Norton 360 (2013)

The 2013 edition of Norton 360 includes all the powerful protection found in Norton Internet Security, just packaged differently. In addition, it offers full-scale online and local backup plus a full set of system tuneup tools. It remains PCMag's Editors' Choice for "mega-suite."

Norton 360 (2013) : Main Window

The main window for the 2013 edition of Norton 360 looks quite different from that of Norton Internet Security 2013, but under the hood it offers exactly the same protection, and more.

Norton 360 (2013) : At Risk

Norton 360 can become quite colorful if any of your security settings aren't configured properly. Red indicates a serious problem, like realtime protection turned off. Orange means the component needs attention, in this case because it hasn't gotten a chance to run yet.

Norton 360 (2013) : Expanding Buttons

Where clicking a button in Norton Internet Security moves all buttons to reveal a new tab, clicking in Norton 360 expands the button with a menu of choices.

Norton 360 (2013) : Tasks Page

The Tasks page lists common security tasks in three categories. General tasks are ones shared with Norton Internet Security, while backup and tuneup tasks are specific to Norton 360.

Norton 360 (2013) : Scan Choices

From the Scans page you can launch an anti-malware scan, scan your system to rate the safety and stability of all programs, or launch a scan for unsafe links on your Facebook wall.

Norton 360 (2013) : Backup Menu

Norton 360 comes with 2GB of hosted online backup. From the Backup menu you can configure your backup sets, launch an immediate backup, or restore backed-up files. You can also go online to purchase additional storage.

Norton 360 (2013) : Back Up What

The first step in configuring a backup set is to decide what files need backing up. Choose either the My Documents folder or the whole drive, choose the file types, and optionally identify any locations to be excluded.

Norton 360 (2013) : Back Up Where

You can direct your backed-up files backup to secure online storage, to a local drive, or to a writeable CD/DVD drive. If your backup set fits in 2GB, online backup is preferable.

Norton 360 (2013) : Back Up When

As long as your backup set is configured for online or local disk, you can schedule backups or set Norton 360 to back up automatically in the background any time it detects a new or changed file. You must launch a CD/DVD backup manually, and stand by to supply writeable disks as needed.

Norton 360 (2013) : Backup Set Preview

The preview option lets you double-check that you've made the right choices when defining what files should be in a backup set.

Norton 360 (2013) : Restore Files

On the Restore Files page you can choose which backup set to restore from, and choose whether to restore files to their original locations or to a special restore location.

Norton 360 (2013) : Search for Files

Often you'll want to restore just specific files, not an entire backup set. You can search for files by name and then choose which ones you want from the results list.

Norton 360 (2013) : Tuneup Menu

From the PC Tuneup menu you can launch the most common tuneup tasks directly. Clicking "View Details" lets you configure the tuneup system and launch additional tuneup tasks.

Norton 360 (2013) : Tuneup Details

On the tuneup details page you can see when each task was last run and also launch tasks manually.

Norton 360 (2013) : Tuneup Settings

By default, Norton 360 handles most tuneup tasks in the background, when the system is idle. You can choose which tasks it will execute and optionally set a specific schedule rather than automatic background operation.

Norton 360 (2013) : Startup Manager

Startup Manager, also included in Norton Internet Security, displays all programs that launch at startup, identifying the prevalence and resource usage for each. You can reversibly disable any one of these, or set it to delay launch for a while after Windows starts.

Norton 360 (2013) : Diagnostic Report

Launch the Diagnostic Report for a status overview of your system's hardware, software, and security. Any problems will be flagged with colored icons; a Fix Now button will appear for any that can be fixed automatically.

Norton 360 (2013) : Diagnostic Detail

The full diagnostic report can be useful if you're working with tech support or a tech-savvy friend to diagnose a system problem. It includes full details about every item summarized in the basic diagnostic report.