Having recently returned home from an extended stay in a hot, sunny fly infested middle eastern country I looked forward to tinkering about with my computer again. However my son got to it before me and it is now so slow that I think there may be a nasty thingy lurking within my computer. I have run the latest ad-awre and after deleting a whole 'yellow pages' of dialers!! I ran NAV 2003 (up-to-date Virus defs)but it found nothing. So why is my computer so slow? takes between 10 and 15 seconds to open a program that should be instant. Please help, thanks here's the Hijackthis logfile: Logfile of HijackThis v1.97.7 Scan saved at 11:21:23, on 15/12/2003 Platform: Windows XP SP1 (WinNT 5.01.2600) MSIE: Internet Explorer v6.00 SP1 (6.00.2800.1106) Running processes: C:\WINDOWS\System32\smss.exe C:\WINDOWS\system32\winlogon.exe C:\WINDOWS\system32\services.exe C:\WINDOWS\system32\lsass.exe C:\WINDOWS\system32\svchost.exe C:\WINDOWS\System32\svchost.exe C:\WINDOWS\system32\spoolsv.exe C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccEvtMgr.exe C:\Program Files\Norton Personal Firewall\NISUM.exe C:\Program Files\Netropa\Multimedia Keyboard\nhksrv.exe C:\Program Files\Norton Personal Firewall\ccPxySvc.exe C:\WINDOWS\System32\GEARSEC.exe C:\WINDOWS\System32\lvhidsvc.exe C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\VS7Debug\mdm.exe C:\Program Files\Norton SystemWorks\Norton AntiVirus\navapsvc.exe C:\Program Files\Norton SystemWorks\Norton Utilities\NPROTECT.exe C:\WINDOWS\System32\nvsvc32.exe C:\PROGRA~1\NORTON~3\SPEEDD~1\nopdb.exe C:\WINDOWS\System32\svchost.exe C:\WINDOWS\System32\MsPMSPSv.exe C:\WINDOWS\System32\Fast.exe C:\WINDOWS\Explorer.exe C:\WINDOWS\System32\taskswitch.exe C:\WINDOWS\System32\fast.exe C:\Program Files\Netropa\Multimedia Keyboard\MMKeybd.exe C:\PROGRA~1\MI948F~1\GAMECO~1\common\swtrayv4.exe C:\WINDOWS\TBPanel.exe D:\NEEDSC~1\INCRED~1\bin\IncrediMail.exe C:\Program Files\Adaptec\Easy CD Creator 5\DirectCD\DirectCD.exe C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccApp.exe C:\Program Files\Common Files\Real\Update_OB\realsched.exe C:\Program Files\iTunes\iTunesHelper.exe C:\WINDOWS\Mixer.exe C:\WINDOWS\System32\ctfmon.exe C:\WINDOWS\System32\RUNDLL32.exe C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 5.0\Distillr\AcroTray.exe C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\AiO\hp officejet g series\Bin\hpoavn07.exe C:\Program Files\Netropa\Multimedia Keyboard\TrayMon.exe C:\Program Files\Netropa\Onscreen Display\OSD.exe C:\Program Files\iPod\bin\iPodService.exe C:\Program Files\T-DSL SpeedManager\tsmsvc.exe C:\PROGRA~1\HEWLET~1\AiO\Shared\Bin\hpoevm07.exe C:\Program Files\Messenger\msmsgs.exe C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\AiO\Shared\bin\hpOSTS07.exe C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\AiO\Shared\bin\hpOFXM07.exe C:\WINDOWS\system32\ntvdm.exe C:\T-ONLINE\BSW4\ToDuCAlC.exe C:\PROGRA~1\INTERN~1\IEXPLORE.exe C:\Program Files\TDS3\tds-3.exe C:\WINDOWS\msagent\AgentSvr.exe C:\Documents and Settings\John\Desktop\HijackThis.exe R1 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,SearchURL = http://www.search-explorer.net/search_page.php R0 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Start Page = http://www.ebay.co.uk/ R0 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Start Page = http://rd.yahoo.com/customize/ymsgr/defaults/*http://my.yahoo.com R1 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Search Bar = about:blank R0 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Search,CustomizeSearch = R1 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\SearchURL,(Default) = http://rd.yahoo.com/customize/ymsgr/defaults/su/*http://www.yahoo.com R1 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,SearchAssistant = http://www.huntbar.com/ie.asp?aff=828 R3 - Default URLSearchHook is missing O1 - Hosts: 203.161.127.141 www.dcsresearch.com O2 - BHO: (no name) - {02478D38-C3F9-4efb-9B51-7695ECA05670} - C:\Program Files\Yahoo!