Robert

 

I think so but hedge your bet by buying 2 x 256 mb. If that works buy

another 2 x 256 mb.

 

 

--

 

 

 

Hope this helps.

 

Gerry

~~~~

FCA

Stourport, England

Enquire, plan and execute

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Robert wrote:

> On Jan 12, 7:49 am, "Daave" <dcwashNOS...@myrealboxXYZ.invalid> wrote:

>> To Robert (additions to Gerry's post inline):

>>

>> "Gerry" <ge...@nospam.com> wrote in message

>>

>> news:uT4QZVSVIHA.5360@TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl...

>>

>>> Robert

>>

>>> I appreciate cost is an issue but adding 2 x 128 mb will not

>>> represent value for money. When you need to upgrade again it will

>>> be dead money. You should try to afford 2 x 256 mb.

>>

>> Agreed. See:

>>

>> http://www.starmicro.net/detail.aspx?ID=401

>>

>> 2 x $38 = $76.

>>

>> The extra $26 is buying you twice the memory.

>>

>>> I cannot comment on the source as I know nothing about it.

>>

>> It's the first I heard of them, too. Ask around. Search the Web for

>> any complaints.

>

> I will check and see what I can find but at this point it seems this

> is my only option versus Crucial . If I do buy, I think I can afford

> to buy 4x256 giving me 1024MB.

>

> If so, then this should fix my problems, correct?

>

>

> Robert

On Jan 12, 10:44 am, "Gerry" <ge...@nospam.com> wrote:

> Robert

>

> I think so but hedge your bet by buying 2 x 256 mb. If that works buy

> another 2 x 256 mb.

>

> --

>

> Hope  this helps.

>

> Gerry

> ~~~~

> FCA

> Stourport, England

> Enquire, plan and execute

> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

>

>

>

> Robert wrote:

> > On Jan 12, 7:49 am, "Daave" <dcwashNOS...@myrealboxXYZ.invalid> wrote:

> >> To Robert (additions to Gerry's post inline):

>

> >> "Gerry" <ge...@nospam.com> wrote in message

>

> >>news:uT4QZVSVIHA.5360@TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl...

>

> >>> Robert

>

> >>> I appreciate cost is an issue but adding 2 x 128 mb will not

> >>> represent value for money. When you need to upgrade again it will

> >>> be dead money. You should try to afford 2 x 256 mb.

>

> >> Agreed. See:

>

> >>http://www.starmicro.net/detail.aspx?ID=401

>

> >> 2 x $38 = $76.

>

> >> The extra $26 is buying you twice the memory.

>

> >>> I cannot comment on the source as I know nothing about it.

>

> >> It's the first I heard of them, too. Ask around. Search the Web for

> >> any complaints.

>

> > I will check and see what I can find but at this point it seems this

> > is my only option versus Crucial . If I do buy, I think I can afford

> > to  buy 4x256 giving me 1024MB.

>

> > If so, then this should fix my problems, correct?

>

> > Robert- Hide quoted text -

>

> - Show quoted text -

 

I did a little reserach on Starmicro and this is what I found:

 

http://www.pricewatch.com/public/feedback.aspx?q=3055&i=2

 

What do you think?

 

Robert

On Jan 12, 10:44 am, "Gerry" <ge...@nospam.com> wrote:

> Robert

>

> I think so but hedge your bet by buying 2 x 256 mb. If that works buy

> another 2 x 256 mb.

>

> --

>

> Hope  this helps.

>

> Gerry

> ~~~~

> FCA

> Stourport, England

> Enquire, plan and execute

> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

>

 

 

It sounds like good advice instead of putting all my eggs into one

basket so to speck. Also it says "Kit means you have to buy 2Qty"

 

http://www.starmicro.net/detail.aspx?ID=401

 

since I'm don't see the word kit I'm assuming that for Qty I need to

buy (2), correct? Sorry for all the questions but this is new to me.

 

 

Robert

"Robert" <magineeer@hotmail.com> wrote in message

news:be70a807-6283-42cb-8fc3-0631e21f4d14@l1g2000hsa.googlegroups.com...

> I will check and see what I can find but at this point it seems this

> is my only option versus Crucial . If I do buy, I think I can afford

> to buy 4x256 giving me 1024MB.

>

> If so, then this should fix my problems, correct?

 

Very possible, but not a slam dunk.

 

You probably got rid of all your malware, but it's possible you may

still have some undetected. Bottom line: Assuming you are truly

malware-free*, your biggest problem is probably not having enough

memory, so adding memory should improve your system's performance.

 

* If you suspect you may still have undetected malware, I will again

suggest you run HijackThis. Download it from:

 

http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/programs.php

 

and post the log to an appropriate forum, such as:

 

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/forum22.html

 

Here's a helpful tutorial:

 

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/tutorials/tutorial42.html

 

In case you haven't tried Process Explorer, you should it's good at

identifying resource/memory hogs:

 

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb896653.aspx

 

Finally, Clean Boot Troubleshooting is always a thorough diagnostic:

 

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/316434

> > If so, then this should fix my problems, correct?

>

> Very possible, but not a slam dunk.

>

> You probably got rid of all your malware, but it's possible you may

> still have some undetected. Bottom line: Assuming you are truly

> malware-free*, your biggest problem is probably not having enough

> memory, so adding memory should improve your system's performance.

>

> * If you suspect you may still have undetected malware, I will again

> suggest you run HijackThis. Download it from:

>

> http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/programs.php

>

> and post the log to an appropriate forum, such as:

>

> http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/forum22.html

>

> Here's a helpful tutorial:

>

> http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/tutorials/tutorial42.html

>

> In case you haven't tried Process Explorer, you should it's good at

> identifying resource/memory hogs:

>

> http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb896653.aspx

>

> Finally, Clean Boot Troubleshooting is always a thorough diagnostic:

>

> http://support.microsoft.com/kb/316434

 

 

 

