours.

•	Daily intervals: If you select Daily in the Frequency list, you can schedule the scan to be executed every certain number of days.

•	Weekly schedule: If you select Weekly in the Frequency list, you can schedule the scan to be carried out every certain number of weeks and you can also specify the day that the scan should be run (Monday, Tuesday, etc).

•	Monthly schedule: If you select Monthly in the Frequency list, you can select the day of the month that the scan should be performed (for example: 17th of every month), or you can specify that it should be carried out on the first, second, third, fourth or fifth day of every month (for example: the fourth Thursday of every month).

•	Day the scan will be launched: If you select Annually in the Frequency list, you can enter the day and the month on which the scan should be launched.

Timetable

There is also other data that needs to be entered when configuring the schedule of a scan created by users. This data is:

•	Start time: This specifies the time the scan will begin.

•	Time limit: This specifies the time up until which the scan can run. If the scan has not finished by this time, the operation will be canceled.

Temporarily disable the task. If this checkbox is enabled, the scheduled scan will not be carried out until this checkbox is disabled.


FAQ 1: I have another antivirus installed, can I install Panda Antivirus Platinum?

If the antivirus installed on your computer is Panda Antivirus Platinum, the installation process will detect it. If this is the case, it will allow to either automatically update it (Repair) or uninstall it (Remove).

If you have another antivirus installed it will be necessary to completely uninstall it before installing Panda Antivirus Platinum. This is due to the fact that the permanent protection (file and mail residents) of other antivirus programs could cause conflict.


FAQ 2: Why doesn't the installation start automatically when I insert the CD-ROM?

The disk drive where you inserted the Panda Antivirus Platinum CD-ROM might not be the correct one, or it might not be working properly. Make sure you have checked this, and insert the CD-ROM in the correct drive.

In addition, the autorun feature in your computer might be disabled. If this is the case you will have to run the SETUP.EXE file, which is located in the root drive of the CD-ROM. You can run this file from Windows Explorer or from the Run option in the Start menu. This file is in the Platinum folder.

To obtain further information, consult the Install Panda Antivirus Platinum section in this Help.


FAQ 3: How do I run the installation process manually?

If you insert the Panda Antivirus Platinum CD-ROM into the CD-ROM drive, the installation process will start automatically. If this is not the case, you can execute it in the following way:

From Windows Explorer

1.	Open Windows Explorer.

2.	Select the CD drive in which you have inserted the Panda Antivirus Platinum CD-ROM (D: by default).

3.	Execute the SETUP.EXE file by double-clicking on it. This is the program that launches the installation process.

From Windows Start button

1.	Click on the Start button from the Windows taskbar.

2.	Select the Run option.

3.	Type the path and file name that you want to execute or click on the Browse... button to find it. The file to be executed is called SETUP.EXE and it is on the Panda Antivirus Platinum CD-ROM.

4.	Once you have selected the file to be executed, click OK.

If you have downloaded Panda Antivirus Platinum from the Internet

1.	Double-click on the file you have downloaded in order to execute it.

2.	This will launch the installation process. Follow the steps provided.


FAQ 4: What if Panda Antivirus Platinum is already installed on my computer?

If it is the same version, you will be able to Repair or Remove the antivirus when you run the installer. This means that it will be possible to restore the files corresponding to a previous installation of the program (update -Repair-), or uninstall the antivirus (-Remove-). In any other case, the installation process will end.

For further information, consult the Install Panda Antivirus Platinum section in this Help.


FAQ 5: Which language should I select at the beginning of the installation process?

By default, the language of your computer will be selected and installed. This will be the language of the installation process, if you want it to be, and the language in which Panda Antivirus Platinum will be installed and run on your computer.

On starting the installation process, the language of your computer will be automatically detected. The installation process will be carried out in that language, unless otherwise specified, and Panda Antivirus Platinum will be installed and run in the same language.

If you want to obtain further information about the installation steps, consult the Install Panda Antivirus Platinum section in this Help.


FAQ 6: What happens if I do not accept the license agreement?

If your do not accept the license agreement (if you do not click on the Yes button) that appears during the installation process, the wizard will finish and the antivirus will not be installed on your computer.


FAQ 7: Do I have to scan the memory and/or the hard drive before starting the installation?

Although it is not necessary, it is advisable to do so when prompted during the installation process. In this way, you can ensure that there are not viruses on the computer before installing the antivirus.

If you want to obtain further information about the installation steps, consult the Install Panda Antivirus Platinum section in this Help.


FAQ 8: FAQ 8: What if I perform a scan before the installation process and a virus is detected?
FAQ 8: What if I perform a scan before the installation process and a virus is detected?

If choose to scan the computer during the installation process (by checking the box corresponding to the memory and/or the hard drive) and a virus is detected, you will be able to remove it from the computer.

If a virus is detected in memory, insert the first boot disk or rescue disk (virus free) in the floppy disk drive and restart the computer. After you have done this, an automatic process will start. Follow the instructions indicated.


FAQ 9: In which directory do I have to install the antivirus?

It is advisable to choose the default installation directory specified during the installation process.

Although you can install the antivirus in a directory of your choice, please remember that it MUST NOT BE INSTALLED in the following folders: Windows, Program files or in the root directory of the main hard disk.


FAQ 10: What does Scan memory at startup mean?

If the antivirus is configured to scan the computer at startup, Panda Antivirus Platinum will scan your computer every time you switch it on (only in computers with Windows 98 or Windows 95).


FAQ 11: Is it necessary to create Rescue Disks?

Although it is not necessary, it is HIGHLY ADVISABLE to create Rescue Disks.

However you can always create them at any other time.

If you did not create the Rescue Disks during the antivirus installation process, you can create them at any other time by following the steps below:

From the antivirus reminders window

If you still haven’t created Rescue Disks, Panda Antivirus Platinum will display a reminder. If you go to the Home section in the antivirus window, you will see an area in the bottom section called Reminders:. If you still haven’t created these disks the following warning text or suggestion is displayed: You still haven’t created Rescue Disks. Create them now!. Click on this text to create the Rescue Disks.

From the Windows Start button

The Rescue Disks can also be created from the option available through the Windows Start button. In this case, click on the Start button. Then, select Programs and click on the Panda Antivirus Platinum group. Finally, select the Rescue disks option.


FAQ 12: What are the Rescue Disks?

Rescue disks are several floppy disks that you can create during the Panda Antivirus Platinum installation process. However the disks can also be created at a later stage from the Windows Start button, or from the reminder in the Home section of Panda Antivirus Platinum (Reminders section).

The Rescue disks will allow you to start the computer from a virus-free environment, and they also contain the antivirus in command line (PAVCL). Use rescue disk number 1 to start your computer. You will be prompted to insert each of the corresponding Rescue Disks. Follow the instructions displayed.

For further information about these disks, consult the Rescue disks section in this Help.


FAQ 13: What is the Online registration? Why do I have to register?

The services included with Panda Antivirus Platinum are only available to registered users.

It will be necessary to register as a user in order to benefit from the services that Panda Antivirus Platinum includes. This will take you to Panda Software’s online registration web page.

You will be asked to enter the antivirus activation code as well as other data. Then, you will receive your user name and password, which will allow you to benefit from the services included with Panda Antivirus Platinum.

The online registration can be carried out either during the installation process or at any other time. If you do not register as a user you will not be able to benefit from the services included with Panda Antivirus Platinum.

 Note: If you have a subscription version or if you have purchased the antivirus through the virtual store on Panda Software website, you will not need to access the Panda Software registration Web page to register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. In these cases, your user name and password will be sent to you without you having to do anything else.


FAQ 14: Do I have to restart my computer when the installation process is complete?

If you have NOT installed or enabled Panda Antivirus Platinum’s firewall during the installation process, the computer will NOT need restarting; you won’t even be asked if you want to.

If you have installed or enabled Panda Antivirus Platinum’s firewall (during the installation process or at another time), you will be asked if you want to restart your computer. The firewall will be installed, but it will not start working until you restart the computer.

If you have not installed or enabled Panda Antivirus Platinum’s firewall during the installation process, you will be protected through the permanent file protection and the permanent mail protection.

It is a good idea to restart the system under certain circumstances (when you have installed / enabled the firewall incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum). In this case, the installation process will prompt you to confirm that it should be automatically restarted.

 Note: Remember that if you have installed the firewall, it will only start working when you restart the computer.


FAQ 15: How do I perform a predefined scan?

On selecting the Full Scan option in the Control panel –in the antivirus window- a list of all the predefined scans available (on-demand and scheduled) and the items that can be scanned separately will be displayed. In addition, it is also possible to create new scan jobs (on-demand and scheduled).

To perform a predefined scan, enable the corresponding checkbox and click on the Scan option. You can also right-click on it and select the Scan option, or press the function key F8.

For further information about scan jobs, consult the How to perform a scan job (on-demand or scheduled) section in this Help.


FAQ 16: How do I know which items will be checked by a predefined scan?

When a predefined scan (or a scan job created by the user) is selected, the antivirus will display information about it, whether it is on-demand or scheduled.

This information will be displayed in the right panel as a section or a column with the title: Items. This column will list all the items that the scan job will check for viruses.


FAQ 17: Can I create a new scan job? How?

Yes, it is very simple. Follow these steps:

1.	Select the Full Scan option (in the antivirus window).

2.	In the Scan jobs panel, select the Create new scan option. You can also right-click on one of the scans or items in the list and select the New option.

3.	This will display a wizard, which will allow you to create a new scan job. Follow the steps provided.

For further information, consult the How to create a new scan job (on-demand/scheduled) section in the Help.


FAQ 18: Can I delete a scan job I created?

Yes, however remember that default scan jobs cannot be deleted. Deleting a scan job defined by the user is very simple. Follow these steps:

1.	Select the name of the scan job that you want to delete from the list of scans and items to scan.

2.	Select the Delete scan option from the Scan jobs panel.

3.	You will be asked to confirm if you want to delete the scan job. Click Yes.

The scan will disappear from the list.

For further information consult the How to delete a scan job (on-demand/scheduled) section in this Help.


FAQ 19: How can I scan a single folder or file?

Panda Antivirus Platinum allows you to scan a single folder or file in the following way:

From the pop-up menu in Windows Explorer

1.	Go to Windows Explorer, through the Windows Start button, or a shortcut to it.

2.	Select the files or folders that you want to scan.

3.	Right-click on the selected files or folders (pop-up menu)

4.	Select the Scan with Platinum antivirus option.

5.	The selected item (file or folder) will be scanned for viruses. This is referred to as a pop-up scan.

From the Panda Antivirus Platinum window

1.	From the antivirus window, select the Full Scan option in the Control panel.

2.	Whether you want to scan a specific directory (folder) or file, you need to find it first. Follow these steps to do this:

•	Click on the + symbol to expand the Scan other items section.

