Endpoint Protection

I want to preface this by saying that I am NOT looking to manage Symantec Clients from a Mac OS X Server. Our Endpoint Protection console is working fairly well with that now that 11.0.6 has been released. Nor am looking to host definitions on Mac OS X Server. I just want to make sure our Mac OS X Server is protected against viruses and malware and the like. I will pose my 2 questions now with that in mind:

My first question: Does Symantec support installing the Symantec Endpoint Protection 11.0.6 Mac client package on an OS X Server to prevent malware?
My second question: Being that this is a server, I am worried that installing this may bog it down. Are there any exceptions you recommend granting on a default install of Mac OS X Server?

Any help is greatly appreciated

blackholemac

I do not believe the MAC client supports being installed on OS X Server; just OS 10.0.4, 10.0.5 and 10.0.6 and I assume that is just the client, as it is not mentioned in the realse notes for RU6

http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/ent-security.nsf/docid/2010032910180148

1.) SAV for Mac, on which SEP for Mac is heavily based, has never had issue installing and running on a OS X Server.  (BTW, it's 10.4, 10.5 and 10.6 :) )  I don't forsee there being an issue with running SEP for Mac on a server OS.

2.) I could look through our KB, but I'm not aware of any exclusions that need to be specified.

sandra

Thank you for clarifying that Sandra.

Is it supported though?  If I need to call in and I tell them I am running SEP 11.0.6 on OS X Server, will they assist me?

I base my observation on the following link:

http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/num.nsf/docid/2002061213133511?Open&docid=2005102114451411&nsf=num.nsf&view=docid

You said yourself that SEP for Mac is based on SAV for Mac. According to this article, this may not be a supported configuration.
FYI...we are running Mac OS X 10.6 Server. I should have clarified that in my first post as I failed to.

I support the Mac AV products and I certainly would assist you, but I will get some clarification on that.

sandra

Sandra,

For starters, I feel rude...that was not my intent. I just have boss asking point blank..."Is this a supported configuration?"

I know in the past that it was not officially. Here's yet another document to back my assertion up in addition to the one I posted a few minutes ago...the one a few minutes ago is accurate, but this one hits home my question one step further. Like the user blenahan asked....if my boss or myself contacted Symantec Business Critical Support with an issue regarding the SEP client running on a Mac OS X 10.6 Server, would we get the full support of Symantec and have they tested this configuration?

http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/num.nsf/docid/2005102114451411?Open&docid=2006030312575511&nsf=num.nsf&view=docid

Hope this helps in solving my question,
Brian

Thank you Sandra

I can understand your confusion.  That doc is in the consumer database and is, I believe, referring to the consumer product (the Norton at the top, the "num.nsf" in the URL).  It hasn't been updated since 2005.  Our enterprise AV for Mac documentation has been moved to the Enterprise Security KB ("ent-security.nsf" in a given URL).

This is what I found: the Server OS has not been extensively tested with the AV client, so is in that sense unsupported.  However, since the server is essentially the client + added server features, I personally would not have an issue assisting a customer with an AV client issue on a Mac server OS.  Our own Mac server in our Mac lab runs it with no problem.  (To be honest, I can't actually recall a case I have ever had with AV issues on a server OS.)

I did not see any specific information in the System Requirements for SEP document regarding the Mac client.  I will see about that.

sandra

I want to say that you are a very helpful person and I respect that...one more thing and we'll be done beating this dead horse. I have a second article that I posted

http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/num.nsf/docid/2005102114451411?Open&docid=2006030312575511&nsf=num.nsf&view=docid

Sadly this document also has the num.nsf designation you spoke of but it speaks about the corporate version of the product in the content....that is why I replied to my own posting....it speaks of formally excluding support and gives some rough guidelines of what to exclude in the configuration if you install it anyway.

I'm glad to hear you use the product on your OS X Server...that tells me volumes.

I'm inclined to trust it and install SEP unmanaged in a custom configuration if you can get Symantec to assure me of support in some way. We are a BCS customer and usually Symantec's always been there to help when we call, but before I make this very, very well-deliberated and informed decision to install this product on our production server, I want to get the best assurances that this is covered and get it covered in writing that way I can show a support agent who tries to say "this isn't supported".

Thank you again and looking forward to a reply,
Brian

I didn't think you were being rude.  I can completely understand your concern (and that of your boss)!

Thanks for the second article link.  That was written for the earliest enterprise AV build.  I don't see that this article was ever ported over to the new database, so it is not one I ran across in searching there.  I am sure you will not be the last person to ask for this information, so I will do some research, and see about writing a new KB article to update this information for the newest builds.

sandra

Sandra,
Thank you, your previous response answered my inquiry as best as possible for the moment....I await such an article and will not jump to an immediate, hasty decision. I trust that you would help me as much as you could as I've followed some of your post previously about Symantec Mac issues. 

I am NOT in an immediate hurry to jump on board the SEP bandwagon for the server...the clients...all of them definitely, but I will wait on applying this to the server until more guidance is published and the Symantec Mac Development team can look more into installing this on a server.

thanks,
blackholemac

As Sandra hinted, historically with SAV for Mac, and now SEP for Mac, Symantec does not officially support Mac OS Server (it is not listed in the system requirements). However due to the minor differences between the Mac OS and Mac OS Server, theoretically our client should run on the server version without issues.

If customers are running SEP for Mac on a Mac OS Server, they will still be able to call into tech support and we will support addressing issues on that platform.

We have had customers run our product on Mac OS Server with success.

Hope that clarifies the situation.

Thank you, Paul!  =)

sandra

I wanted to follow up with this document link, based heavily on the previous document located in the consumer database.  It has been updated and changed, and (obviously ) applies to SEP and SAV for Mac.

Title: 'Recommendations for installing Symantec Endpoint Protection for Macintosh 11.0.6 / Symantec Antivirus for Macintosh 10.x on Mac OS X Server'
http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/ent-security.nsf/docid/2010042813250348

Thanks,
sandra