Tom.A

Hi, recently I downloaded some stuff, I think now they're virus', however my AV didnt alert me.

Now, whenever I start windows, an alert pops up saying winlogon.exe cannot be found in the WINDOWS folder - however, it [b]is[b] in the system32 folder. My friend has the same (not alert etc), but he only has one in system32 not WINDOWS.

So, my questions are:

If I have a virus, would it be better to reformat my comp, will it delete it? And all my current files, as if the comp was new? If so, thats ok. I'll back up some files. However, I have internet, would I need to just set it back up?

Question 2 is: Should I simply copy winlogon.exe to WINDOWS?

Please help, thanks, Tom.A.

Andy128

First off- let me preface that I am not a security advisor - one will be along shortly to give specific advice how to rectify your problem.

But- to answer your questions.
1- Having a virus/trojan/malware does not mean that you have to reformat to get rid of the problem. In some cases of extreme infection where the OS has been compromised to an extent that it is unstable- then yes a re-format is ok. Also- make sure you have the knowledge (before hand) to do a correct reformat and bring your system back to its full operation.
Otherwise- many virus's can be removed with out too much hassle.

2- No. Do not simply copy the winlogon.exe back into windows. First lets find out why the problem exists and then take care of it from the root cause. Following the advise of the security advisors here will get the job done.

Andy

Tom.A

Hi there Andy,

I fixed the first problem, the windows winlogon.exe. It was some malware, which AD AWARE SE got rid of it.

Now, I get (which happened before), a dll problem. Iwill continue to scan

thanks for the help.

Andy128

Tom-
I salute your willingness to search for an answer to your problem

Just keep in mind- that often malware/spyware/viruses can be mulitstep repair.

Emptying out temp files(both internet and windows cache files as well as java files) Restart computer and then do a virus scan with your AV. Also, re-do your AD-SE scan. A good program also is windows Defender.

And to check it all- there are online scans by panda and trend micro.

In the end- if you wish to have the pro's make sure your clean/ or if you continue to have problems. Follow this thread and you will be helped.
http://www.techsupportforum.com/secu...sting-log.html

Andy