•	Select the disk drive where the folder or file you want to scan is located (for instance the local drive C:).

•	Click on the + symbol to expand the directory tree.

•	Navigate through the directory structure until you get to the folder or file that you want to scan. To do this, click on the + symbol on the left of the directories.

3.	When you get to the directory (folder) or file that you want to scan, right-click on it.

4.	Select the Scan option to scan the item selected (file or folder).

For further information consult the How to perform a scan job (on-demand / scheduled) section in this help.


FAQ 20: How can I perform a full system scan?

Performing a full system scan means checking each and every item on your computer (memory, disks, mail, etc), which could contain viruses. Follow these steps to perform the scan:

1.	From the antivirus window, select the Full Scan option in the Control panel.

2.	Select the Scan all My Computer option from the On-demand scans section. This will display all the items that will be scanned.

3.	Select the Scan option in the Scan jobs panel. You can also right-click on the Scan all My Computer option and then select the Scan option.

For further information, consult the How to perform a scan (on-demand / scheduled) section in this Help.


FAQ 21: I want more information on a virus. Where can I find it?

The reports only display the names of the viruses detected. However, Panda Antivirus Platinum also includes information on the main characteristics of each of these viruses.  Follow the steps below to consult this information:

1.	Click on the Virus list button on the tool bar in the antivirus window.

2.	Type the name of the virus you would like information about in the Find virus box. The virus list will automatically search for the virus.

3.	Select the virus, and a tab with basic information will be displayed (name, alias, origin, date, size, etc).

If you want further information about the virus, visit the Panda Software Virus Encyclopedia at (www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/encyclopedia).


FAQ 22: What can I do if a file is considered suspicious?

As a preventive measure and as a precaution against possible infections, you will be able to put suspicious files in Quarantine. This means that they will be isolated and it will not be possible to use them. In this way, you will prevent infection form spreading.

To put a file in Quarantine, you must use the Hospital in Panda Antivirus Platinum by following these steps:

1.	Select the Hospital option from the Control panel in the antivirus window.

2.	Click on the Add file option in the Quarantine panel to put a file in Quarantine.

3.	Then a dialog box will be displayed, which will allow you to select the file that you want to put in Quarantine. Select the file and click on Open.

4.	A message will be displayed indicating that the file will be moved from its original location to the Quarantine folder. If really want to do this, click Yes.

5.	The file you selected will be included in the list of files in Quarantine.

 Note: Remember that if you move a file to the Quarantine folder, it will disappear from its original location (it will not be deleted). This means that some of the applications that use the file might not work properly.

Once the file is in Quarantine you will be able to carry out certain actions on it: disinfect, send it to Panda Software to be analyzed, delete it, or display information about it.

You can send files in Quarantine to Panda Software’s virus laboratory for to be analyzed. We will quickly send you the corresponding antivirus solution or certification that the files are in perfect condition! Follow these steps to send the files:

1.	Select the Hospital option from the Control panel in the antivirus window.

2.	Select the Quarantine file you want to send to us.

3.	Select the Send to Panda option in the Quarantine panel. You can also right-click on it and then select the Send option.

Another way to put suspicious files in Quarantine, and indirectly send them to Panda Software to be analyzed, is through the scans. When a scan is performed a suspicious file could be detected, if the scan is configured to move the files to Quarantine, the files will be isolated from the rest, by moving them to Quarantine.

For further information, consult the Hospital section in this Help.


FAQ 23: How can I send a file to Panda?

Submitting viruses to Panda Software couldn’t be easier! Panda Antivirus Platinum itself will send the files. This can be done in two different ways:

From the Hospital Quarantine:

1.	Select the Hospital option from the Control panel in the antivirus window.

2.	Then, select the files in Quarantine that you want to send to Panda Software for us to analyze.

3.	You can also do this by selecting the Send option in the pop-up menu.

4.	Each of the files selected will be scanned for viruses. If the files are not infected a message indicating that will be displayed. In addition, you will be asked to confirm if you really want to send the file. Click on Yes to confirm that you want to send them.

5.	A wizard will be launched, which will allow you to send the suspicious files. In order to send the files, it will be necessary to have an open connection to Internet. Click on the Next button.

6.	Type your e-mail address in the box Enter your e-mail address. Then, specify CLEARLY AND PRECISELY how the problem occurred in the section Description of the problem. Then, click on the Next button.

7.	The list of files selected will be displayed. All of these files will be sent to Panda Software to be analyzed. At this point you can remove any of the files from the list. To do this, select the files and click on the Remove file button. When you have completed the list of files that you want to send click on Next.

8.	The size of the message to be send will be displayed. Click on the Send button to submit the files to Panda Software.

From the control panel

1.	Select the Services option from the Control panel in the antivirus window.

2.	Select the option Send suspicious files to Panda (SOS virus).

3.	This will display the instructions that will allow you to send suspicious files to Panda Software.

4.	Follow the instructions displayed.


FAQ 24: I have disinfected a virus, why does its name still appear in the report?

When a scan job finished, Panda Antivirus Platinum will display a summary of the actions that took place. Then, you can click on the Report option in order to see the incidents that occurred.

In addition, Panda Antivirus Platinum logs all incidents occurred during ALL scans. This is known as Report on all scans carried out. To consult this report click on the Report button on the antivirus tool bar. This will display all incidents occurred during the scans carried out (start and end of the scan, names of the viruses detected, etc).

A virus may have been detected in one (or more) of those scans. If this is the case, it will have been detected and disinfected by Panda Antivirus Platinum. The fact that a virus has been detected and disinfected does not mean that the corresponding information should not be displayed in the report. If you do not want this incident to be displayed in the report you can click on the Delete report button. In this way, the content of the report will be deleted. This means that only incidents occurred in the scans performed from that point on will be displayed. Therefore the name of the virus in question will disappear from the report.

For further information, consult the Scan reports section in this Help.


FAQ 25: What happens if I disable the permanent protection?

The permanent antivirus protection (of files and mail) provides continuous protection for your computer (provided that you keep it enabled). It continuously scans all the files involved in all the operations carried out on the system as well as files received via e-mail. It is HIGHLY ADVISABLE to have the permanent file and mail antivirus protection enabled. If you disable both types of protection or one of them, your computer will not be protected.

Additionally (provided that you have installed and enabled the firewall), you will have another very useful type of permanent protection: that of the firewall. This type of protection acts as a barrier between your computer and the outside. It is an extra type of protection that allows you to safeguard the information sent and received (inbound and outbound) by your computer when it accesses other networks –such as the Internet- or when transferring information (which could be infected by a virus or contain exploits through which other computers or other users could attack your computer).

Once the antivirus has been installed, the permanent protection of files and mail will be enabled by default. From the Start menu in the Control panel you will be able to see if those types of protection are enabled or disabled by consulting the section Permanent protection status. In addition, the antivirus icon in the task bar will be a certain color when any of the types of permanent protection (file and mail antivirus and the firewall) are enabled. The icon will be gray when none of these types of protection are enabled.

You can enable and disable the permanent protection (file and mail antivirus) and the firewall, through the Permanent protection menu in the antivirus control panel. From there, you will be able to click on the Disable/enable options in each of the corresponding panels: File and Mail antivirus and the Firewall.

For further information, consult the Permanent Scan or permanent antivirus protection (file and mail ) and the firewall) section in this Help.


FAQ 26: How do I know if the antivirus is up-to-date?

Updating Panda Antivirus Platinum means updating the virus signature file (the file that detects viruses - some 20 new viruses appear every day) as well as the antivirus itself.

Updates can be carried out on a daily basis either automatically or manually. If you have configured your antivirus to update itself when necessary (automatic update), the antivirus will always be up-to-date. Panda Antivirus Platinum will update itself when it detects a connection to Internet, when necessary.

In order to know how up-to-date the antivirus is, click on the Start menu in the antivirus Control panel. This information is given at the beginning of the Program status section

In addition, this information is displayed graphically in the antivirus window. The status bar (in the left section - just under the control panel) and a progress bar. This bar will be completely green if the antivirus is completely up-to-date. If you click on it, a dialog box with more information is displayed. From this dialog box you can update Panda Antivirus Platinum, by clicking on Click here.

You can also find out how up-to-date your Panda Antivirus Platinum is through the permanent protection icon in the Windows system tray (next to the system clock). If this icon appears (the permanent protection is loaded and enabled) and you place the mouse pointer over it, the date that the antivirus was last updated will be displayed.

For further information consult the What is an update? section in this Help.


FAQ 27: How do I configure the antivirus update?

Follow these steps to configure the updates in Panda Antivirus Platinum:

1.	Click on the General options button on the toolbar at the top of antivirus window.

2.	Go to the Updates section.

3.	In addition, it is possible to specify if the antivirus must update automatically and how the update process must be carried out. To do this you can use the following options:

•	Enable automatic updates. If you select this option, the antivirus will be automatically updated when an Internet connection is detected (as long as the update is necessary).

•	Notify me when updating automatically. When the automatic update is completed successfully, a message will be displayed to inform you.

4.	The update is just one of the services included in Panda Antivirus Platinum, so it will be necessary to be a registered user to benefit from this service. Enter the user name and password that were sent to you when you registered.

5.	In addition, it will be necessary to specify the location from where the antivirus will be updated. The following possibilities are available: Internet, Floppy disk, CD-ROM or local network. If you are connecting to the Internet through a modem, do not check the box Internet connection via a Proxy server. If you access the Internet through a Proxy server you must click on the Configuration button in order to enter the following data: (IP address, proxy port, Proxy user name and password –please note that this is not related to the registration user name and password-).

When updating the antivirus manually (using the Update button in the antivirus tool bar), you will also be able to configure the update process. To do this, click on the Configure updates button in the first window of the update wizard.

For further information consult the General antivirus configuration - updates section in this Help.


FAQ 28: Does the antivirus update itself automatically or do I have to update it manually?

Panda Antivirus Platinum offers the following possibilities:

Follow these steps to update the antivirus manually:

1.	Click on the Update button in the antivirus tool bar.

2.	If you want to configure the update process, click on the Configure updates option, which will display the first step of the update wizard. For further information consult the section General antivirus configuration - Updates.

3.	Click on Next to start the update process.

 Note: You can also update the antivirus by selecting the Antivirus update option in the Services menu.

Follow these steps to update the antivirus automatically:

1.	Click on the General options button on the toolbar at the top of the antivirus window.

2.	Select the Updates tab in the dialog that appears.

3.	Check the box Enable automatic updates to indicate that updates must be carried out automatically. If you want to receive a message informing you that the antivirus has been updated select the option Notify me when updating automatically.


