TechBoys

Virus Removal Guide

I know there is lots of guides and different opinions out there, this one works.

This guide has been prepared using information freely available on the internet and has links to free tools to help you removed Virus, Spyware and other forms of Malware.

If you think you have a Virus or Trojan then do the following:

Before you start

Download and install Mozilla Firefox. Do this so that when you are downloading the programs below, you do not arouse the malware to what you are doing!

Also go through your all programs list click Start then click on Control Panel then double click Add or Remove programs) or (click Start then click on Control Panel then double click Programs and Features in Vista) and remove anything that you have not installed, and anything that looks suspicious and is not published by a well known company. You can find out the publisher by clicking the "Click here for support information" link when the program is selected.

How to Boot into Safe Mode

You will be asked to boot into safe mode later on.

Do this by repeatedly tapping F8 when your computer is starting up until you see a screen with text on it showing different boot options, choose Safe Mode.

Disable System Restore

Disable System Restore – go into Control Panel>System>System Restore tab>Disable System Restore on all drives>OK.  When you are sure that virus problem is gone and your PC is working OK then you can turn System Restore on.

Run CCleaner

CCleaner will virus scans run faster. Download CCleaner from http://ccleaner.com. On installation, deselect all options except "Add Desktop Shortcut" and "Add Start Menu Shortcuts". Open CCleaner and click "Run Cleaner".

Install MalwareBytes Anti Malware and clean your HOSTS file

Download Malwarebytes Anti Malware Install it. After installing it, open it and click the "More Tools" tab. Under "FileASSASIN" click Run Tool. In the Window that pops up, navigate to C:\WINDOWS\system32\drives\etc and double click on "hosts". Restart your computer, Update Malwarebytes, then restart your computer in safe mode. Open Malwarebytes and then run a full scan of all your local drives.

Run a scan with your Antivirus program

Run a full scan with your antivirus program and remove any threats found by quarantining them, DO NOT REPAIR OR HEAL OR DELETE. The removal of your current Antivirus program will safely remove the infected files, see the next step.

Remove your current Antivirus program

Remove your current Antivirus tool by going into Control Panel>Add or remove programs or (Control Panel>Programs and Features in vista). If it is Norton’s, you will need to use the Norton Removal Tool

Install Avira AntiVir PersonalEdition Classic

Install Avira AntiVir Personal. Once AntiVir is installed, update it and then reboot into Safe Mode by repeatedly tapping the F8 button when your computer is restarting. Run a full scan by opening My Computer, then right clicking your hard drive and selecting "Scan With AntiVir". Do this for all hard drives listed in my computer.

Install SuperAntiSpyware

Install SuperAntiSpyware, update it, then run a full scan.

Run Avast! antirootkit tool

Download avast! antirootkit
Be sure to close all programs when running this tool. It is not compatible with 64bit systems.

Disable any untrusted Internet Explorer add-ons

Chances are that after cleaning your system, there will still be some adware add-ons loaded into Internet Explorer. Go to Start>Control Panel>Internet Options>Programs>Manage Add-ons. Disable any that you haven't installed – Some trustworthy authors are:

Microsoft Corporation
Adobe Systems Incorporated
Google Inc

If you do all these scans and your system is not clean, then you really need to backup your personal files and reformat and reinstall Windows. Install this program MalwareBytes Anti Malware Pro to help prevent future infections by using real time protection. This will save you money and time.

Remove Antivirus 2009 from your Computer

 

Antivirus 2009 is a new rogue anti-spyware program from the same family as Antivirus 2008. Antivirus 2009 is installed and advertised through the use of misleading web sites that attempt to make you think your computer is infected with a variety of malware. Once installed, Antivirus 2009 will scan your computer and list a variety of fake infections that can't be removed unless you first purchase the software. These infections are fake, though, and only being shown to scare you into purchasing the software.

This guide will walk you through removing the Antivirus 2009 program and its associated malware.

Tools Needed for this fix

MalwareBytes Anti-Malware

Symptoms that may be in a HijackThis Log:

Note: Some of these entries are random named.

O2 - BHO: &Research - {037C7B8A-151A-49E6-BAED-CC05FCB50328} - C:\WINDOWS\system32\winsrc.dll
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [75319611769193918898704537500611] C:\Program Files\Antivirus 2009\av2009.exe
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [ieupdate] "C:\WINDOWS\system32\ieupdates.exe"

Automated Removal Instructions for Antivirus 2009 using Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware:

 

1. Print out these instructions as we will need to close every window that is open later in the fix.
2. Download Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware, or MBAM, from the following location and save it to your desktop:
   
   Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware Download Link

 

3. Once downloaded, close all programs and Windows on your computer, including this one.
4. Double-click on the icon on your desktop named Download_mbam-setup.exe. This will start the installation of Malwarebytes onto your computer.
5. When the installation begins, keep following the prompts in order to continue with the installation process. Do not make any changes to default settings and when the program has finished installing, make sure you leave both the Update Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware and Launch Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware checked. Then click on the Finish button.
6. Malwarebytes will now automatically start and you will see a message stating that you should update the program before performing a scan. As Malwarebytes will automatically update itself after the install, you can press the OK button to close that box and you will now be at the main program as shown below.

