i was adviced to reboot my pc to get rid of all spyware. apparently it would be good to do it every year. can anyone tell me how to unistall and then reinstall windows xp??? many thanks.
thats like asking how long is a piece of string. . I think you mean reformat your pc rather than reboot.If you want to reboot all you need to do is close it down and restart it.Reformat is where you wipe your entire system after you have backed up all the important stuff 1st Do you have a windows disc with service pack 2 + a legitamite windows serial. But before we go any further why do you believe you need to reformat your computer.Do you believe you have loads of spyware on your pc or a virus.If its a virus i would suggest you take it to some one who can clean it out under a secure firewall as you may not actually get rid of it .If its spyware, have you no spyware remover tool present on your pc. check out the link below: http://www.google.com.au/search?hl=en&q=spyware+remover&btnG=Google+Search&meta=
I wouldnt go to that extreme, there is a very good FREE antispy prog available...AVG AntiSpyware available from here. http://www.filehippo.com/download_ewido/ I think you will find most members here recommend this one.
most do gwen but not me.I had troubles that after i installed it, i couldnt access my email until i uninstalled it. Now i do a clean install practically 3-6 monthly.............
Well for me it wasnt so simple. I got a virus but since c: drive was the only one i formatted, the virus actually attached it self to d: drive as well, even though c: & d: are the same hard drive but different partitions. Windows will only format what you specify to format.I chose c: not d: as well.So after i clean installed c: it jumped back from d: drive to c: and basically reinfected c:.I lost 100gig of info. The biggest issue wasnt that i got a virus the biggest issue was that it came down as a data packet , and breached nortons. i now have vet running.Everything is secure ish now
you are right i meant reformat as i have problems with spyware. i have norton protection but is appears that it did not stop a lot of spyware.
try using gwens suggestion 1st, that is download AVG, make sure after you download it, you update it 1st then scan your pc.
you need to read a post here and post a HJT log first http://forums.afterdawn.com/forum_view.cfm/166 norton is a crappy program use a better one if you do reformat like Trend Micro, Kaspersky , NOD32 etc if you have a really bad spyware problem AVG isn't going to get it done
If you want to get rid of a virus the most simple thing you can do is to completely wipe it if you have no vital or important information on it, if you do just make sure it is properly backed up on a cd or any other sort of media which can be accessed after formatting your pc. Just slip the original xp disc back in and it should wipe your pc, and reinstall windows after, just make sure you have the original serial key before you start as you could get to the end and it asks for your serial key and you wont be able to access your pc. George
