A First Look at Windows Live™ OneCare™ 2.0
November 2007
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Abstract
This reviewers guide provides a first look at the features of Windows Live OneCare 2.0 and how it benefits nontechnical PC users. OneCare is an end-to-end PC care service that simplifies PC security, backup and performance tune-ups across multiple PCs in a home or small-business network.
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Contents
Introduction 1
Windows Live OneCare 2.0 2
A Simple and Easy-to-Understand Solution 4
Protection Plus: All-in-One Security and Protection Service 9
Performance Plus: Maintaining PC Performance and Reliability 16
Data Protection 20
Multi-PC and Home Network Management 23
Things to Try 25
System Requirements, Availability, Pricing and Licensing 26
Appendix: Comparison to Other Microsoft Offerings 27
Introduction
For proper PC care, most consumers need more than just anti-virus software. Although such protection is clearly a must-have, electronic assets such as digital photos, music and financial data must also be protected. Furthermore, today people are putting more “miles” on their PCs, which can lead to system clutter and performance degradation. And with multi-PC homes and wireless networks becoming mainstream, consumers must deal with the additional complexity of things such as printer sharing and network security.
For the typical consumer this can present a huge challenge. But consumers do not want to deal with a disparate mix of products that must be purchased, installed and maintained; instead, they just want their PCs to work, which means they want the following:
· Software to help protect them from viruses and other threats.
· A PC that consistently runs quickly and efficiently.
· Protection of valuable data, regardless of its format or location.
· Simple instructions when user action is required.
These issues have reached a new level of complexity now that many homes — and virtually all small businesses — have more than one PC, as well as some sort of network. This added complexity poses entirely new challenges, prompting questions such as “How do I consistently manage all my PCs?” and “How do I make sure my wireless network is properly secured?”
Designed for the nontechnical home, home office or small-business user, Windows Live™ OneCare™ 2.0 is an end-to-end PC care service that goes beyond comprehensive malware protection to eliminate the complexity in backing up files, tuning up PCs and managing a network.
Some of the features that differentiate OneCare are:
· Multi-PC and home network management. This includes the ability to remotely trigger OneCare actions on other PCs, centrally backup multiple PCs and enable security on a wireless network. (See pages 7 and 24 for more on these features.)
· Proactive fixes and recommendations and start time optimization. OneCare goes beyond basic tune-up tasks by examining the user’s specific system and software and using that information to optimize the computing experience, as well as helping the user remove startup applications that are unnecessarily taking up system resources. (See pages 17-19 for more on these features.)
Windows Live OneCare 2.0
Windows Live OneCare 2.0 is a comprehensive, always-on PC care service for Windows® XP and Windows Vista® — designed for people who don’t want to worry about protecting and maintaining their PCs. Key features of Windows Live OneCare 2.0 include the following:
Security and Protection Technologies
· Wi-Fi connection security (New)
· Real-time and scheduled anti-malware scanning
· Two-way managed firewall with automatic policy updates
· Internet Explorer® 7 Phishing Filter integration
· Microsoft Update integration
· OneCare advisories
PC Performance Tuning and Optimization
· Proactive fixes and recommendations for PC health (New)
· Start-time optimizer/turn off unused programs (New)
· Automatic disk defragmentation and hard drive cleanup
Data Backup and Restore
· Centralized backup for multiple local networked PCs (New)
· Online backup for photos (available at added cost) (New)
· Full and differential backups for key file types, including music, photos and financial documents
· Backs up to CD, DVD, external hard drive, local network drive and USB-connected devices
Network and Multi-PC Management
· Multi-PC management and monitoring (New)
· Automatic printer-sharing configuration (New)
· Firewall Connection Wizard for complex connections
Reporting, Licensing and Support
· Monthly report of service and results (New)
· Free version upgrades over the course of the 12-month subscription
· Telephone, chat and e-mail support
· Freedom to install OneCare on up to three PCs
Building on Windows
Currently, many competitive products require or recommend turning off features in Windows Vista for those products to run their AV solutions and work correctly. In contrast, OneCare simplifies the user experience by building on top of Windows Vista and Windows XP features whenever possible, taking over their configuration and management so that users don’t need to. Furthermore, OneCare is designed to take into account the varying feature set between Windows XP and Windows Vista, while providing a consistent user experience across both operating systems — a benefit for multi-PC environments in which both Windows XP and Windows Vista are used.
Many of the technologies and utilities in Windows XP and Windows Vista were designed to meet a broad set of user needs. As such, they are highly configurable, and expose those options for the benefit of technical users. OneCare acts as the user’s “personal IT professional,” making sure that relevant Windows features are configured correctly.
Some cases in which OneCare integrates with technologies in the Windows operating system include the following:
· Activating the Phishing Filter in Internet Explorer 7.
· Activating the Microsoft Update service.
· Configuring printer-sharing for all PCs in a OneCare circle.[1]
After initial configuration, OneCare monitors the user’s system to ensure that configuration settings stay that way — in essence acting as a “trusted technical advisor” who is always working on the user’s behalf to help initially configure their systems and keep them configured correctly.
Ongoing Service and Updates
As a subscription service, OneCare adapts to new technologies and changing user needs. It constantly works to keep itself up-to-date, using the OneCare service to retrieve information on new Internet-based threats, new programs that should be allowed to access the Internet, and even newly released home-networking hardware.
