BleepingComputer.com: "Windows XP recovery" shut down my PC

oh boy, I hope this machine hasn't bit the dust completely now. but it did just "blow up" and I am hoping for help once again. I thought I had enough protection/security, alas.......

A window opened up that was labeled "Windows XP Recovery" and it began to scan my machine declaring it had all these problems. At the lower right corner I see a yellow triangle with an exclamation point inside the triangle that read "windows security alert" and that became "critical error: Windows cannot find hard disk space. Well, that became a red X and then became "hard drive failure" and another window opened up "hard drive failure" and "system has detected a problem with one or more installed IDE/SATA hard drive. It is recommended that you restart the system."

I shut down and left it off for a few minutes, restarted and got the exact same thing as described above. It's got Windows XP.

Please let me know what I should do now. thank you.

This post has been edited by tobyo: 02 June 2011 - 12:17 PM

Please use the removal guide at the following link:
Remove Windows XP Recovery (Uninstall Guide)

The log is automatically saved and can be viewed by clicking the Logs tab in MBAM. Copy and paste the contents of that report in your next reply. Be sure to post the complete log to include the top portion which shows MBAM's database version and your operating system.

Please post the log and let us know how the system is running now.

thank you. do I open in safe mode in order to do the removal? because, I cannot do anything at the moment. the last two times I turned it on, that fake scan ran immediately as windows was loading and I could not click it closed. I had to power it down to stop it in fact. so....if I need to do this in safe mode is it the F5 key? or, what would you recommend?

thanks so much for the help.

Try Safe Mode.

It is usually the F8 key that will get you to the Windows Advanced Options Menu, from where you should select Safe Mode with networking.

F8, right, thank you!! will do it tomorrow and let you know. wish me luck

Good luck. Let me know if you have any problems.

Don't be concerned about the malware program "scanning". It is all fake, and it is not doing anything really. The results after the "scan" completes are all fake too, of course.

well, I didn't get very far. I was able to get into safe mode but it looks much the same (w/o fake scan running) as yesterday. Black screen w/o my desktop icons, no icons on the task bar so I could not get to the internet to download anything. When I clicked All Programs from start I get two options 1)Gateway documentation which is empty and 2) good ol' Windows XP Recovery with an uninstall option and a "Windows XP Recovery" option. I didn't choose anything.

next I opened control panel to see if I could find a way to the internet. no go. All folders appear empty but with it saying there are a certain number of hidden files in the lower left corner. I could not figure out how to unhide them. so...I'm stuck for the moment and turned off the machine.

please help when you can. thank you so much!!!

Try this in Safe Mode with networking ...

Press Ctrl+Shift+Escape keys (all at the same time)...
or press Ctrl+Alt+Delete keys (all at the same time) and then click on Task Manager ... to open the Task Manager window.
On the Applications tab, click on "New Task", and in the dialog window that opens, type ...
iexplore.exe (to open Internet Explorer) and press the <ENTER> key.
(or explorer.exe to open Windows Explorer).

Are you able to follow the removal guide now?

task manaager has been disabled by your administrator. sign in as administrator?

ah, that worked....one moment. we have internet!!

This post has been edited by tobyo: 03 June 2011 - 06:35 PM

okay, Rkill is not working correctly I don't think. when I double click and choose run, I get the "open with" window and it's asking me to choose a program I want to open the file with. the uninstall guide had another link to try and that one did the same thing. no idea what to do with this. help when you can please. thanks much.

This post has been edited by tobyo: 03 June 2011 - 07:34 PM

Hello.. lets see if we can fix a few issues here..

Task Manager
This step involves making changes in the registry. Always back up your registry before making any changes.

Go to Start » Run and type: regedit

• Click OK.
  
• On the left side, click to highlight My Computer at the top.
  
• Go up to File » Export
  Make sure in that window there is a tick next to "All" under Export Branch.
  Leave the "Save As Type" as "Registration Files".
  Under "Filename" put RegBackup.
  
  
• Choose to save it to C:\
  
• Click save and then go to File » Exit.

Or you can download and use ERUNT which is an excellent free tool that allows you to to take a snapshot (backup) of your registry before making changes and restore it when needed.

Click on the link below:
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm
Scroll down to #275 and click "Lift Restrictions - TM, Regedit and CMD" in the left column. Go to File, choose "Save page as" All Files and save regtmcmdrestore.vbs to your desktop. Double-click on that file to allow the script to run and reboot when done. Since the script modifies certain registry settings your anti-virus package may warn you about it. Ignore the warning and allow it to run.


choose a program I want to open the file with
For XP
Go here to Doug KNox's Windows® XP File Association Fixes
Run 9th down on left... EXE File Association Fix ... the EXE not EML one.


