Reinstalling Windows XP

[Mr. Keith]

It looks like I have some type of malware on my computer. I am getting random pop ups and my computer's speed is suffering. I ran Trend Micro Housecall, and I am unable to delete the malware that was identified. One of the problems was a trojan horse installed in my operating system.

So I think I need to clean house and reinstall Windows and everything else. I've done this before, about 5 years ago, with the help of a Dell phone rep.

But the warranty is long expired, and I do not wish to pay for this.

Does anyone have a recommendation on where to look for resources that will help my do this myself?

Or, any other advice that seems relevant?

Thanks!

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

Make sure to backup important files!

Firts, you need to recover your cereal key. Magical Jelly Bean Keyfinder (http://www.magicaljellybean.com/keyfinder/) can do this. It free too.

Then, try this article. http://www.pcworld.com/article/129977/how_to_reinstall_windows_xp.html

Also, make sure to fromat the drive -- sometimes, reinstalling leaves malware behind. I think in the boot sector.

I hope this is good understand. I try to make it simple for laypeople to understand, but I sometimes confuse anyways.

 

[Genocidicbunny]

Why would he need a cereal key?

If the malware was int he boot sector, doing a fixmbr in the recovery console would probably fix it.

I suggest you first try some other anti-virus/malware. After all, reinstalling Windows is a pretty drastic measure.

 

[Mr. Keith]

Thanks, A&B, for the article. That actually seems a lot easier than I remember it being the first time around.

I suggest you first try some other anti-virus/malware. After all, reinstalling Windows is a pretty drastic measure.

Do you recommend any particular software?

My McAfee doesn't even find any malware. I don't trust Housecall either.

Reinstalling Windows WOULD be a pain, but if I have to spend money on any software that may or may not work, I would rather just reinstall.

 

[Zelig]

Check superantispyware from superantispyware.com, just download the free version and follow the instructions.

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

Why would he need a cereal key?

Serial.

 

[Genocidicbunny]

Thanks, A&B, for the article. That actually seems a lot easier than I remember it being the first time around.



Do you recommend any particular software?

My McAfee doesn't even find any malware. I don't trust Housecall either.

Reinstalling Windows WOULD be a pain, but if I have to spend money on any software that may or may not work, I would rather just reinstall.

Avast or AVG would also be good to try.

And McAfee sucks.

 

[Mr. Keith]

And McAfee sucks.

Yes. Yes it does.

 

[Cutlass]

The Dell usually comes with instructions for doing it from the restore CDs with the documentation. Because their restore CDs are a proprietary install of windows and other software rather than a pure windows install. If you have the documentation still, it should be pretty simple to follow it. If you don't have that, you may be able to download the instructions.

 

[Mr. Keith]

Ran the free version of SUPERAntiSpyware. It found 118 cookies and deleted them. No mention of any viruses or trojan horses.

So, to recap:

-McAfee found nothing.
-Housecall found 11 "greyware" type things, a couple viruses which it successfully deleted, and a trojan horse attached to Windows that it could not delete.
-SUPERAntiSpyware found 100+ cookies.

Not sure what to make of these results.

Regarding the trojan horse...it was embedded in the Windows/System32 folder. I manually deleted the file this morning. Just checked, since I restarted the computer, and that file has reappeared.

Anyway, right now my computer is running well and no popups yet, but somehow I doubt my troubles are fixed. I'll wait a couple hours and see if I've miraculously won two free iPod Nanos.

 

[Mr. Keith]

It didn't work.

 

[Shadylookin]

did it come with cds for backup? if so just put in the cds and follow the directions.

If it came with a recovery partition then hit the appropriate function key (usually f10) to start the recovery.

 

[Mr. Keith]

Reinstalled Windows yesterday. Not difficult at all, just time consuming. And there is still a bunch of stuff that I need to reinstall, but I figure I will reinstall most of it as I go.

My computer is running lightning fast right now.