WARNING - Long Reply - Re: Registry cleanup

From: Jim Byrd (jrbyrd_at_spamlessadelphia.net)
Date: 09/03/04 

Date: Fri, 3 Sep 2004 16:12:27 -0700

Hi Janet - Well, if you're concerned about malware impacts on your
Registry - Adware and Spyware - or viruses/trojans, then the changes they
make to your system are best dealt with by using good removal tools such as
an Anti-Virus and malware removal programs such as CWShredder, AdAware and
Spybot S&D which know how to deal with removals/changes from the Registry
safely . Attached are three of my "standard" posts aimed at the steps
necessary to treat with general and specific malware instances, and some
preventative measures to take as well, which contain links to appropriate
programs. Please read them carefully. (You might want to save/print them
out for future reference.)

Specific programs/procedures you might consider from these articles which
are appropriate to the subject under discussion are:

AdAware
SpyBot S&D
SysClean
HiJackThis (Read the tutorial and get help in the forums if you don't know
exactly what you're doing w/this one)
CWShredder

These programs should be run on a regular basis (I suggest at least once a
week). In addition, the following programs should be considered in
defensing your system to begin with:

SpywareBlaster - Very Highly Recommended
SpywareGuard
a good HOSTS file such as you can find here:
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm

Clearly you as a user have to become educated and do some work, but there
are tools out there to help. Perhaps this will help answer your questions. 

-- 
Please respond in the same thread.
Regards, Jim Byrd, MS-MVP
In news:4C117AE4-2773-475B-9159-B51B329CD2BC@microsoft.com,
Janetb <Janetb@discussions.microsoft.com> typed:
> A while back I was concerned about cleaning up my system and had
> scanned with a number of Spyware and Adware and Registry cleaners,
> but didn't know which of the results are OK to delete---whether the
> infected files listed are items that have been added to my system
> that I don't want or whether they are files which my system does need
> but which have become corrupted. On the basis of this thread, I guess
> I did well not to delete. But how does one who is NOT experienced in
> registry matters clean up a system?? Programs recommended here still
> only help people with the requisite knowledge and even then only in
> the future. How do us 'simple folk' go about checking the health of
> our systems?
>
> Janet
>
> "Jim Byrd" wrote:
>
>>  I use it with great care and
>> primarly to identify things for me which I can then examine/edit with
>> Regedit or Regedt32.  AT YOUR OWN RISK - This is NOT a
>> recommendation for any Registry cleaner.
>>
>>
>>
>> In my experience all of these Reg cleaners, even the best, are
>> fraught with danger. >
>> Lastly, if you must screw around with your Registry, then at least
>> get Erunt/Erdnt, and run it before you do the Reg clean.  You'll
>> then have a true restore available to you.  Read below to see why
>> you might not just using the Reg cleaner's restore:
>>
>>
>> "Note: The "Export registry" function in Regedit is USELESS (!) to
>> make a complete backup of the registry. Neither does it export the
>> whole registry

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