FAQ 29: How often should the antivirus be updated?

Updates can be carried out on a daily basis, as Panda Software offers an updated version of the virus signature file every day.  It is therefore advisable to update the antivirus at least once a week.

However, if this causes problems, you can let Panda Antivirus Platinum update itself. In this way, the antivirus will update itself automatically whenever necessary, as long an Internet connection is detected. You won’t have to worry about updates any more.


FAQ 30: What is a predefined scan? How do I perform it?

Predefined scans are scan jobs that have been created beforehand. These scan jobs can be either on-demand or scheduled. This type of scan will make things easier, as it allows you to check more items with just a click.

Follow these steps to carry out a predefined scan:

1.	Select the Full Scan option from the Control Panel in the antivirus window.

2.	Two sections are available: On-demand scans (the Scan other items section will be included here) and Scheduled scans.

3.	Each of these options include predefined scans:

•	On-demand scans: Scan all My computer, Scan hard disks, Scan my documents, Scan e-mail and Scan floppy disk drive.

•	Scheduled scans: Scan at startup –only available in Windows 98/95 systems- and Scan on starting Windows.

4.	Select a predefined scan: (scan all My computer, scan e-mail, scan floppy disks, scan at startup or scan on starting Windows).

5.	Click on the Scan option in the Scan jobs panel. You can also right-click on any of them and then select the Scan option, or press the function key F8.

To obtain further information, consult the How to perform a scan (on-demand / scheduled) section in this help.


FAQ 31: How do I select the items that I want to scan?

Occasionally, it may be necessary to scan a certain group of items. If these items are not included in one of the on-demand scans, they might be scanned as follows:

They may be scanned separately; one by one: in this case the items will be scanned sequentially. Follow these steps to scan separate items:

1.	Select the Create new scan option in the Scan jobs panel. This will open a wizard that will allow you to create the scan job.

2.	Click on the Scan option in the Scan jobs panel, or right-click on the item and select the Scan option from the pop-up menu.

3.	Repeat steps 1 and 2 for each of the items you want to scan.

This is not the best option when it comes to scanning a group of items. If you want to do this, it is advisable to proceed as follows:

Create a scan job that includes all of them. If you create a new scan job you will be able to indicate each and every item that you want to scan. When you indicate that the scan should be carried out, all the items will be scanned at the same time. In addition, you will be able to perform the scan job you created as many times as you want. In fact, it will exist until you decide to delete it. Follow these steps to create a scan job including several items:

1.	Select the New scan option in the Scan jobs panel. This will open a wizard that will allow you to create the scan job.

2.	Click on Next.

3.	Select the items that you want to add to the list of items, and click on the Add button.

4.	Select one of the items in the list and click OK.

5.	Repeat steps 4 and 5 until all the items to be scanned are included in the list. If you want to delete any item, select it and click on Remove.

6.	Click on Next.

7.	You can configure the characteristics of the scan job you are creating by clicking on the Configure button. In addition, at this stage you can also indicate if it should be an on-demand or a scheduled scan. By default, it will be an on-demand scan. However, if you would like it to be a scheduled scan select the option I want this task to be carried out frequently. If this is the case, click the Schedule button. If you click this button, you will be able to establish the frequency with which the scheduled scan will be carried out (when it should be performed automatically).

8.	Write the name of the scan job you have just created. In this way, it will be saved under that Scan name.

9.	Click on Next.

10.	Click on Finish.

For further information, consult the How to create a new scan job (on-demand / scheduled) section in this Help.


FAQ 32: Can existing scan jobs be deleted? How?

Only the scan jobs that have been created by users can be deleted. These are the scan jobs that are not created by default and have been created through the new scan option.

It is impossible to delete predefined scans (on-demand scans: All my computer, Desktop, my Documents, hard disks, e-mail, floppy disks, or scheduled scans: System startup scan or Windows startup scan). In addition, it will not be possible to delete items, which can be scanned on-demand at any time.

Follow these steps to delete the scan jobs you created:

1.	Select the Full Scan menu from the Control Panel in the antivirus window.

2.	Select the scan job that you want to delete. If it is an on-demand scan, it will be displayed just above the Scan other items section. If it is a scheduled scan it will be displayed at the end of scheduled scans.

3.	Once you have selected it, choose the Delete scan option in the Scan jobs panel. You can also right-click on the scan job and then select the option Delete scan.

For further information, consult the How to delete a scan job (On-demand / scheduled) section in this help.


FAQ 33: How do I uninstall Panda Antivirus Platinum?

You can uninstall Panda Antivirus Platinum in two different ways:

From Windows Start button. This is the most advisable option:

1.	Click on the Windows Start button.

2.	Select Programs.

3.	Select the Panda Antivirus Platinum programs group.

4.	Select the Uninstall-Repair option.

5.	Click on the Remove button in the dialog box that appears. The uninstallation Panda Antivirus Platinum process will start.

From the Windows Control Panel. In addition, it is also possible to uninstall the antivirus in the same way as the rest of the programs installed on the computer. However, this is not the most advisable way of doing it:

1.	Click on the Windows Start button.

2.	Select Settings.

3.	Go to Control Panel.

4.	Double click on the Add/remove programs icon.

5.	Select Panda Antivirus Platinum from the list of programs installed.

6.	Click on Add/Remove. The uninstallation process will start.


General antivirus configuration - Update

 Note: In order to update the antivirus, you must have previously registered as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. Only then will you be able to use the updates service. For more information, consult the  Online registration section in this Help, or visit the Panda Software Online registration Web page in order to register.

For an antivirus to be live, up to date and able to detect and eliminate all the new viruses that appear every day, it must be fully and correctly updated. This means that the file that enables the antivirus to detect each virus (Virus Signature file) must be the latest version available. Similarly, with time the antivirus program may also be significantly modified, which will also need to be updated.

Panda Software offers its registered clients DAILY updates of the virus signature file (Update) via Internet. This file -which enables the antivirus to identify each virus - is available in different formats (on floppy disk, CD-ROM, on a computer network, or on Internet). Panda Software allows all registered users to download the virus signature file, that it prepares EVERY DAY, from the updates page on its website. The address of the Panda Software updates Web page is: www.pandasoftware.com/com/updates.asp.

The antivirus program can also be updated (Upgrade) in the same way. The program will be updated when you specify that it should be done or when the program detects that it is necessary. This process is also carried out through the updates page on the Panda Software website.

To sum up, you can specify where Panda Antivirus Platinum should obtain the virus signature file from: floppy disk, CD-ROM, computer network (local network) or Internet. You can also specify that it should update itself, without you needing to carry out any operations (it will be updated automatically and transparently when it detects an open connection to Internet, without affecting any operation that is in progress).

The following update characteristics can be configured, by clicking on the General options button on the antivirus toolbar and selecting the Update tab.

You can also set or configure the characteristics of the updates during the manual update process. If you started the manual update by clicking on the Update button on the toolbar, select the Configure updates option in the wizard.

Automatic updates

You can update Panda Antivirus Platinum when and how you want. The antivirus can also automatically update itself when necessary and when it detects a connection to Internet. In order to do this, the checkbox Enable automatic updates in this section must be enabled. By default, Panda Antivirus Platinum automatically updates itself.

If you select this option, when Panda Antivirus Platinum detects an open connection to Internet, it automatically connects to the Panda Software updates page. This process is transparent to the user, who will not notice that the antivirus is being updated and does not use additional resources or affect other tasks, applications or processes that are running. You can continue working as usual without noticing any reduction in system performance. When the update is complete, the antivirus will inform you by displaying a message (if the checkbox Notify me when updating automatically, in the corresponding section of the configuration).

User ID. You can only carry out updates (this is one of the services included with Panda Antivirus Platinum), if you have registered as a user (for more information, consult the Online registration section in this Help). When you have registered (using your activation code), Panda Software will send you the data that identifies you as a registered user of Panda Antivirus Platinum: your User name and Password. This data allows you to use the services included in Panda Antivirus Platinum. In this section, you must enter this data otherwise you will not be able to carry out the update.

Update location. The antivirus can update the virus signature file (PAV.SIG) from two locations:

•	Internet. The virus signature file is downloaded from the updates page on the Panda Software website. The antivirus program can also be updated if necessary.

In order to carry out an update you need a User name and Password. This data is sent to you from Panda Software when you register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. It is the same as the data that you need to enter the previous section.

If you connect to Internet via modem, DO NOT enable the checkbox Access via Proxy. If you connect to Internet through a computer network via a proxy server, you MUST enable it.

If you use a proxy to connect to Internet, click on Configure in order to enter the data for accessing the proxy. Although the antivirus will detect them by default, you can also enter the IP address (number or numeric code that uniquely identifies every computer that exists) and the Port (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred –inbound/outbound – from the computer to the outside and vice-versa) number that you use to connect to Internet via the proxy. It is advisable to contact the administrator of the network to which you are connected before modifying this data.

Similarly, if necessary, you can also enter your User name and Password for accessing the network proxy. ATTENTION! the User name and Password are not those sent to you when you register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user, but those that allow you to access Internet from a computer network through a  proxy (where necessary). Contact the administrator of the network to which you are connected if you do not know this data.

•	Floppy disk, CD-ROM, or Local network. The virus signature file is stored on a floppy disk (it could be an update floppy disk, or not), CD-ROM (it could be an update CD, or not), or in a certain directory in the local network. The Path section (click on the button on the right in order to find it, or directly enter the path) gives the antivirus the full path to the update so that it can collect it and carry out the update from there.

For more information about updates and configuring the updates system, consult the What is an update? section in this Help.

The updates performed by the antivirus are incremental. This means that when updating via Internet, only the necessary files or sections of a file will be downloaded. The new virus signature file (or PAV.SIG) will only be downloaded in full when the current file (outdated), is older than 28 days. The antivirus can identify the differences between the current virus signature file and the new one. This makes the update process much quicker as only the differences between the two need to be downloaded. The incremental updates system fulfils two main objectives: reduce download time, speeding up the update, and relieve the computer of unnecessary load. This results in faster and lighter system performance.

 Note: For more information about the Panda Antivirus Platinum updates system, consult the What is an update? section in this Help.


FAQ 34: How do I Know which Version of Panda Antivirus Platinum I Have?

In order to find out which version of Panda Antivirus Platinum you have, follow the steps below:

1.	Click on the Help button on the toolbar in antivirus window.

2.	Select the option About Panda Antivirus.

3.	This displays a dialog box. A number appears in the top right corner of this dialog box. This number specifies the version of Panda Antivirus Platinum that you have installed.