Now try RKill and then MBAM...
If you cannot use Normal Mode:

Reboot into Safe Mode with Networking
How to enter safe mode(XP/Vista)
Using the F8 Method
Restart your computer.
When the machine first starts again it will generally list some equipment that is installed in your machine, amount of memory, hard drives installed etc. At this point you should gently tap the F8 key repeatedly until you are presented with a Windows XP Advanced Options menu.
Select the option for Safe Mode with Networking using the arrow keys.
Then press enter on your keyboard to boot into Safe Mode.


>>>> Download this file and doubleclick on it to run it. Allow the information to be merged with the registry.

RKill....

Download and Run RKill

Please download RKill by Grinler from one of the 4 links below and save it to your desktop.

Link 1
Link 2
Link 3
Link 4



• Before we begin, you should disable your anti-malware softwares you have installed so they do not interfere RKill running as some anti-malware softwares detect RKill as malicious. Please refer to this page if you are not sure how.
  
  
• Double-click on Rkill on your desktop to run it. (If you are using Windows Vista, please right-click on it and select Run As Administrator)
  
  
• A black screen will appear and then disappear. Please do not worry, that is normal. This means that the tool has been successfully executed.
  
  
• If nothing happens or if the tool does not run, please let me know in your next reply

Do not reboot your computer after running rkill as the malware programs will start again. Or if rebooting is required run it again.


If you continue having problems running rkill.com, you can download iExplore.exe or eXplorer.exe, which are renamed copies of rkill.com, and try them instead.


Next run MBAM (MalwareBytes):

Please download Malwarebytes Anti-Malware and save it to your desktop.

Download Link 1
Download Link 2

MBAM may "make changes to your registry" as part of its disinfection routine. If using other security programs that detect registry changes (ie Spybot's Teatimer), they may interfere or alert you. Temporarily disable such programs or permit them to allow the changes.

• Make sure you are connected to the Internet.
  
• Double-click on mbam-setup.exe to install the application.
  For instructions with screenshots, please refer to the How to use Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware Guide.
  
• When the installation begins, follow the prompts and do not make any changes to default settings.
  
• When installation has finished, make sure you leave both of these checked:
  • Update Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware
    
  • Launch Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware
  
  
• Then click Finish.

MBAM will automatically start and you will be asked to update the program before performing a scan.

• If an update is found, the program will automatically update itself. Press the OK button to close that box and continue.
  
• If you encounter any problems while downloading the definition updates, manually download them from here and just double-click on mbam-rules.exe to install.

On the Scanner tab:

• Make sure the "Perform Quick Scan" option is selected.
  
• Then click on the Scan button.
  
• If asked to select the drives to scan, leave all the drives selected and click on the Start Scan button.
  
• The scan will begin and "Scan in progress" will show at the top. It may take some time to complete so please be patient.
  
• When the scan is finished, a message box will say "The scan completed successfully. Click 'Show Results' to display all objects found".
  
• Click OK to close the message box and continue with the removal process.

Back at the main Scanner screen:

• Click on the Show Results button to see a list of any malware that was found.
  
• Make sure that everything is checked, and click Remove Selected.
  
• When removal is completed, a log report will open in Notepad.
  
• The log is automatically saved and can be viewed by clicking the Logs tab in MBAM.
  
• Copy and paste the contents of that report in your next reply. Be sure to post the complete log to include the top portion which shows MBAM's database version and your operating system.
  
• Exit MBAM when done.

Note: If MBAM encounters a file that is difficult to remove, you will be asked to reboot your computer so MBAM can proceed with the disinfection process. If asked to restart the computer, please do so immediately. Failure to reboot normally (not into safe mode) will prevent MBAM from removing all the malware.

Troubleshoot Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware

stopped at the get go. I get the "open with" window again after typing regedit in run.

???

thanks

Try the OPen fix first

This log file is located at C:\rkill.log.
Please post this only if requested to by the person helping you.
Otherwise you can close this log when you wish.
Ran as Owner on 09/22/2010 at 9:04:52.


Services Stopped:


Processes terminated by Rkill or while it was running:


C:\Documents and Settings\Owner\Desktop\rkill.com

It looked like the open fix worked okay so I tried Rkill again and got the above.