Compatibilty of Malwarebytes Pro with anti-virus software, specifically with Dr. Web

[JohnnySokko]

Hello,

My question pertains to the Pro version of Malwarebytes, the one with real-time protection.

I realize that the developers of Malwarebytes make every effort to ensure that their software is fully compatible with anti-virus software, but even so, I am aware that there are still occasional conflicts and problems that arise between Malwarebytes and some anti-virus programs. I know this because I see people posting about the issues on the forums of some of the anti-virus companies. (And I'm assuming that Malwarebytes is probably more compatible with certain anti-virus programs than it is with others. And, of course, please correct me if that asuumption is wrong.)

That being said, what I mainly would like to know about is Malwarebytes Pro's compatibility with Dr. Web Anti-virus.

I am buying a new computer this weekend, and on it, I would like to use Malwarebytes Pro alongside Dr. Web for the extra layer of protection, but I am concerned about potential conflicts between the two, and I have a few questions:

1.) Does Malwarebytes actually perform testing to make sure that it is compatible with anti-virus programs? And If yes, has any sort of compatibility test ever been done with Dr. Web?

I'm concerned about this because, even if Malwarebytes does perform such testing, I'm worried that no such testing has ever been done with Dr. Web since they are not a major player in the anti-virus market, and I would assume that even if Malwarebytes does perform such compatibility testing, the priority would probably be on testing it against the major anti-virus products, not the smaller ones. (In other words, I'm sure that testing is expensive, so even if it is done, I doubt that it's done against every single anti-virus product on the market.)

2.) If there would happen to be any conflicts or compatibility issues between the two, how would I even know? Woud it be something obvious? And if yes, what symptoms should I be on the look out for?

3.) And last: Does anyone reading this have any actual experience with using Malwarebytes Pro alongside Dr. Web? If yes, please share your experiences.

Thank you.

[noknojon]

Hi -

Over 90% of antivirus programs are regurlarly tested with the program at each major update.

I am not sure if the Full Paid version of DrWeb has been tested yet, since it is rarely used.

From my own personal scans with DrWeb CureIt, I have never had any problems / conflicts between the 2 programs.

An Admin or Company tester may have a more detailed reply, but I think it should be OK -

Thank You -

[JohnnySokko]

Thanks, noknojon.

Yeah, Dr.Web CureIt! is nothing more than a really awesome on-demand scanner. It has no real-time protection, so I can't imagine that there would be any problems between it and anything, really. That's why I'm specifically asking about using Malwarebytes Pro alongside one of Dr. Web's full-fledged anti-virus programs.

That would be great, though, if an administrator or a company tester could adress this.

[Mainard]

Hello JohnnySokko,

We currently have no reports of any compatibility issues between Malwarebytes Anti-Malware PRO and Dr. Web. Because of this we have not completed extensive compatibility testing between Dr. Web and Malwarebytes Anti-Malware.

When we become aware of any issues we are quick to address them and send the results of testing directly to the development team to work on.

Thank you very much for your inquiry Johnny.

[JohnnySokko]

Thanks, Mainard.

So you've never heard of any conflicts between the two? No issues have ever came to your attention? That's great news, if that's correct.

Please tell me, though, if I were to have any conflicts myself, how would I even know? Would it be something obvious? And if yes, what should I be on the look out for?

And if i may, I'd like you pin you down on something: If I did experience any conflicts between the two programs (i.e., Dr. Web Anti-virus and Malwarebytes Pro), which company would I seek resolution with? Would it be the responsibility of Malwarebytes to remedy the issue, or would I be told that I need to contact Dr. Web? I'm asking because I simply want to be prudent. (I would hate to end up in a situation where both companies are telling me that it's the other company's problem to fix.)

[Mainard]

Hello JohnnySokko,

We have no reported issues between the two.

Issues with software can vary from applications not launching to a slowdown on system start-up while Malwarebytes Anti-Malware is loading.

If Malwarebytes Anti-Malware begins having issues you can always create a topic here to begin receiving assistance with Malwarebytes Anti-Malware. If at anytime Malwarebytes Anti-Malware is installed and is showing issues contact the forums or our helpdesk and you will be assisted.

Thank you very much.

[JohnnySokko]

Thanks again.

I just have two more questions, and then I should be all set.

1.) Is it possible that a conflict or compatibility issue between two security programs could be "silent"? What I mean by that is — instead of having system slowdowns, etc., like you described — could everything appear to be perfectly all right while, unknown to the user, the two programs are actually interfering with each other in some way (but without any outwardly apparent symptoms), causing them to be handicapped in some manner and not functioning as designed? Could that happen — or will compatibility issues always be obvious?

