[domer07]

Do the experts at GTG recommend any Registry analyzers and/or cleaners?

My computer is working OK but a little slow and a few odd things with my mouse. Don't really want to do a complete dump and re-install. I have run ATF Cleaner, Pest Patrol and Hijack This with no major findings. I read somewhere that these should be run in Safe mode to find hidden files. True or false?

Appreciate the advice!

domer7

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Registry Cleaners don't actually fix anything, they tend to make things worse. Please avoid all registry cleaners with suitably large barge poles.

There are no more files visible in safe mode than there are in normal mode.

Your slowness problem and mouse problems may fix themselves if you were to wipe the machine, because Windows XP (and Vista to an extent) is very good at accumulating excess baggage throughout the time you use it. It's a good idea on occasion, maybe once or twice a year to simply wipe the machine and start again.

[Neil Jones]

Registry Cleaners don't actually fix anything, they tend to make things worse. Please avoid all registry cleaners with suitably large barge poles.

There are no more files visible in safe mode than there are in normal mode.

Your slowness problem and mouse problems may fix themselves if you were to wipe the machine, because Windows XP (and Vista to an extent) is very good at accumulating excess baggage throughout the time you use it. It's a good idea on occasion, maybe once or twice a year to simply wipe the machine and start again.

[CorruptNova]

I agree with Neil Jones, but wiping isn't always necessary. I've been on the same OS (on this box) for 2 years now without a wipe and it still runs the same as it did when I first installed it.

Always remember to clear out any temporary files, cache or even old prefetch data every month or so with a program such as CCleaner. Also, remember to defragment your hard drive with something other then windows' disk defragmenter such as MyDefrag or Defraggler.

[rshaffer61]

Download Autoruns from the link in my signature below:
1: Extract the Autoruns Zip file contents to a folder.
2: Double-click the "Autoruns.exe".
3: Click on the "Everything" tab
4: Remove any entries that mention "File Not Found" by right-clicking the entry and select Delete.
5: Go to File then to Export As or Save in some versions.
6: Save AutoRuns.txt file to known location like your Desktop.
7: Attach to your next reply.

[domer07]

WOW! Every time I run something like this I am usually stunned to realize what goes on behind the scenes.

Attached is the Autoruns file - hope this works

 AutoRuns___Initial.txt   118.86KB   194 downloads

Edited by domer07, 11 January 2010 - 09:15 PM.

[rshaffer61]

Open Autoruns, click on "Logon" tab, and UN-check:

"QuickTime Task"
"NBJ" "" "" "File not found: S:\Steve\PROGRA~1\NEROBU~1\NEROBA~1\NBJ.exe"



When done restart computer and then:



Download TFC by OldTimer to your desktop

• Please double-click TFC.exe to run it. (Note: If you are running on Vista, right-click on the file and choose Run As Administrator).
• It will close all programs when run, so make sure you have saved all your work before you begin.
• Click the Start button to begin the process. Depending on how often you clean temp files, execution time should be anywhere from a few seconds to a minute or two. Let it run uninterrupted to completion.
• Once it's finished it should reboot your machine. If it does not, please manually reboot the machine yourself to ensure a complete clean.

Download Auslogics Defrag from the link in my signature below. Auslogics Defrag in my opinion is better because:
It does a more comprehensive job at Defragging
It will actually show you what it is doing
At the end of working it will show you how much speed you picked up
You can view a online log of the files that Auslogics defragged

[domer07]

Thanks rshaffer61 for continuing to help.

I completed all the steps you recommended and ran a Malware scan with minimal performance results, although I did find some Malware, so all is not for nothing

Interestingly, I continue to have the computer freeze up and the screen go blank - only a re-boot gets me back going. Reviewing hardware in Device Manager, I noticed a yellow indicator on the Promise FastTrakController. The error I see in System Event Viewer that corresponds to the freezing issue says it is a fasttx2k error saying "Internal error in data structures for . (no words between "for" and period).

Driver details on the controller states "This device cannot start. (Code 10).

I tried installing the driver from the MB disk and also from the floppy, but get a message during the driver search that windows cannot find a better driver than the one installed. Troubleshooting suggested uninstalling then reinstalling the driver. Should I use the disk, floppy or try to find one on the internet?

As background, because I was getting the fasttx2K error, I have changed BIOS for IDE (not RAID) configuration as my OS is on an IDE HDD. I disconnected the backup HDD (SATA) from the MB and the freezing didn't occur for about three days, but has now returned.

Any other advice would be appreciated.

domer7

[rshaffer61]

I completed all the steps you recommended and ran a Malware scan with minimal performance results, although I did find some Malware, so all is not for nothing happy.gif

The highlighted text alone is why I'm going to suggest you go to the Malware Removal and Spyware Removal Forum and run all the steps located in the
START HERE. These self-help tools will help you clean up 70% of problems on your own.
If you are still having problems after doing the steps, then please post the reguested logs in THAT forum.
If you are unable to run any of the tools then start a new topic in the malware forum and put this in the subject line...I am unable to run any malware tools

If you are still having problems after being given a clean bill of health from the malware expert, then please return to THIS thread and we will pursue other options to help you solve your current problem(s).

Add a link to this topic so that malware tech can see what steps have been taken here

[domer07]

OK, I will do that.

I have completed the process through the Malwarebytes scan and deleted what was found. I did not do the rootkit scan and beyond.

Other things hI have read indicate the Malware scan should be done in safe mode. Will this make a difference?

[domer07]

I meant to say I had previously completed the TFC, ERUNT and Malwarebytes scan steps.

[domer07]

After going to Malware forum, I have run all the scans recommended and deemed to have a clean computer. Before we go any further, I am going to run a memory scan. Then we can talk about other possible causes.

A point to ponder: My BIOS has had at least two instances where it has mysteriously changed settings. I have not flashed the latest BIOS nor have I tried to re-install the Promise Controller driver. During the boot process, there is a message flashed saying BIOS is not installed on the promise controller. I currently have no drives hooked to the SATA port and am running XP from an IDE HDD.

domer7

[rshaffer61]

A point to ponder: My BIOS has had at least two instances where it has mysteriously changed settings.

Explain this a little more please. What do you mean it changed settings?
Have you noticed the clock in windows changing time and\or the date?
It may be a sign of a low cmos battery

[domer07]

The first time I noticed anything was when the computer froze and would not load windows saying Error loading OS. Going into the BIOS Setup, I noticed the order to load hard drives had changed and was trying to load the data storage drive (SATA)first and not the IDE drive with the OS on it. After changing that back, I also noticed a couple of other setups were back to default. Because the fasttxk2 error in Event Viewer implicated the Promise Controller, I disconnected the SATA drive and made sure the BIOS setup was IDE and RAID disabled. This was about 8-10 days ago. During one of the frequent reboots in the last few days it had reverted back to default settings - I changed them back again last night.

No changes in time/clock settings.

[rshaffer61]

It sound slike a possible low battery issue. The cmos battery is what allows the bios to maintain the settings you set. When it gets low the system starts to act strange and in some cases won't boot at all.
How old is the system and is this a laptop or desktop?

[domer07]

The computer is just under 4 years old. I thought I may have replaced the battery at some point, but not in the past two plus years.

No problems found in MemTest86 memory scan - I ran three scans and all three were OK with no errors.