I actually don't think I have any malware though Trend Micro found the

Http Cookie, which I deleted and then re-ran at its suggestion and

came out clean and Kapersky found the Malware Exploit.JS.XMLcore.b,

which I deleted

 

I now have AVG, Spybot, A-Squared, Kapersky, Trend Micro and Comodo on

my system and would think I should be protected.

 

I thought I did the Hijack before and posted it in one of my replies?

However I ran it again and this time posted it to Bleeping Computer.

 

I saved the Bleeping Computer Tutorial the first time you gave it to

me.

 

I ran Process Explorer but really don't know what I'm looking for. In

any event here are some results:

 

CPU Usage 3.08% - 8.90% (keeps changing)

Commit Charge 18.16% 404.7MB

Processes 47 I.O.

36.1Kb

 

Commit Charge:

Current 414,400

Limit 2,286,352

Peak 439,484

 

I think I ran something similar before, Everest? By the way I noticed

I have Speed fan, is that just to monitor the internal feather fan and

do I need it? Or can I delete it?

 

Clean Boot seems a bit advanced as it talks about going into msconfig

and changing the registry, and I'm VERY leary of doing this one so I

backed out of it.

Seems very complicated and at the beginning it says you must know how

to recover from msconfig, oh great! Do I really need to do this?

 

At this point I've done everything you and Gerry have advised with

only a couple of exceptions such as Clean Boot. Unless you have

further recommendations or suggestions I'll call StarMicro to make

sure they have the RAM in stock and if so place an order for (2)

sticks of 256 RAM following Gerry's advise. If they work, then I will

place an order for two more.

 

 

Robert

On Jan 12, 6:18 pm, Robert <magine...@hotmail.com> wrote:

> > > If so, then this should fix my problems, correct?

>

> > Very possible, but not a slam dunk.

>

> > You probably got rid of all your malware, but it's possible you may

> > still have some undetected. Bottom line: Assuming you are truly

> > malware-free*, your biggest problem is probably not having enough

> > memory, so adding memory should improve your system's performance.

>

> > * If you suspect you may still have undetected malware, I will again

> > suggest you run HijackThis. Download it from:

>

> >http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/programs.php

>

> > and post the log to an appropriate forum, such as:

>

> >http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/forum22.html

>

> > Here's a helpful tutorial:

>

> >http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/tutorials/tutorial42.html

>

> > In case you haven't tried Process Explorer, you should it's good at

> > identifying resource/memory hogs:

>

> >http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb896653.aspx

>

> > Finally, Clean Boot Troubleshooting is always a thorough diagnostic:

>

> >http://support.microsoft.com/kb/316434

>

> I actually don't think I have any malware though Trend Micro found the

> Http Cookie, which I deleted and then re-ran at  its suggestion and

> came out clean and  Kapersky found the Malware Exploit.JS.XMLcore.b,

> which I deleted

>

> I now have AVG, Spybot, A-Squared, Kapersky, and Comodo on

> my system and would think I should be protected.

>

 

 

and Avast!

 

Robert

>

> Clean Boot seems a bit advanced as it talks about going into msconfig

> and changing the registry, and I'm VERY leary of doing this one so I

> backed out of it.

> Seems very complicated and at the beginning it says you must know how

> to recover from msconfig, oh great! Do I really need to do this?

>

 

 

I did go into Autoruns versus msconfig and checked a number of

applications. I understand that Clean Boot is something different

altogether and goes through a step by step process but it seemed very

'iffy' to me and could cause more problems.

 

Robert

"Robert" <magineeer@hotmail.com> wrote in message

news:84c3d2d1-d26e-4453-bafa-b6ba706c481a@j78g2000hsd.googlegroups.com...

> I actually don't think I have any malware though Trend Micro found the

> Http Cookie, which I deleted and then re-ran at its suggestion and

> came out clean and Kapersky found the Malware Exploit.JS.XMLcore.b,

> which I deleted

>

> I now have AVG, Spybot, A-Squared, Kapersky, Trend Micro and Comodo on

> my system and would think I should be protected.

 

Chances are you don't have malware. But since you *did* have malware at

one point (the XML exploit), I was concerned there might be other

undetected infections.

 

How are Kaspersky and Trend Micro configured? You should not have them

running at the same time! (That is, if they both are monitoring/scanning

your system at the same time, you will have problems.)

> I thought I did the Hijack before and posted it in one of my replies?

> However I ran it again and this time posted it to Bleeping Computer.

 

I haven't seen your log. What is your handle on Bleeping Computer?

> I ran Process Explorer but really don't know what I'm looking for. In

> any event here are some results:

 

If you have any resource/memory hogs, you will be able to quickly tell

what they are with Process Explorer. It's similar to Task Manager, but

it provides more information, including the full paths of your running

processes.

> CPU Usage 3.08% - 8.90% (keeps changing)

> Commit Charge 18.16% 404.7MB

> Processes 47 I.O.

> 36.1Kb

>

> Commit Charge:

> Current 414,400

> Limit 2,286,352

> Peak 439,484

>

> I think I ran something similar before, Everest? By the way I noticed

> I have Speed fan, is that just to monitor the internal feather fan and

> do I need it? Or can I delete it?

 

You saw these figures previously with Task Manager (Performance tab).

You don't need SpeedFan. You may as well uninstall it since Everest can

give you the same information.

> Clean Boot seems a bit advanced as it talks about going into msconfig

> and changing the registry, and I'm VERY leary of doing this one so I

> backed out of it.

 

If you image your hard drive and things go wrong, you can always put

that image back and you'll be fine.

> Seems very complicated and at the beginning it says you must know how

