Improving Performance by Using Antivirus Exclusions

Published: 27 Jul 2013
Last Modified Date: 30 Oct 2023

Question

How to improve server performance by using exclusion policies in antivirus software.

Environment

Tableau Server

Answer

Exclude the following Tableau Server folders, and all sub-folders, from on-access (active, continuous) antivirus scanning while Tableau Server is running. Instead, scan the Tableau Server directories while the Tableau Server is stopped or otherwise not in use.

Tableau Server program folder:

C:\Program Files\Tableau\Tableau Server (Windows)
/opt/tableau/tableau_server (Linux)

Tableau Server data folder:

C:\ProgramData\Tableau\Tableau Server\data (Windows)
/var/opt/tableau/tableau_server (Linux)

Note: The ProgramData folder is hidden, by default. To view it, you must set your operating system to show hidden files and folders. Also, Windows Defender Antivirus includes an option to exclude files and folders as well as certain file types and processes from getting scanned and blocked. For more information, go to this link.

It is also possible to install to Linux with a non-default path as described in the Tableau Online Help to Install and Initialize TSM. Non-default data directory Linux path information is included in the Help Output for initialize-tsm Script.

Additional Information

If your Tableau Server is not installed in the default drive, substitute the appropriate location in the above instructions. For example, if your Tableau Server installation is in D:\Tableau, then excluding the following folder D:\Tableau\Tableau Server is sufficient.
Experiences may vary with different antivirus software.
Deactivate the antivirus software temporarily to eliminate or confirm the antivirus software as a cause of the performance issues.