Take it or Leave it ?

EycplUK

HI Guys 9 & Gals )
My desktop pc is getting painfully slow and i was wondering if un-installing some programs would make it a bit faster ?
Programs i am not and never will use such as M,Works, Publisher . Office, stuff like these ?
Suggestions welcome am running an Acer Aspire M1201 , os is windows Vista Home Premium if that helps !
Regards

diable

Backup your data and do a re install.

EycplUK

diable wrote: »

Backup your data and do a re install.

As you are talking to a tech dummy could you explain a little more please ?
Regards

diable

EycplUK wrote: »

As you are talking to a tech dummy could you explain a little more please ?
Regards

Copy all your data to a removable device then reformat your hard drive and re install the engine/operating system that controls the box you call a computer, ;o))

closed

only programs that run at startup will affect performance

switching from mcafee to avast 6 free and windows firewall, disabling windows defender and uninstalling mysecuritycenter, and registrybooster, and looking at the O4's below should show a noticeable improvement quickly.

The best way of cleaning up a slow or badly infected machine is to backup all your data to an external drive, and do a factory restore using the factory restore partition (see manual or manufacturers website ACER = erecovery ALT F10 at boot) or Windows disc. The alternative is to do it manually :-

This is a general guide on cleaning up infections and speeding up pc's https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2436849

If you haven't all ready done it, Install Malwarebytes and do a FULL (not quick) scan (after updating it), fix anything found before closing, otherwise you'll have to do it all over again. If anything was found reboot the machine before continuing. http://www.filehippo.com/download_malwarebytes_anti_malware/

If you know you have just been infected, with a fake antivirus for example, running system restore to a previous restore point is often the fastest way of getting your machine working again

Making any changes to a PC setup always comes with a slight risk of something going wrong, the worse case scenario is an unbootable PC - ideally you should have got a backup of important data on dvd or external disk, and a disk image backup (http://www.macrium.com/reflectfree.asp) or windows disc/factory restore partition available before you start. In the unlikely event that anything does go wrong, post on another pc for advice.
__________________________________________________

If you suspect an infection, here are some other virus scanners to try, let them fix anything found

http://devbuilds.kaspersky-labs.com/devbuilds/AVPTool/
http://www.surfright.nl/en/hitmanpro
http://support.kaspersky.com/downloads/utils/tdsskiller.exe

Go into the connection settings of all your browsers, and remove the proxy entry (IE Tools, internet options, connections/firefox tools, advanced, network, settings etc), the entry below is usually a sign or remnants of an infection causing browser redirection. Note proxy settings for browsers other than IE don't show up in hijackthis logs, so check them manually



************************************************


Scanning with all the scanners above along with your resident scanner should remove most or all infections if there are any present on your machine, below is some specific (optional) advice based on your log which may help to improve speed and tidy things up.
__________________________________________________


Install and run ccleaner (untick the google toolbar during the install). Untick the "windows log files" box, under the system heading before cleaning. Also Tick the java cache tick box under CCleaner, applications, internet to wipe the java cache which sometimes hides infections. http://www.piriform.com/ccleaner/download/slim

Install and run startuplite, accept suggested changes - http://www.malwarebytes.org/StartUpLite.exe

Click the java icon in control panel, updates, untick check for updates

__________________________________________________

__________________________________________________

Using Hijackthis, tick and fix these entries



O2 - BHO: Google Dictionary Compression sdch - {C84D72FE-E17D-4195-BB24-76C02E2E7C4E} - (no file)
O18 - Filter: x-sdch - {B1759355-3EEC-4C1E-B0F1-B719FE26E377} - (no file)

__________________________________________________

Uninstall any IE toolbars (browser helper objects or BHO's) in Control panel, or Firefox plugins that you don't need. This is a list of the IE BHO's evident in the log

O2 - BHO: &Yahoo! Toolbar Helper - {02478D38-C3F9-4efb-9B51-7695ECA05670} - C:\Program Files\Yahoo!\Companion\Installs\cpn\yt.dll
O2 - BHO: Groove GFS Browser Helper - {72853161-30C5-4D22-B7F9-0BBC1D38A37E} - C:\PROGRA~1\MICROS~2\Office12\GRA8E1~1.DLL
O2 - BHO: scriptproxy - {7DB2D5A0-7241-4E79-B68D-6309F01C5231} - C:\Program Files\Common Files\McAfee\SystemCore\ScriptSn.20101209013634.dl l
O2 - BHO: ShowBarObj Class - {83A2F9B1-01A2-4AA5-87D1-45B6B8505E96} - C:\Program Files\Acer\Empowering Technology\eDataSecurity\x86\ActiveToolBand.dll
O2 - BHO: McAfee SiteAdvisor BHO - {B164E929-A1B6-4A06-B104-2CD0E90A88FF} - c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee\SITEAD~1\mcieplg.dll
O2 - BHO: MemberPluginBHO - {C3E5E149-27B7-49D1-8420-B02AC52AF663} - C:\Program Files\MemberPlugin\MemberPlugin.dll
O2 - BHO: Google Dictionary Compression sdch - {C84D72FE-E17D-4195-BB24-76C02E2E7C4E} - (no file)
O2 - BHO: SingleInstance Class - {FDAD4DA1-61A2-4FD8-9C17-86F7AC245081} - C:\Program Files\Yahoo!\Companion\Installs\cpn\YTSingleInstan ce.dll