> to recover from msconfig, oh great! Do I really need to do this?

 

Not necessarily. Chances are all you need to do is put in more memory.

But if you ever want to pinpoint any particular problems (such as a

particular problem spinning its wheels), clean boot troubleshooting is a

sure thing.

> At this point I've done everything you and Gerry have advised with

> only a couple of exceptions such as Clean Boot. Unless you have

> further recommendations or suggestions I'll call StarMicro to make

> sure they have the RAM in stock and if so place an order for (2)

> sticks of 256 RAM following Gerry's advise. If they work, then I will

> place an order for two more.

 

That's good advice. You already have 256 MB. Installing another 512 MB

will bring you up to 768 MB, which should be more than enough,

considering your Current and Peak Commit Charge figures.

On Jan 14, 9:34 am, "Daave" <dcwashNOS...@myrealboxXYZ.invalid> wrote:

> "Robert" <magine...@hotmail.com> wrote in message

>

> news:84c3d2d1-d26e-4453-bafa-b6ba706c481a@j78g2000hsd.googlegroups.com...

>

> > I actually don't think I have any malware though Trend Micro found the

> > Http Cookie, which I deleted and then re-ran at its suggestion and

> > came out clean and Kapersky found the Malware Exploit.JS.XMLcore.b,

> > which I deleted

>

> > I now have AVG, Spybot, A-Squared, Kapersky, Trend Micro and Comodo on

> > my system and would think I should be protected.

>

> Chances are you don't have malware. But since you *did* have malware at

> one point (the XML exploit), I was concerned there might be other

> undetected infections.

>

> How are Kaspersky and Trend Micro configured? You should not have them

> running at the same time! (That is, if they both are monitoring/scanning

> your system at the same time, you will have problems.)

>

> > I thought I did the Hijack before and posted it in one of my replies?

> > However I ran it again and this time posted it to Bleeping Computer.

>

> I haven't seen your log. What is your handle on Bleeping Computer?

>

> > I ran Process Explorer but really don't know what I'm looking for. In

> > any event here are some results:

>

> If you have any resource/memory hogs, you will be able to quickly tell

> what they are with Process Explorer. It's similar to Task Manager, but

> it provides more information, including the full paths of your running

> processes.

>

> > CPU Usage 3.08% - 8.90% (keeps changing)

> > Commit Charge 18.16% 404.7MB

> > Processes 47 I.O.

> > 36.1Kb

>

> > Commit Charge:

> > Current 414,400

> > Limit 2,286,352

> > Peak 439,484

>

> > I think I ran something similar before, Everest? By the way I noticed

> > I have Speed fan, is that just to monitor the internal feather fan and

> > do I need it? Or can I delete it?

>

> You saw these figures previously with Task Manager (Performance tab).

> You don't need SpeedFan. You may as well uninstall it since Everest can

> give you the same information.

>

> > Clean Boot seems a bit advanced as it talks about going into msconfig

> > and changing the registry, and I'm VERY leary of doing this one so I

> > backed out of it.

>

> If you image your hard drive and things go wrong, you can always put

> that image back and you'll be fine.

>

> > Seems very complicated and at the beginning it says you must know how

> > to recover from msconfig, oh great! Do I really need to do this?

>

> Not necessarily. Chances are all you need to do is put in more memory.

> But if you ever want to pinpoint any particular problems (such as a

> particular problem spinning its wheels), clean boot troubleshooting is a

> sure thing.

>

> > At this point I've done everything you and Gerry have advised with

> > only a couple of exceptions such as Clean Boot. Unless you have

> > further recommendations or suggestions I'll call StarMicro to make

> > sure they have the RAM in stock and if so place an order for (2)

> > sticks of 256 RAM following Gerry's advise. If they work, then I will

> > place an order for two more.

>

> That's good advice. You already have 256 MB. Installing another 512 MB

> will bring you up to 768 MB, which should be more than enough,

> considering your Current and Peak Commit Charge figures.

 

 

 

Hello Daave,

 

Chances are you don't have malware. But since you *did* have malware

at

one point (the XML exploit), I was concerned there might be other

undetected infections.

 

I understand

 

How are Kaspersky and Trend Micro configured? You should not have

them

running at the same time! (That is, if they both are monitoring/

scanning

your system at the same time, you will have problems.)

 

I never run any of my scans simultaneously but one at a time. I

realize I don't have Trend Micro, I just did their free online scan.

As far as my Kapersky settings, here they are(I think):

 

Run Mode - manually

FTP Passive mode - yes

Connection timeout - 60 seconds

User proxy server - Automatically detect the proxy server settings

(exclude local addresses)

Rescan Quarantine - yes

Region - Autodetection

Update Application rules - yes

> I thought I did the Hijack before and posted it in one of my replies?

> However I ran it again and this time posted it to Bleeping Computer.

I haven't seen your log. What is your handle on Bleeping Computer?

 

My handle is Navyguy, I apparently posted it in the wrong forum and

didn't do it right as it was moved by a moderator.

> I ran Process Explorer but really don't know what I'm looking for. In

> any event here are some results:

If you have any resource/memory hogs, you will be able to quickly

tell

what they are with Process Explorer. It's similar to Task Manager,

but

it provides more information, including the full paths of your

running

processes.

 

I suppose my biggest memory hog is my ImageX program(Dell Imagining)

which you and Gerry asked about but it's a program I use quite allot

and I like it very much. However I have been moving the bulk of my jpg

and other files to disk while I understand this isn't going to make

my computer run faster it should help speed up my scans since those

files are no longer there.

 

You saw these figures previously with Task Manager (Performance tab).