4.	In order to close this dialog box, click on OK.

 Note: The button bar in the Panda Antivirus Platinum window also displays a number which corresponds to the antivirus version.


Internet tech support

Without a doubt it is very important to have someone who can immediately help you with any virus incident or with any problem you may have with the functioning of the antivirus program. Panda Antivirus Platinum allows you to directly access the Technical support are on Panda Software’s website (www.pandasoftware.com/support/).

The technical support page will be opened in a window in your Internet browser. This page contains information designed to help Panda Antivirus Platinum users. Similarly, you can resolve any problems you may have, consult information about how to disinfect a certain virus, access updates, ask to be reminded of your User name and Password, etc.


What is a firewall?

A firewall is a barrier or type of protection that allows a system to keep information safe when the computer accesses other networks –such as the Internet- or transmits information (which might be infected with a virus or involve an attack from another computer or user) through them.

Its main purpose is to protect access points (entry points and exit points) to the network to which the computer is connected, or to the Internet. A firewall consists of a set of software (programs) and/or hardware (physical items, computers, etc) components that allow or deny access or data traffic between a computer and the exterior.

What is a firewall used for?

A firewall allows you to specify the system programs and services that should not have access to the Internet or the network to which the computer is connected, which should have it, what IP addresses (number or numeric code that uniquely identifies every computer that exists) and communication ports (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred -inbound/outbound- from the computer to the outside and vice-versa) can be used to establish connections to/from other computers, indicate if your shared network folders can are accessed or not, etc. Panda Antivirus Platinum incorporates excellent firewall software that enables you to do all this.

A good combination: antivirus + firewall

The perfect combination consists of installing an antivirus and a firewall. Panda Antivirus Platinum is an outstanding antivirus that also incorporates a firewall. Both elements work together without interfering with the other’s function, which leads to better protection and increased security.

However, you must bear in mind the importance of using and configuring the firewall correctly. The security restrictions and rules established in the firewall will define the traffic (inbound/outbound) between your computer and the exterior (local network, the Internet). Allowed inbound traffic can include harmful contents (a virus, or data used to launch an attack on your computer from other computers). In this case -when rules defined in the firewall have allowed dangerous contents to access your system- the antivirus must act by detecting possible viruses, worms, Trojans, etc.

 Important note: When using and configuring the firewall, bear in mind that the rules you apply can affect the functioning of programs and network resources shared with other computers. Preventing certain programs from accessing the network or blocking access to shared folders, for example, means that other computers connected to the network will not be able to use them.

There are many commercial firewalls on the market for protecting different types of platforms and operating systems. Each of these firewalls has its own characteristics and functionalities. However, it is preferable to have a firewall incorporated in the antivirus installed. The following sections deal with the characteristics of the firewall included in Panda Antivirus Platinum:

Firewall functions

How to install and enable Panda Antivirus Platinum's firewall

How to configure Panda Antivirus Platinum's firewall

View the network activity through the firewall


Firewall functions

The main features, or functions, of Panda Antivirus Platinum’s firewall include the following:

Network and Internet access

The firewall allows you to specify the programs installed on your computer that can access the network (or the Internet). In these cases you can establish several access permission levels: Allowed (the program has unrestricted access), Denied (the program does not have access), or Ask (you are asked what action to take when the program tries to access the network).

IP address protection

You can specify the addresses or number or numeric code that uniquely identifies every computer in a network with which the programs can communicate.

Communication port and protocol protection

This enables you to indicate the communication ports (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred –inbound/outbound – from the computer to the outside and vice-versa) and protocols (sets of code and formats –a language- used by computers to communicate) that programs installed on your computer can use to connect to the network. Similarly, you can also specify the communication ports and protocols through which programs installed on your computer can be used from the network.

Shared folder protection

Your computer may contain shared folders and directories (accessible from other computers in the network). The firewall allows you to indicate if shared items can be accessed by the rest of users in the network. Similarly, you can allow / deny access to shared folders in other computers in the network from your own computer.

Protection against intruders

On some occasions there are intrusions in computers. These are carried out by other users that -intentionally or accidentally- try to access your computer and perform actions on it (not always harmless). In fact, and unfortunately, there are more and more programs designed to take control of attacked computers (Trojans). With the Panda Antivirus Platinum firewall, you can detect intrusions and be notified of their existence.

Blocking

Your Panda Antivirus Platinum enables you to block programs that should not have access to the network or the Internet. The program also blocks attempts access programs in your computer from other computers.

Rule definition

Every restriction as well as the firewall configuration or functioning is determined by a series of rules (work guidelines). These rules cover everything mentioned in the previous sections, allowing or denying access.

 Important note: When using and configuring the firewall, bear in mind that the rules you apply can affect the functioning of programs and network resources shared with other computers. Preventing certain programs from accessing the network or blocking access to shared folders, for example, means that other computers connected to the network will not be able to use them.


How to configure Panda Antivirus Platinum's Firewall?

It is very easy to configure Panda Antivirus Platinum’s firewall. However, remember that any changes made to access restrictions on your programs or shared folders in the network, the rules you define, etc can affect the functioning of other programs and the work of other users connected to the network.

 Important note: When using and configuring the firewall, bear in mind that the rules you apply can affect the functioning of programs and network resources shared with other computers. Preventing certain programs to access the network or blocking access to shared folders, for example, means that other computers connected to the network will not be able to use them.

You can access the firewall configuration area in several ways:

•	Through the Permanent protection option in the Control panel, on the antivirus screen. Once you are in that area, click on the Configure option in the Firewall panel.

•	Through the Home option in the antivirus screen. When you are in that area, click on the Configure permanent protection option.

•	Through the Panda Antivirus Platinum icon in the Windows system tray. If any of the types of permanent protection (file or mail antivirus or the firewall) is enabled, the Panda Antivirus Platinum icon is displayed in the Windows system tray (next to the system clock). If you click on the icon, you will access the permanent protection configuration.

If you enabled the firewall during the Panda Antivirus Platinum installation process -if you installed it by checking Enable firewall (recommended)- or if you enabled it at another time, you will directly access its configuration.

If you haven’t yet installed the firewall, when you access its configuration a wizard will appear. This wizard will take you though the necessary steps:

1.	The welcome screen of the wizard appears. Click on Next, if you want to configure / install and enable the firewall.

2.	The option Enable the firewall (recommended) is checked by default. Click on Next. For more information about the firewall, click on the option What is a firewall?.

3.	Select the network adapters (network cards installed in your computer through which it connects to a computer network). There are two possible situations:

Your computer only has one network adapter (network card through which your computer connects to a computer network), you must specify if it is connected to a network. In this case, check This computer is connected to a local network.

If your computer has more than one network adapter (network card through which your computer connects to a computer network), a list of all the network adapters in your computer is displayed. Select the adapters you want to use to share network files and printers. It is advisable not to select those that allow a direct connection to the Internet (MODEM, xDSL, etc.).

 Note: If your operating system is Windows NT 4.0, the list of network adapters is not displayed. The advanced security rules will be applied to all existing adapters not just one. Similarly, the shared folders configuration options will not be enabled (Security tab in the firewall configuration).

Click on Next.

4.	If you don’t want to know when a common program accesses the network, check the option Don’t ask when common programs access the network (recommended). You can also consult the list of common programs in your computer by clicking on View common programs in your computer. Click on Next.

5.	With these steps the firewall will be installed and enabled. However the computer must be restart for the firewall to start working. You can do this in two ways:

Restart Windows now. Checking this option and clicking on Finish restarts your computer. When it restarts, the firewall will be enabled and working.

Restart later. If you check this option and click on Finish, your computer will not be restarted and the firewall will be disabled (the firewall will not protect you) until you restart your computer later on.

 Note: Remember that the firewall will be disabled (not start working) until the computer is restarted.

If you installed the firewall at another time, a dialog box is displayed from which you can access the firewall configuration by clicking on the Configure button (in the firewall section). This opens the firewall configuration screen, which contains several tabs. For more information on each firewall configuration option, consult the How to configure a scan job? (On-demand / Scheduled / Permanent section in this Help.

 Note: If you did not specify that the firewall should be installed/enabled during the Panda Antivirus Platinum installation process, you can do it later from the Windows Start button. In the second case, click on Start, select the Programs group, select Panda Antivirus Platinum and click on Uninstall - Repair. A dialog box is displayed, click on Repair. If you haven’t yet installed the firewall you can do it now.


View network activity through the firewall

You can view the firewall activity, as well as a record of every action carried out, whenever necessary. In order to view the firewall activity report, select the Permanent protection area in the Control panel in the Panda Antivirus Platinum screen.

Once there, select the option View network activity in the Firewall panel. The following information is displayed.

The two lists shown display the following data:

Programs with open connections to the network. This list shows the programs currently connected to the network. That is, programs that are accessing the network for whatever reason or are in use by other programs or users connected to the network. Data is displayed in several columns:

Program (name of the program that is accessing the network), Path (directory in which the program is), Outbound connections allowed (number of outbound connections established by the program and allowed by the firewall), Outbound connections denied (number of outbound connections established by the program and denied by the firewall), Inbound connections allowed (number of inbound connections established by the program and allowed by the firewall) and Inbound connections denied (number of connections established by the program and denied by the firewall).

If you click the checkbox Show operating system programs, the list will also include operating system programs that are accessing the network for whatever reason.

Open connections of the selected program. When you select one of the programs in the top list (Programs with open connections to the network), this new list will display the connection type of the selected program. Data is displayed in several columns:

Protocol (protocol type through which the program is communicating with the network – a protocol is a set of code and formats -a language- used by computers to communicate), Status (connection status of the program: connected, listening, etc), Local port  (communication port -in your computer- through which the program established the connection), Remote port (communication port -in the remote computer you are connected to –, through which the program established connection) and IP address (number or numeric code that uniquely identifies every computer that exists).


How to install or enable Panda Antivirus Platinum's firewall?

You can install the Panda Antivirus Platinum firewall at any time: while installing Panda Antivirus Platinum, or at any other time (when you access the firewall configuration after installing Panda Antivirus Platinum).

When installing Panda Antivirus Platinum

In this case, firewall installation is part of the antivirus installation steps. In one of the antivirus installation steps, the Enable the firewall (recommended) checkbox is displayed. If you check it and click on Next, the firewall will be installed together with the antivirus. As you can see, installing the firewall during antivirus installation is very simple. Follow the instructions below:

1.	During the antivirus installation process the Enable the firewall (recommended) checkbox is displayed, check it. Then, click on the Next button. The Firewall installation process starts. If you do not enable the checkbox above, only the antivirus will be installed. If you click on What is a firewall?, you will access more information about the definition and functions of a firewall.

