Endpoint Protection

 View Only
  • 1.  Documentation discrepency? Or not?

    Posted Nov 07, 2013 11:20 AM

    SEP and SEPM 12.1.4, just released days ago, then followed by release notes a couple of days later - but this refers to the documentation included with the SEP install "disks", disk 1, folder = documentation.

    There have been some major changes to SEP in 12.1.4 ESPECIALLY when it is compared directly to 12.1.2
    So why does the included documentation include
    Installation_and_Administration_Guide_SEP12.1.2.pdf
    And not 12.1.4  ?????????????

    Is this correct? did someone simply forget to change the file name, or is this document OLD OLD OLD and we should ignore it?

    Can I trust it? What about all the improvements, changes, deletions, modifications over the last couple of years - this document if the name is correct is quite old, SEP and SEPM and SNAC and SVA have changed. The VMWare versions the SVA supports has changed, MAC support has changed a lot.

    So, is this an old document/pdf, or a new one with an old name?

    If it's the old one, where can we get a current administration guide that is correct without us spending a few hours updating it with a black marker?
     



  • 2.  RE: Documentation discrepency? Or not?

    Posted Nov 07, 2013 11:22 AM

    Yea, no changes since RU2 so the documentation also remained the same

    Similar thread here:

    https://www-secure.symantec.com/connect/forums/sep-121-ru4-documentation

    See page 11 of the release notes for the explanation. It only gets updated for major releases.



  • 3.  RE: Documentation discrepency? Or not?

    Trusted Advisor
    Posted Nov 07, 2013 11:27 AM

    Hello,

    Correct. There have been no changes to the Installation and Administration Guide since SEP 12.1.RU2.

    Check this Article:

    Knowledgebase Articles for Symantec Endpoint Protection 12.1.4(RU4)

    https://www-secure.symantec.com/connect/articles/knowledgebase-articles-symantec-endpoint-protection-1214ru4

    Check these Articles below on what were the most recent enhancements and improvements in SEP 12.1.RU4

    Release Notes and System Requirements for all versions of Symantec Endpoint Protection and Symantec Network Access Control

    http://www.symantec.com/docs/TECH163829

    Symantec Endpoint Protection, Symantec Endpoint Protection Small Business Edition, and Symantec Network Access Control 12.1.4 Release Notes/What’s New

    http://www.symantec.com/docs/DOC6838

    Hope that helps!!



  • 4.  RE: Documentation discrepency? Or not?

    Posted Nov 07, 2013 11:56 AM

    Mithun it does help - as far as answering my question. Thanks.
    But it goes back to my old assertion that Symantec's documention has been, well, not very good, in the last few years.

     Here's the kicker - 12.1.3 saw changes to things - support added for some things lack of support for others, version changes, and so on. So 12.1.3 was different - and the 12.1.2 document was thus behind with the release of 12.1.3 and we had to refer to "release notes and corrections" for what we needed with 12.1.3 that was different from 12.1.2.
    How do you know it was differnt? Symantec makes us work to find accurate correct information probably part of their mental fitness program which I guess is ok in a way - 
    you look in the document 12.1.2 and find the section dealing with your problem or configuration question or "how do I" and look up the needed information. Since it was written for 12.1.2 which ITSELF was not entirely correct as it included "oops, the book is wrong here" documents, we look it up in 12.1.2, then we have to look through all the release notes, readme files and such to see if it was changed for 12.1.3.

    Starting this week we must find and look up the information we need in the 12.1.2 book, scour the 12.1.2 release notes to see if any if it was wrong at that time, then we have to refer to the 12.1.3 release notes, corrections, readme files and see if there had been changes, but now we add the steps of referring to all the corrections, readme files and release notes for 12.1.4
    So we have to refer to at least 3 sets of various files put out over time to see if what is in that 12.1.2 book is correct any more.

    For example - check out the MAC stuff - the support for VM and I know there's a lot more - if you go by what the 12.1.2 book states you will be wrong.
    while you are correct in stating the "documents have not changed", the product thankfully (most of the time) has changed meaning we're left to do the work that the now former Symantec employees there failed to do in updating the documentation. (maybe that's ok, it keeps the product costs down for us?)

    I guess I now need to find all the past release notes, readme files, document correction notes and so on, get out the 12.1.2 book I printed a couple of years back and go through all 1500 pages and make corrections and changes... Otherwise the information won't match the current product? Is that not correct?  (trick question)

    Because if anyone says "no, the 12.1.2 document is correct" that means that SEP, SNAC and the VM support have not changed since 12.1.2 was released which we know is not true (or at least hope it's not true!)

    Not digging on you or the responses - but it just seems with each passing release Symantec documentation drops down further into a dark hole of unreliability. We can't trust what we see in the documents that come with the product because product changed, not documents.

    It's not Mithun's fault or Brian's fault, they are just the messengers trying to be very helpful, and indeed they have been, and quick, too!

    By the way, for the higher-ups there - there are good technical writers all over and the info is there somewhere in Cupertino, California (A place I almost ended up working!) as it's scattered in release notes, erratica, and so on - it would be quite helpful to us, the customer, to be able to go to a reliable document. (hint)
    I also happen to know there are quite a few IT type people who could use a job and would be happy to help keep these documents up to date, it would help the economy to hire one!  ;-) 

    Thanks for the replies, at least I know now and that's a huge help (and for the links, etc.)

     



  • 5.  RE: Documentation discrepency? Or not?

    Posted Nov 07, 2013 12:02 PM

    I assumed RU3 and RU4 were considered major releases so I was confused that the docs were not updated. Plus, SEP for Mac now has an IPS component, I would think this should be in the doc. I'm just at the point where I let someone else ask and I'll check in on the response(s) hoping for the best.