You don't need SpeedFan. You may as well uninstall it since Everest

can

give you the same information.

 

I uninstalled Speed Fan

 

Clean Boot seems a bit advanced as it talks about going into

msconfig

and changing the registry, and I'm VERY leary of doing this one so I

backed out of it.

 

If you image your hard drive and things go wrong, you can always put

that image back and you'll be fine.

 

How do I image my hard drive?

 

Seems very complicated and at the beginning it says you must know how

to recover from msconfig, oh great! Do I really need to do this?

 

Not necessarily. Chances are all you need to do is put in more

memory.

But if you ever want to pinpoint any particular problems (such as a

particular problem spinning its wheels), clean boot troubleshooting is

a

sure thing.

 

I'll give it a try if you tell me how to image my hard drive. (It kind

of sounds like cloning my drive to a external backup) I do have System

Restore but I assume what your talking about is a true imagin of my

operating system.

> At this point I've done everything you and Gerry have advised with

> only a couple of exceptions such as Clean Boot. Unless you have

> further recommendations or suggestions I'll call StarMicro to make

> sure they have the RAM in stock and if so place an order for (2)

> sticks of 256 RAM following Gerry's advise. If they work, then I will

> place an order for two more.

 

I called StarMicro to make sure they had the parts in stock and also

because most of the positive reviews on Pricewatch called beforehand.

So I will be placing the order soon.

 

That's good advice. You already have 256 MB. Installing another 512

MB

will bring you up to 768 MB, which should be more than enough,

considering your Current and Peak Commit Charge figures.

 

Thanks again for all your great advice, I appreciate it.

 

Robert

I forgot to add that I scanned my computer recently with Kapersky and

it came out clean. Planning to run Spybot, AVG and A-Squared later and

will report if they find anything.

 

 

Robert

"Robert" <magineeer@hotmail.com> wrote in message

news:90cea1ee-e996-4c6e-8831-9aa10ca90304@s13g2000prd.googlegroups.com...

> My handle is Navyguy, I apparently posted it in the wrong forum and

> didn't do it right as it was moved by a moderator.

 

I assume this is yours:

 

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/topic125517.html

 

If so, it looks like you still have malware:

 

O3 - Toolbar: (no name) - {a2595f37-48d0-46a1-9b51-478591a97764} - (no

file)

 

See:

 

http://www.castlecops.com/tk30341-Protection_Bar.html

 

You should post again to HijackThis Logs and Malware Removal forum:

 

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/forum22.html

 

Tell them you suspect:

 

"ProtectionBar, rogue 'security software', related to the notorious

PS_Guard/SpywareQuake/WinAntivirus foistware and detected as a variant

of the FakeAle aka Zlob or Puper trojan."

 

Please confirm if that is your post. If so, there are other things I

noticed that you should fix. But it would actually be best to follow the

advice of the experts from that particular forum.

> I suppose my biggest memory hog is my ImageX program(Dell Imagining)

> which you and Gerry asked about but it's a program I use quite allot

> and I like it very much.

 

I didn't see it in that log. Have you temporarily disabled it?

> However I have been moving the bulk of my jpg

> and other files to disk while I understand this isn't going to make

> my computer run faster it should help speed up my scans since those

> files are no longer there.

 

I'm not sure that would speed anything up at all (unless there is some

sort of cache issue with that program).

> How do I image my hard drive?

 

With an imaging program such as Acronis True Image.

> I'll give it a try if you tell me how to image my hard drive. (It kind

> of sounds like cloning my drive to a external backup) I do have System

> Restore but I assume what your talking about is a true imagin of my

> operating system.

 

It's similar to cloning. This should help:

 

http://groups.google.com/group/microsoft.public.windowsxp.general/msg/b69de2dfca9b7779

 

Although it's always a good idea to periodically image your disk, it's

quite possible you'll never need to restore that image. Think of it as

insurance. And chances are System Restore will work, so just make sure

you have restore points.

On Jan 15, 11:10 am, "Daave" <dcwashNOS...@myrealboxXYZ.invalid>

wrote:

> "Robert" <magine...@hotmail.com> wrote in message

>

> news:90cea1ee-e996-4c6e-8831-9aa10ca90304@s13g2000prd.googlegroups.com...

>

> > My handle is Navyguy, I apparently posted it in the wrong forum and

> > didn't do it right as it was moved by a moderator.

>

> I assume this is yours:

>

> http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/topic125517.html

>

> If so, it looks like you still have malware:

>

> O3 - Toolbar: (no name) - {a2595f37-48d0-46a1-9b51-478591a97764} - (no

> file)

>

> See:

>

> http://www.castlecops.com/tk30341-Protection_Bar.html

>

> You should post again to HijackThis Logs and Malware Removal forum:

>

> http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/forum22.html

>

> Tell them you suspect:

>

> "ProtectionBar, rogue 'security software', related to the notorious

> PS_Guard/SpywareQuake/WinAntivirus foistware and detected as a variant

> of the FakeAle aka Zlob or Puper trojan."

>

> Please confirm if that is your post. If so, there are other things I

> noticed that you should fix. But it would actually be best to follow the

> advice of the experts from that particular forum.

 

Yes, that is my post. To be honest, I found posting on bleeping

computer to be a bit confusing and as you see I did it wrong the first

time around. I had no idea it would get this involved since I thought

the anti-virus/malware/firewall programs I have should catch these.

>

> > I suppose my biggest memory hog is my ImageX program(Dell Imagining)

> > which you and Gerry asked about but it's a program I use quite allot

> > and I like it very much.

>

> I didn't see it in that log. Have you temporarily disabled it?

 

