WinVNC??

[calen]

I have helped a friend setup windows 2000 Pro on her
computer a couple of weeks ago (including all updates)and
now out of the blue, whenever she boots her computer up
WinVNC tries to load. I am not very familar with W2000
except that it seems to be designed for business
applications and networking.

I have searched the hard drive for the program folder to
try to learn more about it, but no luck. What is this
and how can we stop it from trying to load. It seems
that, if enabled, it could cause a large security risk.

Thanks in advance
Calen

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

WinVNC is a remote takeover program. It is normally used for
managing PCs remotely but can be abused unless the owner
of the PC sets it up properly.

To see if the WinVNC service is active, do this:
- Click Start / Run / cmd {OK}
- Type this command:
net start
Is one of the tasks "VNC Server"? If so then WinVNC is active.

To uninstall it, do the usual thing:
- Control Panel
- Add/Remove Programs
- Click WinVNC, then click "Remove"

You can also remove it by direct action: Delete the folder
"c:\program files\RealVNC". The important executables
to delete are "vncviewer.exe" and "winvnc.exe".

And lastly: WinVNC did not get onto your friend's machine
by itself. It found its way there by someone downloading
something that probably was not what it appeared. Ask your
friend to be a little more discriminating in what she allows to
get onto her machine. Would she eat a sandwich that some
unknown person left on the park bench, with the note "Eat me"?

 

[Wouter]

I have helped a friend setup windows 2000 Pro on her
computer a couple of weeks ago (including all updates)and
now out of the blue, whenever she boots her computer up
WinVNC tries to load. I am not very familar with W2000
except that it seems to be designed for business
applications and networking.

I have searched the hard drive for the program folder to
try to learn more about it, but no luck. What is this
and how can we stop it from trying to load. It seems
that, if enabled, it could cause a large security risk.

Thanks in advance
Calen

These should normally be a: start>programs>RealVNC folder
There should be a subfolder: VNCServer
In there: Unregister VNC Server Service

That one will take care of no longer starting VNC at startup.

Here is the VNC website:
http://www.realvnc.com/

 

[Jim Britain]

I have helped a friend setup windows 2000 Pro on her
computer a couple of weeks ago (including all updates)and
now out of the blue, whenever she boots her computer up
WinVNC tries to load. I am not very familar with W2000
except that it seems to be designed for business
applications and networking.

I have searched the hard drive for the program folder to
try to learn more about it, but no luck. What is this
and how can we stop it from trying to load. It seems
that, if enabled, it could cause a large security risk.

1)
If you don't need it, remove it from the system.

2)
The reason that it presents an interface on each restart, is that
there is no password set. If you want VNC loaded, set a password.

 

[Jlmc]

It sounds like Winvnc was installed as a service then the folder was
removed. Go into services and disable the Winvnc service. Or you can
reinstall Winvnc and the properly uninstall it.

 

[Guest]

I have had the same issue for some time and didn't worry about it until I discovered that if I hit cancel or Ok on the winVNC module when it appeared, my dsl internet connection would become overloaded and eventually shut down. (blaimed hardware for a while) I then discovered if I "X" ed the program, I would not hav eany internet issues. I searched the system including task manager and system for any indication of winVNC. Also did a search of the registry. I then installed and rebotted and then uninstalled and rebotted, all to no avail. So I re loaded Windows 2000. NO change. Every time I boot, a window pops up asking for the settings for winVNC. Neither spy bot or Adaware help either. If I don't X the program, hours later my connection will shut down. this is one of several computers on this lan. I read all the replies in this string, but none were relevent. Has any one els heard of or seen any thing like this? It seems like a worm or a virus of some sort. Any suggestions on what to do, short of format and starting over.

----- calen wrote: -----

I have helped a friend setup windows 2000 Pro on her
computer a couple of weeks ago (including all updates)and
now out of the blue, whenever she boots her computer up
WinVNC tries to load. I am not very familar with W2000
except that it seems to be designed for business
applications and networking.

I have searched the hard drive for the program folder to
try to learn more about it, but no luck. What is this
and how can we stop it from trying to load. It seems
that, if enabled, it could cause a large security risk.

Thanks in advance
Calen