First of all, download the latest version of ClamXAV and double click ClamXAV_3.5.5_9759_Installer.pkg in your Downloads Folder to start the installation process.
Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation. At one point, you’ll be asked to enter your admin name and password (the ones you use to log on to your computer, this isn’t something that’s specific to ClamXAV).
Once the installation is complete, ClamXAV will start up and ask if you’d like to take the 30 day trial, purchase immediately, or enter an existing registration key if you’ve already bought a subscription.
If you click Purchase ClamXAV, you can complete the entire order process within the app and it will install the registration details automatically. This is the easiest way to get up and running with ClamXAV.
If you already have a subscription, you can simply click the link in the registration email or click the I’ve already bought ClamXAV button and copy and paste the details from your email. (Incidentally, if you ever misplace your registration details (your ‘key’) you’re not alone – our Lost Key Retrieval service is rather popular… )
ClamXAV will now begin updating its Malware Database – this is how it knows what malware to look for.
Welcome aboard! Time for a quick tour. When you launch ClamXAV, you’ll see a main window with five primary sections. Here’s what they are and what they do:
Toolbar: allows quick access to frequently performed actions
Source List: allows you to keep a list of favourite items to scan
Settings Area: this is where you can change any scan settings related to the currently selected item
Infection List: shows details of any infected files found during a scan
Status Area: at the very bottom of the window displays the version of ClamXAV you’ve installed and the date of your latest virus definitions update.
Having made sure you’re connected to the internet, click Update Malware Database on the toolbar; ClamXAV will install any newly available database and show these being downloaded on the progress panel (which disappears when it’s finished).
Now, you can either select an item to scan from the Source List; or click the plus (+) button at the bottom of the list to add a different file or folder; or – if you want to scan a file or folder immediately – just drag it from the Finder/Desktop on your Mac into the window.
Click Start Scan and you’re off. Remember that you can pause or stop scanning at any point and, with ClamXAV 3, you can now even close the app and the scan will continue in the background.
The name of any system infection or infected file will be listed in the Infection List, so all you need to do now is choose one of the following actions:
Delete: if you don’t need the file
Quarantine: if you’re not sure and want to check first
Note that ClamXAV 3 will automatically quarantine any infected files that it finds, unless you’ve changed this via the Quarantine option in the Settings Area. Don’t worry if you’ve already started the scan – you can still change the quarantine setting whilst a scan is ongoing.
Be careful with Quarantine and Delete as these will move the file on your hard drive. If you delete or quarantine a file by accident, simply click the Restore button beside the file in the Infection List – don’t worry, you can’t put back a system infection.
If the file isn’t showing up in the Infection List, you’ll still be able to find it in the Reports Window – simply click View Reports on the toolbar.
