Quake3World

I have a computer with a virus and did a reinstall to get rid of the problem. But after formatting and reinstalleing [windows 2000 pro] the virus seems to still be there. I phoned a computer store and they said that the virus may have stayed in the ram and I had to clear the ram. They didnt tell me how to do it.

So I'm wondering if you guys know how. I tried to google but it shows me links to programs that will clear up ram space etc. NOT how to actualy clear it like I want to do.

Your computer store is staffed by morons. RAM is not a persistant data store.

The most likely culprit is the hard drive boot sector. This area is not cleared when reformatting and virii can infect the boot sector and become most more problematic to remove.

http://antivirus.about.com/od/securityt ... rvirus.htm

Foo wrote:Your computer store is staffed by morons. RAM is not a persistant data store.

The most likely culprit is the hard drive boot sector. This area is not cleared when reformatting and virii can infect the boot sector and become most more problematic to remove.

http://antivirus.about.com/od/securityt ... rvirus.htm

Unless you do fdisk /mbr.

Edit: Doh! read the article and it mentions that in there.

Foo wrote:Your computer store is staffed by morons.

Most of them are

Tormentius wrote:

Foo wrote:Your computer store is staffed by morons.

Most of them are

Yeah, I never ask questions or for help there. They are quite the idiots normally. My kids know more than most of those dorks.

Well we can take comfort in computer stores becoming a dying breed, I guess.

At least, the mom & pop stores are. The net has replaced their function for the most part since as we see here they're alright for components but shitty for advice. Mostly.

Foo wrote:Well we can take comfort in computer stores becoming a dying breed, I guess.

At least, the mom & pop stores are. The net has replaced their function for the most part since as we see here they're alright for components but shitty for advice. Mostly.

I've just about resolved to getting all my parts online. They don't carry what I want usually around here and as said the help is well, ....helpless.

scourge34 wrote:

Foo wrote:Well we can take comfort in computer stores becoming a dying breed, I guess.

At least, the mom & pop stores are. The net has replaced their function for the most part since as we see here they're alright for components but shitty for advice. Mostly.

I've just about resolved to getting all my parts online. They don't carry what I want usually around here and as said the help is well, ....helpless.

Is it just me, or does it feel a bit like, now we're moving to make these kinds of purchases online rather than in a store, we've lost some good part of the process but it's almost impossible to put your finger on what?

I mean, for stuff like computer components there's little place for bricks & mortar sales anymore - You don't need to get physically close to the item to inspect it before buying, because there's nothing you need to know about the item which can't be gleaned from written specifications and photography.

That said, it still feels like losing the physical shops is a bad thing. But I have no idea why.

Foo wrote:

scourge34 wrote:

Foo wrote:Well we can take comfort in computer stores becoming a dying breed, I guess.

At least, the mom & pop stores are. The net has replaced their function for the most part since as we see here they're alright for components but shitty for advice. Mostly.

I've just about resolved to getting all my parts online. They don't carry what I want usually around here and as said the help is well, ....helpless.

Is it just me, or does it feel a bit like, now we're moving to make these kinds of purchases online rather than in a store, we've lost some good part of the process but it's almost impossible to put your finger on what?

I mean, for stuff like computer components there's little place for bricks & mortar sales anymore - You don't need to get physically close to the item to inspect it before buying, because there's nothing you need to know about the item which can't be gleaned from written specifications and photography.

That said, it still feels like losing the physical shops is a bad thing. But I have no idea why.

Yeah it does seem like that. For example, it's nigh impossible to find a place around here that sells motherboards. I've been forced to find it online. Plus as mentioned, the help and staff are usually subpar at best. I asked one guy where the thermal paste was and he looked at me like I was an alien only to find out they had 1, only 1 tube of paste at $17. I walked out never to return.

Yeah, you can find out just about any tech detail online that you want to know without much hastle. Cheaper parts as well. My whole family has turned to online sales. The local stores are dying out here.

Keyboards and shit the shops here have reasonable pricing and knowledge. Anything big though and we go to a specific shop in Aachen, some 50 km away because they have better pricing which is only worth the trip if the cost is high and they ARE knowledgable about their stuff.

You are lucky in that respect. The knowledge level here is laughable.

Same here. None of the stores in my area have anything of interest. If by chance you do see something, it's almost always cheaper to order it on-line.

I also have to agree with the opinions concerning the staff at these stores. It doesn't matter if it's a big-box store or a mon and pop, the employees don't know shit. I'd never take my PC to them to be fixed. I'd rather jump on the net and look for answers or ask questions in a forum like this to obtain results. At least I could learn what caused the problem and how to fix it in the future.

