Expert: Lorry - 9/16/2006

Question
I updated to Norton Internet Security 2006 (and uninstalled Norton 2002). Since then, I have been unable to
- re-download Internet Security 2006 (the to-be-installed program mysteriously disappeared from my desktop)
- do any search on my computer (the menu on the left of the window is empty - save for the doggie)
- do a system restore (the best I can get is for a blank window to appear
- open any https page (but other pages open fine)

Any idea how I got into this mess? And how to fix it?

Thanks

Francois

Answer
Hi Francois,

If you are running Windows XP Home and after going thru the System Restore process, a message stating "Cannot restore the computer to an earlier restore point, no changes have been made to your computer" pops up, try the procedure listed below to restore its functionality.

Right click [My Computer] [Properties] then click on System Restore tab.
Put a check in the box for Disable Restore on all drives.
Click apply, then Reboot your PC.
After the system reboots, navigate to the System Restore tab and turn it back on. Click apply.
Navigate to [System Tools] [Restore...] and choose [Create a Restore Point]
Provide a name for the new restore point.
Try and restore the new point just created. It should work properly.

From: http://www.theeldergeek.com/system_restore_not_functioning.htm

Q.What should I do if System Restore does not work?

A.Try these steps if System Restore does not appear to work:

1.Ensure the System Restore service is running. For more information, see: How can I verify that the System Restore services are running on my machine?

2.Verify that you have enough free space on all your drives as required by System Restore. If the free space on any partition system restore is monitoring falls below 50 MB, System Restore will suspend and purge out all restore points to free up disk space. It will automatically reactivate when 200 MB+ free space is available. For more information, see How the System Restore Tool Handles Hard-Disk Space Usage.

3.Examine event logs for any system restore-related errors that could help you identify the problem.

From: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/winxppro/plan/faqsrwxp.mspx#EIIAC

Using Internet Explorer, go to:

http://security.symantec.com/sscv6/default.asp?langid=ie&venid=sym

Click the GO button, then under Virus Detection, click Start. You might be told that you need to download and install ActiveX Controls for the scan to work, answer Yes.

Write down exactly anything it finds, then go to: http://www.symantec.com/search/  and do a search for what was found. Symantec usually has a removal tool and/or directions for removing manually. Make sure that you follow the instructions for removal, step by step, especially the part regarding disabling System Restore.

I would also suggest downloading Spybot - Search & Destroy 1.4, a program that removes spyware, available from:

http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_description/0,fid,22262,00.asp

Once installed, enable Tea Timer. Open the Spybot Search & Destroy, click  the "+" sign next to Tools on the left side of the screen, click System Startup, then on the right side of the page check HK_CU Run Spybot Tea Timer.

The Resident TeaTimer is a new tool of Spybot-S&D which perpetually monitors the processes called/initiated. It immediately detects known malicious processes wanting to start and terminates them giving you some options, how to deal with this process in the future.

Check for updates before running. If you have trouble getting the updates, near the top of the Update Window, click the little arrow next See-Cure  #1(Europe), highlight the next one on the list, See-Cure #2 and try to download the updates. If that doesn't work, try the next one the list. until you get one you can download from. Being a free program, if too many people are using the same site to download the updates, some people will not get them.

Hope this helps!
Lorry