Hi Lisa,
I am experiencing shutdowns on my computer and it doesn't seem to matter what program I am using. There are no error messages or warnings. I don't even have to be at the computer for it to happen. I would like to be able to avoid/prevent the shutdown. I've deleted unecessary programs and files, deleted temp files, run scandsk and defrag, checked for hardware issues-none, all my MS updates are installed, scanned for viruses with Nortons and McAfee as well as tools provided by Microsoft Knowledge Database and the computer is clean of any virus. I've always run a firewall. I've checked my power scheme and memory profiles as well. I've run out of ideas and hope some of you may have some new ones.
Thank you
You may have the sasser worm, pay attention to the part where it says
there might not be noticeable symptoms apart from frequent shutdowns.
How to Tell If Your Computer Is Infected
If your computer is infected with W32.Sasser.worm, you may see a
dialog box with text that refers to LSASS.exe. Some customers whose
computers have been infected may not notice the presence of the worm
at all, while others who are not infected may experience problems
because the worm is attempting to attack their computer. Typical
symptoms may include systems rebooting every few minutes without user
input.
Mitigation Steps for Affected Computers
If your computer is infected with the W32.Sasser.worm, please do the
following:
Enable the Windows XP Internet Connection Firewall or a third-party
firewall on the affected computer.
Disconnect the computer from the Internet.
Restart the computer. If you have problems rebooting, reboot in safe
mode.
Press CTRL+ALT+DEL.
Click the Task Manager.
Click the Processes tab.
Press and hold the CTRL key and then click C:\WINDOWS\avserve.exe and
c:\WINDOWS\system32\*_up.exe.
Click the End Task button.
Click Start.
Click Search and then search for and delete the following files:
C:\WINDOWS\avserve.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\*_up.exe
Click Start again, click Run, and then type: regedit
Click OK.
In Registry Editor, locate and delete the following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
"avserve.exe" = C:\WINDOWS\avserve.exe
Connect the computer to the Internet.
Go to the Windows Update site, and click the Scan for Updates button.
Download and install the critical updates recommended after the scan.
The stinger tool may also be helpful in detecting and
cleaning the Sasser worm.
http://vil.nai.com/vil/stinger/
Download this update
Microsoft Security Bulletin MS04-011
Security Update for Microsoft Windows (835732)
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS04-011.mspx
Enable your firewall.
MORE ON SECURITY:
Three steps you can take to improve your computer's security:
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/
321050 Description of a Personal Firewall
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=321050
More info:
http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/w32.sasser.worm.html
http://www.bullguard.com/antivirus/vit_randon_i.aspx
http://www.vsantivirus.com/sasser-a.htm
Good luck