No, I haven't disabled it but perhaps I'm speaking of apples and

oranges on my part.

>

> > However I have been moving the bulk of my jpg

> > and other files to disk while I understand this isn't going to make

> > my computer run faster it should help speed up my scans since those

> > files are no longer there.

>

> I'm not sure that would speed anything up at all (unless there is some

> sort of cache issue with that program).

 

I guess I don't understand how computers work very well. I thought

since it had to scan say for example 60 jpg folders and now there is

only 1 I thought it would decrease the amount of scan time?

>

> > How do I image my hard drive?

>

> With an imaging program such as Acronis True Image.

>

> > I'll give it a try if you tell me how to image my hard drive. (It kind

> > of sounds like cloning my drive to a external backup) I do have System

> > Restore but I assume what your talking about is a true imagin of my

> > operating system.

>

> It's similar to cloning. This should help:

>

> http://groups.google.com/group/microsoft.public.windowsxp.general/msg...

>

> Although it's always a good idea to periodically image your disk, it's

> quite possible you'll never need to restore that image. Think of it as

> insurance. And chances are System Restore will work, so just make sure

> you have restore points.

 

I will check over once again what you've given me and give it all a

try. I also ordered (2) 256MB sticks from StarMicro today and just

hope they arrive and all goes well(fingers crossed). As I said, I

called them to make sure they had them in stock so that shouldn't be

an issue.

 

 

 

 

Robert

On Jan 15, 11:36 am, Robert <magine...@hotmail.com> wrote:

> On Jan 15, 11:10 am, "Daave" <dcwashNOS...@myrealboxXYZ.invalid>

> wrote:

>

>

>

>

>

> > "Robert" <magine...@hotmail.com> wrote in message

>

> >news:90cea1ee-e996-4c6e-8831-9aa10ca90304@s13g2000prd.googlegroups.com...

>

> > > My handle is Navyguy, I apparently posted it in the wrong forum and

> > > didn't do it right as it was moved by a moderator.

>

> > I assume this is yours:

>

> >http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/topic125517.html

>

> > If so, it looks like you still have malware:

>

> > O3 - Toolbar: (no name) - {a2595f37-48d0-46a1-9b51-478591a97764} - (no

> > file)

>

> > See:

>

> >http://www.castlecops.com/tk30341-Protection_Bar.html

>

> > You should post again to HijackThis Logs and Malware Removal forum:

>

> >http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/forum22.html

>

> > Tell them you suspect:

>

> > "ProtectionBar, rogue 'security software', related to the notorious

> > PS_Guard/SpywareQuake/WinAntivirus foistware and detected as a variant

> > of the FakeAle aka Zlob or Puper trojan."

>

> > Please confirm if that is your post. If so, there are other things I

> > noticed that you should fix. But it would actually be best to follow the

> > advice of the experts from that particular forum.

>

> Yes, that is my post. To be honest, I found posting on bleeping

> computer to be a bit confusing and as you see I did it wrong the first

> time around. I had no idea it would get this involved since I thought

> the anti-virus/malware/firewall programs I have should catch these.

>

>

>

> > > I suppose my biggest memory hog is my ImageX program(Dell Imagining)

> > > which you and Gerry asked about but it's a program I use quite allot

> > > and I like it very much.

>

> > I didn't see it in that log. Have you temporarily disabled it?

>

> No, I haven't disabled it but perhaps I'm speaking of apples and

> oranges on my part.

>

>

>

> > > However I have been moving the bulk of my jpg

> > > and other files to disk while I understand this isn't going to make

> > > my computer run faster it should help speed up my scans since those

> > > files are no longer there.

>

> > I'm not sure that would speed anything up at all (unless there is some

> > sort of cache issue with that program).

>

> I guess I don't understand how computers work very well. I thought

> since it had to scan say for example 60 jpg folders and now there is

> only 1 I thought it would decrease the amount of scan time?

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

> > > How do I image my hard drive?

>

> > With an imaging program such as Acronis True Image.

>

> > > I'll give it a try if you tell me how to image my hard drive. (It kind

> > > of sounds like cloning my drive to a external backup) I do have System

> > > Restore but I assume what your talking about is a true imagin of my

> > > operating system.

>

> > It's similar to cloning. This should help:

>

> >http://groups.google.com/group/microsoft.public.windowsxp.general/msg...

>

> > Although it's always a good idea to periodically image your disk, it's

> > quite possible you'll never need to restore that image. Think of it as

> > insurance. And chances are System Restore will work, so just make sure

> > you have restore points.

>

> I will check over once again what you've given me and give it all a

> try. I also ordered (2) 256MB sticks from StarMicro today and just

> hope they arrive and all goes well(fingers crossed). As I said, I

> called them to make sure they had them in stock so that shouldn't be

> an issue.

>

> Robert- Hide quoted text -

>

> - Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text -

>

> - Show quoted text -

 

 

I posted my Hikack log once again to BleepingComputer with your

suggestions and just hope I did it right this time and get some

replies.

 

I ran Spybot, A-squared, Avast, and AVG and all came up with nothing.

 

 

Robert

>

> Please confirm if that is your post. If so, there are other things I

> noticed that you should fix. But it would actually be best to follow the

> advice of the experts from that particular forum.

>

 

 

 

What other things did you notice that I should fix?

 

 

Robert

>

> > How do I image my hard drive?

>

> With an imaging program such as Acronis True Image.

>

> > I'll give it a try if you tell me how to image my hard drive. (It kind

