Horizon DataSys announced today the formal release of version 10.3 of their increasingly popular Drive Vaccine software. This latest update to Drive Vaccine gives users a powerful tool to quickly and effortlessly restore public access PCs back to a pristine state (or “baseline”)
Drive Vaccine, the market leader in PC reboot-on-restore technology, is increasingly being used as the go-to Windows Steadystate alternative which was discontinued by Microsoft. If you’ve ever used a multi-user machine at a school, library, hotel, or other public computing environment, chances are Drive Vaccine was the utility that automatically reset the computer back to a clean state after your session ended.
Among other new enhancements, the new version of Drive Vaccine has a simpler, more intuitive interface and has been optimized for Windows 8. The new version has fresh new features such as the ability to interrupt a recursive loop from the pre-Windows subsystem and micro-manage the system files that would be exempt from the auto-restore. Drive Vaccine v10.3 makes it easier to update the baseline to incorporate the latest Windows and program updates and to even return to prior baselines in case the system administrator would like to undo the baseline update. There is no inadvertent or intentional change a public user can make that Drive Vaccine can’t help the IT admin recover from. Public users are free to delete registry entries, download viruses, change the background, or worse, and once they’ve logged out or the machine has become idle all such changes instantly disappear and Windows restarts into its original configuration. Drive Vaccine write-protects the hard drive and prevents all such end-user changes from remaining on the machines.
Andrew Shen, VP Development explained, “We’ve been attentively listening to our customers. It’s much easier simpler interface and all the various functions can now be found with fewer clicks. And we’ve generally tried to implement many other popular suggestions.”
Drive Vaccine already has the best recovery times, the quickest baseline update, and the best recovery to capacity ratio compared to any other alternative reboot to restore solution. Drive Vaccine’s patented sector-mapping technology offers the quickest and most flexible restore, an instanteous updating of the baseline from within Windows with a simple button click, and the ability to go back to an earlier baseline in case an update goes awry
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Most traditional backup techniques are very time-intensive, such as the tedious task of creating, updating, and implementing images. Most IT managers find that imaging is a last-resort solution in that the images are rarely updated and intended for those exceedingly infrequent instances in which other restore options have been exhausted. But there is a simpler way. Drive Vaccine is intended for everyday automated restores so that even non-technical administrators need simply install it and never again need to individually manage that machine again. Drive Vaccine is also the most cost-effective solution for small networks with tight budgets since:
1.) It’s priced 20% below similar competing restore-on-reboot solutions.
2.) Drive Vaccine also comes with a free enterprise console that simplifies the management of hundreds of PCs from a single interface. This greatly facilitates regularly scheduled maintenance periods during which updates and patches can be automatically pushed out to all the network workstations with very little effort.
3.) Drive Vaccine is available through TechSoup at steeply discounted pricing for certified 501(c)3s.
In conversation, Lyle Patel, President, explained that the many of these small organizations now have to resort to native Windows features (such as Group Policies) to lockdown the machines and prevent users from making changes. Locking-down the machines restricts access to sensitive Windows functions and prevents public user from changing these PC systems. Lockdown software certainly does prevent malicious, unauthorized, and even inadvertent system changes, such as software installations, virus infections, and other public user mischief. But lockdown software also limits the usefulness of these multi-user workstations by disabling many Windows functions that would enhance the public users’ experience. Drive Vaccine, on the other hand, is a non-restrictive desktop security which creates a virtual system but from the endusers’ perspective is identical to working in Windows on their own personal computers.
Patel: “With Horizon DataSys’ software in place, our customers are able to significantly reduce their IT budgets and staff hours allocated to resetting the public PCs and this frees a lot more of their budgets for other priorities.”
About TechSoup Global:
TechSoup Global is a leading technology resource provider for nonprofits (NGOs, charities, governmental departments, etc.) and a network for the coordination of technological collaboration. It assists its member organizations by providing a forum for tech-related discussions, connects non-profits with philanthropic efforts, and otherwise facilitates cooperation for the benefit of its members.
About Horizon DataSys:
Horizon DataSys Corporation is a privately held software company headquartered in Blaine, Washington which develops, publishes, and distributes branded computer software applications specializing in end-point PC management, OS integrity, and instant restore.