Scheduled scan only runs after unlocking the continuously powered-on computer in the morning

[Kliebor 0]

My PC has sleep and hibernate disabled and runs 24 hours a day I know because other tasks, like file updates and media service is active at all hours. I have established a scan of all local computer resources at 10 PM on Wednesday because I do not use the PC then. I had the schedule setup to run at 10 PM and not to run again if it failed. It did not run so I contacted support and they remotely connected to my computer and rebuilt my scan task to run immediately if it failed to run and it worked but ran when I unlocked the PC this morning. 

This completely defeats the point of establishing a schedule to run the scan at night when the computer is idle. If I wanted it to run in the morning when I am trying to use the computer, I would run it then. 

How do I set up a scan in ESET that will just follow my directions and run while the PC is idle, I am logged in and the PC is locked for security purposes. I do not want the scan running while I am active.

[Kliebor 0]

Version and scan result

[Kliebor 0]

This task of a file that ESET did not like fired Wednesday night when the computer was on and locked, why not my scan?

[Marcos 5,242]

The computer must be turned on in order for tasks to run, otherwise they will run after they wake up from standby/sleep if the "as soon as possible" condition is used. We will research the possibility to wake up the system, however, it will require a compatible motherboard and wake-up timers not disabled in the power options setup.

[Kliebor 0]

Please, I explained above very clearly the PC is on and locked, not sleeping, hibernating or anything else ever and ESET even ran tasks 5 minutes before 10 PM scheduled time. That is why I provided screen shots, to show the pc was awake.

[itman 1,743]

15 minutes ago, Kliebor said:

Please, I explained above very clearly the PC is on and locked, not sleeping, hibernating or anything else ever and ESET even ran tasks 5 minutes before 10 PM scheduled time. That is why I provided screen shots, to show the pc was awake.

Did you lock the PC via Win + L key option or did you sign-off instead?

[xxJackxx 93]

I have seen others say that updates don't run while the PC is locked (Win + L) either so I would assume that ESET products don't run tasks on a locked PC. I don't really care myself, just reporting what I have heard from others. Maybe it helps?

[Marcos 5,242]

Does temporarily disabling this setting make a difference?

[Kliebor 0]

I lock the PC as it runs many tasks in the background as services like feeding my media server music and video to other smart speaker devices in my home. Locked with Win+L the system ran and sent a suspicious file to ESET no problem at 9:50 PM so ESET can and does run and perform tasks while locked. They need to fix the scheduler.

 

[Kliebor 0]

As to gamer mode I am really not interested in crippling my protection, so thanks but no, just fix the product.

[Marcos 5,242]

Deactivating gamer mode doesn't cripple protection, quite the contrary. Please try disabling the above setting so that we know if it's activation of gamer mode that affects the scheduled scan in this case.

[Kliebor 0]

Gamer mode is off and would always be so when the PC is locked as I leave no full screen game type apps open, I have disabled automatic game mode, but I know no full screen apps were running last night.

[Kliebor 0]

And as an aside, your app reported an unknown file to your servers which per your own documentation would not have happened if Gamer mode was active last night. So I can say with a great deal of probable success that gamer mode is not the problem

[Marcos 5,242]

3 minutes ago, Kliebor said:

, but I know no full screen apps were running last night.

But you activated the lock screen which was probably detected as an application running in full-screen mode.

[Kliebor 0]

I activated the lock screen at 6 PM like I do every night, at 9:50 PM, still locked your app performed a send of an unknown file to your servers. Something that gamer mode per what I can find in your documentation on the feature should have told the app to wait until after the full screen app was closed. Also, if screen lock is misidentified as a full screen app, that is a programming issue that should be corrected.

[itman 1,743]

Probably the best way to resolve this is to create a Win scheduled task to run ECLS:

Quote

 

The example 1 below commands your ESET Smart Security product to run a scan with automatic scan settings, show the status bar of the scan while running and create a scan log file:

"C:\Program Files\ESET\ESET Security\ecls.exe" /base-dir="C:\Program Files\ESET\ESET Security\Modules" /auto /log-file=c:\ecls.txt

 

https://support.eset.com/en/kb3417-eset-command-line-scanner-parameters-eclsexe-5x-and-later#locationOfECLSscanner

Open Notepad and copy the above code into it. Save the file as somename.bat in your downloads directory for example. Then create a Win scheduled task that executes with highest privileges to run the .bat file.

Note that I purposely eliminated the status bar display code since I suspect that might prevent the scheduled scan from running in Win 10 lock screen mode as is happening with Eset's built-in scheduled scan,

[Kliebor 0]

I will look into this, it just seems odd, other a/v scanners scan fine while the computer is locked. Thanks for the info.

[Marcos 5,242]

If disabling the above setting resolves the issue, we expect it to be fixed in v16.0 or 16.1.

[Kliebor 0]

Disabling game mode detection worked, the scan ran at 10 PM as scheduled.

[Nightowl 206]

On 10/13/2022 at 11:35 AM, Kliebor said:

Disabling game mode detection worked, the scan ran at 10 PM as scheduled.

Could be that Gamer Mode sees the Lock Screen as a full-screen application , which why it pauses everything till it gets out of the full screen application which is the Lock Screen.

[Kliebor 0]

Very possible still kind of odd and makes the use of the program as intended with notification turned off during games effectively useless.

[Nightowl 206]

The point of the Gamer Mode is to keep the computer resources to the game so ESET doesn't interrupt any part of the gaming whatever is the fullscreen application is , which limits ESET from looking for updates or scanning , which in your part was the scheduled scan , it was delayed because gamer mode has kicked in

I believe it's a bug since Marcos said it will be fixed in v16 or v16.1

[Kliebor 0]

I am aware, I just do not want any illusion that this behavior is proper as it limits the use of the program in its normal state, where it senses and gets out of the way of your usage of the computer, locking the screen should be a special case not treated as the system being used for some activity by the user. I have found in the past if a 'fix' is found even if it is more of a kludge work around, the problem gets ignored. Not something I want to see here.

 

That is all.

[Nightowl 206]

On 10/16/2022 at 9:42 PM, Kliebor said:

I am aware, I just do not want any illusion that this behavior is proper as it limits the use of the program in its normal state, where it senses and gets out of the way of your usage of the computer, locking the screen should be a special case not treated as the system being used for some activity by the user. I have found in the past if a 'fix' is found even if it is more of a kludge work around, the problem gets ignored. Not something I want to see here.

 

That is all.

But ESET doesn't stop working, I think it's just a bug that saw lockscreen as fullscreen app like a game or something , incase the PC doesn't have much resources , ESET pauses updates/scans so the PC can use all resources to the game/movie, even if there was a threat while gaming mode is running , ESET would prevent the threat as usual.

Disabling the gaming mode from kicking in worksaround this bug.

[Kliebor 0]

Nightowl, you simply are being obtuse at this point. As I stated, I want to be clear, this is a deficiency in the product and yes it does stop working as intended if that option, which I do want for when I play games on my PC is on. The software is supposed to prevent interruption of the user when in a full screen app. The lock screen is not a full screen app, it is placing the computer is a secure state. It should never prevent a scheduled scan. Period, full stop.