Antimalware, firewall, and other security programs for Windows XP working in 2023 and hopefully beyond

[AstroSkipper]

RogueKiller Anti-Malware from Adlice has also dropped programme compatibility for Windows XP in their portable release (the installer version was already discontinued some time ago). The last working one is the version 16.5.6.0 from 24.02.2026. However, it can still download its current definition file. So. it is the next one that turned its back on Windows XP in terms of programme compatibility. 

[AstroSkipper]

@Dave-H Don’t you find it a bit odd that the three of us – you, @modnar and of course me – are the only ones reporting problems with Panda here in this forum and looking for solutions? Apparently there are 68,145 members here on MSFN, and allegedly 23,865 of them are most online . Where on earth are they all?  Doesn’t any of them use Windows XP anymore?  Or have passivity and apathy completely taken hold, and are people just waiting for others to have wasted their time on it but certainly not their own? 

Edited yesterday at 03:04 PM by AstroSkipper

[Dave-H]

Well, I guess of those here still using XP, very few use Panda Dome, even though it's one of the vanishingly few security programs which is still supposed to work on XP.

I found one instance on the virtually dead Panda forum reporting the same problem (with no response).

https://support.pandasecurity.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12151&sid=a73549f228b82be2dde1657a770a28e4

My installation is still crashing all the time.
It stops if I clear the recent files in the cache folder but starts again as soon as the folder repopulates.

[AstroSkipper]

57 minutes ago, Dave-H said:

My installation is still crashing all the time.
It stops if I clear the recent files in the cache folder but starts again as soon as the folder repopulates.

That’s a great pity, of course, and not really what I was hoping to hear. I haven’t yet managed to make the PSANHost process of my Panda Dome 21.01.00 crashing again after resetting the cache folder. I probably need to be a bit more patient. 

Edited 21 hours ago by AstroSkipper

[AstroSkipper]

1 hour ago, Dave-H said:

Well, I guess of those here still using XP, very few use Panda Dome, even though it's one of the vanishingly few security programs which is still supposed to work on XP.

That’s a very diplomatic answer. I see it a little differently, though. 

[Tangy]

Regarding panda forum reporting, to be able to uninstall panda you have to be able to stop the antivirus running. right clicking task bar icon does not always respond. after a few reboots my task bar icon informed me that my computer was not protected, a tiny red circle with the x. then it was easy to uninstall from add/remove. I also used their generic uninstaller which removed everything from my pc. I did a clean install but unfortunately the song remained the same. 5 minutes later it crashed.

I have not got the foggiest how to go about it.

 

[AstroSkipper]

30 minutes ago, Tangy said:

Regarding panda forum reporting, to be able to uninstall panda you have to be able to stop the antivirus running. right clicking task bar icon does not always respond. after a few reboots my task bar icon informed me that my computer was not protected, a tiny red circle with the x. then it was easy to uninstall from add/remove. I also used their generic uninstaller which removed everything from my pc. I did a clean install but unfortunately the song remained the same. 5 minutes later it crashed.

I have not got the foggiest how to go about it.

 

Thanks for reporting! At last, another Windows XP user who’s also reporting problems with Panda Dome here. Which version have you installed? 

[Tangy]

@AstroSkipper Off line installer version 15.14.5.0. However being a tad stupid and click happy I clicked on the update from settings. What I am planning to do tonight is to reinstall and refrain from clicking update. Let us see how this pans out. Keep you posted.

Cheers

[Dave-H]

The file version of the installer file is meaningless, unfortunately.
It isn't the version of Panda Dome that it will install.
It's probably just the version of the packaging process used.

As far as I can see, the only way to find out what Panda version it is, without actually installing it, is to extract it with 7-Zip and look in the extracted \Program Files\Panda Security\Panda Cloud Antivirus\ folder.
There you should find a file called version.ini, which, if you open it, will list the Panda version and build number.

[AstroSkipper]

19 minutes ago, Tangy said:

@AstroSkipper Off line installer version 15.14.5.0. However being a tad stupid and click happy I clicked on the update from settings. What I am planning to do tonight is to reinstall and refrain from clicking update. Let us see how this pans out. Keep you posted.

Cheers

All Panda Dome installers come with offline installer version 15.14.5.0. Therefore, this information is unfortunately of no use. I asked you for the programme version. The most recent is 22.03.05 but I currently use 21.01.00. And it doesn't matter whether you actively click the update button or not, the update is automatically done every day and there is no option to disable it.

Edited 17 hours ago by AstroSkipper

[Tangy]

I do not know if this helps the date  if memory serves me well was december 2024. that file was downloaded  begining of 2025. I'll check the exact date.

[AstroSkipper]

On 4/29/2023 at 6:02 PM, AstroSkipper said:

Legacy offline installer for version 22.03.05: 
http://acs.pandasoftware.com/Panda/FREEAV/Promo_pd/FREEAV_LGC.exe
Here is a website where you can get the old offline installer of version 21.01.00: https://panda-free-antivirus.sooftware.com/windows/download/338378

@Tangy Perhaps you can try Panda Dome 21.01.00. I am under the impression that this version is working better on Windows XP. It's definitely worth a try.

Edited 17 hours ago by AstroSkipper

[AstroSkipper]

On 7/6/2026 at 7:08 PM, AstroSkipper said:

On 7/6/2026 at 5:29 PM, modnar said:

I'm experimenting with Avast again... Good to see things moving. Might be resolved after all.

For experimenting with Avast, you should avoid the last XP-compatible version. As far as I can remember, is a previous version associated with fewer problems. I have to look in my archive for the exact version number.

As far as I can remember, there were repeated reports on the Avast forums that avast! Free Antivirus 18.5.2342 runs much better than the latest XP-compatible avast! Free Antivirus 18.8.4084.0.

[modnar]

9 hours ago, AstroSkipper said:

As far as I can remember, there were repeated reports on the Avast forums that avast! Free Antivirus 18.5.2342 runs much better than the latest XP-compatible avast! Free Antivirus 18.8.4084.0.

Thank you for your effort. I shall certainly do that. Perhaps it won't belabor the csrss. As I know now there are 2 instances of csrss (client-server kernel communicator) running on StupidWindows™ (NT 6.x) and only one on Win2K/XP. So it shows Avast bastards are deliberately doing this, simply acting as there was never WinXP. Let them wallow in their own mire.

[AstroSkipper]

On 5/4/2023 at 12:50 AM, D.Draker said:

Of course Vir.IT eXplorer (calling by the name) runs on XP !  

The Antivirus engine is of their own Italian development (no russkies involved) !

My GF (girlfriend) currently runs it on her cheap/outdated PC (Pentium G with only 8GB of the ancient DDR3 RAM , DDR3 is from 2007).

2 - Very easy on PC resources !The product is VB100 certified. All tests passed:

https://www.virusbulletin.com/vb100/testing/tgsoft/vir-it-explorer-pro

PS. Sorry to hear you're tired ! Get well soon! 

Here are a few words about my plan C. More than 3 years ago, my good old friend @D.Draker had recommended the anti-malware programme Vir.IT eXplorer. I still had it on my internal list, but as there were no further tests or information available, I couldn’t report on it. At that time, it also seemed to have some temporary issues with VB100 certification, but these had long since been resolved. I was also worried that support for Windows XP had long since been discontinued, as it is no longer listed as an OS on the website. So I downloaded the very latest version 9.5.981.0 and was delighted to discover that the programme is still compatible with Windows XP. For some days, I have been testing Vir.IT eXplorer Lite. More on this coming soon.  

Edited 5 hours ago by AstroSkipper