Endpoint Protection Small Business Edition

Hi

We have been utilising SEP for a few years now and it is renewal time.

I have seen the SEP SBE offering which allows either onsite management server or done via the cloud, and like most IT guys, are keen to reduce workload, so having one less job in-house is appealing. Given that we have around 35 users we fit the SBE category.

I loaded up a trial of the onsite management console just to see the differences between SEP and the SBE edition.

I note that one of the differences relates to the fact that you can't configure the auto-protect function to scan only on 'modification' or 'write' of files.  This is something I would like to retain if possible, just to keep the impact of real-time scanning as low as possible.

I must admit I haven't experimented with this switch for a long time so I am wondering what the impact of not having it is likely to be.  One would think the impact is going to be twice as much given you will have the read of the file before the write.

However if we are scanning only selected extensions then it is only going to be a percentage of total files accessed anyway.

Looking at the cloud based management console it appears that the ability to configure settings is even further reduced.  For example you can't even nominate to scan only selected extensions.  (The reverse is the case where you can exclude nominated extensions.) I know simplicity is good - but only if it doesn't severely impact on system performance!

How are other firms going with SBE? Have you switched to it from SEP at all, and was your experience positive?

As we are largely server based, utilising thin clients and remote desktop services I am particularly keen to know how SBE affects server performance compared with traditional SEP.

Thanks for your help.

there are features which are not available in SEP SBE.

check this article, bit old but should be some help

https://www-secure.symantec.com/connect/articles/symantec-endpoint-protection-small-business-edition-120-frequently-asked-questions

Feature comparison between SEP 12.1 SBE and EE

https://www-secure.symantec.com/connect/articles/feature-comparison-between-sep-121-sbe-and-ee

Check this thread

https://www-secure.symantec.com/connect/forums/endpoint-protection-basic-or-endpoint-protection-small-business

Hi there,

Generally the on prem SEP does have slightly more functionality in a few area's compared to the .cloud version of SEP - however the .cloud version has proven to be very popular due to the fact that it is a lot more scalable and easier to manage users based in different offices/geographical locations.

Also - SEP .cloud was initially designed for smaller businesses, where as the Enterprise version of SEP was for much larger companies, and as such some of the features were scaled back in SEP. cloud to make it easier to use.

What subsequently happened, however, is that SEP .cloud became increasingly popular for larger companies as well - as such, the development teams are constantly working to improve the .cloud version of the product. You can also submit enhancement requests with the Product Management team will review and - if deemed suitable - can be implemented, so the product is ever growing based on both internal development and customer feedback.

The best thing I could recommend - if you haven't already - is trial both. You can trial 2 seperate accounts (choose one to be set up for On Prem and the other for .cloud) via buy.symantec.com - just ensure you cancel the trial before the 30 day trial limit is up. That will give you a better feel for both products.

I hope this helps.

- FP

Hi

Thanks for comments.  I was particularly after real life experiences (mainly performance) in use/switching from one to another.  Unfortunately there hasn't been any response in this regard.

I have elected to continue our SEP subscription as this continues to provide the more advanced offerings and if the featureset comes to the cloud offering I may look at changing down the track.

Evan13