User Accounts on Vista

[Louise07]

Hello, on our laptop we have 2 user accounts set up. We also have AVG anti virus. When I log on to my user account the AVG Icon is on the desktop, when my partner logs on it is not. Is the AVG anti virus still protecting the entire laptop if it only shows on my user account??

Also I have user account type as administrator and my partner is also set up as an administrator too. Is this correct / ok to do?? Or should one be a standard user? TIA

[vehelpfulguy]

Your desktop and your partners desktop are independant of each other. So when you log on as YOU you see YOUR desktop, when they logon as THEM they see THEIR desktop.

The icon on your desktop is probably just a shortcut (it will have a small arrow in the bottom left hand corner). This means it is just a pointer to the actual file.

I would say that AVG IS protecting both accounts.

Best way to check is to look at the bottom right hand corner of the task bar, where all the icons are. One of them should be for AVG (it is a square with four different colours - red, black, green and yellow).

If the icon is there then it is running.

(All the above applies to XP which is all I have, may be slightly different for Vista)

[vehelpfulguy]

Again I am discussing XP so Vista may be slightly different.

There is no problem with having two users as "Administrator".

The problem with setting one user as a "limited user" is that it does limit what they can do (as you would expect).

A limited user cannot install software for example, or access certain Windows system files, or install a printer (and other things).

So if you set your partner as a "limited user", and you are not around, if they need to do some system related jobs then they cannot do it till you return.

I know that Vista changed things in this area.

In XP the main user became the Administrator. Microsoft did not like the idea of everyone being a high powered administrator as a default as it allowed viruses and other dodgy programs to install themselves.

So in Vista they created a "hidden" high powered administrator acount, and a new "normal administrator" account, which is what you probably are.

More here:

http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do ?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9015738&pa geNumber=2