\Common\ycomp5_1_6_0.dll O2 - BHO: (no name) - {029CA12C-89C1-46a7-A3C7-82F2F98635CB} - C:\Program Files\Kontiki\bin\bh304181.dll O2 - BHO: (no name) - {BDF3E430-B101-42AD-A544-FADC6B084872} - C:\Program Files\Norton SystemWorks\Norton AntiVirus\NavShExt.dll O3 - Toolbar: &Radio - {8E718888-423F-11D2-876E-00A0C9082467} - C:\WINDOWS\System32\msdxm.ocx O3 - Toolbar: Norton AntiVirus - {42CDD1BF-3FFB-4238-8AD1-7859DF00B1D6} - C:\Program Files\Norton SystemWorks\Norton AntiVirus\NavShExt.dll O3 - Toolbar: Yahoo! Assistent - {EF99BD32-C1FB-11D2-892F-0090271D4F88} - C:\Program Files\Yahoo!\Common\ycomp5_1_6_0.dll O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [CoolSwitch] C:\WINDOWS\System32\taskswitch.exe O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [FastUser] C:\WINDOWS\System32\fast.exe O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [MULTIMEDIA KEYBOARD] C:\Program Files\Netropa\Multimedia Keyboard\MMKeybd.exe O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [SideWinderTrayV4] C:\PROGRA~1\MI948F~1\GAMECO~1\common\swtrayv4.exe O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [NvCplDaemon] RUNDLL32.exe C:\WINDOWS\System32\NvCpl.dll,NvStartup O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [Gainward] C:\WINDOWS\TBPanel.exe /A O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [IncrediMail] D:\NEEDSC~1\INCRED~1\bin\IncrediMail.exe /c O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [CloneCDElbyCDFL] "C:\Program Files\Elaborate Bytes\CloneCD\ElbyCheck.exe" /L ElbyCDFL O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [WebInstall2] C:\DOCUME~1\John\LOCALS~1\Temp\ins23.tmp /R /A O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [MoneyStartUp10.0] "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Money\System\Activation.exe" O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [AdaptecDirectCD] C:\Program Files\Adaptec\Easy CD Creator 5\DirectCD\DirectCD.exe O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [nwiz] nwiz.exe /install O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [ccApp] "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccApp.exe" O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [ccRegVfy] "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccRegVfy.exe" O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [TkBellExe] "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Real\Update_OB\realsched.exe" -osboot O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [T-DSL SpeedMgr] "C:\PROGRA~1\T-DSLS~1\SpeedMgr.exe" O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [iTunesHelper] C:\Program Files\iTunes\iTunesHelper.exe O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [QuickTime Task] "C:\Program Files\QuickTime\qttask.exe" -atboottime O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [C-Media Mixer] Mixer.exe /startup O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [RecSche] "C:\Program Files\LifeView TVR\RecSche.exe" O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [CTFMON.EXE] C:\WINDOWS\System32\ctfmon.exe O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [Yahoo! Pager] D:\Needs checking\Yahoo!