ClamAV with or without UI

Ask Fedora
1

Hi,

On my Fedora 30 and I’ve installed ClamAV and it’s user interface ClamTk. In quite a few on-line guides I’ve seen people using clamav from the command line and not from the user interface application clamtk.

Is there something that the ClamTk can’t do that would require me to run scans/configurations from the command line?

I am not afraid of the command line, far from it. I’m just curious why would a perfect looking application (at first glance at least) be avoided in favour of the command line.

Thanks.

P.S. I’ve installed an anti-virus on my Linux machine for the first time because yesterday my Firefox prompted me to take the fake 2019 survey and I just wanted to see if I have any Mallware or I’ve just browsed to some infected website. I dual-boot to Windows, but that partition is well protected by Bitdefender.

Update: I think I’ve found at least one weakness of ClamTk. In order to scan outside of /home/ you need to start it with sudo. That makes sense, although I am not sure how this will impact any scheduled scan I will create that targets folders outside /home.

1 Like
2

Well, you will find this weakness also on the command line if you try to scan files outside your home :wink:

3

Yes I know that. But having an app with an icon is easier to start. However it starts under your user.

I do have to read more about ClamAV because I know it should have a daemon running. However I am not sure it does by default :slight_smile:

This tutorial seems quite good, even though it’s for Fedora 26:
https://www.hiroom2.com/2017/07/12/fedora-26-clamav-en/

4

I know it’s not a weekness per se, just discomfort when opening the app from gnome’s interface, one has to remember to open it via the command line.

Not a big problem… but than again maybe I find out how to modify /usr/share/applications/clamtk.desktop to run the application with sudo :slight_smile:

5

Please note that, if you are on Wayland (and not X11), if the application is not designed to run with elevated privileges, Wayland will prevent the use of sudo or similar methods to run the graphical application. (If not via some insecure tricks).

6

I am on X11. I never really looked closely at that Wayland does. I always think that if it’s not broken, don’t fix it. So I haven’t upgraded just for the sake of upgrade.