At the other end of the OneCare Service, OneCare client software is complemented by a team of Microsoft IT professionals, who use the OneCare service as a channel to reach out to OneCare subscribers, keep a watchful eye over their PCs, deliver new features and constantly make adjustments to help keep user PCs running safely, quickly and reliably — in other words, to help make sure that user PCs “just work.”
A Simple and Easy-to-Understand Solution
Get Green, Stay Green
Windows Live OneCare constantly monitors and cares for user PCs, communicating status with one easy-to-understand indicator of success: a color-coded icon that tells users at a glance that their PC is protected, backed up and tuned up. Located in the notification area of the Windows taskbar, the presence of the icon indicates that Windows Live OneCare is running in the background, while its specific color indicates the level of PC health and whether any user attention is required.
· A green icon means that status is Good, with Windows Live OneCare running in the background to help protect against malware. Protection-related features are up to date, and the PC is not due for a tune-up or backup.
· A yellow icon means that status is Fair. Usually, this means that the user has some action to take, such as scheduling or running a tune-up or backup or downloading a noncritical update. There is no immediate threat to the system, but the yellow icon indicates that the user should take action as soon as possible to return the system to green.
· A red icon means the PC is at risk and that immediate attention is required, such as might happen if Windows Live OneCare is unable to update itself with the latest virus definitions, or if the OneCare Firewall is turned off.
Single Place for Status, On-Demand Tasks
Windows Live OneCare doesn’t require surfing through complex instructions, navigating multiple layers of menus or deciphering confusing dialog boxes. Furthermore, because OneCare is automated, users should not need to interact with it very often. When they do, the user interface is a convenient single pane — a one-stop location for resolving any Yellow or Red conditions and performing on-demand tasks such as scanning for viruses, checking for updates, running tune-ups and backing up or restoring files.
Clicking on the OneCare icon in the Windows taskbar displays the OneCare main console, which displays the following items:
· Status meter (No. 1 in the screenshot below) is a color-coded indicator of system health that corresponds to the OneCare Windows taskbar icon. If this area is not green, OneCare will display what actions need to be taken and, whenever possible, provide a convenient one-click solution.
· Status area (No. 2 in the screenshot below) provides additional information on the status of OneCare features, including the last time a task was completed, when that task is scheduled to run next, and links to take on-demand actions or view more information on various features.
·
Quick links area (No. 3 in the screenshot below) may provide links to initiate virus and spyware scans, back up or restore data, change OneCare settings or get help with OneCare. This also links to the OneCare Help Center, which provides answers to common “how do I...?” questions, and instructions on how to get technical support.
Automated, Straightforward and Intuitive
Windows Live OneCare is simple and automated, helping to reduce the “work and worry” of PC care and safety concerns by completely automating such tasks whenever possible. However, when user intervention is required, clear instructions are provided immediately adjacent to the status meter.
In keeping with the traffic light analogy for the taskbar icon, a green status meter signifies a Good status. No button is visible next to the status meter when it is green because no action is needed.
A yellow status meter indicates that OneCare has detected a noncritical issue that needs the user’s attention, such as when OneCare is attempting to run an automated backup and detecting that a media swap is first required. In such cases, simple instructions and any applicable action buttons are displayed under “Actions to Take” to restore the status to green.
A red status meter indicates a critical At Risk condition, such as when anti-virus monitoring is turned off. In such cases, instructions and any applicable action buttons to restore the status to green are displayed. Such red-flagged situations represent the largest potential threats to overall PC care and should be addressed as quickly as possible.
Easy to Stay Protected, Hard to Become Vulnerable
OneCare was designed to make it easy for users to help protect and maintain their PCs, and to make it difficult to place PCs in a potentially unsafe state. If Windows Live OneCare detects anything that should be done to improve system health, it notifies the user and, whenever possible, provides a one-click solution. Alternatively, if a user is trying to perform a task that is not advised, such as turning off virus scanning, OneCare makes it more difficult to do so. Disabling safety-related or maintenance-related features typically requires clicking through several screens, thereby making it harder to place the user’s PC in an at risk state.
Manage All PCs in One Place
According to IDC’s 2006 U.S. Consumer PC Survey, Part 1 (Doc #205737, March 2007), more than one-third of respondents have two or more PCs in the home. Furthermore, 86 percent of survey respondents reported using some form of home networking, with 64 percent of that number using wireless networks.[2] Clearly, multi-PC networks and the issues they introduce are becoming relevant to mainstream PC users more and more frequently.
OneCare helps take the complexity out of managing — and getting the most out of — such an environment with a multi-PC architecture in which all PCs running OneCare on a network are part of the user’s OneCare circle. Within that circle, users can centrally monitor and manage the OneCare service across multiple PCs, back up multiple PCs to a central location, configure printer sharing and configure wireless security for home networks.
Comprehensive Monthly Reports
OneCare handles many things in the background so that users don’t need to deal with the complexity of managing and protecting their PCs. However, it also keeps users informed through comprehensive monthly reports.
Note: Monthly reports begin appearing a month after OneCare is initially installed, so reviewers may not see them unless they wait for this period of time.
Protection Plus: All-in-One Security and Protection Service
Although consumers are using their PCs for increasingly diverse and critical tasks, the majority of them do not have sufficient protection. Microsoft research shows that only about 33 percent of consumers have effective anti-virus protection, while the other two-thirds are at risk due to reasons such as not having an anti-virus product installed, having an expired trial product or having outdated virus signatures.[3] And even fewer consumers are well-protected against other forms of malware, such as spyware or adware. Most Internet-based threats are targeted at these vulnerabilities, that is, consumers without the knowledge or technologies to protect themselves.