Virus-ridden T42 now nonfunctional

[thesartorialist]

I have a T42 running XP SP2. Basically I was an idiot and ended up with a spyware called "Antivirus 2009." After running Norton and having that not work, I Googled the name of the virus and found numerous sites detailing how to get rid of it. There were basically two routes, download a malware remover tool and have that find and remove it automatically or do it manually. I chose the latter option, as per http://www.2-spyware.com/remove-antivirus-2009.html. Unfortunately by the time I ended the processes and deleted most of the files listed on that site (not yet having unregistered the DLLs or deleted the registry values), the computer was running so slowly that it was impossible to continue. I downloaded the anti-malware software on a different machine and jumped it over but couldn't get it to successfully run. I keep restarting the computer and at this point, all I can do is log in-- no toolbar, no start menu, no functionality. Where do I go from here??

[basketb]

Can you boot in save mode and do what you need to do (i.e., delete files, change the registry, etc.)?
Or can you install the HD as a second drive in another computer (of course, that computer should have up-to-date anti-virus software installed ) and let it remove the virus that way.

[jamerslong]

Do you have system Restore points setup?

do you have a Windows Install CD?

[sktn77a]

Restore to an earlier point (probably won't work) or rescue with Windows Rescue (need a retail or OEM CD and may still not work). If these don't work, try to get you data files off the computer (safet mode, remove HDD and read data files from another computer) and then factory recover from the recovery partition (viruses and malware rarely mess this up) or recovery CDs. You can try Spybot Search and Destroy or Adaware but I doubt they'll work. Never install these antivirus/antimalware products that infest your computer from web sites - your experience is typical. It's difficult to get out of their popup screens but if all else fails, when one pops up and you can't exit it, press the power switch and turn the computer off!

Your software image sounds pretty badly trashed. I just hope you can get your data files off before you have to reload the OS/applications.

[killer]

In this situation I'd use Rescue and Recovery and restore to my last back up. I take a regular backup so I'd not lose too much.