| Forum Home | ||||
| Press F1 | ||||
| Thread ID: 72466 | 2006-09-14 01:31:00 | Formatting vs Cleaning - ?? | Jimmy D (2061) | Press F1 |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 484422 | 2006-09-14 01:31:00 | Hi everyone, Say we had a PC that was ridden with spyware and maybe a couple of viruses, it was running a lot slower than it should. If you ran a few spyware cleaners such as adaware and spybot, and installed a decent anivirus and did a clean up, would it run as smooth and fast as if you had formatted and reloaded windows? I've just found that when my friends get spyware and their computers are running slow, i run a few spyware cleaners and scan for viruses and it still doesnt seem to be as fast as it should for their computer specs, so do spyware cleaners actually do a thorough job? What would you guys do? Reformatting or just clean up? |
Jimmy D (2061) | ||
| 484423 | 2006-09-14 01:58:00 | Personally, I prefer a proper format... If it is convenient. It's best to never let this problem get started in then first place though. If it's one or two, then just wipe them out with an anti-spyware tool. |
Cornot (10386) | ||
| 484424 | 2006-09-14 01:59:00 | Better to format & start from scratch. Make sure you install a firewall & AV before connecting back to the internet. | autechre (266) | ||
| 484425 | 2006-09-14 02:48:00 | If you ran a few spyware cleaners such as adaware and spybot, and installed a decent anivirus and did a clean up, would it run as smooth and fast as if you had formatted and reloaded windows? No. Not because there was any malware left but because Windows itself is a bloated hog that gets worse the longer its installed. |
pctek (84) | ||
| 484426 | 2006-09-14 04:03:00 | Malware programs don't usually infect your computer one at a time. If there was one, chances are there were others. How do you know you got them all? If a computer's security is compromised it is best to restore the computer to a state before the original infection. Since Windows' restore system is not secure against deliberate attack, it is best to either make regular drive image backups using a tool like Ghost and restore a previous one on failure (backing up documents of course) or format and reinstall. |
TGoddard (7263) | ||
| 484427 | 2006-09-14 04:04:00 | exactly what i think. thanks 4 the feedback. i've always found that a good format speeds things up a lot better than cleaning, and from then on to be properly protected. it's suprising how a little education can go a long way, what not to click on, what not to download, what a firewall does etc. cheers guys |
Jimmy D (2061) | ||
| 484428 | 2006-09-14 21:07:00 | Quite simply... the best way to clean up is to format :thumbs: cheers chiefnz |
chiefnz (545) | ||
| 1 | |||||