laptop issues

[DeeperConnection 19567]

Can someone please tell me if wiping my computer and reinstalling windows gets rid of all potential viruses, trojans and issues such as no longer having full administrative options etc.

 

I got my laptop in april, my store bought antivirus says its running but never finds a thing and in safe mode says it isnt on yet I am unable to change it and the network protection options.

 

Computer is so slow, wont play a youtube video without stalling a million times and so on and so forth. just hoping for some advice or help so I have an idea in advance before taking it in to a shop to fix.

 

any advice or suggestions is greatly appreciated. thanks xoxo

[Tallguy007 4172]

Very often a slowdown comes not from viruses as such, but from a bunch of junk which gets piled on and on and keeps slowing down the computer.

 

These present themselves as search bars, facebook helpers, download helpers, screen savers, etc...

 

Wiping the computer clean (booting from cd, and forcing a re-format) should get your compter back to "when it was new" sppeds, but the important part is to not re-install these utilities unless you really need them.

 

I also recommend NoScript and AdBlock (l use firefox) which should cut down on junk being offered to the computer.

 

as usual, remember to back up your datafiles before wiping. only re-install the apps from source media, not the backup.

[bcguy42 38594]

Can someone please tell me if wiping my computer and reinstalling windows gets rid of all potential viruses, trojans and issues such as no longer having full administrative options etc.

 

The answer to your specific question is yes, wiping the hard drive and re-installing Windows will resolve those issues. That being said, it is usually a case of over kill.

 

I'm thinking there are programs like MalwareBytes for trojans and spyware available at http://download.cnet.com/windows/. You can also get a free version of AVG to check for viruses.

 

But you said you no longer have Admin options so you might not be able to install these programs.

 

If that's the case, either take it back from whence it came and have them resolve it or check around to see if someone you know knows someone or a small PC shop that does this. In each of these cases be prepared to spend money to resolve the problem.

 

The upside of using one of the three options in the last paragraph is that you can ask them to try to save your data.

 

If you don't care about the data and want the quickest fix, a wipe and redo of Windows is the way to go.

 

Good luck with that.

[DeeperConnection 19567]

thanks guys. It's definetly something as my credit card info was compromised and numerous purchases made til company suspended it's use. my browser changes frequently and my computer turns itself on, all sorts of stuff that isn't supposed to be in my files, i even had a Q drive that i was denied access to for two months that has since disappeared.

 

I also had a client send me an email 2 months back saying i should scan my email, does this mean I'm sending people spam? I probably sound silly asking all this, but I need to start somewhere, and I am not worried about cost to fix, I want to trust my computer again.

 

I don't need to save anything as I recently had my playlists all dissapear from media player, not my music just my personalized playlists, gone. that was the last straw for me, i can handle taking my computer and making it all messed up but screwing with my music has sent me over the edge, I'm shocked I've not smashed this laptop at this point as we (laptop and I) have had a stormy relationship from day one. I should have bought a mac.

Thanks for your help and suggestions, I'm very behind with technology. I still have an unsmart cell phone as well. Time for some serious upgrades and education on my end.

[bcguy42 38594]

It's definetly something as my credit card info was compromised and numerous purchases made til company suspended it's use. my browser changes frequently and my computer turns itself on, all sorts of stuff that isn't supposed to be in my files, i even had a Q drive that i was denied access to for two months that has since disappeared.

 

I also had a client send me an email 2 months back saying i should scan my email, does this mean I'm sending people spam? I probably sound silly asking all this, but I need to start somewhere, and I am not worried about cost to fix, I want to trust my computer again.

 

I don't need to save anything as I recently had my playlists all dissapear from media player, not my music just my personalized playlists, gone.

 

I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess you do not have a virus but have one or more nasty bits of malware. You can remove it yourself but it sounds like you are not comfortable trying that. That's ok. We're all good - and not good -at something.

 

If money is not an issue, as I mentioned before, ask around and see where people you know have gotten their issues resolved. If you don't find someone there, if it were me, I'd check the Yellow Pages for the nearest independent computer repair shop. Stop by, browse around a bit, see how they treat the customers that come in, listen to the customers (are they coming in and bitch-slapping the staff? Strong clue!).