Disable (vista/W7) or uninstall (XP) Windows Defender. To disable windows defender on vista or windows 7 - from the start menu, windows defender, tools, options, untick use real-time protection, under administrator options, untick use windows defender and untick allow everyone to use windows defender, click save to save settings. XP users can either do this or preferably uninstall it in control panel instead.

__________________________________________________

Unless you need them running all the time, use the startup tab in msconfig to disable these items from running at startup (they can always be run manually if needed)

O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [regist] C:\Program Files\MySecurityCenter\Programs\RegistrationPopup. exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [GrooveMonitor] "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office12\GrooveMonitor.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [setc] C:\Program Files\MySecurityCenter\Programs\setc.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [QuickTime Task] "C:\Program Files\QuickTime\qttask.exe" -atboottime
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [SunJavaUpdateSched] "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Java\Java Update\jusched.exe"
O4 - Global Startup: ExifLauncher2.lnk = C:\Program Files\FinePixViewer\QuickDCF2.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [btbb_McciTrayApp] "C:\Program Files\BT Broadband Desktop Help\btbb\BTHelpNotifier.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [Adobe Reader Speed Launcher] "C:\Program Files\Adobe\Reader 8.0\Reader\Reader_sl.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [Adobe ARM] "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Adobe\ARM\1.0\AdobeARM.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [Google Desktop Search] "C:\Program Files\Google\Google Desktop Search\GoogleDesktop.exe" /startup
O4 - HKUS\S-1-5-19\..\Run: [WindowsWelcomeCenter] rundll32.exe oobefldr.dll,ShowWelcomeCenter (User 'LOCAL SERVICE')
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [BkupTray] "C:\Program Files\NewTech Infosystems\NTI Backup Now 5\BkupTray.exe"
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [WMPNSCFG] C:\Program Files\Windows Media Player\WMPNSCFG.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [PCMMediaSharing] C:\Program Files\Acer Arcade Live\Acer HomeMedia Connect\Kernel\DMS\PCMMediaSharing.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [WarReg_PopUp] C:\Program Files\Acer\WR_PopUp\WarReg_PopUp.exe
O4 - HKUS\S-1-5-19\..\Run: [WindowsWelcomeCenter] rundll32.exe oobefldr.dll,ShowWelcomeCenter (User 'LOCAL SERVICE')
O4 - Global Startup: ExifLauncher2.lnk = C:\Program Files\FinePixViewer\QuickDCF2.exe
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [OM2_Monitor] "C:\Program Files\OLYMPUS\OLYMPUS Master 2\MMonitor.exe"
O4 - Global Startup: SmartCopy.lnk = C:\Program Files\Northstar\SmartCopy\SmartCopy.exe
O4 - Global Startup: SmartLauncher.lnk = C:\Program Files\Northstar\SmartLauncher\SmartLauncher.exe
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [Yahoo! Pager] "C:\Program Files\Yahoo!\Messenger\YahooMessenger.exe" -quiet

Unless you use media sharing across the network, disable it in media player, library, media sharing, or options media sharing, untick find and share media

__________________________________________________

If you want a speedy machine, Use windows firewall and replace your antivirus and security software with avast 6 free - (a fast and lightweight virus scanner with good detection rates) http://www.avast.com/free-antivirus-download :

This is a list of (or remnants of) security software evident in your log, you may wish to uninstall these in Control Panel (add/remove programs or programs/features) to keep your PC running smoothly, too much overlapping or bloated security or useless tuning software can have a drastic effect on performance - always leave one resident scanner running (eg avast/avira etc)

