Computer Gurus... HELP

[Outnumbered]

Yep, Google and pick a fix.
I doubt you will need to replace the hard drive. I have never seen a W32 Virus/Trojan /Worm do any hardware damage. Of course I could be wrong the script kiddies and hacks are always coming up with better Errr Ahem... more destructive bugs all the time.
The problem 90% of windows users have is that they are always on an Administrative login which allows for a cornucopia of malicious bugs free reign of the machine.
There would be a greatly reduced risk of infection if after you fix it, if you set up a couple of tightly restricted user logins.
And if all else fails come over to the dark side (http://www.mandriva.com/en/download)
Best of Luck
T.
How would I set up "a couple of tightly restricted user logins"?

[Cheap Thrills]

How would I set up "a couple of tightly restricted user logins"?
The user accounts in the control panel. Set up a new user account/login and set privileges to anything but Administrator or Power User. If you are running Windooze ex pee home, the privilege settings are limited but you should be able to restrict Most if not all unauthorized downloads and will ask for an Administrative login before anything is downloaded or installed. Now this wont completely shield you from malicious attack but it will definitely help with unauthorized access to crucial areas of the operating system.
Email is an open portal and it would be almost impossible to keep an uninformed user from opening anything that may pose a threat. All I can suggest for that would be education.
There are other settings to tweak as well such as various services that run by default. If you are not on a shared network I would highly recommend disabling the "Server Service" that will disable the $C:/ ~ *.*(wildcard) Administrative shares.
There are other so called "Services" that can be disabled as well that will have no degrading effect on performance but will increase your security. I wish I had time to get into all that but this post has rambled on beyond what most people want to read. so I'll close for now and may continue on if interest in the subject continues.
The safest, most secure machine is the machine that is offline.
Have a Great Day & Best of Luck.
T.

[Outnumbered]

Thanks

[thatguy]

What he said. It just means that any guest user will use the guest user log in. Don't even need to password it. Just leave it on that screen and make a password for your admin. login.
Tommy

[socalmoney]

If your running XP, use the restore point and go to a date you know your computer was running without the virus.

[riverracerx]

My PC virus protection:
http://images.apple.com/macpro/galle...1_20060807.jpg

[probablecause]

If you can't seem to shake the virus, you will want to take the drive out (not as hard as it sounds) and give it to someone who is somewhat computer literate. They can then attach the drive as a "slave" drive to their system and scan it. By doing this, you free up files that might not be deletable because as a slave drive (or secondary drive), the drive is viewed as simply a drive containing data (ie. like a backup drive). Thus, any good antivirus program can remove the bad files.
Also, go to http://housecall.trendmicro.com/ and run an online scan if you still have internet access. Good luck.

[RitcheyRch]

I use HouseCall from Trend Micro atleast once per week to double check that everything has been removed.
If you can't seem to shake the virus, you will want to take the drive out (not as hard as it sounds) and give it to someone who is somewhat computer literate. They can then attach the drive as a "slave" drive to their system and scan it. By doing this, you free up files that might not be deletable because as a slave drive (or secondary drive), the drive is viewed as simply a drive containing data (ie. like a backup drive). Thus, any good antivirus program can remove the bad files.
Also, go to http://housecall.trendmicro.com/ and run an online scan if you still have internet access. Good luck.

[Cheap Thrills]

Hey, CT (my puter hero),lol
I wanna set a permanent restore point in windows XP,pro. It seems that my restore points change weekly and I can only go back a week or two. How do I make a RP and make it permanent?
Thanks,
Rio
I musta fell asleep on ya
Here ya go. This is one of, if not the best ways I know to set up one of dem dar winders machines.
I've never used windows restore points and had it work correctly. I usually disable the service and gain a ton of free space for other fun stuff
This is a little bit of work and maybe a little money but it's well worth the effort.
It's so awesome I thought it deserved it's own thread
http://www.***boat.com/forums/showthread.php?t=162242
Good Luck.
T.