2.	If you checked the Enable the firewall (recommended) checkbox in the previous step and your computer has a single network adapter (network card through which your computer connects to a computer network), you must indicate if your computer is connected to a computer network. In that case, check the This computer is connected to a local network checkbox. Then, click on Next.

If your computer has more than one network adapter (more than one network card), you can select the adapters you want to use to share network files and printers. A list of all the network adapters in your computer (network cards installed in your computer so that it can connect to a computer network) is displayed. Select the ones you want to use (it is advisable not to select those that allow a direct connection to the Internet (MODEM, xDSL, etc.) by checking the corresponding checkbox.

 Note: If your operating system is Windows NT 4.0, the list of network adapters is not displayed. The advanced security rules will be applied to all existing adapters not just one. Similarly, the shared folders configuration options will not be enabled (Security tab in the firewall configuration).

3.	Indicate if you want to be notified when programs installed in your computer attempt to access the network. To avoid notification, click the checkbox Don’t ask when when common programs access the network (recommended). You can consult the list of common programs installed on your computer, by clicking on the button View the common program in your computer. Click on Next, to finish installing the firewall and continue installing the antivirus.

 Note:  Remember that the firewall will be installed but it will not be enabled until you have restarted the computer.

If you didn’t install the firewall during the Panda Antivirus Platinum installation process

In this case the firewall will be installed -if you want to- when you access the firewall configuration. Then, a wizard will appear that will take you though the necessary steps:

1.	The welcome screen of the wizard appears. Click on Next, if you want to configure / install and enable the firewall.

2.	The option Enable the firewall (recommended) is checked by default. Click on Next. For more information about the firewall, click on the option What is a firewall?

3.	Select the network adapters (network cards installed in your computer through which it connects to a computer network). There are two possible situations:

Your computer only has one network adapter (network card through which your computer connects to a computer network), you must specify if it is connected to a network. In this case, check This computer is connected to a local network.

If your computer has more than one network adapter (network card through which your computer connects to a computer network), a list of all the network adapters in your computer is displayed. Select the adapters you want to use to share network files and printers. It is advisable not to select those that allow a direct connection to the Internet (MODEM, xDSL, etc.).

 Note: If your operating system is Windows NT 4.0, the list of network adapters is not displayed. The advanced security rules will be applied to all existing adapters not just one. Similarly, the shared folders configuration options will not be enabled (Security tab in the firewall configuration).

Click on Next.

4.	If you don’t want to know when a common program accesses the network, check the option Don’t ask when common programs access the network (recommended). You can also consult the list of common programs in your computer by clicking on View common programs in your computer. Click on Next.

5.	With these steps the firewall will be installed and enabled. However the computer must be restart for the firewall to start working. You can do this in two ways:

Restart Windows now. Checking this option and clicking on Finish restarts your computer. When it restarts, the firewall will be enabled and working.

Restart later. If you check this option and click on Finish, your computer will not be restarted and the firewall will be disabled (the firewall will not protect you) until you restart your computer later on.

Warning: Remember that the firewall will be disabled (not start working) until the computer is restarted.

 Note: If you did not specify that the firewall should be installed/enabled during the Panda Antivirus Platinum installation process, you can do it later from the Windows Start button. In the second case, click on Start, select the Programs group, select Panda Antivirus Platinum and click on Uninstall - Repair. A dialog box is displayed, click on Repair. If you haven’t yet installed the firewall you can do it now.


Firewall configuration - Access tab

This tab includes several options for configuring and defining the firewall’s characteristics, rules and functioning.

 Note: This configuration tab will NOT be available if you have not installed Panda Antivirus Platinum’s firewall.

Programs with access to the network section

This section allows you define what programs installed on your computer can access the Internet or the local area network -LAN- you are connected to (they have the firewall’s permission to do so).

Click on the Configure button and a list of the programs with network access permissions will be displayed. This list has the following columns: Program (the name of the program that can communicate with the exterior through the network), Communication (indicates if communication is allowed, denied, or if the firewall should ask the user).

•	Show operating system programs, if this option is checked, the list will also include the programs that belong to the operating system that are also accessing the network for some reason or other.

•	Add program. This button allows you to add programs that can access the network to the list. If you click on it, you must indicate the Path (program name and directory –click on the button on the right to make it easier to select the program). You must also indicate the type of permission or the Action that the firewall must apply to the program’s network communication: Allow communication, Deny communication, or Ask (the firewall will ask you when the program tries to access the network). You can only configure the advanced options if you select the option Allow communication.

You can also click on the button Advanced options (this button is only activated when the rule corresponding to the program selected in the list is has the action Allow communication associated with it). This button allows you to select the Addresses and communication Ports (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred –inbound/outbound – from the computer to the outside and vice-versa -via TCP/IP-) that the program can use. This means that you can select the addresses of other computers (IP addresses) to which the program can connect. You can also select the point where the computer can connect to the network and the Internet and transfer information (port). For more details about this, consult the Firewall configuration - Advanced Options for Programs (Addresses and Ports) section in this Help.

•	Advanced options. This button is only activated when the rule corresponding to the program selected in the list is has the action Allow communication associated with it. Select a program from the list and click on this button to indicate the Addresses (numbers for accessing other computers – IP addresses) and communication ports (communication channels inbound/outbound – between computers) the program can use. For more details about this option, consult the Firewall configuration - Advanced Options for Programs (Addresses and Ports) section in this Help.

•	Remove program. Select one or several programs in the list and click on this button to remove them and prevent them from accessing the network or having access configuration options.

•	When a rule is applied show it in the report. If you enable this checkbox, every incident involving to a rule for programs that can access the network established in the firewall will be included in the Report.

Advanced connection rules

This section allows you to set and implement the firewall functioning rules.

Click on the Configure button. This will display a list of rules (those established so far). This list contains the following columns: Rule name (name assigned to defined rules) and Action to be taken (purpose of the rule).

•	Add new rule. This button allows you to create and define the characteristics of a new rule to be applied to the firewall.  If you click on this button, a screen is displayed with the following tabs: General, Protocols and ports and Addresses. For more details about this option, consult the Firewall configuration - Firewall rule definition (General, Protocols and ports, Addresses) section in this Help.

•	Edit Rule. This button allows you to access the properties of the rule selected from the list and define or modify each of its characteristics. For more details about this option, consult the Firewall configuration - Firewall rule definition (General, Protocols and ports, Addresses) section in this Help.

•	Delete rule. Select one or several rules from the list and click on this button to remove them and prevent them from being applied.

•	When a rule is applied show it in the report. If you enable this checkbox, every incident involving to a rule for programs that can access the network established in the firewall will be included in the Report


Firewall configuration - Security tab

This tab includes several options for configuring and defining the firewall’s characteristics, rules and functioning.

 Note: This configuration tab will NOT be available if you have not installed the Panda Antivirus Platinum firewall.

 Note: The security configuration options for Shared folders in the network will not be available in Windows NT 4.0 systems.

Shared folders section

Depending on the possible network adapters (network card installed in your computer through which it can connect to a computer network) that you have installed on your computer (if you are connected to a network, you may have one or several different adapters installed) and, more specifically, depending on the one you selected in the section For this network adapter, you can specify if there are permissions to access shared folders and directories in the network. You can also specify if other users can access the folders (in your computer) that you share in the network.

 Important note: when using and configuring the firewall, bear in mind that the rules you apply can affect the functioning of programs and network resources shared with other computers. Preventing certain programs to access the network or blocking access to shared folders, for example, means that other computers connected to the network will not be able to use them.

Security of shared network folders is defined as follows:

•	For this network adapter. Open this list for each network adapter (network card installed in your computer through which it can connect to a computer network) installed on your computer to be displayed. For each of them, you can define security properties of shared folders. Open the list and select one of them. A network adapter can be a network card through which your computer connects to a computer network or simply a MODEM, etc.

•	Allow others to access shared folders in my computer. If you check this option, other users connected to the network will be able to access your shared folders.

•	Allow access to shared folders in other computers. If you check this option, you will be able to access other network users’ shared folders in remote computers.

Protection against intrusions section

On some occasions, other users, services and programs might try to access your computer (intentionally or accidentally, maliciously or not). Examples of this are programs that need to access files in your computer, control programs or Trojans.  The Panda Antivirus Platinum firewall allows you to block and prevent certain access. If you check the Notify of blocked intrusion attempts option, Panda Antivirus Platinum will inform you whenever this happens.


Firewall configuration - Phone connections tab

Through this tab, you can enter a list of phone numbers that your computer must dial in order to establish each of the Internet connections you have set and allow.  The purpose of this is to prevent your computer from cutting your current Internet connection and (through certain Internet programs called dialers) opening its own connections by dialing other phone numbers. This is known as an anti-dialer system, which is incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum’s firewall.

 Note: This configuration tab will NOT be available if you have not installed the Panda Antivirus Platinum firewall. Furthermore, this configuration tab will only appear if you have a modem and connect to the Internet through it.

The purpose of this configuration tab is to control access attempts made by certain malicious programs you can find while browsing the Internet. These programs try to cut off the current telephone connection (the one you normally use to connect to the Internet) and establish a new connection to a premium rate number or similar. This type of program is called a dialer, and even though it is not a virus, it can still cause serious trouble by significantly increasing your phone bill.

Panda Antivirus Platinum, through its firewall, incorporates an anti-dialer system for cases like that. This system can be configured through the tab Phone connections, by indicating the telephone numbers that the computer can dial in order to establish an Internet connection. If the computer tries to call a telephone number that is not on the list, the firewall will ask you for confirmation before making the call.

Anti-dialer security is achieved by keeping a list of allowed telephone numbers for Internet connections, in the following way:

Select the option Enable anti-dialer and click on the Configure button. The following options will appear:

•	Add. This button enables you to add a new telephone number to the list of allowed telephone numbers. After clicking this button, type the Phone number (without hyphens, spaces, etc) and click on OK.

•	Edit. This button allows you modify any phone number you have selected from the list of allowed phone numbers.

•	Remove. This button enables you to delete any phone number you have selected from the list of allowed phone numbers.

•	Log every blocked phone number in the report. If you check this option, every time the firewall detects a phone call to an unlisted number (in order to establish an Internet connection) and prevents it, the incident will be logged in the Report.


Firewall configuration - Advanced programs options (Addresses and Ports)

Advanced options for defining network access for programs installed on your computer consist of specifying the IP Addresses (number or numeric code that uniquely identifies every computer that exists) and communication Ports (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred -inbound/outbound- from the computer to the outside and vice-versa) that those programs can use.