\Messenger\ypager.exe -quiet O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [NvMediaCenter] RUNDLL32.exe C:\WINDOWS\System32\NVMCTRAY.DLL,NvTaskbarInit O4 - Startup: PowerReg Scheduler.exe O4 - Startup: PowerReg SchedulerV2.exe O4 - Global Startup: Acrobat Assistant.lnk = C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 5.0\Distillr\AcroTray.exe O4 - Global Startup: Adobe Gamma Loader.lnk = C:\Program Files\Common Files\Adobe\Calibration\Adobe Gamma Loader.exe O4 - Global Startup: HPAiODevice(hp officejet g series) - 1.lnk = C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\AiO\hp officejet g series\Bin\hpoavn07.exe O4 - Global Startup: InterVideo WinCinema Manager.lnk = C:\Program Files\InterVideo\Common\bin\WinCinemaMgr.exe O4 - Global Startup: Microsoft Office.lnk = C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\OSA9.exe O8 - Extra context menu item: &Add animation to IncrediMail Style Box - D:\NEEDSC~1\INCRED~1\bin\WebMenuImg.htm O8 - Extra context menu item: E&xport to Microsoft Excel - res://C:\PROGRA~1\MICROS~2\Office10\EXCEL.EXE/3000 O9 - Extra button: Messenger (HKLM) O9 - Extra 'Tools' menuitem: Yahoo! Messenger (HKLM) O9 - Extra button: Researcher (HKLM) O9 - Extra button: Real.com (HKLM) O9 - Extra button: MoneySide (HKLM) O9 - Extra button: Messenger (HKLM) O9 - Extra 'Tools' menuitem: Messenger (HKLM) O12 - Plugin for .spop: C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\Plugins\NPDocBox.dll O16 - DPF: Yahoo! Chat - http://us.chat1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/chat/applet/c381/chat.cab O16 - DPF: Yahoo! Chess - http://download.yahoo.com/games/clients/y/cs0_x.cab O16 - DPF: Yahoo! Fleet - http://download.yahoo.com/games/clients/y/fltr2_x.cab O16 - DPF: Yahoo! Pool 2 - http://download.games.yahoo.com/games/clients/y/pos3_x.cab O16 - DPF: {15B782AF-55D8-11D1-B477-006097098764} (Macromedia Authorware Web Player Control) - file://c:\program files\internet explorer\plugins\awswaxf.cab O16 - DPF: {166B1BCA-3F9C-11CF-8075-444553540000} (Shockwave ActiveX Control) - http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/director/sw.cab O16 - DPF: {1D4DB7D2-6EC9-47A3-BD87-1E41684E07BB} - http://imgfarm.com/images/nocache/funwebproducts/SmileyCentralInitialSetup1.0.0.5.cab O16 - DPF: {2A32B14F-4D29-4EA3-AC54-E9B19F436CE7} (Scanner Class) - http://www.trojanscan.com/trojanscan/TDECntrl.CAB O16 - DPF: {2B323CD9-50E3-11D3-9466-00A0C9700498} (Yahoo! Audio Conferencing) - http://us.chat1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/chat/applet/v43/yacscom.cab O16 - DPF: {2BC66F54-93A8-11D3-BEB6-00105AA9B6AE} (Symantec AntiVirus scanner) - http://security2.norton.com/SSC/SharedContent/vc/bin/AvSniff.cab O16 - DPF: {30528230-99F7-4BB4-88D8-FA1D4F56A2AB} (YInstStarter Class) - http://download.yahoo.com/dl/installs/yinst.cab O16 - DPF: {32E8AAE9-C264-497D-AADC-583868906B52} (PanoViewer Control) - http://www.pixtra.com/Downloads/PanoViewer.ocx O16 - DPF: {3E68E405-C6DE-49FF-83AE-41EE9F4C36CE} (Office Update Installation Engine) - http://office.microsoft.com/officeupdate/content/opuc.cab O16 - DPF: {4BEE3896-4820-48D1-85EA-5A9A9ECD3D95} (OPUCatalog Class) - http://office.microsoft.com/productupdates/content/opuc.cab O16 - DPF: {4E330863-6A11-11D0-BFD8-006097237877} (InstallFromTheWeb ActiveX Control) - http://www.installfromtheweb.com/install/iftwclix.cab O16 - DPF: {597C45C2-2D39-11D5-8D53-0050048383FE} (OPUCatalog Class) - http://office.microsoft.com/productupdates/content/opuc.cab O16 - DPF: {6B4788E2-BAE8-11D2-A1B4-00400512739B} (PWMediaSendControl Class) - http://216.249.25.152/code/PWActiveXImgCtl.CAB O16 - DPF: {70BA88C8-DAE8-4CE9-92BB-979C4A75F53B} (GSDACtl Class) - http://launch.gamespyarcade.com/software/launch/alaunch.cab O16 - DPF: {74D05D43-3236-11D4-BDCD-00C04F9A3B61} (HouseCall Control) - http://a840.g.akamai.net/7/840/537/2003120501/housecall.antivirus.com/housecall/xscan53.cab O16 - DPF: {7D1E9C49-BD6A-11D3-87A8-009027A35D73} (Yahoo! Audio UI1) - http://chat.yahoo.com/cab/yacsui.cab O16 - DPF: {8714912E-380D-11D5-B8AA-00D0B78F3D48} (Yahoo! WebCam Upload