Naarrgghhh!!! Virus!

[Slytovhand]

Yep, I've got one (on my home pc, not here!)

And it's a nasty one....

Nasty enough, that it's made my Avast turn off, and won't allow it to restart (something about not being a 16bit or some such..??)

Anyway - any suggestions on what to do to fix it easily??

I know I'll basically need another PC to d/l something else (to USB, I'm thinking) - but any suggestions on what I should use for it?? And best way to do it?

Need help quick..

[SteeleDragon78]

this post here has my fave tool for virus removal. its a kaspersky live repair cd, download it burn it to disk and run on the infected pc, it runs linux and never needs to run in windows lets see the virus beat that hehehe

[Slytovhand]

Thanks Steele.. we'll see. I'm asking a mate of mine to do it (how else am I going to go online to d/l??)

[Broomjockey]

(how else am I going to go online to d/l??)

Safemode with networking?

[lordlundar]

Safemode with networking?

Um, no.
No.
NO!
NO!!!
DEAR GOD NO!!!!

suffice to say, there are a number of viruses that attack the kernel and even running in safe mode with networking doesn't stop it. Without knowing exactly what virus it is, we can't confirm if that setup is safe, so the best approach is to not take the chance.

(note, the following instruction is if you have no problems opening your computer case and it's a desktop. If both do not apply, then disregard)

Best approach is if you are saving your self made files (game saves, documents, photos, bookmarks, etc) on another physical hard drive and if you have confirmed the virus doesn't come from or spread to one of those files, the open your case up and disconnect both the data cable and the power cable from said drive. This will minimize the spread rate.

I did a nice little write up on procedures for recovering from a virus, you might want to take a look at it. As for a particular remover, whatever you choose, the best bet is to get one that runs from a boot disk. This way, there is a negligible amount of time the infected files are in use, which is important because if the infected file is running, it's nearly impossible to remove the file or virus.

If all else fails, boot and nuke as a last ditch effort.

(and yes, I have been infected with more than one virus which has attacked the kernel, one of which was a chron virus)

[Slytovhand]

I should point out the timing of said virus! (oh, I might add, I'm presuming there's a virus, as I haven't actually detected one.. I just note how all of a sudden my firewall and AV don't want to work on my system!)

The timing is incredibly relevant.

I've had all my AV and FW stuff for years (updates auto), with no issues.

But, it waits until about a week after I off-load my old computer... you know, the one that I could have safely gone online and downloaded the bootable...myself.... <bastards>!

[Slytovhand]

and now... even more fun!

ZoneAlarm won't install due to some 'TrueVector' issue.. <sigh>

[crashhelmet]

I'm assuming this hasn't been resolved yet, as there's been no updates, but Windows Updates have been notoriously famous for disabling 3rd party security programs or causing said programs to wreak havoc on systems.

For example, an update released last year caused people with Zone Alarm firewalls to not be able to get online. The fix was to either uninstall Zone Alarm or the specific update that MS put out. It's possible that another might be conflicting with the apps you've got installed.

For the TrueVector error, the only way I've been able to clear that is to do a complete and clean uninstall and reinstall of ZA. It might be related to the problem. It might be separate.

Also, have you tried restoring back to the last time it worked? Do you have restore points set?

CH

[Slytovhand]

Hey CH. 'resolved'.. yes... for a given definition of 'resolved'...

I sought online advice from other forums and all, and it took some working around (like going into safe mode to disable, and then rebooting and then uninstalling...). So that was finally resolved.

But.....

Virus took out other things - such as partition tables (my 500G HDD suddenly had a 1TB partition! Cool!!! not...).

So, because nothing would recognise how it was formatted (Partition Magic, nor windoze, nor anything else), I had to delete partitions and start all over from scratch...

Which now leaves me with a new problem.... I have no sound. AFAIK, everything is all fully installed and functioning... but I have no sound.. (ok, before you ask... yes, checked wires, not mute, volume up, drivers apparently installed ok - windows says everything is functioning properly....)

<sigh> sometimes, don't we just hate them!

[Geek King]

Well, you should be able to just download the sound drivers from the appropriate manufacturer and install again. I've had to do that with our work HPs several times. Usually just a matter of downloading them and running them.

If you have a sound card, check with the maker. Otherwise, you should find them on the PC/laptop manufaturer's site.

[Andara Bledin]

I, personally, try to avoid partitioned drives any more. I've had too many issues with my partitions going wonky in ways that non-partitioned drives just don't. Although I will admit that in one case, it was due to physical defects in the drive and not the partitions themselves.

The last firewall I used for myself was Comodo. It was free, it worked well, and it didn't cause problems with any other programs or games I used.

^-.-^