Bigger drives are always nice. I'm running two 250gb and one 300gb. Am thinking about adding an old 120gb I got laying around. I also have an 80gb on the shelf with my entire operating system and key emergency programs on it for the day I may end up in Mortys shoes.

If ya got an old HD laying around it might be worth the very little trouble to make a spare drive C out of. I just copied everything over to it with copy commander.

Good luck Morty, Skank

Man that sounds so nasty.

Are the pop-ups at least primarily porno?

I'm interested in what the HijackThis guys will give as the diagnosis.

My sons computer was like that. I used the Hijack this log and googled each item I was unsure of and fixed the bulk of it. Some items need a download item specific fix.

Ok, so I had a thought...the problem must definitely reside somewhere within the browser program itself. Popups open at times when I am not even on the internet. Here's where it gets interesting...if I turn off my cable modem, THEY STOP. Perhaps if I uninstall Microsoft Internet Exploiter completely, this might solve the problem. Think this might do it?

Can't do it buddy. IE is built into the OS. I tried to disable it on co-workers computers to dick with them. But no matter what I did it was still able to fire up.

Your right in that disconnecting the modem should alleviate the problem so you can carry on other functions (word, xl, nero, etc). Think I'll take a peak at your HJ log at webuser and see if I recognize any baddies.

Mort,

Yeah, the hijaxrs require internet to load their crap up onto your computer. And they got to your puter via the browser. But I doubt uninstalling and then reinstalling will do anything. There are probably a bunch of registry keys and exe files hiding in your computer, and probably a few things running right now in TaskManager.

I had a mild hijacking and fixed it fairly easily using HijackThis and Google. Yours sounds a bit more complicated, so let those dude do their magic.

Mah

Couldn't check, you must be using another name

Are you Kolchak ?

I did some looking around and these are the results. Remeber I'm just an over rated broken down old carpenter so I coulc be wrong. Some items could require additional programs to fix like killbox OR L2mfix.


So here goes nothing. Let me know how it compares to the pros.


BADDIES:
R0 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Search,SearchAssistant =

R0 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Search,CustomizeSearch =

R0 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Toolbar,LinksFolderName =

R3 - URLSearchHook: (no name) - {87766247-311C-43B4-8499-3D5FEC94A183} - (no file)

O3 - Toolbar: My &Quick Search - {0E677229-E309-4341-81BD-3CC3018BF5B3} - D:\Program Files\MyQuickSearch\bar\1.bin\MQSBAR.DLL

O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [adtech2005] C:\windows\adtech2005.exe

O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [Nfo] D:\WINDOWS\system32\nfomon\nfomon.exe

O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [vidmon] D:\WINDOWS\system32\vidmon\vidmon.exe



FILE MISSING: (I'D REMOVE THESE WHAT THE HECK THEY GOT NO FILES)
O9 - Extra button: (no name) - {6685509E-B47B-4f47-8E16-9A5F3A62F683} - file://D:\Program Files\Ebates_MoeMoneyMaker\Sy350\Tp350\scri350a.htm (file missing) (HKCU)

O23 - Service: WebSeach Toolbar support NT service (TBPSSvc) - Unknown owner - D:\PROGRA~1\Toolbar\TBPSSvc.exe (file missing)



TOTALLY DONT KNOW:
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [rqum] D:\PROGRA~1\COMMON~1\rqum\rqumm.exe



PARASITES: Definitely not required - typically viruses, spyware, adware and "resource hogs"

O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [mmtask] c:\Program Files\MUSICMATCH\MUSICMATCH Jukebox\mmtask.exe

O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [ecsiin] C:\ecsiin.stub.exe

O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [timessquare] C:\windows\timessquare.exe



SUSPECT:
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [0oqw0ub0.dll] RUNDLL32.EXE 0oqw0ub0.dll,b 1241915

Sounds like they are using your MSN messenger program to make these pop ups. Turn it off. Get and use this program called shoot the messenger:

http://www.grc.com/freepopular.htm

I don't use this site anymore but it has given me lots of good info about all sorts of stuff like this. The program I mentioned is free. Let us know. Good luck too.

Yep.

C'mon mannnn! Ineed an update here. This forum is my soap opera you could say. So give us some info. Did you kill the messenger like I suggested? Where are you at with this?

So I used the program just out of respect for its name. After 5 hours, it's still working perfectly! That seems to have done the job. I still want to know what the tech guys come up with, to eliminate traces of other crap which has invaded my system. Thanks for the recommendations.

Followup: There is still something serious going on with the system. Although the popups have ceased, it is affecting other programs. Tried running UT. Seemed to be working for a while, but I kept getting kicked back to Windows / desktop. UGH!!!!

Before you do anything else, try Herm's suggestion and kill Messenger.

Go to the Start button.
Go to Run
In the popup box, type in services.msc
Click OK
Find Messenger in the list.
Double click on it. Stop the service and disable it. It will not harm your computer unless you are on a network that needs it. Since this is for home use, then I HIGHLY doubt it.
Restart your PC.

I have the feeling that this will kill the popups. As for the other problems, I don't really know. I have a feeling that UT crashing to the desktop is because another popup is trying to... well... pop up. It is stealing focus from UT and going to the desktop.

Let us know if this solves your problem. I think it will.
Also, the Messenger service is not MSN Messenger. You will still be able to IM your buddies if you want to.

Hey Morty,
Looks like I'm in good company I'd been meaning to clean up my favorites for way to long, so the other night I undertook the task. Orginzing folders, testing each link, deleating those that were dead or no longer of interest, moving the live ones to there appropriate folders. Invested about 5 hours between IE and FireFox.
Hit the sack about 3:00am. Got up the next morning, fired up the ol' puter and low and behold what have we here on the desktop but an activeX or java based add. About 6 big ass icons. Gambling, Meds, Dating, XXX, Insurance and Spyware. As one would pass the cursor over them there drop down menus would appear.
Further investigation (and the help of webusers.com) reveiled my DNS Server had been hijacked so instead of my internet activity going through my usual ISP, it was directed to a dick-head in the Ukraine for criminal purposes.
I think I'm about half way through the fix. If it doesn't clean up to easy I'll swap out hardrives, this one for my spare with the oporating system and essential tools and reformate the old one, the inturn clone the working C: drive back to the other disk again. Really Hard to beat having the extra drive loaded and ready to go.
Next computer needs to have enough bays so I can keep the
spare mounted and just swap the cables.

So tell me know is it true, does misery love company?

Best regards, Skank

lol, Skank caught the clap too. The question is: Was it the same hooker?

Could it have to do with that cracks program?

Mah