> > of sounds like cloning my drive to a external backup) I do have System

> > Restore but I assume what your talking about is a true imagin of my

> > operating system.

>

> It's similar to cloning. This should help:

>

> http://groups.google.com/group/microsoft.public.windowsxp.general/msg...

>

> Although it's always a good idea to periodically image your disk, it's

> quite possible you'll never need to restore that image. Think of it as

> insurance. And chances are System Restore will work, so just make sure

> you have restore points.

 

 

It seems before I attempt to do a Clean Boot I need to purchase

Acronis so that I can image my hard drive, correct? If so, I have to

wait till my next check,...

 

Robert

Robert wrote:

>> Please confirm if that is your post. If so, there are other things I

>> noticed that you should fix. But it would actually be best to follow

>> the advice of the experts from that particular forum.

> What other things did you notice that I should fix?

 

First, I noticed you have an Adobe (Acrobat?) ActiveX Control:

AcroIEHelper.ocx, which is an unnecessary waste of memory. It's possible

to configure Adobe Reader to run less obtrusively:

 

http://weblogs.mozillazine.org/asa/archives/007183.html

 

But, you may be happier just uninstalling Adobe Reader completely and

going with the much leaner Foxit PDF reader:

 

http://www.foxitsoftware.com/pdf/rd_intro.php

 

Also, I would stay away from all toolbars there seem to be *three* on

your system (Yahoo, MSN Search, and Google)! I'd uninstall them all.

 

If you don't use MSN Messenger, you should uninstall it.

 

There are tons of entries for Logitech Desktop Messenger. If you don't

use it, uninstall it.

 

There are entries for AVG, Avast, and Kaspersky. Are you using them all?

Are you sure there are no conflicts? I also noticed an entry for

Symantec what is that to?

Robert wrote:

> It seems before I attempt to do a Clean Boot I need to purchase

> Acronis so that I can image my hard drive, correct? If so, I have to

> wait till my next check,...

 

Not necessarily. I would just make sure you back up your data (which you

should do regularly, anyway) and have a valid restore point in System

Restore (ditto).

 

If you want a free imaging program, you can try DriveImage XML:

 

http://www.runtime.org/dixml.htm

 

But Acronis does seem to be the overwhelming favorite! YMMV.

Robert wrote:

> On Jan 15, 11:10 am, "Daave" <dcwashNOS...@myrealboxXYZ.invalid>

> wrote:

>> "Robert" <magine...@hotmail.com> wrote in message

>>> I suppose my biggest memory hog is my ImageX program(Dell Imagining)

>>> which you and Gerry asked about but it's a program I use quite allot

>>> and I like it very much.

>>

>> I didn't see it in that log. Have you temporarily disabled it?

>

> No, I haven't disabled it but perhaps I'm speaking of apples and

> oranges on my part.

 

I'm not so sure ImageX ("Image Expert," I believe) is a memory hog, but

I do recall a mention of it in one of your error reports. I know nothing

of this program. I suggest if you want to continue using it and if you

experience further issues with it, post these concerns in a Dell forum.

>>> However I have been moving the bulk of my jpg

>>> and other files to disk while I understand this isn't going to make

>>> my computer run faster it should help speed up my scans since those

>>> files are no longer there.

>>

>> I'm not sure that would speed anything up at all (unless there is

>> some sort of cache issue with that program).

>

> I guess I don't understand how computers work very well. I thought

> since it had to scan say for example 60 jpg folders and now there is

> only 1 I thought it would decrease the amount of scan time?

 

Again, I don't know how that program works. And I'm not sure what you

mean by the term "scanning." To me, scanning is what antivirus apps.,

etc. do. Best to ask in a forum with people who run this program. But I

suppose you could easily measure whether or not there is a decreased

"amount of scan time" with a stopwatch. :-)

>

> First, I noticed you have an Adobe (Acrobat?) ActiveX Control:

> AcroIEHelper.ocx, which is an unnecessary waste of memory. It's possible

> to configure Adobe Reader to run less obtrusively:

>

> http://weblogs.mozillazine.org/asa/archives/007183.html

>

> But, you may be happier just uninstalling Adobe Reader completely and

> going with the much leaner Foxit PDF reader:

>

> http://www.foxitsoftware.com/pdf/rd_intro.php

 

 

I removed Adobe, as I never use it. The only reason I had it was that

it came with the software (internal manual) when I upgraded my CD

player to DVD/RW player.

>

> Also, I would stay away from all toolbars there seem to be *three* on

> your system (Yahoo, MSN Search, and Google)! I'd uninstall them all.

 

Regarding toolbars, I show that my menu bar and status bar are checked

and that my toolbars are locked. What I see is my taskbar at the

bottom, and then at the top I believe is the menu bar with file edit

view etc, then below that is status bar with my favorites, home,

print, etc. I don't see a google toolbar although when I started to

remove it, it said that I use it frequently, so I backed out of it and

I do go onto Google allot. I did delete the Yahoo toolbar however.

>

> If you don't use MSN Messenger, you should uninstall it.

 

I don't use MSN per se very much but I like the icon that lets me know

when there is mail and my computer and Hotmail 'seem' to run better

with it than without it. I know that doesn't make sense.

>

> There are tons of entries for Logitech Desktop Messenger. If you don't

> use it, uninstall it.

 

Logitech is for my wireless mouse.

>

> There are entries for AVG, Avast, and Kaspersky. Are you using them all?

> Are you sure there are no conflicts? I also noticed an entry for

> Symantec what is that to?

 

After I removed Norton(Symantec) Anti-virus and firewall off my system

I asked about some good replacement programs and ended up with Spybot,

AVG, A-Squared and Comodo, and thought I was well protected. I added

Avast and Kapersky at your suggestion when we were searching for

possible problems. Yes, I am using them all but run them separately