You can only access these advanced options if the corresponding to one of the selected programs has the Allow action associated to it. Two tabs are displayed when you access these advanced configuration options.

Addresses

In this tab you must indicate the IP addresses (the addresses of other computers - workstations and servers in the network number or numeric code that uniquely identifies every computer in the network) that these programs can use. The following options are available:

•	All. If you check this option, programs to which you granted network access permission will be able to communicate with any other computer (with every IP address they find and which identify other computers).

•	Following addresses. Type the IP address corresponding to the computers (network workstations and servers) with which programs can communicate (computers that can be accessed). You can enter individual addresses or address intervals.

When you enter several individual IP addresses, separate them with a semicolon (,). If you want to specify an address range, separate them with a hyphen (-).

For example: 192.168.1.1,192.168.1.45,172.1.1-172.1.1.250

Ports

The communications ports are the access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred –inbound/outbound – from the computer to the outside and vice-versa. In this tab, you must indicate if the program can connect to the network and if the program can be used from the network (if other users or programs will connect to it from the network). In both cases, you must define functioning characteristics. You have the following options:

Connect to other computers (client). This allows you to indicate if the program will be able to connect to the network.

•	Allow (act as client). If you check this option, every field in this section will be enabled. You can then indicate the communication ports (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred –inbound/outbound – from the computer to the outside and vice-versa) the program can connect to:

TCP ports: you can select the following TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) type communications ports- a protocol that organizes the groups into which data is broken up into when it is transferred between computers, in order to avoid errors) to which the program can connect: All, ftp data, ftp, telnet, smtp, tftp, gopher, finger, (WWW) http, kerberos, rtelnet, pop2, pop3, sftp, nntp, irc and https.

UDP ports: you can select the following UDP (User Datagram Protocol) type communication ports (type of communication protocol that allows information to be transferred between computers, without controlling the dataflow), to which the program can connect.

Connect from other computers (Server). This allows you to specify if the program can be used from other computers connected to the network.

•	Allow (act as server). If you check this option, every field in this section will be enabled. You can then indicate the communication ports (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred -inbound/outbound- from the computer to the outside and vice-versa) through which connections to the program can be established from other points in the network:

TCP ports: you can select the following TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) type communications ports- a protocol that organizes the groups into which data is broken up into when it is transferred between computers, in order to avoid errors) through which other computers can connect to the program: All, ftp data, ftp, telnet, smtp, tftp, gopher, finger, (WWW) http, kerberos, rtelnet, pop2, pop3, sftp, nntp, irc and https.

UDP ports: you can select the following UDP (User Datagram Protocol) type communication ports )type of communication protocol that allows information to be transferred between computers, without controlling the dataflow), through which other computers can connect to the program.

 Note: In both cases (when the program acts as a client and when the program acts as a server), you can enter port ranges, separated by hyphens, (-) or single ports, separated by semicolons (,). You can also indicate the numbers corresponding to each port, without having to write the protocol name (sets of code and formats -a language- used by computers to communicate).


Firewall configuration - Define rules in the Firewall (General, Protocols and ports, Directions)
Firewall configuration – Define rules in the firewall (General, Protocols and ports, Addresses)

Defining rules in the firewall consists of setting a series of conditions that these must fulfill. On defining or creating a new rule, or editing one that already exists, you will find the following tabs:

General

In this tab you must specify the rule name, the actions it should carry out and select the network adapter (network card through which your computer connects to a computer network) that must be used to apply the rule.

•	Rule name. Type or edit the name of the rule you are creating or editing.

•	Action. Expand the list to select the action that the rule must carry out: Deny communication, or Allow communication.

•	Network adapter. If you have several adapters (network cards through which your computer connects to a computer network) installed on your computer, expand the list and select the adapter to which the rule that you are creating or editing must be applied.

Protocols and ports

In this tab you must specify the protocols (sets of code and formats –a language- used by computers to communicate), communication ports (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred –inbound/outbound – from the computer to the outside and vice-versa) and the data transfer direction  (Inbound to/ outbound from the computer) affected by the rule that you are creating or editing.

•	Protocol. Expand the list and select one of the available protocols (sets of code and formats -a language- used by computers to communicate): All, TCP (Transmission Control Protocol - a protocol that organizes the groups into which data is broken up into when it is transferred between computers, in order to avoid errors), UDP (User Datagram Protocol (type of communication protocol that allows information to be transferred between computers, without controlling the dataflow), ICMP services (Internet Control Message Protocol (protocol that controls error message that are returned when information is transferred between computers), or IP type.

•	Communication direction. Select the direction in which data affected by this rule is transmitted: Inbound and Outbound, or Inbound or Outbound.

Depending on the Protocol (sets of code and formats (a language used by computers to communicate) you selected on the first list, the tab Protocols and ports will display additional content or not. If you selected All protocols, no additional option will be displayed. However, if you selected any other protocols (TCP, UDP, ICMP services, or IP type), the following situations might occur:

•	If you selected the protocol (sets of code and formats -a language- used by computers to communicate) TCP (Transmission Control Protocol - a protocol that organizes the groups into which data is broken up into when it is transferred between computers, in order to avoid errors) or UDP (User Datagram Protocol - type of communication protocol that allows information to be transferred between computers, without controlling the dataflow). You must select the ports (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred -inbound/outbound- from the computer to the outside and vice-versa) to which the rule will be applied: Local ports (located in your computer) and Remote ports  (located in other computers). In both cases, the options are the same: All, ftp data, ftp, telnet, smtp, tftp, gopher, finger, (WWW) http, kerberos, rtelnet, pop2, pop3, sftp, nntp, irc and https.

•	If you selected protocol ICMP Services (Internet Control Message Protocol - protocol that controls error message that are returned when information is transferred between computers). You must select every ICMP service on which the rule that you are creating or editing will be applied. To do it, simply check the corresponding checkboxes.

•	You can also select the IP type protocol

In the last two cases  (ICMP Services and IP type), you can Enable all or Disable all by clicking the buttons that appear below the list (services in the case of ICMP and addresses in the case of  IP Type).

Addresses

In this tab, you must specify remote IP addresses (other computers’ addresses, number or numeric code that uniquely identifies every computer in the network), affected by the rule you are creating or editing.

•	Any address. The rule will be applied to all of the IP addresses, which represent each computer, the computer works with.

•	Network card address  (MAC). This indicates the network card (adapter) to which the rule defined in the firewall must be applied. Enter the address of the network card, a network adapter (MAC address - Ethernet network card identifier xx - xx - xx - xx - xx - xx type address) to which you want to apply the rule you are creating or editing.

•	IP addresses. Enter the IP addresses or number or numeric code that uniquely identifies every computer affected by the rule you are creating or editing. You can enter individual addresses or address ranges.

When you enter several individual IP addresses (numbers or numeric codes that uniquely identify every computer), separate them with a semicolon (;). If you want to specify an address range, separate them with a hyphen (-).

For example: 192.168.1.1-192.168.1.254, 172.1.1.1


Warnings system

Panda Antivirus Platinum incorporates a warnings system, which will keep you informed on the actions that are carried out (viruses detected, disinfections, access through the firewall, etc). These warnings will pop up in the right hand corner of the screen and will disappear when you want.

Example of a pop-up warning, corresponding to the online registration.

Example of a pop-up warning, corresponding to a certain program trying to connect to the network.

Each of these warnings consists of two sections. The top section displays the warning by means of a title and an explanatory text. The lower section allows you to carry out several actions, just by clicking on them.

Among the most common or important warnings, the following can be highlighted:

Update warnings

Antivirus updated

Update canceled (User and Password)

Update canceled (Proxy Authentication)

Update canceled (Connection)

Incorrect user ID

Help updated

Update interrupted

Scan and Detection warnings

Disinfectable files in Quarantine

Virus detected

Virus neutralized

Potentially dangerous file

Virus now being disinfected

File being sent to quarantine

Virus now being deleted

Firewall warnings

E-mail and firewall options are disabled

Intrusion attempt blocked

Phone connection blocked

Dangerous outbound message detected

Script blocked

Service reminder

You haven't configured the updates yet


Warnings - Antivirus updated

Warning title: The message or the initial title of this warning is Antivirus updated!

Here there are two possible warnings:

•	One that refers to the complete antivirus update (Upgrade). This warning informs you that your antivirus has updated correctly and displays the new antivirus version number. It is also advisable to restart the computer so that you will be able to enjoy the improvements incorporated in the new version.

•	One that refers to the file that allows viruses to be detected –virus signature file- (Update). This warning informs you that your antivirus has updated correctly and displays the number of new viruses it detects and the total number of viruses it recognizes. It also offers the following options:

Close, click on this option to remove the warning.

Close and don’t display this warning again, click on this option to remove the warning and indicate that it should not be shown in the future (when the antivirus is updated correctly).

Help. Click on this option for an explanation about this warning message (this explanation will be displayed).


Warnings - Update not performed (User name and password)

Warning title: The message or initial title of this warning is Update canceled!

Warning: This warning informs you that Panda Antivirus Platinum could not be updated.

Reason: The username and password you entered in the Update configuration tab  -that identifies you as a registered user of Panda Antivirus Platinum- are invalid or incorrect. This means that you have not been identified as a registered user who can benefit from the updates service. To solve this problem, go to the Updates configuration and re-enter your username and password.

In the lower section the following options are available:

•	Confirm user ID Select this option to check if you entered the right username and password in the update configuration section. If the data you entered is not correct, type a valid username and password and try to update again.

•	Try again now. Select this option if you want Panda Antivirus Platinum to try the update process again, without modifying the configuration information.

•	Try again later. Select this option to postpone the update process. In this case, Panda Antivirus Platinum will try again at a later stage.

•	Help. Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).

•	Disable automatic update, click on this option to prevent Panda Antivirus Platinum from updating itself automatically (without you specifying that it must be done at a certain time).


Warnings - Update not performed (Proxy authentication)

Warning title: the message or initial title of this warning is Update NOT performed!

Warning: This warning informs you that Panda Antivirus Platinum could not be updated.

Reason: The proxy server settings established for the Internet updates (in the updates configuration area) did not allow the connection. The reason for this may be that the server configuration data (username, password and IP address -number or numeric code that uniquely identifies every computer that exists- and communication port -access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred –inbound/outbound – from the computer to the outside and vice-versa-) is incorrect, (consult the section Updates configuration). In addition, the proxy server may be temporarily down. To solve this problem check the Proxy settings in the updates configuration section.

In the lower section the following sections are available:

•	Check the Proxy configuration. Select this option to check the updates configuration by means of the Access via a Proxy server option. If the data you entered is not correct, enter it again correctly. If the problem persists check the proxy status or contact your network administrator.