Thank you.

corpse wrote:Thank you.

Sorry to derail your thread. Kinda got carried away. :icon30:

Reading the link provided by Foo I was wondering about the article where it says it is not recommended to erase to replace the MBR.

First, I thought a format did completely erase the hard drive.

Second, if you are going to reinstall anyway, what difference does it make if you wipe the MBR. It will be replaced when you reinstall XP won't it?

And, if so, wouldnt this be the safest way to make sure the disk was clean?

corpse wrote:Reading the link provided by Foo I was wondering about the article where it says it is not recommended to erase to replace the MBR.

First, I thought a format did completely erase the hard drive.

Second, if you are going to reinstall anyway, what difference does it make if you wipe the MBR. It will be replaced when you reinstall XP won't it?

And, if so, wouldnt this be the safest way to make sure the disk was clean?

No a format does not erase the mbr. I'm not absolutely sure that it will be replaced when installing because boot sector virus' can remain with a new install. And yes, fdisking the mbr is the best way to make sure it was cleaned.

Tormentius wrote:I'm a short distance away from NCIX, which is one of the better Canadian online/retail shops but they're still not too bright and the service is nonexistent.

im glad that i am not the only one that thinks so, calling on a Tuesday at 3-4Pm it took 2 hours to get a rma number for my bad hardware..

and they wouldent ship a replacement First, they needed the Old hardware first ( thats 8 day turn around btw )

i havent used them again, i would rather go to tigerdirect ( about 40 min drive from here )

Foo wrote:Your computer store is staffed by morons. RAM is not a persistant data store.

The most likely culprit is the hard drive boot sector. This area is not cleared when reformatting and virii can infect the boot sector and become most more problematic to remove.

http://antivirus.about.com/od/securityt ... rvirus.htm

Yes, your computer store is most likely staffed by minimum wage students who not only don't really know a lot of things, but don't really care for $7.00 an hour.


RAM can retain data and viruses. It is a good practise to turn off your computer, pull the plug and hit the start button a couple of times to ensure that RAM is cleared.

I've had my professional computer for almost 2 years now and this past week was the first time I ever needed a "technician's" help. Went to Staples Business Depot and left the computer there. I've been in and out of Staples for the past 2 weeks, constantly running back and forth because one day the technician claims it's fixed and tells me to pick it up, then next day requests it to be brought in. I finally picked it up yesterday, under false pretenses that it was indeed fixed for good, and got a nice BSOD as soon as I turned on Battlefront II. I've tried to call their store back all weekend but suddenly I can't reach their customer service. Holy son of a grapefruit.

scourge34 wrote:

Foo wrote:Your computer store is staffed by morons. RAM is not a persistant data store.

The most likely culprit is the hard drive boot sector. This area is not cleared when reformatting and virii can infect the boot sector and become most more problematic to remove.

http://antivirus.about.com/od/securityt ... rvirus.htm

Unless you do fdisk /mbr.

Edit: Doh! read the article and it mentions that in there.

I changed hard drives, but I still have the one that was infected. I'm wondering how I can use fdisk \mbr if I have it set as a slave on another XP computer. Do I have to fdisk[drive letter..E?] \mbr so it won't think I'm trying to fdisk the existing XP installation?

corpse wrote:

scourge34 wrote:

Foo wrote:Your computer store is staffed by morons. RAM is not a persistant data store.

The most likely culprit is the hard drive boot sector. This area is not cleared when reformatting and virii can infect the boot sector and become most more problematic to remove.

http://antivirus.about.com/od/securityt ... rvirus.htm

Unless you do fdisk /mbr.

Edit: Doh! read the article and it mentions that in there.

I changed hard drives, but I still have the one that was infected. I'm wondering how I can use fdisk \mbr if I have it set as a slave on another XP computer. Do I have to fdisk[drive letter..E?] \mbr so it won't think I'm trying to fdisk the existing XP installation?

Hmmm, not sure off hand. You might have to boot it temporarily as the boot drive long enough to do that. I'll do some digging around and see what I can find on it.

You can download a program called eraser and then create the boot disk for it.
Just hook up the drive you want to erase and make sure all others are disconnected, just in case.
Then boot from the floppy and then erase the drive.

Well I guess you could also install an antivirus program and create the boot discs for that also.
Then plug in the drive and boot from the floppies and have it scan for viruses.

Thanks for all your help.