What are the advantages of using the scanners, such as the Sharepoint scanner, etc., as opposed to using a UNC to scan the data?

There are two primary benefits to using the scanners:

• Performance. Using .NET APIs is faster than other methods.

Most scanners have a reduced network bandwidth impact because they "crack" open files on the target and send only the extracted text and metadata data back to Symantec DLP Network Discover for detection. Thus, the impact on network bandwidth is minimal.  NOTE:  This will depend on where the scanner is installed. If installed on the Discover server, for example, then there is no bandwidth benefit.

• Metadata. Native APIs give you better access to meta-data, such as document owner and ACLs, that might not be exposed via other scanning methods.

NOTE: Most repositories cannot be scanned via UNC. Hence Symantec DLP has purpose-built scanners for some of these specific targets.

Refer to the below article for a list of currently supported Network Discover scanners:

Network Discover compatibility (broadcom.com)