Possible virus -- need help

Ionhelen · 01-27-2007, 05:59 PM

I believe my desktop PC to be infected with some type of virus, but I am uncertain. To make matters worse, I can't get to the internet on it, and running programs of any sort can be a hassle. (and seeing as I don't have Hijackthis installed on it, nor can I install it likely, obtaining a log is highly unlikely)

These are my symptoms:

1. Slower startup, even explorer.exe takes forever and a day to start
2. Shutdown of svchost.exe the moment I do startup "has generated errors and will be closed by Windows." - and this is before my start menu even shows up. Sometimes the message displays twice.
3. Unable to cut/copy and paste files at all.
4. Error message displaying the following: "The system process 'C:\\WINNT\system32\services.exe' terminated unexpectedly with status code 128. The system will now shut down and restart." From there, I have a 60 second countdown. However this I can prevent just by changing the date on my PC.

I've tried to run McAffee to scan, but the program never runs. Firefox neither - it "generates errors" and is shut down shortly. McAffee doesn't even do that - the exe just runs for a second or two then shuts down.

Any advice greatly appreciated, God bless.

-Ion

Chevy · 02-02-2007, 08:17 AM

If you're comfortable doing this:

Take the hard drive out and slave it to another system. Run an virus scan of the drive (whatever is installed on the host system, or use an online scan like antivirus.com).

This may clean out enough (if there is an malware) to allow you to do more booting to that drive.

Ionhelen · 02-02-2007, 03:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chevy

If you're comfortable doing this:

Take the hard drive out and slave it to another system. Run an virus scan of the drive (whatever is installed on the host system, or use an online scan like antivirus.com).

This may clean out enough (if there is an malware) to allow you to do more booting to that drive.

Not to sound like a noob, but how would I 'slave' the drive? The only other comp I have available is my laptop.

Thanks for the help.

lnshukla · 02-20-2007, 10:34 AM

No offences, but best way to repair MS softwares is to re-install them. There are many things you can not debug/correct in Windows and you left with this last option.

Chevy · 02-20-2007, 01:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lnshukla

No offences, but best way to repair MS softwares is to re-install them. There are many things you can not debug/correct in Windows and you left with this last option.

While this may be true for a case of "broken windows", if the damage is due to malware, then a repair install will ultimately fail.

Ionhelen

Sine you only have a laptop, you could purchase an external hard drive enclosure. They're pretty cheap, and will allow you to connect the drive to your laptop via a USB cable. Then you can perform an antivirus scan.

However, looks like I missed something. Can you boot into Safe Mode (tap F8 repeatedly right after you turn your pc on)? If so, is it stable enough to run an antivirus scan?

lnshukla · 02-20-2007, 03:36 PM

I am not sure but many malwares are not detected by AntiVirus scans. Moreover, if you have a boot sector virus you can not clean it with any antivirus (to the best of my knowledge). Low level format or zero filling are the only options left (if supported by motherboard).

Before everything else, Safe Mode is definitely the first option to try.

Quote:

Originaly posted by Chevy:
Sine you only have a laptop, you could purchase an external hard drive enclosure.

Even to run an antivirus scan you don need to purchase a separate hard disk. Try the following Bart's PE:

http://www.nu2.nu/pebuilder/

Also, if you have McAfee's DOS Scanner (This option was there till McAfee 7.0, I am not sure about higher versions) and a bootable CD or Floppy, you can boot your machine and run this scanner.

Ionhelen · 02-20-2007, 04:04 PM

Sine you only have a laptop, you could purchase an external hard drive enclosure. They're pretty cheap, and will allow you to connect the drive to your laptop via a USB cable. Then you can perform an antivirus scan.

However, looks like I missed something. Can you boot into Safe Mode (tap F8 repeatedly right after you turn your pc on)? If so, is it stable enough to run an antivirus scan?[/quote]

I can boot in Safe Mode, and have, but I still encounter the restart countdown and am still unable to move files.

Looks as if my best shot may be a format and reinstall, seeing as the external hard drive enclosure is unlikely (I'm 17 living with parents still; most of my purchases are reliant on parental approval and, often, funding ><)

lnshukla · 02-21-2007, 01:43 PM

Hi Ionhelen:

Which OS and Service Pack (SP) are You running? Please read the following:

http://www.mcse.ms/message1445768.html

Also read from Microsoft:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315105

Hope it works for you. Even if you are planning to re-install Windows, be sure to install the latest SP immediately after Windows installation and also enable the automatic updates.

01-27-2007, 05:59 PM	#1 (permalink)
Ionhelen Registered User Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 4 OS: Win2000/NT and XP on laptop	Possible virus -- need help I believe my desktop PC to be infected with some type of virus, but I am uncertain. To make matters worse, I can't get to the internet on it, and running programs of any sort can be a hassle. (and seeing as I don't have Hijackthis installed on it, nor can I install it likely, obtaining a log is highly unlikely) These are my symptoms: 1. Slower startup, even explorer.exe takes forever and a day to start 2. Shutdown of svchost.exe the moment I do startup "has generated errors and will be closed by Windows." - and this is before my start menu even shows up. Sometimes the message displays twice. 3. Unable to cut/copy and paste files at all. 4. Error message displaying the following: "The system process 'C:\\WINNT\system32\services.exe' terminated unexpectedly with status code 128. The system will now shut down and restart." From there, I have a 60 second countdown. However this I can prevent just by changing the date on my PC. I've tried to run McAffee to scan, but the program never runs. Firefox neither - it "generates errors" and is shut down shortly. McAffee doesn't even do that - the exe just runs for a second or two then shuts down. Any advice greatly appreciated, God bless. -Ion

02-02-2007, 08:17 AM	#2 (permalink)
Chevy Retired Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Notlob Posts: 5,452 OS: Vista Ultimate My System	If you're comfortable doing this: Take the hard drive out and slave it to another system. Run an virus scan of the drive (whatever is installed on the host system, or use an online scan like antivirus.com). This may clean out enough (if there is an malware) to allow you to do more booting to that drive.

02-20-2007, 10:34 AM	#4 (permalink)
lnshukla Registered User Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Mumbai, India Posts: 17 OS: WinXP Pro, Win Vista Ultimate	No offences, but best way to repair MS softwares is to re-install them. There are many things you can not debug/correct in Windows and you left with this last option.

02-20-2007, 04:04 PM	#7 (permalink)
Ionhelen Registered User Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 4 OS: Win2000/NT and XP on laptop	Sine you only have a laptop, you could purchase an external hard drive enclosure. They're pretty cheap, and will allow you to connect the drive to your laptop via a USB cable. Then you can perform an antivirus scan. However, looks like I missed something. Can you boot into Safe Mode (tap F8 repeatedly right after you turn your pc on)? If so, is it stable enough to run an antivirus scan?[/quote] I can boot in Safe Mode, and have, but I still encounter the restart countdown and am still unable to move files. Looks as if my best shot may be a format and reinstall, seeing as the external hard drive enclosure is unlikely (I'm 17 living with parents still; most of my purchases are reliant on parental approval and, often, funding ><)

02-21-2007, 01:43 PM	#8 (permalink)
lnshukla Registered User Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Mumbai, India Posts: 17 OS: WinXP Pro, Win Vista Ultimate	Hi Ionhelen: Which OS and Service Pack (SP) are You running? Please read the following: http://www.mcse.ms/message1445768.html Also read from Microsoft: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315105 Hope it works for you. Even if you are planning to re-install Windows, be sure to install the latest SP immediately after Windows installation and also enable the automatic updates.