---- mcafee

---

C:\Program Files\McAfee.com\Agent\mcagent.exe
R1 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\SearchURL,(Default) = http://uk.search.yahoo.com/search?fr=mcafee&p=%s
R3 - URLSearchHook: McAfee SiteAdvisor Toolbar - {0EBBBE48-BAD4-4B4C-8E5A-516ABECAE064} - c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee\SITEAD~1\mcieplg.dll
O2 - BHO: scriptproxy - {7DB2D5A0-7241-4E79-B68D-6309F01C5231} - C:\Program Files\Common Files\McAfee\SystemCore\ScriptSn.20101209013634.dl l
O2 - BHO: McAfee SiteAdvisor BHO - {B164E929-A1B6-4A06-B104-2CD0E90A88FF} - c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee\SITEAD~1\mcieplg.dll
O3 - Toolbar: McAfee SiteAdvisor Toolbar - {0EBBBE48-BAD4-4B4C-8E5A-516ABECAE064} - c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee\SITEAD~1\mcieplg.dll
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [mcui_exe] "C:\Program Files\McAfee.com\Agent\mcagent.exe" /runkey
O15 - Trusted Zone: http://*.mcafee.com
O18 - Protocol: dssrequest - {5513F07E-936B-4E52-9B00-067394E91CC5} - c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee\SITEAD~1\mcieplg.dll
O18 - Protocol: sacore - {5513F07E-936B-4E52-9B00-067394E91CC5} - c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee\SITEAD~1\mcieplg.dll
O23 - Service: McAfee SiteAdvisor Service - McAfee, Inc. - C:\Program Files\McAfee\SiteAdvisor\McSACore.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee Personal Firewall Service (McMPFSvc) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\Program Files\Common Files\Mcafee\McSvcHost\McSvHost.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee Services (mcmscsvc) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\Program Files\Common Files\McAfee\McSvcHost\McSvHost.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee VirusScan Announcer (McNaiAnn) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\Program Files\Common Files\McAfee\McSvcHost\McSvHost.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee Network Agent (McNASvc) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\Program Files\Common Files\McAfee\McSvcHost\McSvHost.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee Scanner (McODS) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\Program Files\McAfee\VirusScan\mcods.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee Proxy Service (McProxy) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\Program Files\Common Files\McAfee\McSvcHost\McSvHost.exe
O23 - Service: McShield - McAfee, Inc. - C:\Program Files\Common Files\McAfee\SystemCore\\mcshield.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee Firewall Core Service (mfefire) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\Program Files\Common Files\McAfee\SystemCore\\mfefire.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee Validation Trust Protection Service (mfevtp) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\Windows\system32\mfevtps.exe

---- RegistryBooster

---

O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [RegistryBooster] "C:\Program Files\Uniblue\RegistryBooster\launcher.exe" delay 20000

---- MySecurityCenter

---

O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [setc] C:\Program Files\MySecurityCenter\Programs\setc.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [regist] C:\Program Files\MySecurityCenter\Programs\RegistrationPopup. exe
O23 - Service: MySecurityCenter License Service - Unknown owner - C:\Program Files\MySecurityCenter\Programs\service.exe

__________________________________________________

__________________________________________________


__________________________________________________

start, run, msconfig, select services tab, disable these services UNLESS you use them. (make a note of any services you disable,if you have any problems related to these services subsequently, simply re-enable them)

SSDP Discovery Service
Remote Registry
WebClient
Distributed Link Tracking Client

Also disable these services if you don't use them by running msconfig, services tab

O23 - Service: NTI Backup Now 5 Scheduler Service (NTISchedulerSvc) - Unknown owner - C:\Program Files\NewTech Infosystems\NTI Backup Now 5\SchedulerSvc.exe

O23 - Service: GoToAssist - Citrix Online, a division of Citrix Systems, Inc. - C:\Program Files\Citrix\GoToAssist\570\g2aservice.exe

O23 - Service: Google Update Service (gupdate) (gupdate) - Google Inc. - C:\Program Files\Google\Update\GoogleUpdate.exe

O23 - Service: LightScribeService Direct Disc Labeling Service (LightScribeService) - Hewlett-Packard Company - C:\Program Files\Common Files\LightScribe\LSSrvc.exe

O23 - Service: Yahoo! Updater (YahooAUService) - Yahoo! Inc. - C:\Program Files\Yahoo!\SoftwareUpdate\YahooAUService.exe

__________________________________________________

When you've done all that, post a fresh hijackthis log and any logs of infections

Linbox

Data = documents, email, settings and such you want to keep.

Move all your data to something like a external hard drive or save to DVD - If you are unsure goggle these.

Reinstall your operating system. A total subject in its self, again if you are unsure goggle these and look at previous posts on this forum.

Reinstall all programs settings and documents you need on your computer.

Play happily...

Dave_C_2

Re-installing the operating system is using a sledgehammer to crack wallnuts. You will lose data no matter how careful you are.

Please read and work through this thread first.

Moderators, can we please have this as a sticky.

Dave

macman

Check a) how much free disk space you have-as long as you've got around 15% free space still then no need to remove programs b) how much RAM do you have and what OS are you running?
The download and install CCleaner for a free clean up that should remove some of the gunk that may be slowing things down.