Avast Installation = Blue Screen of Death

I installed Avast 8 on a Windows 7 Pro 64 bit dual boot system on SSD. I immediately got BSOD/unable to bootup Win with last loaded item showing as aswRvrt.sys.

I am unable to restore to any prior point. I can boot from my secondary HD drive running Win 7 Pro 32 bit and see the SSD drive contents and presumably can modify.

It looks like from reading other posts this can be fixed. I sure hope so… this is my first experience with Avast and not a good one to say the least. I saw Essexboy had fixed this before… don’t know how to reach him for help.

Hi there this is a windows update that MS supposedly pulled a week or so ago

Download the following three programmes to your desktop :

  1. Rufus

For 32bit systems
2. Windows 7 RC
3. Farbar Recovery Scan Tool

Insert the USB stick Then run Rufus

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/73555776/rufus.JPG

Select the ISO file on the desktop via the ISO icon.

Press Start Burn

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/73555776/RufusISO.JPG

Then copy FRST to the same USB

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/73555776/frstwintoboot.JPG

Insert the USB into the sick computer and start the computer. First ensuring that the system is set to boot from USB
Note: If you are not sure how to do that follow the instructions Here

When you reboot you will see this.
Click repair my computer

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/73555776/W7%20repair.png

Select your operating system

Select Command prompt

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/73555776/W7%20Command.png

At the command prompt type the following :

notepad and press Enter.
The notepad opens. Under File menu select Open.
Select “Computer” and find your flash drive letter and close the notepad.
In the command window type e:\frst64.exe and press Enter
Note: Replace letter e with the drive letter of your flash drive.
The tool will start to run.
When the tool opens click Yes to disclaimer.

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/73555776/FRST%20Start%20scan.gif

Press Scan button.
It will make a log (FRST.txt) on the flash drive. Please copy and paste it to your reply.
The first time the tool is run, it makes also another log (Addition.txt). Please attach it to your reply.

Thank you Essexboy…

Since the harmed drive is using 64bit Windows 7, shouldn’t I use a 64 bit version of Windows RC for recovery? If so, can you provide a link? Thanks

64 bit version here http://www.forum.probz.net/index.php?/files/file/19-windows-7-recovery-environment-iso/

Yes you should :-[

For 64bit systems
2. Windows 7 64bit RC
3. Farbar Recovery Scan Tool x64

OK, thanks much. Even though I checked the option for Additional, no Additional.txt file was created on the USB.

Is there a way to send you the FRST.txt file through email/pm? Seems like there is a lot of sensitive info in the file which I would prefer not to post here if possible. Thx

You can delete the attachment once I have downloaded it

OK…here it is. please let me know when you have downloaded. thanks

Got it

This will disable all Avast services and drivers

Download the attached fixlist.txt to the same location as FRST
Run FRST as before and press fix
Once completed retry a normal boot

OK. got it will try it. sounds like you mean reboot from the usb with this file in same place with frst.txt

It looks like from the fixlog (attached) that the flixlist changes were successfully made, but I am still getting the blue screen of death.

It appears that the fixlist removed Avast from the healthy 32 bit Windows drive and not the sick 64 bit drive? I am booted up right now in the healthy drive and it looks like Avast was completely removed from this drive. The “sick” Windows 7 drive is E: SSD.

Please advise.

There was no indication of Avast being active on E drive

Could you run a fresh FRST from the E drive please

OK. When you say run it from the E: drive, I think you mean run from USB and target E:. If not pls let me know.

I have 2 internal bootable drives E: and C:. I wonder if FRST gets confused in that instance, even though I targeted the E: drive last time. Especially since my sick boot drive is E: and secondary boot is C:… Usually C: is the primary boot drive on other computers.

If I manually remove the same files from E: that FRST removed from C:, would that work also?

Thank you!

Yes but you will also need to remove the relevant registry keys under current control set

Here is the new FRST.txt attached.

To avoid confusion, please be aware that:

When I boot from USB/run FRST64.exe:

  • USB drive = H:
  • SSD drive = C: (this is the sick drive)

When I boot from my secondary boot drive (Main HD):

  • SSD drive = E:
  • Main HD = C:

Please let me know once you’ve downloaded. Thank you again.

FRST reports the SSD as C

Drive c: (SSD) (Fixed) (Total:119.14 GB) (Free:30.61 GB) NTFS

However, Avast is not installed on that drive

So since I still have the same BSOD, is there anything else that can be done to fix the issue?

Unfortunately no as this appears again to be the MS update hitting a few unlucky people

Bummer.

Do you know the name/number/date of the problematic MS Update? Perhaps Microsoft would have a solution if I can identify the MS Update.

Is this MS Update just an issue with Avast?

Thanks.