wiping hard drive clean and re-installing XP to overcome trojan infestation

  • Thread starter Thread starter steve
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steve

My daughter's computer is filled with viruses, tojans,
etc... yes, I used spybot to get rid of hundreds of
malicious downloads, but it was not enough...yes I have
three high quality fire walls on the computer and have
antivirus software and have downloaded the latest
microsoft patches...i think some of her friends got into
some x-rated sites and the amount of damage is
extensive... I want to wipe the hard drive clean and re-
install Windows XP... I tried this, but although the
instructions indicated that re-installing XP would
automatically re-format the hard drive... that's not
correct and now I have two downloads of XP on my hard
drive... furthermore, my internet connection on the
computer no longer functions (I have an "always on" cable
modem linked to a router and 4 computers and somehow the
computer can no longer find the ethernet portal)... I'm
on the verge of buying a new hard drive (I did this to
another computer with the same problem... had a "free"
hard drive available, and it worked great...download went
great and internet connection was fine)... help... how do
I wipe out my hard drive, so I can re-install XP from
scratch and what can I do to ensure my computer will
still recognize my ethernet link to the cable modem (via
my router). thanks in advance, steve (feel free to email
at katensteve2 [at] yahoo.com (I'm using [at] instead
of @, to lessen the chance of this email generating spam,
but obviously you need to use @)
 
Best bet - back up your data, boot from the XP CD, choose install, delete &
recreate the partition you want to install to, and start fresh.

Another thing - I'd suggest that you replace your router with a
firewall/router - that way you don't have to rely on software firewalls. You
can pick up a Linksys or Netgear firewall for about $120USD - it does
stateful inspection, not just NAT.
 
steve said:
My daughter's computer is filled with viruses, tojans,
etc... yes, I used spybot to get rid of hundreds of
malicious downloads, but it was not enough...yes I have
three high quality fire walls on the computer and have
antivirus software and have downloaded the latest
microsoft patches...i think some of her friends got into
some x-rated sites and the amount of damage is
extensive... I want to wipe the hard drive clean and re-
install Windows XP... I tried this, but although the
instructions indicated that re-installing XP would
automatically re-format the hard drive... that's not
correct and now I have two downloads of XP on my hard
drive... furthermore, my internet connection on the
computer no longer functions (I have an "always on" cable
modem linked to a router and 4 computers and somehow the
computer can no longer find the ethernet portal)... I'm
on the verge of buying a new hard drive (I did this to
another computer with the same problem... had a "free"
hard drive available, and it worked great...download went
great and internet connection was fine)... help... how do
I wipe out my hard drive, so I can re-install XP from
scratch and what can I do to ensure my computer will
still recognize my ethernet link to the cable modem (via
my router). thanks in advance, steve (feel free to email
at katensteve2 [at] yahoo.com (I'm using [at] instead
of @, to lessen the chance of this email generating spam,
but obviously you need to use @)
Click to expand...

I can't give you all the details you are asking for, I'd be typing all day,
I can say that if you want to wipe the drive and start a fresh install do
this; (these steps are from memory and may not be exact) (You will need the
XP Key Code)

You may need certain drivers for you hardware such as video, sound, net
card, etc. It's always a good idea to check current hardware and write down
the exiting hardware names and numbers before starting.

Boot from the XP CD, when you get the first option screen about partitions
choose to delete the existing partition, once deleted create a new partition
and format it using the complete or long format option. This should
completely wipe the drive of viruses and data, the follow the steps for a
new install of XP.
 
Greetings --

Simply boot from the WinXP installation CD. You'll be offered
the opportunity to delete, create, and format partitions as part of
the installation process. (You may need to re-arrange the order of
boot devices in the PC's BIOS to boot from the CD.)

HOW TO Install Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;316941

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html

http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/clean_install.htm


Bruce Chambers

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