I have a Windows Vista Home Premium 32bit Toshiba Laptop and I think I removed a virus which I originally thought Norton 360 became corrupted. I have multiple issues.

I have removed Norton 360 which was not working any longer after the virus. I successfully used the Norton Removal tool to remove it completely.

I have no Internet access. I re-installed the network drivers but it did not change. I know the network works, because when I used the Kaspersky Rescue Disk to remove the virus, it was able to access the Internet. KRD is a bootable disk using Linux to install and scan the hard drive for viruses.

Cannot start DHCP Client Service. I am having this problem with different services.

I have also used Malwarebytes which found two Trojan.FakeAlert Registry Keys and removed them.

I cannot start the Windows Firewall.



I have been reading several things in this forum and one of the suggestions was to run sfc /scannow. I think it fixed several issues, but it could not fix all of them.

I would like to ask if someone could interrupt the CBS.log file and give me some suggestion how I might resolve the issues it could not fix.

Thank you!

Sounds to me like your permissions have been corrupted or altered. (Permissions are security "flags" that are attached to files and folders to restrict who or what can make alterations to those files).

It is possible to reset the permissions to their default settings but it's not really an easy thing to do with Vista - and doing it wrong can cause major instability or leave your pc wide-open to other malware.

To be honest, after any serious malware infection, the best thing to do is to reinstall Windows and then install all of the applications that you know are safe from the original source - anything else is taking a chance. Reinstalling may seem liek a chore but it's probably a lot quicker and easier than trying to dig through logs and track-down what may be a well-buried problem - plus you'll have the benefit of a lean, fresh version of Windows to work with.

Thank you pengipete for your reply.

I am not sure, if you reviewed the CBS.log file which is extensive. I found a way to search for just the errors which "cannot" [be] "repaired" by sfc /scannow and I only found two files which cannot be repaired. The "rtffilt.dll" and the "settings.ini" files. The settings file does not appear to be related to security and I am still looking for information on the "rtffilt.dll" file.

I am still at a loss for a real solution to correct these issues and I am continuing my research.

If anyone else has any suggestions, please do not hesitate to let me know. I appreciate your help.

Thank you for taking a look at the CBS.log file for me. I am on the east coast [USA] om the mid-Atlantic region and we are being pounded by hurricane Sandy's 90 mile an hour winds, so we may lose power and I may not be able to respond for a period of time.

Thank you again for your help!

I believe that rtffilt.dll is a rich text format filter/indexer used by apps like Word. I can't find any reference to it causing any problems like yours.

Settings.ini is just a text file used to store settings for Vista's sidebar - that file can be deleted or renamed if necessary - a new one will be created automatically the next time you run Windows. (Always best to just rename a file by adding "old" or similar to the name - that ways it's easy to restore if necessary)

Oddly enough, I found other reports of a corrupt sidebar settings.ini file causing bizarre behaviour in windows - like this one Windows Vista freezes and SFC cannot repair Settings.ini file - Microsoft Community - in which the person couldn't even even move or resize ordinary windows or scroll the contents. That post also contains some useful advice on how to "clean boot" Windows - which may help you.

Just to clarify one thing - when I said "security" in reference to permissions, I'm not talking about security in the "Anti-virus" sense of the word - permissions are there to stop unauthorised changes to files. The "security" angle is not related to the original purpose of the file but the protection of it.

The only side-bar I use is the one at the Red Lion - cos you get served faster there