 

7.       On the Scanner tab, make sure that the Perform quick scan option is selected and then click on the Scan button to start scanning your computer for Antivirus 2009 related files.

8.       Malwarebytes will now start scanning your computer for malware. This process can take quite a while, so we suggest you go and do something else and periodically check on the status of the scan. When Malwarebytes is scanning it will look like the image below.

 

 

 

9.      When the scan is finished a message box will appear as shown in the image below.

 

 

10. You should click on the OK button to close the message box and continue with the Antivirus 2009 removal process.

· You will now be back at the main Scanner screen. At this point you should click on the Show Results button.

A screen displaying all the malware that the program found will be shown as seen in the image below.

 

 Please note that the infections found may be different than what is shown in the image.

11. You should now click on the Remove Selected button to remove all the listed malware. Malwarebytes will now delete all of the files and registry keys and add them to the programs quarantine. When removing the files, Malwarebytes may require a reboot in order to remove some of them. If it displays a message stating that it needs to reboot, please allow it to do so. Once your computer has rebooted, and you are logged in, please continue with the rest of the steps.
12. When Malwarebytes has finished removing the malware, it will open the scan log and display it in Notepad. Review the log as desired, and then close the Notepad window.
13. You can now exit the Malwarebytes program.

Your computer should now be free of the Antivirus 2009 program. If your current anti-virus solution let this infection through, you may want to consider purchasing the PRO version of Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware to protect against these types of threats in the future.

 

Free iPhone Apps

Visit these sites for free iPhone Applications.
download.com

iPhone Recipes - 101 Cookbooks

Extremetech have a list of 25 free iPhone apps on their site too.

List you favourite iPhone apps in the comments and lets add to the list for everyone to enjoy. Free apps only please.

How to put movies in the iPhone

How to put video in the iphone for free.

Videora iPhone Converter is a free iPhone video converter that converts video files, YouTube videos, movies and DVD's so you can play them on your iPhone. The software, developed by the creators of Videora, can convert all types of video files (avi, divx, xvid, flv, x264, vob, mpeg, DVD's, YouTube, etc.) into the proper video formats (MPEG-4, H.264) that play on the iPhone.

Videora iPhone Converter + Videora allows you to download, convert and copy video to your iPhone automatically, using BitTorrent and RSS technology.

May I say we are big fans of Videora, they have lots of great software for IPod and iPhone. If you like the product please donate a little cash to keep the project going. Thanks.

Go straight to the How To Guide Here

Video to iPhone Converter Guide Converting video files in Videora iPhone Converter is dead easy (when connected to the internet), as it has a built-in online guide to help you convert your videos. This guide will show you how to convert your video files.

Speed up your slow computer. The Easy Guide.

This guide is an easy to follow step by step guide to get the best possible speed out of your computer. We will not explain what each program is for. To keep it simple all you need to do is follow each step in order to speed up your computer. We recommend you have at least 512MB RAM installed on your PC

 

Step 1. (Only do this step if you are comfortable with opening your Computer case). Disconnect all cables from your Computers and remove the side panels, some PC’s have buttons instead of screws. Now get a 1 inch soft bristle brush and a vacuum cleaner. Turn on vacuum cleaner & gently using the brush, clean away any dust into the vacuum cleaner hose, do not breath in any dust. Do not put vacuum cleaner hose directly on any computer parts. When satisfied its clean put the covers back on and reconnect the cables. Your computer CPU will run a little cooler. Turn on the computer

 

Step 2. Download and install Ccleaner. http://www.filehippo.com/download_ccleaner/

Run the program, click “Analyze” wait for the progress bar to stop and the information to appear in the window. Then click “Remove”, and then click OK. When it is complete close the program by clicking the “X” button in the top right corner. Then click Start then All Programs then accessories then system tools then click disk cleanup. Then select the C drive, wait for scan to finish, then click OK, then click YES.

 

Step 3. Defrag the Hard Drive buy going to “Start-> All Programs-> Accessories-> System Tools. Click “Disk Defragmenter”. Then make sure the “C” Drive is selected single click on “C” will do. Then click “Defragment”. This may take a few hours especially if it has never been done before. When it has finished click “Close” and close the program.