•	Try again now. Click on this option if you want Panda Antivirus Platinum to retry the update through a proxy server, without changing the configuration.

•	Try again later. Select this option to postpone the update process. In this case, Panda Antivirus Platinum will try again at a later stage.

•	Help. Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).


Warnings - Update not performed (Connection)

Warning title: The message or initial title of this warning is Update not performed!

Warning: This warning informs you that it was not possible to connect to Panda Software’s updates web page.

Reason: You may not have an active Internet connection. On the other hand, the connection may have been canceled because invalid data was entered in the updates configuration section. To solve this problem check that you have an active Internet connection. It is also advisable to check the updates configuration.

In the lower section the following options are available:

•	Configure updates. Click on this option to check the updates configuration. If the data you entered is not correct, enter it again correctly. If the problem persists check the status of your Internet connection.

•	Try again now. Click on this option if you want Panda Antivirus Platinum to retry the update via the Internet, without changing the configuration.

•	Try again later. Select this option to postpone the update process. In this case, Panda Antivirus Platinum will try again at a later stage.

•	Help. Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).


Warnings - Update interrupted

Warning title: the message or initial title of this warning is Update interrupted!

Warning: This warning informs you that Panda Antivirus Platinum could not be updated successfully, as the process was interrupted for some reason.

Reason: The reason for this warning may be the lack of free disk space. To solve this problem, check that you have enough free disk space. If you don’t have enough, free up more disk space for the update to take place.

In the lower section the following options are available:

•	Free disk space. If the operating system allows it, Panda Antivirus Platinum will attempt to free up the necessary disk space for the update to take place.

•	Try again now. Click on this option if you want Panda Antivirus Platinum to retry the update.

•	Try again later. Select this option to postpone the update process. In this case, Panda Antivirus Platinum will try again at a later stage.

•	Help. Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).


Warnings - Disinfectable files in Quarantine

Warning title: The message or initial title of this warning is Disinfectable files in Quarantine!

Warning: This warning informs you that once the antivirus has been updated, it is possible to disinfect the files in the Hospital - Quarantine.

Reason: The files in the Panda Antivirus Platinum Quarantine area (files isolated by the antivirus or by yourself) could not be disinfected. Once the antivirus has been updated, it will be possible to disinfect them. Go to the Quarantine area to scan and disinfect the files.

In the lower section the following sections are available:

•	Disinfect and restore files. If you click this option, Panda Antivirus Platinum –newly updated – will scan all quarantined files. If, as a result of the update, these files can be disinfected, they will be disinfected and restored to their original directory.

•	Leave the files in Quarantine. Select this option if you do not want Panda Antivirus Platinum to scan quarantined files. In this case the files will not be disinfected, and will continue to be isolated.

•	Help. Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).


Warnings - Virus Detected

Warning title: The message or initial title of this warning is Virus detected!

Warning: This warning informs you that Panda Antivirus has detected a virus in your computer. In addition, it will display the name of the virus it detected, as well as the virus location (the path and file where the virus was detected).

Reason: The permanent protection (mail antivirus) has detected an infected file. To solve this problem disinfect this file if possible. If disinfection is not possible, it is advisable to move the file to Quarantine. In any case, Panda Antivirus Platinum will carry out the action indicated in the warning pop-up window (only if you selected the option Ask what action to take in the permanent mail protection configuration).

This warning allows you to specify the action that Panda Antivirus Platinum must perform, provided that you selected the option Ask what action to take in the permanent mail protection configuration:

•	Disinfect virus. Clicking on this option disinfects the virus.

•	Scan all My computer. Select this option to carry out a full scan of your computer.

•	Information about the virus. Clicking on this option allows you to consult more information about the virus detected (if available).

•	Move file to Quarantine. Clicking on this option moves the file from its original location to Quarantine (it will be isolated).

•	Delete infected file. If you click on this option, Panda Antivirus Platinum will delete the infected file.

 Note: Remember that the options will only appear at the bottom of the screen if you selected the option Ask what action to take in the permanent mail protection configuration.


Warnings - Virus Neutralized

Warning title: The message or initial title of this warning is Virus neutralized!

Warning: This warning can be generated automatically by the permanent antivirus protection (both file and mail), if one of these types of protection is enabled. This warning informs you that Panda Antivirus Platinum has detected and neutralized a virus in your computer. In addition, it displays the name of the virus it detected as well as the virus location (the path and the file where the virus was detected).

Reason: The permanent protection (e-mail antivirus) has detected and neutralized an infected file. To solve this problem disinfect this file if possible. If disinfection is not possible, it is advisable to move the file to Quarantine. In any case, Panda Antivirus Platinum will carry out the action you indicated in the Scan configuration.

In the lower section the following sections are available:

•	Close. Clicking this option will close the warning window.

•	Help, click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).

•	See information about the virus. Clicking this option will display Information about the virus that Panda Antivirus Platinum has neutralized (provided that it is a known virus and its Information is available in Panda Software’s virus Encyclopedia).


Warnings - Potentially dangerous file

Warning title: The message or the initial title of this warning is Potentially dangerous file!

Warning: This warning informs you that Panda Antivirus Platinum has detected a file considered dangerous.

Reason: This is due to the fact that Panda Antivirus Platinum not only detects viruses, but also suspicious activity and potentially dangerous files.

File: It displays the name of the file considered dangerous, and the path or directory where it is located.

In the lower section the following sections are available:

•	Move infected file to Quarantine. If this option is selected the file will moved from its original location (the message to which the file is attached) to Quarantine (the file will be isolated).

•	Ignore file. Click on this option if you do not want Panda Antivirus Platinum to carry out any actions on the file. This will also close the warning window.

•	Delete dangerous file. Select this option to indicate if you want Panda Antivirus Platinum to delete the file.

•	Help. Click this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).


Warnings - Mail protection and the firewall is disabled

Warning title: The message or initial title of this warning is Mail protection and the firewall is disabled!

Warning: This warning informs you that e-mail and firewall permanent protection are not enabled. This means that data transfers, e-mail access, protocols (sets of code and formats -a language- used by computers to communicate) and communication ports (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred -inbound/outbound- from the computer to the outside and vice-versa) will not be monitored.

Reason: The operating system installed on your computer may require an update in order to work with this type of permanent protection (mail antivirus and firewall). To solve this problem update your operating system.

In the lower section the following sections are available:

•	Update the operating system now. If the operating system is not recent enough to support mail protection and the firewall, clicking on this option will update your operating system, so you will be able to enable this type of permanent protection.

•	Update later. Clicking on this option will postpone the update of the operating system. In the mean time, you will not be allowed to enable either the permanent mail protection or the firewall.

•	Help. Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).


Warnings - Intrusion attempt blocked

Warning title: The message or initial title of this warning is Intrusion attempt blocked!

Warning: This warning informs you that someone has tried to access your computer remotely and the firewall blocked the intrusion attempt.

Reason: A program or user has tried to access your computer remotely (a computer connected to the local network or from the Internet). The solution consists of detecting the communication port (access points in a computer or means through which information is transferred -inbound/outbound- from the computer to the outside and vice-versa) and the protocol (sets of code and formats -a language- used by computers to communicate) used and establishing firewall rules that block this type of access.

Type of attack: The firewall incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum will indicate the type of intrusion it blocked (for instance, an attack consisting of looking for unprotected ports in your computer: Port scans).

In the lower section the following sections are available:

•	Do not display this message again. If you select this option and the Firewall blocks an intrusion no warning messages will be displayed. The firewall will block intrusions without displaying any alerts.

•	More Information about the intrusion. Click on this option for further Information about the intrusion that was blocked.

•	Close. Clicking on this option will close the warning message.

•	Help. Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).


Warnings - Unauthorized phone connection

Warning title:  The message or initial title of this warning is Phone unauthorized connection!

Warning: This warning informs you that your computer is trying to connect to the Internet by dialing an unauthorized number (a number that is not included in the list set in the firewall rules).

Reason: While you were browsing the Internet a dialing program attempted to connect to the Internet by dialing an unauthorized phone number. This was detected and blocked by the anti-dialer system incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum’s firewall.

Phone number: It displays the unauthorized phone number (not defined in the firewall rules) that was being dialed.

Program name: This displays the name of the program that is trying to dial the unauthorized number.

In the lower section the following sections are available:

•	Close. If you select this option no calls will be made to the unauthorized number.

•	Authorize this number. Clicking this option will allow the calls to take place every time the number is dialed and from then on will considered an authorized number.

•	Help. Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).


Warnings - Dangerous outbound message detected

Warning title: The message or initial title of this warning is Dangerous outbound message detected!

Warning: This warning informs you that Panda Antivirus Platinum has found a potentially dangerous file attached to an e-mail message.

Reason: This is due to the fact that Panda Antivirus Platinum not only detects viruses but also suspicious activity and potentially dangerous files included in e-mail messages.

Potentially dangerous attachments: It displays the names of the files included in the message that Panda Antivirus Platinum considered dangerous.

In the lower section the following sections are available:

•	Delete message attachments. Clicking on this button deletes the files included in the message (those considered dangerous).

•	Move the attachments to Quarantine. Clicking on this option will move potentially dangerous attachments to Quarantine (they will be isolated). This means that they will disappear from their original directory.

•	Ignore this warning. Click on this option if you do not want Panda Antivirus Platinum to carry out any actions on the message or on the attached files.

•	Help. Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).


Warnings - Script Blocked

Warning title: The message or initial title of this warning is Script blocked!

Warning: This warning informs you that Panda Antivirus Platinum has found a file written in a script programming language. Panda Antivirus has blocked the file to prevent it from running.

Reason: This is due to the security rules you established. If you indicated that all script files should be blocked, Panda Antivirus Platinum will proceed accordingly.

File location: The name of the file that was blocked is displayed, along with the path and the name of the directory where the file is located.

In the lower section the following sections are available:

•	Close. If you click on this option the warning window will close and the file will continue to be blocked by Panda Antivirus Platinum.

•	Disable script blocks. If this option is selected, the security option that makes it possible to block script files will be disabled.

•	Help. Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).


Warnings - You haven't configured the updates yet

Warning title: The message or initial title of this warning is You haven’t configured the updates yet!

Warning: This warning informs you that you must register as a Panda Software user. This warning will be displayed, for instance, after installing Panda Antivirus Platinum or when you attempt to update the antivirus without having registered as a Panda Software user.

Example of a pop-up warning, corresponding to the online registration.

Reason: If you have not registered you will not be able to benefit from the services included in Panda Antivirus Platinum (for instance, the updates). Only if you registered as a user will you receive a username and password that identify you and allow you to benefit from Panda Antivirus Platinum services. If you have not registered or if you have not entered this data in the antivirus configuration, you will not be able to update your Panda Antivirus Platinum (or benefit from other product services).

