Will We See OneCare for Windows Home Server?

By on February 25, 2008 in Software, Windows Home Server, Windows Live

Joe Wilcox revealedlast week that Microsoft are preparing a new version of Windows Live OneCare for Windows Server – the product will be bundled with Windows Small Business Server and Essential Server 2008, providing 12 months of free anti-virus protection for those systems.

Given the relationship between SBS and WHS (and the closeness of the teams and product strategies), it makes sense for Microsoft to offer a Windows Home Server version of the product, potentially covering just the server to begin with, but over time managing anti-virus protection on all home computers on the network.

Given Microsoft’s antitrust record over the past few years, free bundling of the product is risky but who knows, we may see a purchase/subscription model offered if Microsoft do decide to release OneCare for WHS – with only Avast! currently available, the anti-virus market for WHS is still to kick off.

Would you want to see Windows Live OneCare manage anti-virus protection across your home server network? 


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About Terry Walsh

Terry Walsh is the founding editor and owner of We Got Served. Since February 2007, the site has provided detailed coverage and analysis of the emerging home server category, and has subsequently grown into a trusted outlet for digital home news and reviews.
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  • Pingback: Home Server Blog » Blog Archive » Windows Live OneCare für WHS?

  • Andrew

    It makes perfect sense for MS to do this – I just hope they don’t. Or at least, I hope the other anti-virus vendors get their acts together and offer competing products for WHS. I ran OneCare for nearly a year – I really wanted to like it, but it’s a poor AV product. Slow, inflexible and just bad at finding malware.

    Review here:

    http://www.pcpro.co.uk/reviews/167766/microsoft-windows-live-onecare-2.html

  • Geert

    I use avast on my WHS and all my clients, because ….it’s the only AV available ;) …but more important :I It’s relatively cheap (’bout 100€ for WHS + 10 clients/2year) and in all the test I’ve read, the client AV allways get good scores (so I hope, this also count for the WHS version ;) .
    Conclusion : I don’t need MS onecare stuff, I got something way better ;)
    greetz
    Geert

  • Jason

    I hope microsoft stop making any form of antivirus. Im not supporting the AV companies, its just that microsoft is so bad at AV software. using their software gives the average person a fulse sense of security.

  • bill sanderson

    I’d like to see Microsoft offer antivirus protection for WHS and for SBS. However, I would far prefer the Forefront client to OneCare. It has been awhile since I looked at OneCare, and perhaps it has changed, though. I don’t question its competence, just the additional bells and whistles attached to it,

  • GaMeR™

    I barely run programs on my server, because it’s a server and not a workstation. On my workstation I have NOD32 runniing and it’s running fine the way I like it: A Lightweigth program that doesn’t interfear with my data connections in a way like Norton of McCaffee does. I used to have Norman, wich has been my No. 1 AV for years until I found out that Norman didn’t work on my Vista x64 box.

    Onecare is crap compared to Norman/NOD32, and besides, I have the eval version of Avast running on my server. But I’m still wondering if it is nessesary to have AV running on a server…

  • Geert

    to Gamer, I think that you should use an AV if your server is connected directly to the internet (even via a router) or if any of your clients is connected to the internet…. unless of course you don’t use e-mail, and you don’t surf (except windows update), nor msn, ….
    I think an AV on the server is allways usefull.
    Greetz
    Geert

  • Walter

    Would love to see MS offer the full suite for home protection against all systems. I agree with the one comment though that I would prefer a more Forefront type of client and console vs OneCare.

  • GaMeR™

    Geert:

    thats the point I dont surf, MSN or do e-mail “on my server”. I use that on my workstation. My server “serves” me video, audio and other stuff.

    OK, I got uTorrent running on it too, but it only downloads stuff, I don’t execute them on my Home Server. It’a all via network and I”m confidend my client PC will pick the nasty little viruses right out the WHS.

  • EJR49

    I’d love to see a version of One Care for WHS. I use Windows Onecare on all of my computers (2 XP and 1 Vista). It stays in the background, uses few resources and does it’s job. It’s worked fine for me. I’m using Avast right now on my Home Server but I’d gladly switch.

  • Mark Beasley

    I too used WLOC since it’s inception. After multiple failures on MS’ part to support WHS. I have now gone over to Avast! and love their software. MS is going to really have to impress me to ever get me back to WLOC, Avast! rocks.

  • Rick (RB 1)

    Would be good to see with full integration and client control. If it is being produce for SBS Servers then sureley I must be capable, at least you would hope so.

    With any AV soloution i thinks its bad practice to relly on one program/company. I run on demand scanners from McAfee and Norton on all my client machines every month to back up the one care scans. Im also careful to download only from trusted sites/services and will not open any emails i dont recognise.

    I do feel WHS needs an antivirus solution, after all you will be storing all your data on their and in a large household with people downloading all kinds of stuff it would add peice of mind.

    RB

  • http://www.farvision-networks.com FarVision

    I’m going to have to stick with Avast, and maybe Diskeeper. I’m not sure I would put all my eggs in one Microsoft Basket. It would have to be a pretty compelling product.

  • Thomas

    I have ForeFront on all of my pc’s, including my WHS.
    Installed the Advanced Admin addin on the server, and then I installed the ForeFront Client and updated via Windows Update…
    It works like a charm, like always :-)