Ashwebsv.exe works fine BUT Windows indicates that it shouldn't be working !!

I recently installed the latest Avast anti virus version.
When my computer boots up, ashmaisv.exe and ashwebsv.exe automatically start running as usual.
But after a few seconds, a NOT RESPONDING appears next to ashwebsv.exe but not ashmaisv.exe if I press on CTR - ALT - DEL. I discovered this quite by chance.

But very oddly, Avast seem to run quite well ie. it informs me that it has downloaded the latest virus update and that Web shield and Standard shield are running. (I have terminated the other providers because they are inappropriate for my use.)

I even tested the Web Shield by visiting the Eicar text file page and lo and behold, it shows that a virus has been detected.

I have Windows 98 but regardless of this, if Windows says that ashwebsv.exe is not responding, it should not work at all. For in the past 10 years, every time I have seen a listed program as not responding, it truly did not respond when I tried to run it or even close it.

But ashwebsv.exe is functioning perfectly.
May someone enlighten me as to what is going on please ?

Which firewall do you use?
Did you have any other antivirus in this machine in the past?
Did you try an installation from the scratch?

  1. Uninstall avast from Control Panel first.
  2. Boot.
  3. Download the latest version of Avast Uninstall and use it for complete uninstallation.
  4. Boot.
  5. Install again the latest avast! version.
  6. Boot.
  7. Check and post the results.

trigan,

I just fired up my Windows Me laptop. Guess what … my ashWevSv.exe gets a “not responding” too. It is working just fine like yours.

I think this is one of those “that’s just the way it is”. It is unlikely much effort will be spent on addressing Win9x issues.

I suggest that this is also a case of “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it”. So, your system, your choice. My WinMe will not be “fixed” and left alone just as it is.

Just for clarification and completeness …

This a WinMe system rebuilt from scratch less than a year ago and seldom used and certainly for nothing more adventurous than listening to BBC radio via Firefox. No other antivirus used but avast and no firewall (ZA kept turning itself off - so it was removed) but also only ever used behind a hardware router.

Thank you Tech and Alan.
Tech, I have had Norton anti virus softwared installed but I uninstalled it before I installed the Avast which I upgraded after a few days to the latest version.

Alan, once again, I have your Windows98 to thank. I have had an old ghost image file of my C partition scanned with this ashwebsv. exe not responding and it still detected a trojan that I had forgotten all about in the ghost file.
No doubt about it, this “not responding” is not interfering with the scanning.
I am glad that this issue is not as serious as I thought it might me.

You’re welcome.

  1. Remove NAV or any other Symantec product (like LiveUpdate) through Add/Remove programs from Control Panel. Boot.
  2. Use Norton Removal Tool for Windows 2000/XP/Vista. Boot.
  3. Install avast! (or repair the installation) and boot.

Thank you Tech.
I have already uninstalled NAV successfully before I installed Avast. I decided to try to repair Avast by going into

Control Panel
Add / Remove Programs
Avast Antivirus
Repair

There was a tab called PROXY SETTINGS. I have firefox connected by proxy connection to Web Shield. Should I makes changes in this tab from direct connection to a proxy connection ?

I also forgot to pause Standard Shield from running while Repair ran. Would this have affected the repair ?

Anyway, I clicked on Repair and a window opened entitled Installaton progress and after some time, it changed to Repair Finished and it gave a report. It seems to have made 23 Registry changes. I can post them if you wish.

I shut down and booted the computer.

I pressed on CTRL / DEL / ALT and the NOT RESPONDING in brackets next to avastwebsv. exe was still showing !!

Not really… WebShield works like a proxy in Windows 98 but you seem to be connecting the Internet directly, without a proxy.

No, you don’t have to do so. Let it on.

Please, post the last 200-250 lines of avast log: C:\Program Files\Alwil Software\Avast4\DATA\log\Setup.log

trigan,

please check the proxy settings in Firefox again and make sure that the proxy for http is there and set to localhost port 12080. If it is there then the Webshield will be working for you. If it is not then the Webshield will be doing nothing for you.

As to the “not responding” … as long as Webshield is working I think this is a wild goose chase.

To Tech:
Thank you for your interest. I am curious myself as to what is going on. Enclosed is an attachment of what you asked for.

To Alan :
Thank you for your information. I have checked Firefox settings again and yes it is going through localhost port 12080. Further below it there is a box saying:
NO PROXY FOR : localhost, 127.0.0.1

You are probably right about it being a wild goose chase because I have proved it to be working fine. However, I would like to see what this can lead up to. I have made a ghost image file of all my partitions now anyway.