 

If your gut feels good, get on up to the counter, tell them everything you've told us and see what they say. Find out their hourly rate, minimum rate, see if they will "ball-park" a quote for you. (If they do, don't hold them to it. Other crap might show up.)

 

If it still feels good to you, fork over you trusty laptop, go home and wait for them to call.

[LouKing 3392]

I had a laptop issue at Pigales once called for some wiping

[Leber 1328]

The speed issues can be addressed by running the Wndows utilities (I'm guessing you have Windows OS). Below are the steps:

1. Run Disk Cleanup.

2. Click the tab More Options.

3. Under the System Restore and Shadow Copies section, click Clean up.

4. Click OK.

5. Run Disk Defragmenter.

6. Select C: drive.

7. Click Defragmant disk.

8. You may want to repeat the previous step for your other drives.

[Tom1 120]

thanks guys. It's definetly something as my credit card info was compromised and numerous purchases made til company suspended it's use. my browser changes frequently and my computer turns itself on, all sorts of stuff that isn't supposed to be in my files, i even had a Q drive that i was denied access to for two months that has since disappeared.

 

I also had a client send me an email 2 months back saying i should scan my email, does this mean I'm sending people spam? I probably sound silly asking all this, but I need to start somewhere, and I am not worried about cost to fix, I want to trust my computer again.

 

I don't need to save anything as I recently had my playlists all dissapear from media player, not my music just my personalized playlists, gone. that was the last straw for me, i can handle taking my computer and making it all messed up but screwing with my music has sent me over the edge, I'm shocked I've not smashed this laptop at this point as we (laptop and I) have had a stormy relationship from day one. I should have bought a mac.

Thanks for your help and suggestions, I'm very behind with technology. I still have an unsmart cell phone as well. Time for some serious upgrades and education on my end.

 

 

Hi,

you can get a program from the internet for free , the name is (AVG PC Tuneup 2011 or 2012) I have it omn my laptop it is very good and makes the computer run fast

[OldBuck 1074]

This sounds a little scary. You want to be sure your network is secure, with a difficult name and an even more difficult password. (d33p@r c0nn3cti0n, for instance) Your laptop may be okay with an erase an reboot. Watch out for those torrents. Don't open strange emails.Everything you download puts your computer at risk.

 

And check out the ratings for your security software,

 

PM if you like. I am in Winnipeg, for what that is worth.

[DeeperConnection 19567]

thanks for all the help, the link bcguy42 shared is getting me places, thanks much for that link!!

 

it wasnt related to system cleanup or defrag. and yes downloading torrent porn is bad, bad, bad but I still end up doing it lol.

 

I'm still gonna get it wiped and reinstalled, although I'm tempted to wait a month and buy a cheap new laptop during boxing week or both.

 

Thanks again everyone! I appreciate all the help, and wish you all a happy holiday and upcoming new year!! xo

[Phaedrus 209521]

I'm still gonna get it wiped and reinstalled, although I'm tempted to wait a month and buy a cheap new laptop during boxing week or both.

 

This may turn out to be your best bet. You don't need a top of the range machine unless performance really matters (gaming, video editing, etc) and an OK-but-not-great laptop will probably cost less than getting someone to fix the old one.

 

Whatever you do to fix the problems you've got now, remember

- be careful about what you download

- be careful about clicking "yes" when asked if you want to install something, because you can always install it later

- a good anti-virus/malware package (or two) is your friend

- keep your software up to date with the latest patches! I use Secunia PSI for this - it's very helpful for ensuring that your machine is as vulnerability-free as you can make it.

[kramepson 203]

Before you do a full wipe, google Kaspersky rescue disc, it's a free download, and will run an antivirus from Linux before booting into windows. It will scan for viruses and malware. I had a client go from having a pc that wouldn't even boot up to fully restored in one visit(a 5 hour visit), but when I left, her pc was back to normal