A problem for experts only!

I am having a problem with Win 2000 Professional. Task Manager shows that "services.exe" is using 99% of the CPU. Therefore, I can't do anything else on the computer. I can boot into Windows, but nothing works. How can I get it to release 'services.exe' from using all of the resources? In Task Manager, nothing shows up under "Applications." I am posting this from my husband's computer, since I can't use mine. I desperately need help quickly. Thanks.

 

Until an expert replies, I'd suggest a thorough virus scan with the most current virus definitions.

 

Yup - in my very non-expert opinion, Kevin makes a valid suggestion.

For instance, from Trend Micro I found

. They offer a nice, free on-line scanner that will find most critters.

And McAfee in This article speaks of the Egghead trojan

.

BTW - either of the above viri would probably show you Services.exe running. It just wouldn't necessarily be the normal one - or maybe you would actually see two running. Or something.

 

I think that Kevin and Newt are spot on and suspect that the Spida worm is the most likely culprit.

See this thread for further information.

Not all AV's will detect these worms/trojans so you may wish to check that they are included within the database of whatever AV you have installed before running a scan (or invest in a dedictated ATP).

Good luck!