I've noticed I'm not the only person with this problem. For me, the problems started about two months ago. In case it matters anything, I'm from Finland, so this is an international issue, affecting McAfee Total Protection regardless of Windows version and region. Here are my versions:
You know the problem. It works for 1-3 days, then AlertViewer appears (usually to ask whether I want to permit access to a program that's new or been updated) as all white, starts consuming system resources up to 99% RAM, the computer comes unusable, and a restart doesn't help.
I also have an issue with reinstalling. I uninstall McAfee using traditional means and then using MCRP. The uninstall seems to go through, but there are still programs, like SecurityCenter, that McAfee loads. MCRP doesn't even load. When I reboot and try to reinstall, McAfee has already loaded some programs that are in Task Manager and can't be ended, and the reinstall ends at about 70% with the message that SecurityCenter couldn't be installed, and the installation failed. At least if I could re-install McAfee without uninstalling and the computer would work for 1-3 days again, that'd be something, but the install file just uninstalls "the previous version", then reboots, doesn't continue installation, and when I try to launch the installer myself, it's the same thing, roughly 70% and then an error. The only way to get things going again is to activate the administrator account, install it from there, and then come back to my regular account.
I've been using McAfee for two decades, and in January, I bought subscription for two more years. I like that I can use it in my computer, my mother's computer, I like the deepweb scan, and I like the Android app, but this is a deal-breaker. The functionality of the firewall, the way it warns me if a program has changed and asks access again, is crucial to me, and I can't just use Smart Access and try to avoid the AlertViewer altogether.
For a large company like McAfee getting this many complaints and not being able to fix this is unacceptable. A proper solution, not a workaround that harms the functionality of the software, is needed. I've tried even reinstalling Win10 and I don't use WebAdvisor, so I have no idea what the next step could be. If there are any actual suggestions, I'd be happy to hear them. Otherwise, I'm forced to ask for a refund. I can't waste hours every few days to try to uninstall, switch accounts to administrator and re-install, make the proper settings, only to have the problem re-appear after a day, two, or three.
Also, getting rid of Anti-Spam was a huge disappointment. The algorithm there worked well, and plenty of people still like to use Outlook or other actual desktop mail program with their ISP instead of webmail.
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