Will reformat fix registry?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Nurock
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Nurock

I picked a malware problem, (Antivirus XP2008). I have a back-up of all of
my data on an external hard drive that I made just before I got the virus. if
I reformat my whole computer and reload Vista Home Premium, then reload my
data from the external hard drive, should that fix all of my problems?
 
Nurock said:
I picked a malware problem, (Antivirus XP2008). I have a back-up of all
of my data on an external hard drive that I made just before I got the
virus. if I reformat my whole computer and reload Vista Home Premium, then
reload my data from the external hard drive, should that fix all of my
problems?
Click to expand...

Yes.

Malke
 
I picked a malware problem, (Antivirus XP2008). I have a back-up of all of
my data on an external hard drive that I made just before I got the virus.
if
I reformat my whole computer and reload Vista Home Premium, then reload my
data from the external hard drive, should that fix all of my problems?
Click to expand...


Yes. Reformatting the drive and reinstalling Windows will fix any software
problems, since it wipes everything off the drive and starts over from
scratch.

But is it necessary or even a good idea to do this to get rid of the
infection? Highly unlikely.
 
Re-installing will solve your problem but, before you do anything so
drastic, have you tried downloading and running Malwarebytes Anti malware?
(www.malwarebytes.org) This should eradicate your antivirus xp2008 problem.

--

--
John Barnett MVP
Associate Expert
Windows Desktop Experience

Web: http://xphelpandsupport.mvps.org
Web: http://vistasupport.mvps.org

The information in this mail/post is supplied "as is". No warranty of any
kind, either expressed or implied, is made in relation to the accuracy,
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mail/post..
 
Nurock said:
I picked a malware problem, (Antivirus XP2008). I have a back-up of all of
my data on an external hard drive that I made just before I got the virus. if
I reformat my whole computer and reload Vista Home Premium, then reload my
data from the external hard drive, should that fix all of my problems?
Click to expand...


Formatting the hard drive to solve a virus or spyware problem is
rather like using an axe to trim one's fingernails. Sure, it'll get the
job done, but it's rather time-consuming, and almost always unnecessary.


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:


http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/555375

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. ~Bertrand Russell

The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has
killed a great many philosophers.
~ Denis Diderot
 
I believe that Malwarebytes will probably get rid of Anitvirus XP2008, but
will it fix the registry problems?
 
Nurock said:
I believe that Malwarebytes will probably get rid of Anitvirus XP2008, but
will it fix the registry problems?
Click to expand...

Other than having the malware infestation, nothing to OP said (other
than the inaccurate subject line) indicates that he/she does have any
sort of registry problem.


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:


http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/555375

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. ~Bertrand Russell

The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has
killed a great many philosophers.
~ Denis Diderot
 
Bruce Chambers said:
Formatting the hard drive to solve a virus or spyware problem is
rather like using an axe to trim one's fingernails. Sure, it'll get the
job done, but it's rather time-consuming, and almost always unnecessary.
Click to expand...
Well, there are different schools of thought about this. Some think that
once you get infected the only way to be certain the system is clean is to
format and reinstall. If the system is functional enough I agree it's worth
making an effort to clean it first. By using a combination of anti-malware
tools I can feel pretty confident the system is clean, but there may be
lingering damage. For instance a common problem I've seen is a task manager
with the top menu cutoff. This is probably an example of registry
corruption. It may be possible to fix this kind of thing by editing the
registry directly, but how? If would be great if someone put up a FAQ.
 
Well, there are different schools of thought about this.
Click to expand...


Yes, there are. In my view, the severity of the remedial action
depends upon the mission critically of the system, the sensitivity of
the data thereon (and whether or not that data has been backed up
recently), the skill set of the computer user/repairer), and the
type/thoroughness of the infection.

Some think
that once you get infected the only way to be certain the system is
clean is to format and reinstall.
Click to expand...


