Today we will review how to protect your Dynamics GP data and the systems they use.
Let’s begin by making sure we are all using the same language.
Definitions
The following definitions and recommendations are from CISA, the U.S. Government Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, but are summarized by me.
Virus: A computer virus is a type of malicious software that replicates by infecting files or system areas of a computer or network device, often requiring user interaction to spread. While some viruses are benign, others can cause significant harm by damaging or destroying data files, with email messages being a common vector for transmission in modern times.
Worm: A worm is a self-replicating virus that spreads autonomously between computers, consuming system resources and potentially allowing remote unauthorized access, without the need for human interaction to propagate.
Trojan horse: A Trojan horse is a deceptive software that appears legitimate but hides a virus or harmful program, which can perform malicious actions on your computer and is often distributed through free software downloads or email attachments.
Tips to avoid viruses:
- Install and regularly update reputable anti-virus software.
- Activate an ‘on access’ scanner from your anti-virus package to check for viruses every time an executable file is run, and set it to start with your computer.
- Perform a virus scan before opening new programs or files, especially those from the internet or store-bought software.
- Regularly back up important data like documents, bookmarks, and emails to prevent loss in case of a virus infection.
For more information on viruses and how to lessen their impact, review the official documentation from CISA.
Anti-Virus Protection Within the Dynamics GP System
Now that we understand the different definitions and recommendations, let’s review the specifics of anti-virus protection measures for the Dynamics GP system.
First off, it is essential that you have virus-scanning software installed on all your computers. However, anti-virus software can introduce some performance issues that we need to correct. We will break this down into two distinct environments for Dynamics GP, the SQL Server and the Workstation (Client). The Workstation can be an individual’s computer or a remote desktop environment. For our discussion this doesn’t matter since the adjustments to the anti-virus software are the same.
Anti-Virus Software
To clarify Virus Scanning vs. Virus Sweeping:
Anti-virus scanning Scans incoming and outgoing files for viruses, whereas Anti-virus sweep Scans existing files for infection. This causes SQL server headaches and slows performance down tremendously. This is the reason that we need to configure our Anti-Virus software correctly. All anti-virus software has the ability to exclude files and directories.
The following are the Microsoft recommended exclusions for Dynamics GP:
Workstation (Client)
Directories
The following are directories that should be excluded:
- Root Dynamics GP folder
- By default, this folder is in the following location: C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Dynamics\GP
- Root Integration Manager folder
- By default, this folder is in the following location: C:\Program Files\Microsoft Dynamics\Integration Manager
File Extensions
The following file name extensions should be excluded:
- *.chm: These files are the Help files for Microsoft Dynamics GP.
- *.cnk: These files are used when service packs are installed.
- *.dat: These files are ctree .dat files that are used with an SQL database.
- *.dic: These files are the Help files for Microsoft Dynamics GP.
- *.idx: These files are ctree index files that are used with an SQL database.
- *.ini: These files are the configuration files.
- *.imd: These files are used by Integration Manager.
- *.log: These files are used by a Dexsql.log file if you use a Dexsql.log file to troubleshoot an error message.
- *.mdf: These files are used by Integration Manager as Access DBF files.
- *.set: These files are the start files.
- *.vba: These files are used if there are Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) modifications.
SQL Server
(This by no means is the full list for SQL, just what we have in the Dynamics GP world.)
Include all workstation exclusions, plus the following:
File Extensions
The following file name extensions should be excluded:
- *.ldf: Log Database File
- *.mdf: Master Database File
- *.ndf: Secondary Database File
- *.bak: Backup Database File
- *.trn: Backup Database File with Transaction Logs
SQL Processes
The following SQL Server processes should be excluded:
- sqlservr.ex: SQL Server Database Engine
- sqlagent.exe: SQL Server Agent
- sqlbrowser.exe: SQL Server Browser service
My next article will include some simple backup strategies for SQL servers in the SMB (Small-to-medium Business) world.
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