Zonealarm update has screwed my PC!

polybear

Hi all,

I have Zonealarm Internet Security Suite on my desktop, running XP Home SP2. The latest Zonealarm update (to fix a problem with the latest Microsoft updates & internet access?) has just been downloaded & installed (though I wasn't having any internet access issues - though that may be because the relevant MS update may not have been downloaded yet - my desktop isn't used much as I normally use my laptop).

All seemed ok but then I noticed that the updated Zonelarm was saying I didn't have any Antivirus running - I suspect that for some reason my "paid for" version of ZA had become the basic free version during the update. So I tried to reload my previous ZA version - it wouldn't let me because the version now installed was a later version.

Then the pc started playing up - it won't start - initially it does and you get to the "XP" logo stage but then the screen goes blank and there's no sign of any action on the tower unit (i.e. the little red LED goes blank). All this has happened immediately after the ZA download (i.e. in the last hour or so)

Now I have to start in Safe Mode (and that isn't always successful). I've tried System Restore (which appeared to take place OK but hasn't fixed the problem), uninstalling Zonealarm, deleting the latest ZA file from "My Documents", stopping ZLClient from loading at startup (using MSConfig).

Now I'm into screaming, stamping my foot, giving it my very hardest Paddington Bear Stare........

Any ideas please? I do have a complete backup of my pc on an external hard drive (using Acronis) but I really don't want to have to go there unless I have to.

Thanks.
Brian

esbo

Hi, I think you need to uninstall Zone Alarm completely and then install the latest
version.
Did you do a repair installation before? I think you need to uninstall the old version rather than repair or you you get booting problems, I should know because I did!!

I found if I went into system restore, did nothing then rebooted it would reboot normally, but that meant two reboots.

shown73

Don't know if this would help, but Computeractive magazine currently is giving away a download of "East-Tec Eraser 2007." This seems to be a slightly scary way of permanently deleting old files, programms, etc. Just thinking that if you wanted to delete Zonealarm and re-install, this might be a way of making sure that you get rid of the previous version properly, without bits and pieces left behind and corrupting the new installation. Perhaps someone more knowledgeable could offer an opinion....Just a thought really....

polybear

Thanks for the replies. I fixed it by carrying out the procedure here:

http://forum.zonelabs.org/zonelabs/board/message?board.id=AllowAccess&message.id=103

and then re-installed the previous version of ZA (i.e. the one before the update that screwed up my pc in the first place!).

Brian

moonrakerz

If you Google this you will see that this has happened to a lot of people. I abandoned ZA and moved to Sygate as a result.