 Note: If you have a subscription version or if you have purchased the antivirus through the virtual store on Panda Software website, you will not need to access the Panda Software registration Web page to register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. In these cases, your user name and password will be sent to you without you having to do anything else.

In the lower section the following sections are available:

•	Configure updates. Click on this option to access the window that allows you to set the characteristics and the configuration of Panda Antivirus Platinum updates.

•	Receive my user ID again. Selecting this option takes you to Panda Software’s website, where you can ask us to send your user name and password to you again via e-mail.

•	Remind me later. Select this option to close the warning message. In this case, the warning will be displayed periodically until you register as a user.

•	Help. Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).

•	Register the antivirus. If you click on this option you will access Panda Software’s online registration Web page. In this Web page you will be able to enter your data and register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user.

 Note: This option is not available in subscription versions or in those purchased through the virtual store on Panda Software website.


FAQ 35: More information about access to shared folders

In order to be able to share both network folders and printers, Microsoft Windows networks use a protocol or system called NetBIOS (Network Basic Input/Output System). NetBIOS can work independently or over another type of protocol: for example, IPX/SPX (belonging to Novell NetWare networks), or TCP/IP (protocol used in the Internet).

The technology used by the firewall incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum allows NetBIOS type connections to be blocked, when they are working over TCP/IP. This is because this type of connection does not pose any real threats. Therefore, several situations could arise with NetBIOS type connections:

•	NetBIOS working independently (NetBEUI): In this case, NetBIOS is known as NetBEUI (NetBIOS Enhanced User Interface) and does not need another type of transport protocol (it works independently). It is designed to be used in very small networks, where they are all connected to the same segment of the network (for example, they are all connected to one hub). This situation is special as only the computers that are in the same medium can communicate. Furthermore, information is transferred by one computer at a time, reaching the rest without needing to be routed.

The firewall incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum does not prevent connections established through this type of functioning (NetBEUI). However, due to the nature of this protocol, it is not used for unauthorized connection from the Internet. This means that using this protocol does not pose any threats.

•	NetBIOS working over IPX/SPX (NWLINK-NetBIOS): In this case, NetBIOS used the NWLINK-NetBIOS protocol and works in Novell NetWare networks. This allows NetBIOS to be used over the IPX/SPX protocol, which belongs to this type of network (Novell). This protocol can be used in large and medium-sized local area networks (LAN).

The firewall incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum does not prevent connections established through this type of system (NWLINK-NetBIOS). However, this protocol cannot be used for accessing computers connected to a local area network from the Internet. This means that using this protocol does not pose any threats.

•	NetBIOS working over TCP/IP: In this case, NetBIOS uses the TCP/IP protocol. This is the most common way of functioning at the moment.

The main advantages are the following: The same protocol or communication type (inbound / outbound) is used in the local area network to which the computer is connected as used in its Internet communications. This system is supported by many hardware elements and by many programs or applications (the most widely-used).

As well as these advantages, it also involves risks. As already mentioned, the local area network uses the same protocol as the Internet. This means that the shared folders in the local network can also be shared by other computers or users through Internet connections. Therefore, users that connected to your computer through the Internet could also access the shared folders in the network you are connected to.

The firewall incorporated in Panda Antivirus Platinum covers this situation. When setting the firewall security configuration, Panda Antivirus Platinum allows you to specify the network adapters (network connection or phone access) that have access permissions. Therefore, NetBIOS type connections to these folders will only be established through the adapter (network connection or phone access) used in the network to which you are connected.


Warnings - Virus now being disinfected

Warning title: This message or initial title is Virus now being disinfected!

Warning: This warning informs you that an infected file has been detected and that in order to disinfect it, the computer must be restarted.

Reason: An infected file can be detected that is currently being used by the system. In this case, the file will not be disinfected until the affected computer is restarted. Panda Antivirus will inform you if this occurs and give you the option to immediately restart the computer or restart it later.

In the lower section the following options are available:

•	Restart now: Selecting this option immediately restarts the computer. Close all programs before doing this. Once the computer has restarted, Panda Antivirus Platinum will automatically disinfect the infected file.

•	Wait until next startup: Select this option if you want to restart the computer later. Once the computer has restarted, Panda Antivirus Platinum will automatically disinfect the infected file.

•	Help: Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).

•	See information about the virus: Selecting this option shows information about the virus that Panda Antivirus Platinum has detected (provided that the information about this virus is available in the Virus Encyclopedia on Panda Software’s website).


Warnings- Virus now being deleted

Warning title: This message or initial title is Virus now being deleted!

Warning: This warning informs you that an infected file has been detected and that in order to disinfect it the computer must be restarted.

Reason: An infected file can be detected that is currently being used by the system. In this case, the file will not be deleted until the affected computer is restarted. Panda Antivirus will inform you if this occurs and give you the option to immediately restart the computer or restart it later.

In the lower section the following options are available:

•	Restart now: Selecting this option immediately restarts the computer. Close all programs before doing this. Once the computer has restarted, Panda Antivirus Platinum will automatically delete the infected file.

•	Wait until next startup: Select this option if you want to restart the computer later. Once the computer has restarted, Panda Antivirus Platinum will automatically delete the infected file.

•	Help: Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).

•	See information about the virus: Selecting this option shows information about the virus that Panda Antivirus Platinum has detected (provided that the information about this virus is available in the Virus Encyclopedia on Panda Software’s website).


Warnings - File being sent to quarantine

Warning title: This message or initial title is File being sent to quarantine!

Warning: This warning informs you that an infected file has been detected, which is being used by the system and therefore cannot be moved to quarantine.

Reason: An infected file can be detected that is currently being used by the system. In this case, the file will not be moved until the affected computer is restarted. Panda Antivirus will inform you if this occurs and give you the option to immediately restart the computer or restart it later.

In the lower section the following options are available:

•	Restart now: Selecting this option immediately restarts the computer. Close all programs before doing this. Once the computer has restarted, Panda Antivirus Platinum will automatically move the file to quarantine.

•	Wait until next startup: Select this option if you want to restart the computer later. Once the computer has restarted, Panda Antivirus Platinum will automatically move the file to quarantine.

•	Help: Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).

•	See information about the virus: Selecting this option shows information about the virus that Panda Antivirus Platinum has detected (provided that the information about this virus is available in the Virus Encyclopedia on Panda Software’s website).


Warnings - Incorrect user ID

Warning title: This message or initial title is Incorrect user ID!

Warning: This warning informs you that the user name and password you have entered are incorrect. Check that the user name and password you have entered are exactly the same as those provided by Panda Software. If they are not, you will not be able to continue benefiting from Panda Antivirus Platinum updates.

Reason: If you have not registered, you will not be able to use the services that are included with Panda Antivirus Platinum (for example, the updates). When you have registered you will receive a User name and Password that identify you and allow you to use the Panda Antivirus Platinum services. Therefore, if you have not registered or if you have not entered this data correctly in the antivirus configuration, you will not be able to update Panda Antivirus Platinum (or use the other services included).

 Note: If you have a subscription version or if you have purchased the antivirus through the virtual store on Panda Software website, you will not need to access the Panda Software registration Web page to register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user. In these cases, your user name and password will be sent to you without you having to do anything else.

In the lower section the following options are available:

•	Check user ID: Click on this option to check that the User name and Password you have entered in the updates configuration are correct. If they are not, enter the correct data and try updating again.

•	Help: Click on this option for an explanation about this warning (the explanation you are reading now).

•	Receive my user ID again: Selecting this option takes you to Panda Software’s website, where you can ask us to send your user name and password to you again via e-mail.

•	Remind me later. Select this option to close the warning message. In this case, the warning will be displayed periodically until you register as a user.

•	Register the antivirus. If you click on this option you will access Panda Software’s online registration Web page. In this Web page you will be able to enter your data and register as a Panda Antivirus Platinum user.

 Note: This option is not available in subscription versions or in those purchased through the virtual store on Panda Software website.


Warnings - Help updated

Warning title: This message or initial title is Help updated!

Warning: This warning informs you that the Panda Antivirus Platinum help files have been updated.

Reason: Panda Antivirus Platinum has detected an updated version of the help and has automatically downloaded it.

In the lower section the following options are available:

Close: Clicking on this option will close the warning message.


Information, Inquiries and services at Panda Software's website

Panda Software offers you all kind of assistance when it comes to using its products (program helps, user guides, installation guides, etc.). Come and visit us at www.pandasoftware.com for just a quick query, to sort out problems, to see what other services we offer, check out the latest product updates, or to keep up with the latest news on IT security, and much more!

Here are just a few of the most useful addresses on Panda Software’s website:

•	Home – The home page of Panda Software’s website: www.pandasoftware.com.

•	Documentation – Get all the latest product documentation and other Panda publications: http://www.pandasoftware.com/download/documents/.

•	Updates – Keep your Panda product up-to-date with the latest improvements, new versions, the daily Virus Signature File, etc: http://www.pandasoftware.com/download/updates/.

•	Service and product renewals – Make sure your Panda product and services stay active, and completely effective: http://www.pandasoftware.com/platinum7/renewals.

•	Online tech support – Find the answer to your questions about infections, viruses, Panda Software products and services etc, anytime of the day or night, all year round, with constantly updated information: http://www.pandasoftware.com/support/.

•	Password reminder – Forgotten your user details (name and password)? Don’t worry, we can send you an immediate reminder: http://www.pandasoftware.com/support/keys.

•	Online registration – In order to be able to use all the services included with your product (updates, tech support, renewals, SOS Virus, FAQs, etc.), you must first register as a Panda Software user: http://www.pandasoftware.com/support/register.

•	Repair utilities - Use Panda Software’s special tools for removing viruses and repairing the damage they can cause to your operating system: http://www.pandasoftware.com/download/utilities/.

•	SOS Virus – get a rapid response to incidents with new or unknown viruses: http://www.pandasoftware.com/products/services/sos.asp.

•	Virus encyclopedia – All the information you need about any virus and how to eliminate it: http://www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/encyclopedia/.

•	Virus map - See an interactive map of the virus status worldwide, with full graphic and statistical data: http://www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/map/map.htm.

•	Virusometer – Check out the current virus situation, and find out if there are alerts anywhere in the world: http://www.pandasoftware.com/virus_info/virusometer/

•	Evaluation software – Get free trial software of the Panda Software solution you want: http://www.pandasoftware.com/download/software/.

•	Products – See all the characteristics of Panda Software solutions for large companies, businesses and home users. You can also get them on trial with no obligation! www.pandasoftware.com/products.