Command-Line Scanner

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What Does Command-Line Scanner Mean?

A command-line scanner is an antivirus or anti-malware
scanner that uses the command line instead of a graphical user interface. A well-known open source command-line antivirus is
ClamAV. Other anti-malware developers, including Kaspersky and Avira, have
command-line based versions available or can call the program from the command
line.

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Techopedia Explains Command-Line Scanner

A command-line scanner is an anti-malware program that is invoked from the command line. These kinds of antivirus programs are normally associated with Unix/Linux systems, but they are also available for Windows and MacOS. One such program is ClamAV.

The advantage of a command-line scanner is its low overhead. Since a command-line program does not have a graphical user interface, it can run faster than a graphical program can. Since antivirus scanning is an intensive operation, it can yield a tangible performance benefit. The other advantage is that such a program can run on a “headless” server without a display. An email server might incorporate antivirus scanning in send and receive operations.

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Margaret Rouse
Technology Expert
Margaret Rouse
Technology Expert

Margaret is an award-winning technical writer and teacher known for her ability to explain complex technical subjects to a non-technical business audience. Over the past twenty years, her IT definitions have been published by Que in an encyclopedia of technology terms and cited in articles by the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine, and Discovery Magazine. She joined Techopedia in 2011. Margaret's idea of a fun day is helping IT and business professionals learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages.