Performing a complete wipe of a computer

SimonAH

.....but saving some of the programs?

We have two machines in the house that are not under my control, and both have been so extensively used by my good lady wife that one (a netbook) just about works and one (a desktop) is so filled with crap and hidden system draining sh1t that it quite literally takes an hour to boot.

I've no idea what she's done to them, and both have had ad-aware run reasonably frequently along with one of the free anti-virus programs but both are so choked that they are basically unusable.

What's my best route to cleaning the damn things down? There's not much I want to save but leaving the bones (such as MS Office and the drivers) on there would save me a raft of hassle.

As you may have guessed I'm not a systems guy! These are personal machines however so it would be frowned upon to ask our IT dpt in Germany to clean them up.

Thanks in advance IT wizard forumites!

whyamihere

If they're as bad as you say, then the best option is going to be to reformat and start again. Reinstalling Office and any drivers which aren't automatically installed with the OS is going to be a lot less hassle than going through and removing the crap one piece at a time.

davis

Give up on the idea of trying to retain the software that's on there. Make sure you've got all the data you want, wipe it, reinstall the OS and any software. The task of trying to take out the malware etc that's on there will consume your life.

godders1

whyamihere wrote:

If they're as bad as you say, then the best option is going to be to reformat and start again. Reinstalling Office and any drivers which aren't automatically installed with the OS is going to be a lot less hassle than going through and removing the crap one piece at a time.

This.

Having said that a good uninstaller is revo, it scans for leftover files and registry entries that built in uninstallers and the Windows tool often miss.

http://download.cnet.com/Revo-Uninstall ... 87648.html

dhope

1) Go to manufacturer site. Download drivers
2) Get USB key (4GB should be plenty, which'll be about £4), save drivers and any docs onto it.

3) Reinstall Windows from scratch

You can skip 1 and 2 if lazy

CiB

Go to Control Panel --> Add Remove programs and remove as many as you think you can live without, then reboot.

Download & install CCLEANER (the free domestic version) and run that to get rid of tons of crap that builds up over time.

Go to Start --> Run --> MSConfig --> hit the startup tab and deselect those that you know to be unnecessary startup apps. Leave anything Microsoft and anything that's to do with your anti-virus - you probably want those to start with Windows.

Reboot. Run CCleaner again. Then run the Registry tidy-up component on it. Let id do whatever it asks - defaults work fine, always. [cue someone whose life was ruined by it...]

It's junk that slows it down, not viruses etc. Give that a go, let us know how you go. Reinstalling Windows is a faff as you lose lots of things that you forget to save, like shortcuts, docs that aren't in My Docs, desktop shortcuts etc. Your decision in the end but give it a tidy up first then see if a reinstall is needed.

iclestu

look into Linux.....

Its like cycling to work. Once you make the switch you never look back. No more Malware (i'm sure that's not 100% accurate, but to the end user it seems that way) and no loss of functionality unless u a hardcore gamer or something...

iclestu

ooo - and new FREE shiny operating system every 6 months without losing any programs, or data.

Click the link, download and enjoy. My computer boots as fast today as it did when I 1st installed its OS over 2 years ago. In that time ive added and removed countless applications, upgraded OS at least 3 times, never had to defrag, virus check, adware remove or 'clean C: drive', clean 'registry' or anything remotely similar. I challenge ANY Windows user to say likewise

CiB

Linux. +1 to that; give it a go.

craker

CiB wrote:

Download & install CCLEANER (the free domestic version) and run that to get rid of tons of crap that builds up over time.

Go to Start --> Run --> MSConfig --> hit the startup tab and deselect those that you know to be unnecessary startup apps. Leave anything Microsoft and anything that's to do with your anti-virus - you probably want those to start with Windows.

+ also check what services are starting up (services tab of the msconfig app). Some would say err on the side of caution, I would suggest being brutal. Search Google for items in your Startup & Services tabs that you're not too sure about.

At the risk of digressing... -1 for Linux (eg Ubuntu) it's a bit of a steep learning curve tbh. It'll work out of the box but once you start delving beneath the surface you'll quickly appreciate how different it is to Windows. The price is right but you can get OEM windows XP Cds for £10.

iclestu

mr_si wrote:

CiB wrote:

At the risk of digressing... -1 for Linux (eg Ubuntu) it's a bit of a steep learning curve tbh. It'll work out of the box but once you start delving beneath the surface you'll quickly appreciate how different it is to Windows. The price is right but you can get OEM windows XP Cds for £10.

I dont delve! :-) (at least not much!).

optimisticbiker

iclestu wrote:

mr_si wrote:

At the risk of digressing... -1 for Linux (eg Ubuntu) it's a bit of a steep learning curve tbh. It'll work out of the box but once you start delving beneath the surface you'll quickly appreciate how different it is to Windows. The price is right but you can get OEM windows XP Cds for £10.

I dont delve! :-) (at least not much!).

At the risk of muddying the waters, the OP did say these were his wife's computers (or she is the primary user) so suggesting puting Linux on them is not exactly a sensible option. If I asked my wife to relearn how to use her PC (and lost compatibility with her office PC and my son's and daughter's machines) I would not be long for this world (only a slight exaggeration ). For the record I have two Linux machines, with OpenOffice etc, but no way I would ask my wife to use them in preference to her Windows7 system.

iclestu

OptimisticBiker wrote:

iclestu wrote:

mr_si wrote:

At the risk of digressing... -1 for Linux (eg Ubuntu) it's a bit of a steep learning curve tbh. It'll work out of the box but once you start delving beneath the surface you'll quickly appreciate how different it is to Windows. The price is right but you can get OEM windows XP Cds for £10.

I dont delve! :-) (at least not much!).

At the risk of muddying the waters, the OP did say these were his wife's computers (or she is the primary user) so suggesting puting Linux on them is not exactly a sensible option. If I asked my wife to relearn how to use her PC (and lost compatibility with her office PC and my son's and daughter's machines) I would not be long for this world (only a slight exaggeration ). For the record I have two Linux machines, with OpenOffice etc, but no way I would ask my wife to use them in preference to her Windows7 system.

is it so different she couldnt just jump straight in? I am by no stretch of the imagination a 'power user' but its not so hard to switch and then no looking back when done

RoadyForever

Switching to linux is a bit extreme, MS has made inroads with security in Vista/ W8 (I am guessing we are talking about a XP machine here). I would take the files you need, format and reinstall. Also, go careful in future and do not install anything you do not trust the source.

CiB wrote:

Go to Control Panel --> Add Remove programs and remove as many as you think you can live without, then reboot.

Download & install CCLEANER (the free domestic version) and run that to get rid of tons of crap that builds up over time.

Go to Start --> Run --> MSConfig --> hit the startup tab and deselect those that you know to be unnecessary startup apps. Leave anything Microsoft and anything that's to do with your anti-virus - you probably want those to start with Windows.

Reboot. Run CCleaner again. Then run the Registry tidy-up component on it. Let id do whatever it asks - defaults work fine, always. [cue someone whose life was ruined by it...]

It's junk that slows it down, not viruses etc. Give that a go, let us know how you go. Reinstalling Windows is a faff as you lose lots of things that you forget to save, like shortcuts, docs that aren't in My Docs, desktop shortcuts etc. Your decision in the end but give it a tidy up first then see if a reinstall is needed.

I wouldn't recommend messing around with things you do not understand, But if you do try to clean the system (pointless in my view, once compromised, always compromised). You need to run these tools in safe mode to stop these malicious programs hiding themselves in memory.

optimisticbiker

iclestu wrote:

OptimisticBiker wrote:

iclestu wrote:

mr_si wrote:

At the risk of digressing... -1 for Linux (eg Ubuntu) it's a bit of a steep learning curve tbh. It'll work out of the box but once you start delving beneath the surface you'll quickly appreciate how different it is to Windows. The price is right but you can get OEM windows XP Cds for £10.

I dont delve! :-) (at least not much!).

At the risk of muddying the waters, the OP did say these were his wife's computers (or she is the primary user) so suggesting puting Linux on them is not exactly a sensible option. If I asked my wife to relearn how to use her PC (and lost compatibility with her office PC and my son's and daughter's machines) I would not be long for this world (only a slight exaggeration ). For the record I have two Linux machines, with OpenOffice etc, but no way I would ask my wife to use them in preference to her Windows7 system.

is it so different she couldnt just jump straight in? I am by no stretch of the imagination a 'power user' but its not so hard to switch and then no looking back when done

You obviously aren't married....:) Its not what OP would do...its what his wife would do....

SimonAH

Thanks all!

I decided to go brutal and rebooted from the resue disc that came with the machine (thankfully still had it). Killed everything in sight and reloaded XP.

The computer now works! (this is the desk top in the child's bedroom btw). I have of course now got no sound nor does the wireless dongle work.....but I'm sure I can find the requisite drivers and drop them on via USB stick.

Thanks for the help folks.

I believe that I will, however, need to be a little more gentle with the good lady's netbook because (god forbid) I should impair her ability to book her face for a day.

roger_merriman

iclestu wrote:

OptimisticBiker wrote:

iclestu wrote:

mr_si wrote:

At the risk of digressing... -1 for Linux (eg Ubuntu) it's a bit of a steep learning curve tbh. It'll work out of the box but once you start delving beneath the surface you'll quickly appreciate how different it is to Windows. The price is right but you can get OEM windows XP Cds for £10.

I dont delve! :-) (at least not much!).

At the risk of muddying the waters, the OP did say these were his wife's computers (or she is the primary user) so suggesting puting Linux on them is not exactly a sensible option. If I asked my wife to relearn how to use her PC (and lost compatibility with her office PC and my son's and daughter's machines) I would not be long for this world (only a slight exaggeration ). For the record I have two Linux machines, with OpenOffice etc, but no way I would ask my wife to use them in preference to her Windows7 system.

is it so different she couldnt just jump straight in? I am by no stretch of the imagination a 'power user' but its not so hard to switch and then no looking back when done

Linux has come a long way, but the year of the linux desktop is as ever a long way away.

It is true that since linux window managers where written by folks who used windows, linux feel is closer to Windows than mac or others systems.

It should not be forgotten that non geeks find different systems and applications difficult to adjust to, like for like linux netbooks where reported to have a higher return rate for that very reason.

iclestu

roger merriman wrote:

iclestu wrote:

OptimisticBiker wrote:

iclestu wrote:

mr_si wrote:

At the risk of digressing... -1 for Linux (eg Ubuntu) it's a bit of a steep learning curve tbh. It'll work out of the box but once you start delving beneath the surface you'll quickly appreciate how different it is to Windows. The price is right but you can get OEM windows XP Cds for £10.

I dont delve! :-) (at least not much!).

At the risk of muddying the waters, the OP did say these were his wife's computers (or she is the primary user) so suggesting puting Linux on them is not exactly a sensible option. If I asked my wife to relearn how to use her PC (and lost compatibility with her office PC and my son's and daughter's machines) I would not be long for this world (only a slight exaggeration ). For the record I have two Linux machines, with OpenOffice etc, but no way I would ask my wife to use them in preference to her Windows7 system.

is it so different she couldnt just jump straight in? I am by no stretch of the imagination a 'power user' but its not so hard to switch and then no looking back when done

Linux has come a long way, but the year of the linux desktop is as ever a long way away.

It is true that since linux window managers where written by folks who used windows, linux feel is closer to Windows than mac or others systems.

It should not be forgotten that non geeks find different systems and applications difficult to adjust to, like for like linux netbooks where reported to have a higher return rate for that very reason.

fair enough.

I can only yield to more knowledgable forumites, but my own experience was a very very positive one. Run kubuntu on my desktop and netbook and love it in both places. desktop went dual boot but never boot into it. ever. If i ever need that disc space i wont hesitate to scrub it.

shouldbeinbed

Go to Filehippo and get the free version of malwarebytes, it can pick up those little apps and system drains that slip in underneath antivirus & firewalls. Facebook is a sod for them. Then CCcleaner for regular registry/start menu tweaks & clean ups.

Regular defragmentation helps too. I've found Avast anti virus & windows xp inbuilt firewall has been the best combo along with the above to keep my PC clean and protected, even with kids using limewire & similar virus homes

mudcow007

whyamihere wrote:

If they're as bad as you say, then the best option is going to be to reformat and start again. Reinstalling Office and any drivers which aren't automatically installed with the OS is going to be a lot less hassle than going through and removing the crap one piece at a time.

+1

what Operating System is it?

i'm guessing it will be windows?

im a self confessed nerd, but wouldn't recommend Windows users install Linux (or a different flavour of Linux) instead of Windows on a primary partition.....chuck it on to a deletable partition so you can have a play, if you dont like it, scrub the drive

we run XP, Mac an Ubuntu here. whilst the Mac an ubuntu machines rarely go wrong, when they do its normally quite horribly bad...unlike the XP machines

el_presidente

I put LInux on an old work laptop that they gave me for free cos it was so knackered. Now works a treat, latest version of Ubuntu seems to be very intuitive and similar to windows

noodles71

SimonAH wrote:

I believe that I will, however, need to be a little more gentle with the good lady's netbook because (god forbid) I should impair her ability to book her face for a day.

Be careful with the netbook as not many of them have CD/DVD drives for running a recovery/OS disk on. If you are lucky it has a hidden partition that will allow for a factory reset otherwise you will be looking to get your hands on a new OS disk and a USB DVD drive.

This is one place Linux makes it easy as it can be installed from scratch using a USB stick as a source as opposed to Windows needing a disk (when not set up in on enterprise network)

jamesco

noodles71 wrote:

Be careful with the netbook as not many of them have CD/DVD drives for running a recovery/OS disk on. If you are lucky it has a hidden partition that will allow for a factory reset otherwise you will be looking to get your hands on a new OS disk and a USB DVD drive.

You can install Windows just fine off a USB drive - it's especially useful for servers and when the image is too large to fit on a single disk. Use the Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool.

Kieran_Burns

Umm....

http://www.intowindows.com/how-to-insta ... ing-guide/

I've seen Windows 7 installed from a prepped USB drive myself