29.05.2008	10:39:18.000	1212053958	general	Return code: 0x20000001 [Nothing done]

Inconclusive… nothing is being done.

Thank you Tech.

Okay. So nothing was done as far as repairs are concerned.

But what about the registry ?
Were registry changes made ?
If so, can you point out the lines that say this.

They’re part of the repairing procedure.
Did you try an installation from the scratch?

  1. Uninstall avast from Control Panel first.
  2. Boot.
  3. Download the latest version of Avast Uninstall and use it for complete uninstallation.
  4. Boot.
  5. Install again the latest avast! version.
  6. Boot.
  7. Check and post the results.

Can you give me the link where I can download the latest version of Avast Uninstall ?

I don’t think I will bother go through this procedure just yet but if I do in the future, I will post the results, rest assured. A great many thanks.

Click on the underlined Avast Uninstall item 3. in Tech’s post, it is a link to where you can download it.

Hi Tech / David,

For the past couple of days, I started getting the computer suddenly giving me a blue screen indicating that an exception had occurred after I had been surfing for an hour or so.
Worse and untypically, the computer would not boot for as soon as Windows came up the blue screen would come up.

I dumped ghost image files and Windows would almost instantly crash giving me a blue screen as before. I clicked on Enter a couple of times and this time I saw this message in a white box saying ASHWEBSV. EXE caused an invalid page fault.

This was the first clue as to what was causing the problem. So I decided to uninstall and re-install.

I followed Tech’s instructions and installed Avast for the second time. I restarted the computer, I pressed the CTRL ALT DEL and the NOT RESPONDING message was not showing next to ashwebsv.exe any more. I said Great.

However, when I restarted the computer for a second time, the not responding message came up again.

I ran Norton Win doctor to check for problems and it identified the following problem :
The File Extensions section of your Windows Registry contains the file extension “.csk” which refers to an invalid program identifier cskfile.

Has this got anything to do with Avast ?

The file type isn’t associated with avast, apparently it relates to claris works.
http://filext.com/file-extension/CSK.

What is the full details of the BSOD ?

Try googling the stop error code and see what that brings, there is also likely to be a main title That_Is_Linked_By_Underscores try googling that.

You mentioned long ago that you had Norton av and had uninstalled
did you also run the Norton uninstaller?
Also if you go to the antivir website they have an uninstaller that may clean up a few leftovers
first run the avast uninstaller
then norton and antivir
then reinstall
however do none of this till Tech responds as what I have mentioned may NOT be what he wants you to do
If you HAVE run the seperate Norton uninstaller please post back
Norton leaves lots of registry crapletts if the uninstaller is not run in addition to add/remove programs styleuninstall

interesting case
Wyrmrider

Are you running Norton Antivirus at the same time in this computer or only Norton SystemWorks without the antivirus?

Thank you for your interest. Much appreciated.
In answer to all your questions.

Norton System Works contains Norton Utilities ( which includes Norton System Doctor and Win Doctor), Norton Antivirus, Norton Uninstall, Norton CrashGuard and Norton Web Services.

I uninstalled Norton Antivirus, Norton Uninstall, Norton CrashGuard through Add Remove Programs which allowed me to choose which programs I wanted to uninstall from Norton System Works and which I still wanted installed on my computer.

I did not download any Norton uninstaller as I did with the Avast. Can you find me the link for this please ?

I have Norton System Doctor start automatically on booting in order to check for errors.

I now only have Norton Utilities and Norton Web Services installed on my computer.

I did not take down details of what the blue screen of death said. But I have had this exception happen before when I had Norton Antivirus running years ago. I think it almost certainly has to do with poor system resources such as processing power and RAM.

                               - ADDENDUM -

I forgot to say that after I had the blue screen of death come up, I clicked on Enter a couple of times and I saw this message in a white box saying

“ASHWEBSV. EXE caused an invalid page fault”

This is when I realized that it was likely that ashwebsv was the cause of the computer not booting up but turning into a black screen. So I decided to stop ashwebsv.exe from automatically starting when the computer boots. I re-started the computer in SAFE MODE and ran MSCONFIG and unticked the box for ashwebsv.exe.

This time the computer booted successfully and Windows stayed on !! I am surfing the internet as normal with only ashserv.exe running. But the odd thing now is that this program is not listed when I press CTRL ALT DEL.

  1. Remove NAV through Add/Remove programs from Control Panel. Boot.
  2. Use Norton Removal Tool for Windows 2000/XP/Vista. Boot.
  3. Install avast! (or repair the installation) and boot.