What is included in ESET PROTECT Advanced?

ESET PROTECT console – Single console for policies, tasks and reporting, cloud or on-premises.
Modern Endpoint Protection – Covers Windows, macOS and Linux workstations from one agent.
Server Security – Real-time protection for Windows and Linux file servers.
Full Disk Encryption – Managed encryption for Windows and macOS system disks.
ESET LiveGuard Advanced – Cloud sandbox detonates unknown files before users open them.
Important – EDR is not included; ESET Inspect requires the Elite tier.

What are the main benefits of ESET PROTECT Advanced?

ESET PROTECT Advanced is the second subscription tier of the ESET PROTECT Platform and combines endpoint, file server, mobile and cloud workload protection under one management console that runs either in ESET's cloud or on your own server. Its cloud sandbox component is the technology ESET previously sold as ESET Dynamic Threat Defense, which the vendor renamed ESET LiveGuard Advanced, so older quotes and documentation still use the earlier name.

One agent, all platforms – Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS from one console
Mobile Threat Defense – Android antimalware and iOS mobile device management are included
Managed encryption keys – Administrators recover locked-out laptops from the same console
Cloud Workload Protection – Protects virtual machines in AWS, Azure and Google Cloud
On-premises console option – The management server can run in your own datacentre
Device Control – Blocks unauthorised USB storage across all managed endpoints

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Which company size is ESET PROTECT Advanced suitable for?

The deciding factor is not headcount but whether anyone will be asked to explain an incident afterwards. A company that only has to prove that endpoints are protected and laptops are encrypted is well served by this tier. A company that has to reconstruct an attack chain for a regulator, an insurer or a customer needs detection and response data that this tier does not collect.

Does ESET PROTECT Advanced meet the requirements of Swiss cybersecurity legislation?

The Swiss reporting obligation does not apply to every company, so the first question is whether it applies to you at all. Since 1 April 2025 the revised Information Security Act obliges operators of critical infrastructure, including energy and drinking water suppliers, transport operators and cantonal and communal administrations, to report significant cyberattacks to the Federal Office for Cybersecurity (BACS) within 24 hours of discovery, with a fuller report due within 14 days. ESET PROTECT Advanced supports that deadline in one narrow but practical way: the console collects detections from every managed endpoint and server in one place, so an administrator can establish what was detected, on which machine and at what time without logging into individual devices. What it does not deliver is the forensic depth the 14-day follow-up report usually calls for, because process trees, execution chains and root-cause analysis come from ESET Inspect, which starts at the Elite tier. It also does not decide whether an incident is reportable, and it does not produce the report itself; both remain organisational tasks. This description is product information and not legal advice, so whether your organisation falls under the reporting obligation should be clarified with qualified legal counsel.

Does ESET PROTECT Advanced meet the requirements of European cybersecurity legislation?

No software product makes an organisation compliant with the NIS 2 Directive, because the directive addresses organisational risk management rather than product features. NIS 2 requires essential and important entities to implement measures across defined categories, among them risk analysis and security policies, incident handling, business continuity and backup, supply chain security, vulnerability handling, cryptography and encryption policies, access control and asset management, basic cyber hygiene with staff training, and multi-factor authentication. ESET PROTECT Advanced contributes directly to some of these: managed full disk encryption on Windows and macOS supports an encryption policy, centrally enforced endpoint policy and device control support basic cyber hygiene, and central detection with quarantine management covers part of incident handling. Other categories are not covered by this tier at all, since it contains no backup or business continuity function, no supply chain risk assessment, no security awareness training and no multi-factor authentication. Vulnerability handling also sits outside this tier and requires the separate ESET Vulnerability & Patch Management add-on, while multi-factor authentication begins at ESET PROTECT Elite.

Does ESET PROTECT Advanced help with security questionnaires from large customers?

Partly, and it is worth knowing in advance which lines you can tick and which you cannot. This tier answers questions about anti-malware coverage per operating system, central policy enforcement, removable media and device control, disk encryption on laptops, and documented evidence, since the ESET PROTECT console ships with more than 170 built-in reports and supports custom reports, which is normally sufficient as a questionnaire annex. It does not answer questions about endpoint detection and response, threat hunting, mean time to detect and respond, patch status of third-party applications, email gateway filtering, or multi-factor authentication. If a questionnaire blocks a contract on EDR or MFA, moving up to ESET PROTECT Elite inside the same console is usually cheaper than adding a second vendor's agent, because running two security agents in parallel creates exclusion and conflict work that then appears on the same questionnaire as an operational risk. If the only gap is patching, the Vulnerability & Patch Management add-on can be purchased on top of Advanced without changing tier.

What is the difference between ESET PROTECT Advanced and ESET PROTECT Complete?

The decisive difference is email and cloud application coverage: Complete protects Exchange mail servers and Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace applications, while Advanced stops at the endpoint, the file server and the cloud virtual machine. The second difference is Vulnerability & Patch Management, which is included in Complete but must be bought as an add-on for Advanced. Neither tier includes detection and response, because ESET Inspect and multi-factor authentication begin at ESET PROTECT Elite. If your mail already runs in Microsoft 365 and you rely on its built-in filtering, Advanced plus the patch add-on is often the cheaper combination; if you operate your own Exchange server, Complete is usually the better starting point.

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Which limitations should you know before buying?

Three limitations account for most follow-up purchases. First, this tier contains no EDR or XDR, because ESET Inspect requires ESET PROTECT Elite, so if you need to reconstruct how an attacker entered and what they touched, Advanced will not tell you. Second, platform coverage is uneven: full disk encryption covers Windows and macOS but not Linux, and on iOS and iPadOS the mobile component provides mobile device management functionality only, without antimalware scanning. Third, the Vulnerability & Patch Management add-on runs only with the cloud-based ESET PROTECT console and is not available in ESET PROTECT On-Prem, which matters if you deliberately chose the on-premises console for data residency reasons. On regional availability, ESET's Cybersecurity Awareness Training is a separate add-on and ESET states that course availability differs by region, so confirm which courses exist in your language and country before you budget for it.

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Frequently asked questions about ESET PROTECT Advanced

Does ESET PROTECT Advanced protect Microsoft 365 mailboxes?

No. The endpoint agent scans mail as it reaches the client, but server-side and cloud-side protection is separate: Mail Server Security for Exchange and Cloud App Protection for Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace both start at ESET PROTECT Complete.

What happens if an employee forgets their encryption password?

The administrator runs the encryption recovery process from the ESET PROTECT console using the Workstation ID shown on the pre-boot login screen, then issues the generated recovery password to the user. The user sets a new password afterwards, so a forgotten password does not mean a reinstalled laptop.

Can the patch management add-on be used with the on-premises console?

No. ESET states that Vulnerability & Patch Management is not available in ESET PROTECT On-Prem and requires the cloud-based console. If you plan to patch third-party applications centrally, this effectively decides your console deployment model.