chattering pc

  • Thread starter Thread starter stephen
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stephen

My pc chatters away when it doesn't appear to be doing
anything - this is a relatively new phenomenon. Any ideas?

Thanks, stephen
 
My pc chatters away when it doesn't appear to be doing
anything - this is a relatively new phenomenon. Any ideas?

Thanks, stephen
Click to expand...

Stephen,

Can you tell where the "chattering" noise is coming from? The hard drive maybe?

Start Task Manager and watch what's running when the chattering starts. A
Defrag job? Indexing?

How often do you defrag routinely?

Did you enroll in any global computing effort - maybe SETI or similar?

Might be spyware / virus.

How current is your virus protection? Try these free online virus scans:
<http://www.bitdefender.com/scan/license.php>
<http://security.symantec.com/ssc/home.asp>
<http://housecall.trendmicro.com/housecall/start_corp.asp>

Now check for, and learn to defend against, additional carriers of infection.

First, download LSP-Fix and WinsockXPFIx from <http://www.cexx.org/lspfix.htm>,
and CWShredder from <http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4086.html>. All are
free.

Next, run CWShredder. Have it fix all variants.

Now check for, and remove, spyware. Get HijackThis
<http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=3155> and Spybot S&D
<http://security.kolla.de/index.php?lang=en&page=download>. Both free.
1) Install and run Spybot. First update it ("Search for updates"), then run a
scan ("Check for problems"). Trust Spybot, and make all recommended deletions.
2) Install and run HijackThis. Do NOT make any changes immediately. Save the
HJT Log.
3) Have your HJT log interpreted by experts at one or more of the following
forums (and post it here):
<http://forums.net-integration.net/>
<http://www.spywareinfo.com/forums/>
<http://forums.tomcoyote.org/>
<http://www.wilderssecurity.com/>

If removal of any spyware affects your ability to access the internet (some
spyware builds itself into the network software, and its removal may damage your
network), run LSP-Fix and / or WinsockXPFIx.

Harden your browser. There are various websites which will check for
vulnerabilities, here are three which I use.
http://www.jasons-toolbox.com/BrowserSecurity/
http://bcheck.scanit.be/bcheck/
https://testzone.secunia.com/browser_checker/

Harden your operating system. Check at least monthly for security updates.
http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/

Block possibly dangerous websites with a Hosts file. Three Hosts file sources I
use:
http://www.accs-net.com/hosts/get_hosts.html
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm
(The third is included, and updated, with Spybot (see above)).

Cheers,
Chuck
Paranoia comes from experience - and is not necessarily a bad thing.
 
-----Original Message-----
My pc chatters away when it doesn't appear to be doing
anything - this is a relatively new phenomenon. Any ideas?

Thanks, stephen
.
Click to expand...
IF YOUR HARD DRIVE IS CLICKING, PREPARE FOR TROUBLE
One of your hard drive's hints of coming trouble is lots
of clicking.
(Other hints: A grinding noise means the read/write head
is scraping
the platter. Kiss your data goodbye. Smoke is also a very
bad sign.)
If your hard drive is clicking, back up your data
immediately.
The clicking occurs when the read/write head fails to
align with the
servo tracks. The head hits its crash stops, resulting in
clicks.
Hard drives can go very quickly. If your hard drive
clicks continually,
shut the computer down
 
Many thanks for your time,

Stephen
-----Original Message-----


Stephen,

Can you tell where the "chattering" noise is coming from? The hard drive maybe?

Start Task Manager and watch what's running when the chattering starts. A
Defrag job? Indexing?

How often do you defrag routinely?

Did you enroll in any global computing effort - maybe SETI or similar?

Might be spyware / virus.

How current is your virus protection? Try these free online virus scans:
<http://www.bitdefender.com/scan/license.php>
<http://security.symantec.com/ssc/home.asp>
<http://housecall.trendmicro.com/housecall/start_corp.asp>

Now check for, and learn to defend against, additional carriers of infection.

First, download LSP-Fix and WinsockXPFIx from
Click to expand...
and CWShredder from
Click to expand...
free.

Next, run CWShredder. Have it fix all variants.

Now check for, and remove, spyware. Get HijackThis
<http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=3155> and Spybot S&D
<http://security.kolla.de/index.php?
Click to expand...
lang=en&page=download>. Both free.
 
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