 

Step 4. Click ‘Start’ then click ‘RUN’. Type msconfig in the box then click ‘OK’ Click the startup Tab and you will see boxes with ticks in them. By removing the tick the computer will not load that program automatically during start. By removing some of the programs you do not want to start you can increase the boot up time of your PC. You can safely uncheck items such as msmsgs to stop messenger from starting. Due to the large amount of startup programs and many different computer setups it is best to visit these web site and browse each item and see if they can be safely removed. Some web site to visit as follows

http://www.windowsstartup.com/wso/browse.php

http://www.pacs-portal.co.uk/startup_index.htm

http://www.greatis.com/appdata/

 

Step 5. Perform a full virus scan make sure virus program is up to date. Get a free virus scanner from here

http://www.filehippo.com/download_avg_antivirus/

 

Step 6. Perform a full Antispyware scan, make sure you antispyware program is up to date. Get a free one from here http://www.filehippo.com/download_ad-aware/

 

Step 7. Download and run this program http://www.filehippo.com/download_cwshredder/

Then click ‘FIX’ then click ‘OK’. When finished click “NEXT” then click “EXIT”.

 

 

Step 8. Click Start then Control Panel make sure you switch to classic view on the left hand side then double click Add / Remove Programs. Go through the list of installed programs and remove the programs that you don’t use anymore, this helps free up some space and makes the registry a little smaller. Do not remove any Windows or Hot Fix items. When finished close the Add /Remove Programs box down by clicking the “X” in the top right corner of the box. Leave the control Panel window open and proceed with step 9

 

Step 9. Double click System then click the Advanced tab near the top of the box you will see 3 buttons which say “Settings”. Click the first Setting button. Then make sure the first 10 boxes are unchecked. Then click the Advanced tab then click the Change button, in the virtual memory box make sure the green dot is in the little circle next to “System managed size” then click ‘SET’ then click OK. Click OK again. Restart the computer.

I will add more or amend this guide as needed soon but it is a good start.

Vista Compatible Software

Here is a list of programs which are compatible with Windows Vista 32bit. Please feel free to ad a comment to make the list larger or notify me of any incorrect entries, I will update the list from time to time. Lets make it grow.

Antivirus
Nod32
AVG
Avast 4.7
ESET Smart Security v3.0.563 or later
 Kaspersky Antivirus 6.0.2.614 and newer

McAfee AntiVirus 8.5i

AntiSpyware
Ashampoo Antispyware
SpyBot Search & Destroy 1.4 &1.5
Webroot Spy Sweeper v5.5.7
PC Tools Spyware Doctor v4.0.0.2621
Lavasoft Ad-aware SE Personal v1.06

DVD Burning
Nero 7
Alcohol-Soft Alcohol 120% 1.9.5.4521
Ashampoo Burning Studio 6
Astroburn v1.0.3 FreeDVDFab Platinum 3.0.9.8
DVD Decrypter 3.5.4.0DVD Rebuilder Pro 1.20.5
DVD Shrink 3.2.0.15
DVD TO AVI AC3 RIPPER v1.0.0.0
PowerISO 3.6
Roxio Easy Media Creator 7

Firewall

Comodo Free Firewall 2.3.6
Kerio Personal Firewall - 4.3.268

Peer to Peer

Limewire
Utorrent 7.5
Bitcomet .077
BitTornado

Video

1 Click DVD to DivX AVI
Adobe
After Effects CS3
Premiere Elements 3.0.2
Premiere Pro 1.5, 2.0
Premiere 2.0, 5.0
Premiere Pro CS3

Cyberlink
Power Cinema 5
PowerDirector
Premium
PowerDVD 6, PowerDVD 7
Ciberlink Suite v.5

DVD Shrink 3.2
Intervideo WinDVD 8.0.6.101
Joost
Logitech QuickCam Fushion ver 10.4.0, build 1401
Techsmith Camtasia Studio v4.0.0
TMPGEnc-2.59.47.155-Plus(must be run as the Administrator)
VirtualDub
WinAVI Video Converter V. 7.7

Free Screen Magification Tool.

Do you need a tool which can make your screen easier to read? Do you have vision problems? If the answer is yes then we have a tool for you, Its free. Its open source and it is called Virtual Magnifying Glass. You can view screen shot and download it here.

Peter Parry

Central Coast Computer Repairs

Call for Help Computers has had its web site redesigned for easier navigation. Offering great rates , free pickup and delivery for computer repairs anywhere on the Central Coast. Click the link to go there and check it out.

Computer freezes or reboots during startup

I came across a computer today which would not boot properly, it would restart or freeze and take many reboots just to get it started. I found reading on a forum about a little problem called Capacitor Plague. The problem is that a lot of capacitors were manufactured from an incomplete electrolyte formula causing the capacitors to bulge and leak and ultimately fail. This was evident on the motherboard of the computer I was working on. A lot of the capacitors were in fact bulging and some were leaking a rusty colored material on the top of them. Replacing the motherboard fixed the problem. I may spend some time replacing all of the old capacitors with new ones but I don't know if I will ever find the time :)

Peter Parry

Download Firefox for more secure web browsing.

Mozilla Firefox is an excellent web browser with lots of features including Tabbed browsing. I even use it myself. Download from the image below for a free copy.