IT Queries: Computer problems answered

I have Norton 360 V.3 on my PC running on Windows XP.

For the last month the Norton 360 Live Updates have not been working. I’ve contacted the Norton people and had them manually updated but this hasn’t fixed the problem as the automatic update still doesn’t work.  They uninstalled and reinstalled the programme twice but this made no difference.

They’ve now told me that I have a ctfmon.exe virus which will have to be fixed by Microsoft.  How can I have a virus when I have Norton 360 running all the time and how do I have it fixed?

First the ctfmon.exe file may not be a virus. This is a normal Microsoft Office file, so you shouldn’t assume you have an infection.

The first thing is to check you don’t have a virus and you should do this by following the instructions in our removing a Trojan page.

Once you’re happy you’ve cleared any possible virus infection, you’ll need to clean up your computer.

The next step is to update your Windows Scripting Host as Norton 360 relies on this to work properly.

With your computer now cleaned and up to date, download the latest Norton 360 update and install this.

After rebooting, check Norton 360 is updating. If not, follow the Troubleshooting Live Update instructions on the Symantec website.

I’ve upgraded to the latest version of AVG Free and now I’m finding my computer is running slower. What should I do?

Like most anti virus programs AVG has a number of protections that can slow your computer.

One of the common problems with AVG is the “Link Scanner” function. This checks links in a web page before you click them and warns you if there’s a problem with the linked site. While this is a good idea, it slows web browsing.

To turn this off, open AVG by double clicking the AVG box on the taskbar near where the time is shown. When AVG opens, click Tools and Advanced Options.

In the Advanced Options screen, there are list of settings on the left hand side. Click Link Scanner and take the ticks off the three boxes; Enable AVG Search Shield, Enable AVG Surf Shield and Enable reporting threats to AVG.

Click apply.

To help speed the machine you may also want to change the automatic scan settings. To do this, go down the settings list to Schedules, expand the list by clicking the “+” box and select Scheduled Scans.

On the right hand side of the screen, take the tick off Enable This Task.

Click Apply and reboot your computer.

You should note that because AVG will now not be protecting your web surfing then you should practice safe browsing.

I am getting a message that McAfee service is ending in 7 days. I have a copy of my order number from December of 2008 which pays for a 3 year subscription.  Why am I getting this message?

The problem is in the McAfee system where your subscription hasn’t been registered properly.

Unfortunately you’re going to have to contact their support centre. The link itself is to the United States support site, to change it to your locale, click the United States – English title on the top right hand corner. This will give you the local site.

It’s probably going to be best to call them. When you do, have your records with you at all times and remember to keep notes while always being polite.

Good luck.

I read in one of your  advice pages that I should regularly check for updates with my Norton Symantec 360 and keep checking over and over until the system advises that it is up to date.

Each time I run the check through, it does in fact advise that the system is up to date but when I run it again it still manages to find more updates!

I have, this afternoon run it through at least 7-8 times and it still manages to find more updates! I did the same thing last week and gave up after about fifteen minutes because it was still producing more updates!  Am I THAT far out of date or what is going on?

I would appreciate your comment  - I am not a computer whiz but enjoy my computer and learn more everyday.

Great to hear you’re enjoying learning about getting more from your computer every day. It’s an area of great opportunity.

Unfortunately, you’ll need to keep running the updates until Norton 360 is happy there’s no more to download.

The problem is Norton 360 is a complex program that does many things, so one update leads to another and so on.

So keep doing it until Norton is happy that it is fully up to date.

I have AVG anti-virus on my computer. A week or so ago it stopped updating and now I get a “computer not protected” warning. What’s gone wrong?

You are probably running AVG7.5 which Grisoft stopped updating at the end of April, 2009. You have to update to the newer AVG 8.0.

If you are running Windows ME 95 or 98, you’ll find AVG 8.0 won’t work on your system so you’ll need to follow our instructions on replacing AVG with Avast!.

Some people have had problems with AVG 8 so you may want to consider Anti Vir or Avast as an alternative.

You need to do this upgrade immediately as you aren’t currently protected from Internet nasties and remember to uninstall the old AVG 7.5 before updating to the new version.

My free AVG does not work for my windows 98 Second Edition computer anymore. Can you suggest another free anti virus?

Grisoft stopped support for Windows 98 when they released AVG Free 8.0. As of the end of April 2009 Grisoft have stopped updating the older version 7.5 so there now is no free AVG product that protects Windows 98.

Avast! is the only free Windows 98 compatible virus checker we know of so you should download that, uninstall AVG then install Avast!

My computer says I am not protected . I just got this 2 months ago. I have never had this come up before.

When I go into all programs it does not show McAfee. Please help.

If you’ve had antivirus onyour computer previously then this is a concern. The first thing you need to do is follow our removing a Trojan instructions to make sure your computer isn’t infected.

When you’re happy the computer is clear, you’ll need to install a new anti virus program. There are three free programs we recommend; Avast! Home, AVG Free and AntiVir.

All three of these will protect you, however as free versions you won’t get any assistance and they aren’t licensed for use in small business and other commercial environments. If you want to buy an antivirus program, we’d recommend the above three along with Kasperski.

When updating my AVG I keep getting the message “Invalid update control CTF file”. I’ve followed your advice on waiting for the AVG Update server to be less busy, but without any luck. What’s going wrong?

The problem is a corrupt update file in AVG. That file is blocking the incoming updates. 

You’ll have to delete the .ctf files before the update will work. Grisoft have the procedure for doing this on their website. Keep in mind you may have to view hidden files to find and delete the corrupt entries.

Our thanks to John G who alerted us to this problem and his link to Sanjay Goel’s blog.

My anti virus program, AVG Free, is telling me the file sysaudio.sys is infected with the Trojan Horse downloader.Delf.BUY malware. What should I do?

At the time of writing, this appears to be a mistake by AVG which is the third time in recent months. You should not delete or put sysaudio.sys in the virus vault as you will disable your computer’s sound.

Grisoft should release a fix for this in the next few hours. In the meantime you should check your system for nasties by following our Removing a Trojan instructions.

You may also want to consider another anti virus such as Avast! or AntiVir.