Patent ID: 7681237

Claim:
A computer-implemented method for performing an anti-virus scan of a file in real-time, the method comprising the steps of: using a computer to execute method steps comprising: a thread manager detecting that an activity concerning a file has been initiated by a first thread; responsive to the detection, the thread manager determining that a scan of the file should be conducted; the thread manager initiating the scan of the file by dispatching the scan to a second thread; the thread manager delaying completion of the activity by the first thread only long enough for the scan to be dispatched to the second thread; the thread manager enabling the first thread to complete the activity that was previously initiated concerning the file synchronously with the scan of the file by the second thread and enabling the first thread to perform other tasks synchronously with the scan of the file by the second thread; the thread manager blocking access to the file by other threads while the scan occurs; the thread manager detecting that a thread other than the second thread is attempting to access the file during the scan and after the first thread has completed the activity concerning the file; and the thread manager placing the thread attempting to access the file on a waiting list for accessing the file until the scanning is completed.