and certainly not on a daily basis otherwise it's all I would be

doing. No, I'm not sure there are no conflicts. Should I just delete

Avast and Kapersky?

 

I'm suprised that I still have Symantec on my system as I thought I

had thoroughly removed it.

 

 

 

Robert

On Jan 15, 4:24 pm, "Daave" <dcwashNOS...@myrealboxXYZ.invalid> wrote:

> Robert wrote:

> > It seems before I attempt to do a Clean Boot I need to purchase

> > Acronis so that I can image my hard drive, correct? If so, I have to

> > wait till my next check,...

>

> Not necessarily. I would just make sure you back up your data (which you

> should do regularly, anyway) and have a valid restore point in System

> Restore (ditto).

>

> If you want a free imaging program, you can try DriveImage XML:

>

> http://www.runtime.org/dixml.htm

>

> But Acronis does seem to be the overwhelming favorite! YMMV.

 

 

I think before running a Clean Boot the malware issue needs to be

resolved first. As yet I haven't heard anything from BleepingComputer.

 

 

Robert

On Jan 15, 4:40 pm, "Daave" <dcwashNOS...@myrealboxXYZ.invalid> wrote:

> Robert wrote:

> > On Jan 15, 11:10 am, "Daave" <dcwashNOS...@myrealboxXYZ.invalid>

> > wrote:

> >> "Robert" <magine...@hotmail.com> wrote in message

> >>> I suppose my biggest memory hog is my ImageX program(Dell Imagining)

> >>> which you and Gerry asked about but it's a program I use quite allot

> >>> and I like it very much.

>

> >> I didn't see it in that log. Have you temporarily disabled it?

>

> > No, I haven't disabled it but perhaps I'm speaking of apples and

> > oranges on my part.

>

> I'm not so sure ImageX ("Image Expert," I believe) is a memory hog, but

> I do recall a mention of it in one of your error reports. I know nothing

> of this program. I suggest if you want to continue using it and if you

> experience further issues with it, post these concerns in a Dell forum.

 

I guess I'm not understanding. I realize ImageX is a memory hog after

all it is a Dell Imaging System but I'm not having problems with it.

It's a place where I store all my images in multiple folders and I'm

able to crop, and manipulate the images with color and special effects

and do all sorts of things.

> Again, I don't know how that program works. And I'm not sure what you

> mean by the term "scanning." To me, scanning is what antivirus apps.,

> etc. do. Best to ask in a forum with people who run this program. But I

> suppose you could easily measure whether or not there is a decreased

> "amount of scan time" with a stopwatch. :-)

 

 

What I mean by the term scanning is exactly what you thought,.. AVG,

Spybot, etc. Do noit all of these programs scan each file looking for

virus's and malware and if there are less files to look at doesn't

that make the scan go faster?

 

As far as forums,.... my malware problem has been viewed 15 times on

BleepingComputer and not one response!

 

Robert

> There are entries for AVG, Avast, and Kaspersky. Are you using them all?

> Are you sure there are no conflicts? I also noticed an entry for

> Symantec what is that to?

 

 

 

I would like to remove all Symantec products from my computer once and

for all, suggestions?

 

Also, if I don't need AVG, Avast, and Kapersky then what would you

recommend I keep?

 

 

Robert

On Jan 16, 12:47 am, Robert <magine...@hotmail.com> wrote:

> > There are entries for AVG, Avast, and Kaspersky. Are you using them all?

> > Are you sure there are no conflicts? I also noticed an entry for

> > Symantec what is that to?

>

> I would like to remove all Symantec products from my computer once and

> for all, suggestions?

>

> Also, if I don't need AVG, Avast, and Kapersky then what would you

> recommend I keep?

>

> Robert

 

I did a search for 'Symantec' in all files and folders on the C: drive

and seems like it's finally, hopefully off my computer.

 

 

Robert

Robert

 

None of the issues Daave has raised relate to malware save for

O3 - Toolbar: (no name) - {a2595f37-48d0-46a1-9b51-478591a97764} - (no

file)

 

This clearly represents a problem:

http://search.live.com/results.aspx?q=a2595f37-48d0-46a1-9b51-478591a97764&scope=&first=11&FORM=PORE

 

Unfortunately when one Trojan gains entry it can hold the door open and

invite friends in.

 

Al the other points I think relate to whether you have extra software

which may best off a system with limited "resources", which given you

only have 256 mb RAM is how I would classify your computer. The extra

RAM will make a lot of difference.

 

You do not have to be so defensive over Adobe. It is pushed at new users

from every direction. It is useful to those who like to edit pdf files

but most users like just to read and print. Foxit has a much smaller

footprint than Adobe and anyone wanting speedier performance will

appreciate this, whether they have limited or abundant "resources. The

switch to Foxit is driven by users exchanging experiences and not by

marketting, where Adobe has all the cards.

 

Removing all traces of Symantec has for many years been a problem. The

most experienced users can have difficulties. You just have to remove

what you find taking care not to damage the Registry when doing so. If

in doubt leave it alone as it is unlikely to have a noticeable impact on

performance. If you remove orphaned start ups using Autoruns you can

forget about any other traces.

 

Messenger can be problematic to remove. Although frequently unused it's

removal can have unwanted side effects. Just stop it from loading on

start up.

 

You will not get a speedy response from Bleeping Computer. You may have

to wait a few days, perhaps a week, before they offer initial advice.

Bleeping Computer will probably volunteer some advice when the present

infestation is removed on how to improve your security arrangements .

FWIW I also see their administration as a little over the top.

 

I am not sure what anti-spyware programme you are relying on for real

time protection. Some programmes only provide for ad hoc scanning. If

you do not have real time protection this may explain your infestation.

 

--

 

 

 

Hope this helps.

 

Gerry

