Dell GX270 series computer

[LadyGrey]

Dell GX270 series computer
service tag 4N3TX41
2.4 GHz CPU
512 MB RAM
40 Gig HDD
XP Pro SP3
Refurbished computer
Original problems, computer stuck in reboot loop with a BSOD after a failed install of Kodak Easy _ _ _ _ software.
Some one has tried to download and install Google Earth but that failed and on a restart an error box would appear stating that google installer package had encountered an error and would be shut down.
Removed as much as possible of Kodak, in safe mode, using their cleaning tool as well as the uninstall in add/remove programs. Also ran the cleaning tool from within windows.
That solved the rebooting loop and the BSOD problem. The computer starts and stays started.
Removed as much as possible of Google Earth. Still cannot remove Googleupdate.exe as it says the files are in use. There is no entry for googleupdate.exe in task manager. I cannot find which files are in use, task manager is not showing me anything I can recognize as a google service. I have done searches without finding specific information. It is still there as the log in task scheduler is showing it starting and exiting at regular intervals. However the google installer error window does not come up anymore but a windows installer window does and then goes away quickly. What it is installing or trying to install I do not know.
Current problems are various. I have tried a defrag of the C: drive but an error window comes up and says that it has detected that Chkdsk is scheduled to run. Please run Chkdsk /f.
I have tried to run chkdsk /f from a cmd prompt as well as from within windows itself. I have tried in safe mode as well as fully booted. Chkdsk will not run. There is no countdown window, it just boots back into windows from a cold boot or a restart.
Spybot will not run. You can click on the icon but it will not run. I have uninstalled and reinstalled (at least it seems to reinstall) spybot with the same results.
System Restore will not run. You can get to the screen where you confirm the restore, click next and nothing happens. It just sits there. I know it takes it a minute to collect the information, but it doesn't take it an hour.
I have been able to get Avast to run a boot time scan (after discovering that someone had turned off the resident scanner) which just completed.

File C:\windows\system32\net.net is infected with win32:malware-gen
File is in the Windows Folder are you sure.
Options are yes, yes to all, no, exit.
I said no.

I can go back and get it later after I'm sure what to do since it is in a system folder.
The computer in general is sluggish and different programs will sometimes run when you click on their icon and after you shut down the program and click on the icon for the program that was just running it will not run again. The computer just sits there.

Any ideas, suggestions, instructions, would be most appreciated.
Thanks much,
LG

[jlreich]

Honestly LG, with all the software issues this is a great candidate for a clean install of windows. Those issues are going to be difficult at best to get fixed. More likely you will not be able to solve them all. And that's without even talking about the malware issues which should be addressed first.

A clean install may not be an option, but if it is that is the route I would highly suggest. Especially since my guess is it had issues to begin with and then SP3 was installed over those issues.

On another note the GX2xx series were and still are systems that have tons of bad caps on the motherboard. I have replaced countless boards in those things because of bad caps. So before you do anything else I would take a good look at the board if you haven't already. I know the system is refurbished but that doesn't mean they replaced all the caps. I get a lot of refurbished boards and they usually only replace the ones that are bad right then.

If you need to go ahead without a clean install wait for one of the security guys to come around.

[LadyGrey]

Thank you jl! I will take a very good look at that board!
I've been busy trying to get malware programs to run on this thing.
Malwarebytes will install if I rename the file but will not run.
SAS will not even install.
I have been able to run some of the online scans, f-secure, M$ one care online virus scan, Trend housecall will seem to load but then just sits there so that won't run.
Onecare found 11 instances of the Alureon family of viruses and seemed to get rid of them all.
Avast is still installed on this computer and will actually run, so I've run that in safe mode as well as fully booted and it found other viruses Fecas, think that's the spelling and trojans, win32 DNS changer-vj quite a few entries for that.
I've tried a-squared, but all that did was come up with the usual tracking cookies.
MWB and SAS still won't install or run.
Whatever this is doesn't seem to want me in safe mode either. Keeps reporting keyboard errors, which I know is false, so I just keep trying to boot to safe mode and eventualy it lets me with no keyboard bologna. I know that could be a hardware issue as well but I guess I'll have to wait and see after the clean reinstall if that still happens.

The computer still boots up so I think I'll get it back to them after I get a good look at that board and tell them to pull off what they want to an external drive and get all their disks and key codes and anything else together and bring it to me and I'll do a full reinstall. I just think that the more crap I take out the more it's going to damage the system and it will get to the point that it won't even boot.
Thanks jl for your help and information it's very much appreciated.
LG

[Sylvander]

I normally scan the [mounted] Windows partition when Windows is dormant, by running the FREE for personal use Avast! Antivirus on-demand scanner installed to and run within Puppy Linux.
If you want to save a session of Puppy that has been loaded from a "live" optical disk, and is therefore running totally in RAM, and has had configuration choices made and new packages [like Avast] installed...
You [at shut-down] make a pupsave file and save it to [the root of a partition on] any handy reliable storage medium [USB Flash Drive, SD memory card in a USB reader, USB HDD].

I figure its more difficult for infections to conceal themselves when Windows is NOT running.

A Puppy is good for copying folders/files from one partition/device to another.
It will do both scanning and copying.

I found that "Trojan Hunter" [run within Windows] found Trojans that other programs failed to find.

[jlreich]

Running a Live CD is a good way to rule out hardware errors. If everything seems good in there then it is most likely software.