And for few those situations where 100% certainty is essential (or
desired), a format and re-installation of the OS and applications is the
only choice. This, however, usually isn't the case for the home
consumer dealing with a single well-known and relatively easily cleaned
piece of malware, as is the OP's stated case. (Of course, from the
paucity of the original post, we really can't assume that there's only
one piece of malware, either. We have to trust the OP to be accurate.)

If the system is functional enough I
agree it's worth making an effort to clean it first. By using a
combination of anti-malware tools I can feel pretty confident the system
is clean, but there may be lingering damage.
Click to expand...


No argument here.

For instance a common
problem I've seen is a task manager with the top menu cutoff. This is
probably an example of registry corruption. It may be possible to fix
this kind of thing by editing the registry directly, but how? If would
be great if someone put up a FAQ.
Click to expand...


That doesn't sound at all like registry corruption, as it's a
built-in (if poorly documented) option. It sounds like the Task Manager
is being run in "Small Footprint Mode." Simply double-click anywhere
along the top or side borders to return to a normal view.
Alternatively, pressing <Ctrl>+<Tab> will allow you to cycle between the
various displays, and <Alt>+<F4> will close it.

Task Manager Menu Bar and Tabs Are Not Visible in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;314227


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:


http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/555375

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. ~Bertrand Russell

The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has
killed a great many philosophers.
~ Denis Diderot
 
You haven't indicated any registry problems in your original post. If you do
have registry problems (we don't know what they are because you haven't
said) then No Malwarebytes will not repair the registry. Unless you have a
backup image of your whole drive then you will probably have to resort to
re-installing.

One question however is: Did you get the malware AntiVirus XP2008 before you
backed up to your external drive or after. If it is before you backed up to
your external drive, the malware could be lurking on the external drive
ready to re-appear.

--

--
John Barnett MVP
Associate Expert
Windows Desktop Experience

Web: http://xphelpandsupport.mvps.org
Web: http://vistasupport.mvps.org

The information in this mail/post is supplied "as is". No warranty of any
kind, either expressed or implied, is made in relation to the accuracy,
reliability or content of this mail/post. The Author shall not be liable for
any direct, indirect, incidental or consequential damages arising out of the
use of, or inability to use, information or opinions expressed in this
mail/post..
 
While it might be a moral booster to re-install the operating system simply
because of a virus/malware it certainly isn't a necessity. if your Anti
Virus/Malware/spyware software is doing its job then the
virus/malware/spyware should be automatically ether quarantine or removed
from your 'main' system. What people forget is that Windows creates what I
call a 'subsystem' in the form of Restore points and you can bet that the
virus/malware/spyware has hid itself comfortably there just waiting for you
to restore your system back. In this situation I find it more useful to let
the anti virus/malware/spyware application do its job and clear the virus
etc. As soon as this is done I immediately delete the system restore points.
I can then create a new restore point from scratch thus preventing a further
infection.

--

--
John Barnett MVP
Associate Expert
Windows Desktop Experience

Web: http://xphelpandsupport.mvps.org
Web: http://vistasupport.mvps.org

The information in this mail/post is supplied "as is". No warranty of any
kind, either expressed or implied, is made in relation to the accuracy,
reliability or content of this mail/post. The Author shall not be liable for
any direct, indirect, incidental or consequential damages arising out of the
use of, or inability to use, information or opinions expressed in this
mail/post..
 
Didn't take the time to read all the post. If this is a repeat I
apoligize. I run a disc program to wipe my hard drive about every six
months.
Click to expand...

A lot of people think that doing that is useful. I'm one who doesn't.

IF you think that's needed, a much better way to go about it is to
install a second internal hard drive or an external USB hard drive and
use an imaging program like Acronis True Image.

Wipe the drive, reinstall Vista, install all of your programs, get all
of the updates and then image the drive and save that image for when
you next want to start "fresh".

Instead of wiping the drive and then installing everything again, you
spend maybe 45 minutes restoring your original setup from the image.

