For every new installation of SQL Server there is always the same questions regarding antivirus solutions and their configuration on the SQL server. Antivirus software will always come at a penalty, no matter your application, and SQL Server is no different. So, for maximum performance, do not install antivirus right….. No, not installing AV is usually not a good idea nor a practically viable option as it introduces risk to the entire infrastructure. So, what to do…
There are a lot of features and components in SQL Server that can be adversely affected by AV products. As it turns out, there is already some great Microsoft advice out there as Kendra Little points out in this blog and refers to Microsofts documentation KB309422 (general AV), KB2033238 (SQL Server address space) and KB250355 (cluster aware).
Just in case those links break as time moves on, here are some links to the wayback machine:
KB309422, KB2033238 and KB250355
So, we are already at the “my thoughts on the matter” part of this short writeup, and I’m sure you’ll be disappointed by the lack of my own thoughts on the matter. The fact is that in this day and age, virus and ransomware are very real threats and caution is needed. My opinion here is that I strongly suggest reading the KB articles from Microsoft and adhere to these. They are detailed and contain useful and actionable information that should be followed if possible.