Mcafee, Inc.

Networks Associates Technology, Inc.

James Malcolm Vignoles

Barrett Tuttle

Paul Nicholas Gartside

Chris Barton

James W Lawrence

Lee Codel Lawson Tarbotton

Christopher Barton

Robert Hugh Smithson

Stephen Owen Hearnden

A system, method and computer program product are provided for scanning data. Initially, scanning control logic is executed utilizing a central processing unit. A request related to data is then identified at the central processing unit. In response to the request, the data is indicated to a scanning co-processor coupled to the central processing unit so that the data is scanned by the scanning co-processor under the control of the scanning control logic. The central processing unit then waits for results from the scanning co-processor. Additional logic is executed utilizing the central processing unit while waiting for the results from the scanning co-processor. An event is then initiated based on the results from the scanning co-processor. By this design, the scanning co-processor offloads intensive scanning operations from the central processing unit.

Anti-virus scanning co-processor

A system, method and computer program product are provided for scanning data. Initially, a request is received from a central processing unit for reading data saved in storage. The requested data is then scanned. If malicious code is not found in the data during the scanning, the data is transmitted from the storage to the central processing unit. In a similar manner, a request is received for data to be written in storage. In response to the request, the requested data is scanned. If malicious code is not found in the data during the scanning, data is written to the storage.

System, method and computer program product for anti-virus scanning in a storage subsystem

Update status field information () is associated with a computer file () indicating the update status of a scanner () that has previously scanned that computer file. A current scanner encountering that computer file again may examine the update status field information to determine if they match, if the update status field information does not match, then this indicates that one of the scanners concerned is out-of-date and an appropriate alert message relating to this out-of-date scanner is then generated and issued. The update status field information includes a scanner product identifier, a machine identifier, a scanner engine version identifier and a driver version identifier.

Update status alerting for a malware scanner

A system, method and computer program product are provided for prioritized network security. Initially, a set of policies is identified, where each policy has a condition associated therewith. It is then determined whether the conditions are met. Next, the policies are activated whose associated conditions are determined to be met. Such conditions represent a priority of the policy.

System, method and computer program product for applying prioritized security policies with predetermined limitations

Pre-emptive malware scanning of user specified operating systemdefined storage locations is performed to establish whether those storage locations contain any malware containing computer files. If the storage locations are malware-free, then they are classified as clean storage locations and subsequent read accesses to those storage locations will be permitted without requiring further malware scanning. Writes to clean storage locations will continue to be malware scanned.

Malware scanning to create clean storage locations

A library of anti computer virus test drivers is provided with classifications for the drivers which may be used to select the applied drivers in dependence upon which anti computer virus program is using that library. The library is typically shared between a suite of anti computer virus programs. The drivers are also classified with information that allows them to be placed in a priority order for application when scanning. In this way, the drivers that protect against the most threatening viruses may be checked for first and accordingly the highest level of protection achieved if the scanning process is early terminated.

Growing community of inventors

Aylesbury, United Kingdom

James Malcolm Vignoles