2.) And, in general, does it matter what order the programs are installed? For example: I read somewhere that a user would be better off, in terms of trying to prevent any issues, with installing Malwarebytes Pro (or any secondary security measure) after the anti-virus is installed — as opposed to trying to install the anti-virus when something else is already on the system. Is there any truth to that, at all?

[noknojon]

Hi Again -

1/ You would notice that one program is not functioning correctly, or other problems - Any problem would be quite obvious.

The Development Team could then advise you on any simple steps to take to repair any conflict -

You can read the FAQs HERE on many steps that were required mostly on earlier versions. Almost all of these problems do not exist with the current version, as most current updated users will now agree with

2/ It is advised to Disable (not remove) your Antivirus program while installing Malwarebytes Anti-Malware just for a clean, full install.

You would not at any time Remove your Antivirus program, just Temporary Disable it for about 5 minutes - Advice can be given.

This is not unusual with many programs, and I am sure you must have seen this advised at other times, with other programs.

Thank You -

[JohnnySokko]

Mainard and noknojon,

Thank you for your help.

I am still wondering about some of the things that I asked about in my very last post, some of which weren't completely answered.

For one . . .

In response to my question of "And, in general, does it matter what order the programs are installed? For example: I read somewhere that a user would be better off, in terms of trying to prevent any issues, with installing Malwarebytes Pro (or any secondary security measure) after the anti-virus is installed — as opposed to trying to install the anti-virus when something else is already on the system. Is there any truth to that, at all?" noknojon replied with "It is advisedto Disable (not remove) your Antivirus program while installing Malwarebytes Anti-Malware just for a clean, full install. You would notat any time Remove your Antivirus program, just Temporary Disable it for about 5 minutes."

However, that doesn't actually answer my question.

First of all, this pertains to a new computer, so nothing, in terms of security software, is currently installed on it; therefore, much of that advice doesn't apply. And second, my actual question was completely bypassed.

I'm trying to specifically ask if it will be better to install Malwarebytes Pro aftermy choice of anti-virus is installed, or doesn't it really matter? As I said earlier, I have read in several places that, in general, it's better to install any secondary anti-malware applications (such as Malwarebytes Pro) after the anti-virus program is installed. Apparently, doing it this way is supposed to result in less chances of any potential conflicts occurring between the two products — as opposed to trying to install the anti-virus on a system where a secondary program (such as Malwarebytes Pro) is already installed — and I'm wondering if there's any actual truth to that. So is there? Or doesn't it really matter in what order that they're installed?

PS: I would love to be able to edit my posts, but that feature appears to be disabled. Is there any way to get that privilege enabled?

[Mainard]

Hello JohnnySokko,

1.) Is it possible that a conflict or compatibility issue between two security programs could be "silent"? What I mean by that is — instead of having system slowdowns, etc., like you described — could everything appear to be perfectly all right while, unknown to the user, the two programs are actually interfering with each other in some way (but without any outwardly apparent symptoms), causing them to be handicapped in some manner and not functioning as designed? Could that happen — or will compatibility issues always be obvious?

It's possible for two programs to interfere with each other. While that occurs it would be fairly difficult to not notice this occurrence. We try to find any of these incompatibilities and report them to the development team. Sometimes a quick fix is adding exclusions between the two programs.

2.) And, in general, does it matter what order the programs are installed? For example: I read somewhere that a user would be better off, in terms of trying to prevent any issues, with installing Malwarebytes Pro (or any secondary security measure) after the anti-virus is installed — as opposed to trying to install the anti-virus when something else is already on the system. Is there any truth to that, at all?

Short answer, in general no. Long answer, there can be an issue during installation of a program. If an anti-virus has a false positive of one of Malwarebytes Anti-Malware's files (ie mbamcore.dll is false positive flagged as malware) the anti-virus would prevent the file from being placed in the program files folder and it would be placed in the anti-virus' quarantine zone. When this occurs a reinstall would be required to have Malwarebytes run properly. So a simple way to avoid this is to temporarily disable your anti-virus software.

Also, sometimes when an anti-virus is installed after Malwarebytes Anti-Malware is already installed, the anti-virus software may flag our software as incompatible and run our uninstaller. After that simply reinstalling Malwarebytes with the above suggestion to temporarily disable the anti-virus would be needed to have both an anti-virus and Malwarebytes Anti-Malware running along-side each other.

PS: I would love to be able to edit my posts, but that feature appears to be disabled. Is there any way to get that privilege enabled?

The edit feature on the forums becomes available once you hit 50 posts.

If you have any other questions please do not hesitate to ask.

Thank you very much.