Setting Up Antivirus Policies

An Antivirus configuration policy is a collection of settings and preferences that determine how Avast Business Antivirus is configured on devices and includes manual or automatic application rules that determine which devices it will be applied to.

Barracuda RMM includes a default Antivirus policy that you can use with or without modifications. This policy includes settings for both workstations and servers. You can also create as many customized Antivirus policies as you require.

Use Antivirus policies to determine:

• How unwanted programs and spyware are handled.
• How email is scanned and how infected messages and attachments are reported.
• When to run scans and when to apply virus definition and program updates.
• Which level of firewall security to apply.
• The configuration of identity protection and web browsing protection.

You can:

• Copy an existing Antivirus policy, including the default policy included with Barracuda RMM, or create a new policy.
• Configure the settings in the Antivirus policy to determine which Antivirus settings are applied.
• Automatically apply the policy to devices by setting up automatic application rules.
• Add policies to services, for use in service plans.
• Apply the policy to specific groups and devices manually.
• Remove policies you no longer require.

About the Default Antivirus Policies

Barracuda RMM includes a default antivirus policy that includes settings for Windows Workstations and Servers:

• Workstation Antivirus settings—Common settings to protect workstation computers.
• Server Antivirus settings—Prevent automatic updates and reboots.

This default policy is pre-configured with automatic application rules that detect a device's domain role (workstation for the Workstation AV policy, and server for the Server AV policy) and deploys Avast Business Antivirus to any device that matches the domain role.

You can use this default antivirus policy as is, or you can modify the configuration settings and automatic application rules. You cannot modify the summary information.

Creating a New Antivirus Policy

When setting up a new Antivirus policy, you begin by providing a name and description and by specifying the deployment options that determine which components of Avast Business Antivirus will be installed, and whether you will initiate the client install or whether it will be automatically installed. Once you click Create, the deployment options cannot be changed.

To install Avast Business Antivirus on devices, follow this procedure and select the options to install Avast Business Antivirus automatically or initiate the install manually.

1. Click Service Delivery > Policies > Avast Antivirus.
2. Click New.
3. In the Policy Name box, type a name for the Antivirus policy.
4. In the Description box, type a description of the policy.
5. Select one of the following:
   • To automatically install the Avast Business Antivirus client on devices, select the Automatically install the Antivirus client check box.
   • To initiate the installation of the Avast Business Antivirus client after the policy has been applied, select the Allow me to initiate the install check box. Choose this option if you prefer to install the Avast Business Antivirus client off-hours, without disrupting the device user, for example.

   If you choose to initiate the installation, you can regularly check the Devices Needing Antivirus Installation page to view a list of devices and install Avast Business Antivirus from Barracuda RMM. See Initiating the Installation of Avast Business Antivirus on Devices.

6. To automatically remove antivirus products from a competitor, select the Remove competitive antivirus products check box.
7. Click Create.
8. To configure policy settings, follow the Configuring Workstation and Server Settings for an Avast Business Antivirus Policy procedure.

Installing Avast Business Antivirus on devices using a policy

The following are the steps to install Avast Business Antivirus on devices using a policy. In order to install Avast Business Antivirus on devices, you must have a valid Avast Business Antivirus license for each device.

1. Decide on your Antivirus policy. Do one of the following:
   • Use the default Antivirus policy. If you use the default Antivirus policy, Antivirus is installed automatically on devices. You can also install on each device individually. See About the Default Antivirus Policies.
   • Create a new Antivirus policy. If you create a new Antivirus policy, you can choose to install Avast Business Antivirus individually, by device, or install Avast Business Antivirus on devices automatically. See Creating a New Antivirus Policy.
2. Apply the chosen Antivirus policy to sites, groups, or devices. To create rules to apply the Antivirus policy, see Creating Rules to Automatically Apply an Antivirus Policy. To apply an Antivirus policy to devices and groups manually, see  Manually Applying an Antivirus Policy to Devices and Groups.
3. If you choose an Antivirus policy that doesn't install Avast Business Antivirus on devices automatically, you can initiate the manual install of Avast Business Antivirus on the devices. See .

Copying an Antivirus Policy

When you copy an Antivirus policy, a new policy is created with a number appended to the policy title to differentiate the copy from the original, for example (1), (2), etc. The Overview information is copied and cannot be modified in the copy, except for the name and description. The configuration settings and automatic application rules are also copied and can be modified as needed.

1. Click Service Delivery > Policies > Avast Antivirus.
2. Select the check box beside the Antivirus policy you want to copy.
3. Click Copy.
   The copied Antivirus policy appears at the bottom of the Avast Antivirus Policies list.
4. Do one or more of the following:
   • Type a new name.
   • Type a new description.
5. Click Create.

Creating Rules to Automatically Apply an Antivirus Policy

Barracuda RMM includes a rule-building interface that you can use to define the criteria a device must meet for the Antivirus policy to be applied. This interface is the same as the one that you use to create automatic application rules for other policy types, such as monitoring policies and automation policies.

Rules are created by first defining AND and OR statements, then by adding rules to the statements. For example, if you are creating a rule to automatically deploy an Antivirus policy to all devices running on a Windows 7 operating system, in the default AND group, you would specify that the OS Name contains "Windows 7".

To create a rule that specifies that the device must either have a Windows 7 or a Windows 2008 operating system, you would change the AND group to an OR group, and then add a second rule that specifies that the OS Name contains "Windows 2008".

For instructions on creating and modifying automatic application rules, see To create an automatic inclusion rule for a monitoring policy. Note that the method for creating automatic application rules is the same for Antivirus policies as it is for other policy types.

Manually Applying an Antivirus Policy to Devices and Groups

You can select groups and devices to which you want to apply the Antivirus policy.

1. Click Service Delivery > Policies > Avast Antivirus.
2. Click the name of the Antivirus policy you want to apply devices and groups.
3. Click the Manual Application tab.
4. To apply the policy to a group, do the following:
   • In the Applied Groups section, click Add.
   • From the Group Type list, select Service Groups or Site Groups.
   • Select the check box beside each group you want to add.
   • Click OK.
5. To apply the policy to a device, do the following:
   • In the Applied Devices section, click Add.
   • Use the filters at top of the window to narrow down the devices displayed, and click Filter.
   • Select the check box beside each device you want to add.
   • Click OK.
6. Click Close.