~~~~

FCA

Stourport, England

Enquire, plan and execute

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

Robert wrote:

> On Jan 15, 4:24 pm, "Daave" <dcwashNOS...@myrealboxXYZ.invalid> wrote:

>> Robert wrote:

>>> It seems before I attempt to do a Clean Boot I need to purchase

>>> Acronis so that I can image my hard drive, correct? If so, I have to

>>> wait till my next check,...

>>

>> Not necessarily. I would just make sure you back up your data (which

>> you should do regularly, anyway) and have a valid restore point in

>> System Restore (ditto).

>>

>> If you want a free imaging program, you can try DriveImage XML:

>>

>> http://www.runtime.org/dixml.htm

>>

>> But Acronis does seem to be the overwhelming favorite! YMMV.

>

>

> I think before running a Clean Boot the malware issue needs to be

> resolved first. As yet I haven't heard anything from BleepingComputer.

>

>

> Robert

"Robert" <magineeer@hotmail.com> wrote in message

news:aa23755a-e936-4979-89ff-b7d2c416bab3@e23g2000prf.googlegroups.com...

>> Also, I would stay away from all toolbars there seem to be *three*

>> on

>> your system (Yahoo, MSN Search, and Google)! I'd uninstall them all.

>

> Regarding toolbars, I show that my menu bar and status bar are checked

> and that my toolbars are locked. What I see is my taskbar at the

> bottom, and then at the top I believe is the menu bar with file edit

> view etc, then below that is status bar with my favorites, home,

> print, etc. I don't see a google toolbar although when I started to

> remove it, it said that I use it frequently, so I backed out of it and

> I do go onto Google allot. I did delete the Yahoo toolbar however.

 

When you say your "toolbars are locked," what do you mean? It sounds

like you're talking about your IE toolbar. I'm talking about add-on

software which could possibly slow you down. Personally, I don't think

it's necessary to use any such add-on toolbars. My home page is Google.

If you prefer another home page, Google is easy enough to bookmark. Just

a suggestion.... Also, you didn't mention your MSN Search toolbar. If

you want an add-on browser toolbar, one should be enough.

>> If you don't use MSN Messenger, you should uninstall it.

>

> I don't use MSN per se very much but I like the icon that lets me know

> when there is mail and my computer and Hotmail 'seem' to run better

> with it than without it. I know that doesn't make sense.

 

Since you use MSN Messenger (albeit not that often), don't uninstall it

then. But you can configure it so it doesn't always run at startup,

eating up resources. And whenever you *do* need it, you can still run

it.

>> There are tons of entries for Logitech Desktop Messenger. If you

>> don't

>> use it, uninstall it.

>

> Logitech is for my wireless mouse.

 

Yes, but do you need to run the Logitech Desktop Messenger? See:

 

http://www.windowsstartup.com/wso/detail.php?id=1482

 

"Automatically checks for software upgrades AND new products, services

and special offerings from Logitech"

 

This isn't necessary. I would disable it your mouse will still work

fine.

>> There are entries for AVG, Avast, and Kaspersky. Are you using them

>> all?

>> Are you sure there are no conflicts? I also noticed an entry for

>> Symantec what is that to?

>

> After I removed Norton(Symantec) Anti-virus and firewall off my system

> I asked about some good replacement programs and ended up with Spybot,

> AVG, A-Squared and Comodo, and thought I was well protected. I added

> Avast and Kapersky at your suggestion when we were searching for

> possible problems. Yes, I am using them all but run them separately

> and certainly not on a daily basis otherwise it's all I would be

> doing. No, I'm not sure there are no conflicts. Should I just delete

> Avast and Kapersky?

 

Is Kaspersky just a trial? If not, that means you paid for it, and since

it's one of the highest-rated AV apps, keep it! (BTW, I don't recall

recommending Kaspersky in this thread. Their online scan, yes, but not

the application.)

 

No need to uninstall any apps necessarily. Just make sure you're not

running them at the same time (and this includes real-time scanning).

You need to get into the preferences and configure settings there.

Another way is Autoruns, but I would only use that if you can't do it

any other way.

> I'm suprised that I still have Symantec on my system as I thought I

> had thoroughly removed it.

 

Symantec is notorious for this behavior. Have a look at:

 

http://basconotw.mvps.org/SymRem.htm