Resolved XP SP3 Computer Locks Up Shortly After Boot

Helping a friend with an XP SP3 desktop. First noticed the problem when using Quicken. In the middle of entering a transaction, the hourglass popped up and nothing could be accessed. Finally had to force a close down.

I can start the computer and after the boot up, one may get an application to open, but within a short time, the hourglass appears and then nothing happens. I was able to open AVG Free and started a scan (initial as one had never been done) and the status bar remained at 0% for over an hour. It appears that Trend Micro and Webroot Desktop Firewall may also be downloaded/installed. The computer is such that I can't really open much without it stalling.

I was able to copy Malwarebytes from a flash drive to the Desktop, but when trying to install, it locked up and never completed. I am able to boot into Safe mode and the unit seems fairly stable there but I was reluctant to try using the AVG scan or Malwarebytes in Safe mode. Malwarebytes website recommends against Safe mode.

I was able to get to the control panel to uninstall some bad stuff but there were several that I was unable to uninstall in Safe mode - Window Washer, SpeedUp Your Computer, System Checkup, Audit Support Center, and SSP Setup?

I started this thread in the Malware and Virus Removal Forum but Broni said he didn't see anything malicious and suggested I bring it here. Any suggestions?

 

While in Safe Mode open Control Panel > Internet Options and click the Delete button for Browsing History. Check all of the boxes except Passwords (if he uses IE to remember passwords). Once that is done run Disk Cleanup then defrag the drive. Once defrag has finished try rebooting the PC and see if it stays running without freezing and try to uninstall AVG, Trend Micro and Webroot. If not reboot and start tapping F8 until you get to the boot menu. Select Safe Mode with Networking and try to uninstall AVG, Trend Micro and Webroot. If you are successful download CCleaner and further clean up the PC. Install MSE or Avast for an anti-virus. Update IE7 to IE8 and get the rest of Windows updates. I would also remove all versions of Adobe Flash and Reader. Update Flash and download and install Foxit reader.

 

Whiskeyman,

I was able to delete the browsing history in IE and run Disk Cleanup. However, when I tried to defrag, the unit got to 1% and stayed there for an hour or so. I cancelled and started it again. I will let it run longer this time but once again it seems to have stalled at 1%.

I previously tried to uninstall AVG, Trend Micro, and Webroot in Safe mode but it wouldn't permit it giving a message about not being able to access the Windows Installer. Also, I had been able to install CCleaner in Safe mode previously but it wouldn't let me uninstall any programs in safe mode citing the Windows Installer. I was able to open CCleaner in normal boot up and start the Uninstall on Trend Micro - but it locked up. Same thing when I tried to uninstall Incredimail.

I'll watch the current attempt at defrag and respond back.

Update - I may have been too impatient. The defrag has been running for almost two hours and has moved from 1% to 12%. So maybe it is still working. Should note that this is only a 186 GB HD with about 165 GB free.

Later Update - The defrag has been running now for over 7 hours and has moved to 54%. I will let it continue to run. (7:15pm EDT now)

 

Defrag works best in Safe Mode. I always disable any antivirus programs then boot into Safe Mode (minimal drivers and startup programs) to defrag. Sounds like the install was FAT32 instead of NTFS. That drive must have been severely fragmented. It would definitely cause some of the problems. Having two competing antivirus programs could really cause your issues especially when one is AVG.

 

The defrag finally completed - ran close to 12 hours. I did a regular boot and find that I still have the same problems - maybe not quite as bad. I was able to open Task Manager which I hadn't been able to do (using CTRL/ALT/DEL) and was able to stop the Incredimail process. Then opened CCleaner and was able to uninstall Incredimail. I have tried to uninstall Webroot, AVG, and Trend Micro the same way. However, when I stop their processes, I can't get CCleaner to open. Just get an hourglass. When I try to uninstall these three programs without stopping the processes in Task Manager, they all stall.

Any more ideas?

 

I think I may have hit the "Eureka" point. As Whiskeyman suggested, I kept plugging away at uninstalling some of the junk stuff and agonizing through a 12 hour defrag. The breakthrough seemed to be when I got Trend Micro AV uninstalled - took 2 to 3 hours. After that Webroot took an hour or so and then after that, AVG went pretty quickly. I have installed Microsoft Security Essentials and am presently running the install of IE8 over IE7.

Pete, I have bookmarked the HD diagnostics pages for future use and will probably run the memtest and the applicable HD diagnostic as a safety measure.

So thanks for your suggestions and help. Seems that all is well. The computer seems to be operating in a pretty snappy manner. I will mark this one resolved.

 

Defrag the hard drive again, but in Safe Mode then reboot and check for any updates.

 

Hopefully the defrag won't take as long as before but we plan to wait until this evening and start the defrag. Will let you know how it goes. Thanks again.

 

Whiskeyman,

Looks like all is well. The defrag took about 30 minutes as opposed to 12+ hours over the weekend. Had one critical Windows update that we downloaded and installed. The machine seems to be back to normal. Thanks a lot.

 

Happy to hear it's running better.