My first thought is malware also.
You may have a .bat or .cmd file that runs at boot that contains an
incorrect ipconfig command.
Open a command prompt...
Start | Run | Type: cmd | Click OK |
In the command prompt, type or paste this command:
ipconfig /release_all
Hit your Enter key.
Example...
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Microsoft Windows XP [Version 5.1.2600]
(C) Copyright 1985-2001 Microsoft Corp.
C:\>ipconfig /release_all
Error: unrecongnized or incomplete command line.
USAGE:
ipconfig [/? | /all | /renew [adapter] | /release [adapter] |
/flushdns | /displaydns | /registerdns |
/showclassid adapter |
/setclassid adapter [classid] ]
where
adapter Connection name
(wildcard characters * and ? allowed, see examples)
Options:
/? Display this help message
/all Display full configuration information.
/release Release the IP address for the specified adapter.
/renew Renew the IP address for the specified adapter.
/flushdns Purges the DNS Resolver cache.
/registerdns Refreshes all DHCP leases and re-registers DNS names
/displaydns Display the contents of the DNS Resolver Cache.
/showclassid Displays all the dhcp class IDs allowed for adapter.
/setclassid Modifies the dhcp class id.
The default is to display only the IP address, subnet mask and
default gateway for each adapter bound to TCP/IP.
For Release and Renew, if no adapter name is specified, then the IP address
leases for all adapters bound to TCP/IP will be released or renewed.
For Setclassid, if no ClassId is specified, then the ClassId is removed.
Examples:
ipconfig ... Show information.
ipconfig /all ... Show detailed information
ipconfig /renew ... renew all adapters
ipconfig /renew EL* ... renew any connection that has its name starting with EL
ipconfig /release *Con* ... release all matching connections,
eg. "Local Area Connection 1" or
"Local Area Connection 2"
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ipconfig /release_all is not a proper command, hence the error.
ipconfig /release all would be a proper command.
Whatever script that may be running at startup may be piping errors to a
..txt file.
..bat or .cmd files are also called scripts. .cmd files are Windows NT
Command Script files. .cmd files work the same way as .bat files, but do
not work on non-NT systems, like Windows 98, ME, etc. .vbs, .js, etc. files
are also called scripts.
Script from XP's Glossary...
A type of program consisting of a set of instructions to an application or
tool program. A script usually expresses instructions by using the
application's or tool's rules and syntax, combined with simple control
structures such as loops and if/then expressions. "Batch program" is often
used interchangeably with "script" in the Windows environment.
Startup scripts could be here...
%windir%\system32\GroupPolicy\Machine\Scripts\Startup
or
C:\WINDOWS\system32\GroupPolicy\Machine\Scripts\Startup
Also you might want to do an F3 in your registry for *.cmd or *.bat.
For example, my Cousin's HP machine had these two entries...
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
Pin c:\hp\bin\cloaker.exe c:\hp\bin\pintostart.bat
Pin c:\hp\bin\cloaker.exe c:\hp\bin\pintostart.bat
Do a Search on your machine for *.cmd and *.bat
HOW TO: Search For Hidden Or System Files In Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/302347
--------
To see your Startup Programs.
Open System Information...
Start | Run | Type: msinfo32 | Click OK |
Click the [+] next to Software Environment |
Click on Startup Programs
If you so desire, hit Ctrl + A to select all, then Ctrl + C to copy and then
paste into Notepad or whatever.
This is limited like msconfig.exe is limited, does not list all possible
startup locations.
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Get one or both of these.
StartMan is a GOOD Utility, I use it all the time, especially after
installing software. Everything you install wants to run at startup.
StartMan shows where something starts from. Check out the Help in StartMan
also! You can either have StartMan disable startups or just use it to find
where something is loading from.
StartMan v1.3.96
http://www.pt.lu/comnet/desc/startman.html
StartMan v1.3.96 Direct download
http://www.pt.lu/comnet/files/utils/startman10396.exe
Startup Control Panel is another pretty good application.
[[Startup Control Panel is a nifty control panel applet that allows you to
easily configure which programs run when your computer starts. It's simple
to use and, like all my programs, is very small and won't burden your
system. A valuable tool for system administrators!]]
Download the EXE Version and just extract the executable wherever you want.
Startup Control Panel
http://www.mlin.net/StartupCPL.shtml
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UPDATE your antivirus software and run a full system scan.
UPDATE whatever anti-spyware applications that you have and run a full
system scan with each one.
You might want to start in Safe Mode to run your antivirus and anti-spyware
software.
Running a full system antivirus scan or anti-spyware scan in Safe Mode can
be a good idea. Some viruses and other malware like to conceal themselves
in areas Windows protects while using them. Safe mode can prevent those
applications access and therefore unprotect the viruses or other malware
allowing for easier removal.
''In safe mode, you have access to only basic files and drivers
(mouse, monitor, keyboard, mass storage, base video, default system
services), just the minimum device drivers required to start Windows.''
Because of that some malware does not load in Safe Mode and is easier to get
rid of.
How to start Windows in Safe Mode Windows XP
http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/index.php?showtutorial=61#winxo
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Hope this helps. Let us know.
Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User
In