Wrapper) - http://chat.yahoo.com/cab/yuplapp.cab O16 - DPF: {8A05273A-2EA5-42DE-AA75-59EA7D9D50D7} - http://www.trafficsyndicate.com/TB/Cabs/T_45/toolbar_new.cab O16 - DPF: {90C9629E-CD32-11D3-BBFB-00105A1F0D68} (InstallShield International Setup Player) - http://www.installengine.com/engine/isetup.cab O16 - DPF: {9A9307A0-7DA4-4DAF-B042-5009F29E09E1} (ActiveScan Installer Class) - http://www.pandasoftware.com/activescan/as5/asinst.cab O16 - DPF: {9F1C11AA-197B-4942-BA54-47A8489BB47F} (Update Class) - http://v4.windowsupdate.microsoft.com/CAB/x86/unicode/iuctl.CAB?37589.2766319444 O16 - DPF: {A17E30C4-A9BA-11D4-8673-60DB54C10000} (YahooYMailTo Class) - http://us.dl1.yimg.com/download.yahoo.com/dl/installs/essentials/ymmapi_0410.dll O16 - DPF: {C2FCEF52-ACE9-11D3-BEBD-00105AA9B6AE} (Symantec RuFSI Registry Information Class) - http://security.symantec.com/SSC/SharedContent/common/bin/cabsa.cab O16 - DPF: {C7B05B62-C8D7-438C-840B-4994DAAA8EEE} - http://webpdp.gator.com/v3/download/pdpplugin5094_hd3ptdmgainads.cab O16 - DPF: {CD17FAAA-17B4-4736-AAEF-436EDC304C8C} (ContentAuditX Control) - http://a840.g.akamai.net/7/840/5805/v1503/www.contentwatch.com/audit/includes/ContentAuditControl.cab O16 - DPF: {D27CDB6E-AE6D-11CF-96B8-444553540000} (Shockwave Flash Object) - http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab O16 - DPF: {D32C3BAD-5213-49BD-A7D5-E6DE6C0D8249} (CRAVOnline Object) - http://www.ravantivirus.com/scan/ravonline.cab O16 - DPF: {E344ADA2-75B6-4E7E-B221-0A04FD5B0165} (MaxisPublishX Control) - http://thesims.ea.com/us/teleport/MaxisPublishX.cab O16 - DPF: {E504EE6E-47C6-11D5-B8AB-00D0B78F3D48} (Yahoo! WebCam Viewer Wrapper) - http://chat.yahoo.com/cab/yvwrctl.cab O16 - DPF: {EF791A6B-FC12-4C68-99EF-FB9E207A39E6} (McFreeScan Class) - http://download.mcafee.com/molbin/iss-loc/vso/en-us/tools/mcfscan/1,5,0,4278/mcfscan.cab O16 - DPF: {EF99BD32-C1FB-11D2-892F-0090271D4F88} (Yahoo! Assistent) - http://us.dl1.yimg.com/download.companion.yahoo.com/dl/toolbar/yiebio5_1_6_0.cab O16 - DPF: {F58E1CEF-A068-4C15-BA5E-587CAF3EE8C6} (MSN Chat Control 4.5) - http://fdl.msn.com/public/chat/msnchat45.cab O16 - DPF: {FAE74270-E5EE-49C3-B816-EA8B4D55F38F} (H2hPool Control) - http://mirror.worldwinner.com//games/v45/h2hpool/h2hpool.cab O16 - DPF: {FEC3E5A3-50F7-4B0C-97D8-01CF69DFBFC7} (Measurement Service Client) - http://ccon.madonion.com/global/msc.cab O17 - HKLM\System\CCS\Services\Tcpip\..\{AEEAF69E-D5B4-48D2-8087-70B99CAF592F}: NameServer = 212.185.248.180 194.25.2.129

John - It looks like you have picked up some parasites! See http://www.answersthatwork.com/Tasklist_pages/tasklist.htm Some downloaded software comes with various bits of useless sh**ware that boot automatically each time you run the computer, and just sit in the background, eating up memory and causing system conflicts. Kazza, MS messenger, yahoo pager, ICQ and others are all bad for this. Some of them also repeatedly connect to the net in order to get updates, or worse. Right-click on the Task Bar and choose "Task Manager" to get a look at what applications are running in the background right now. Chances are you're loaded with unwelcome guests. To see what you can prune, go to start/run, type 'msconfig' and go to the 'startup' tab. You should see the list of progs that are run automatically each time you boot, where to find them, and where their trigger sits in your registry. I'm not an XP expert, so you should do a bit more digging on each one using google before you decide whether to kill it or not. See also http://netsquirrel.com/msconfig/ for a bit more info. You will probably be able to get rid of the majority of them, and see a massive increase in speed. Good luck! Wolfpeach :-) ps - make sure your critical security updates are up to date, too!