Thanks for your help and one more question

Pentode · Feb 3, 2009

I have followed your preliminary procedure for downloading tools, and removing malware a few times now. They have worked for me more than once and taught me quite a bit about my computer. Thanks for the help.

Now that I have a newer computer with the XP Pro operating system disc, wouldn’t it be quicker to reinstall the operating system than to have to go through the exhaustive and time consuming chore of downloading, installing, running and logging of the many different malware removal programs?

chaslang · Feb 6, 2009

Pentode said: ↑

Now that I have a newer computer with the XP Pro operating system disc, wouldn’t it be quicker to reinstall the operating system than to have to go through the exhaustive and time consuming chore of downloading, installing, running and logging of the many different malware removal programs?
Click to expand...

It all depends on how much you have on your PC and what abilitites you have. In reality it is not that fast to reinstall. Consider all of the below which have to be part of your reinstall:

you have to backup all you own data, settings, configurations etc and first you have to know what/where all of these are. And you have to have the medium (burnable media, second hard drive, tape drive [yuck] )

then you must make sure you have the necessary disks to reinstall not just your OS but all other software you use especially protection before going online

then delete your partitions, recreate partitions, format, reinstall the OS

now reinstall all your software especially protection

get online (requires some setup and config that novices have problems with)

download updates for OS (could be a HUGE amount of updating unless you reinstall from a Windows XP SP3 CD )

download updates for protection software

download updates for all other software

tweak all software back the way you like it. Including Desktop settings, icons etc.

create all the folders that you use for everything in your normally routines

re-load from your backups to get data back, to get settings, Favorites,.....etc back

now over the next two weeks you will realize that you forgot to backup some stuff and also you will keep finding something else that you need to reinstall.

Log in or Sign up

Thanks for your help and one more question

Pentode Private E-2

chaslang MajorGeeks Admin - Master Malware Expert Staff Member