November 21, 200718 yr I think if you run the restore CD's, you will lose everything and it will take it back to a new computer state. Just wanted to give you a heads up. I would recommend copying your important files off before proceeding.
November 21, 200718 yr If you run the CDs that they send you (which I don't believe Dell even gives out anymore, but I could be wrong) you will lose everything. If you push the F10 key during startup it'll give you the option to do two different types of restores... One that restores everything to factory, and then one that's a little bit different. You'll most likely have to do the full restore, but it wouldn't hurt to just try to do the lesser one first... But yes, always copy your files because even though you aren't supposed to lose anything, I've seen it happen.
November 21, 200718 yr One other thing you might want to check before you reformat. Windows XP has a program on it called System Restore. What it does is makes a copy of everything that is on your hard drive at certain times. This can be used to restore your computer to a previous state before you starting having problems with it. The downside is that it also will make copies of any spyware or viruses on your hard drive. Even if you use your anti virus or spyware remover to get rid of them System Restore will still have a copy. Try and turn off System Restore. This will delete all of the previous saved points. Then turn it back on. The rerun your spyware program to see if there are any found. My niece has a Dell computer and had a problem similar to yours. This is what I did to fix it.
November 21, 200718 yr Before you do any of the aforementioned things, such as resetting the system restore, re-formatting, etc. you really should have someone look at your computer. It sounds like a malware/spyware to me and shouldn't be too difficult for someone who knows what they are doing to remove. Try this site, its a forum like BGP, just post a thread with your problem and a HiJackThis! log and I'm quite sure they will be able to guide you to a solution. http://forums.techguy.org/f54-s.html
November 21, 200718 yr Before you do any of the aforementioned things, such as resetting the system restore, re-formatting, etc. you really should have someone look at your computer. It sounds like a malware/spyware to me and shouldn't be too difficult for someone who knows what they are doing to remove. Try this site, its a forum like BGP, just post a thread with your problem and a HiJackThis! log and I'm quite sure they will be able to guide you to a solution. http://forums.techguy.org/f54-s.html There is no fix for the particular spyware he is dealing with. You're going to either waste alot of time or alot of money just to hear "it needs to be formatted..."
November 26, 200718 yr Author Finally- fixed, it was somesort of Trojan Virus, I looked it up and then paid 29.95 for a virus cleaner. Thanks to all for your assistance
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