Think of the time you will save.
 
That scenario, Paul, is he exact one I use myself. In most cases, if a
problem occurs, I can re-image my operating system back to my hard drive in
less that 25 minutes. Just remember to keep the Acronis image as up to date
as possible, especially, if like me, you are installing and uninstalling
software on a regular basis.


--

--
John Barnett MVP
Associate Expert
Windows Desktop Experience

Web: http://xphelpandsupport.mvps.org
Web: http://vistasupport.mvps.org

The information in this mail/post is supplied "as is". No warranty of any
kind, either expressed or implied, is made in relation to the accuracy,
reliability or content of this mail/post. The Author shall not be liable for
any direct, indirect, incidental or consequential damages arising out of the
use of, or inability to use, information or opinions expressed in this
mail/post..
 
I picked a malware problem, (Antivirus XP2008). I have a back-up of
all of my data on an external hard drive that I made just before I got
the virus. if I reformat my whole computer and reload Vista Home
Premium, then reload my data from the external hard drive, should that
fix all of my problems?
Click to expand...

JUst use Vista restore point to a time before you got the malware. Then get
a tool that will find and remove the rogue files.
 
Well, there are different schools of thought about this. Some think that
once you get infected the only way to be certain the system is clean is to
format and reinstall.
Click to expand...

There are certainly different schools of thought, and those who state the
above are technically correct. Nevertheless, depending *what* you are
infected with, how *many* things you are infected with, how *long* you've
been infected, and the mission-criticality of the system, in many cases,
most people can remove an infection with a software tool, and accept the
high-confidence (not certainty) it provides that the system is correctly
cleaned.

The one major situation in which I feel differently about this is when
someone finds that his system has multiple infections. If there is lots of
malware infections, the chances of successfully cleaning them all gets very
small, and in such a circumstance, reinstallation is always best.

If the system is functional enough I agree it's worth making an effort to
clean it first. By using a combination of anti-malware tools I can feel
pretty confident the system is clean, but there may be lingering damage.
For instance a common problem I've seen is a task manager with the top
menu cutoff. This is probably an example of registry corruption.
Click to expand...

No it's not. It's not any kind of corruption, it's not the result of
malware, and it's not a problem at all. It's certain not necessary to
reinstall to fix it. It's actually an option within Task Mangaer, called
"small footprint mode." To switch back and forth from regular mode to small
footprint mode, simply double-click on the task manager border.
 
I use some similar safety precautions - every 6 months or so wipe the OS HDD
clean. Also, I have a 'salvaged' 40GB IDE HDD on which I have Acronis and
images of major (ex. 'after Office install,' 'after SP1' etc) system
changes/additions; of course, that includes the mandatory 'fresh install'
image also saved on DVDs.
After imaging, I just unplug the Acronis HDD so it stays in the case w/out
being worn off, damaged etc.
Documents, pictures whatever reside on another (500GB) HDD while other
redundant backups are saved on a different HDD.
Michael
 
No it's not. It's not any kind of corruption, it's not the result of
malware, and it's not a problem at all. It's certain not necessary to
reinstall to fix it. It's actually an option within Task Mangaer, called
"small footprint mode." To switch back and forth from regular mode to
small footprint mode, simply double-click on the task manager border.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the tip about task manager's small footprint mode. Next time I
see that problem I'll try double-clicking the border. I've only seen this
on infected systems, which makes me think that the malware is responsible
(just another way of trying to protect itself).
 
Victek said:
Thanks for the tip about task manager's small footprint mode. Next time I
see that problem I'll try double-clicking the border. I've only seen this
on infected systems, which makes me think that the malware is responsible
(just another way of trying to protect itself).
Click to expand...


You're welcome. You don't have to wait to see small footprint mode. Turn it
on yourself by double-clicking the border, then turn it off by
double-clicking again.

Almost invariably the way it gets turned on is that someone accidentally
double-clicked it with realizing it.
 
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