I’m a new Avast user. When I downloaded Avast 4.5 on Windows XP, everything seemed normal except that the two blue balls on the task bar are gray. When I right click the “a” ball, it says, “6 providers; 0 running” I read that if they are gray, that means they are not running or protecting. I’ve been through all the menu items, including FAQs, but cannot find how to turn them on.
Try clicking on the avast ‘a’ icon and start one of the resident scanners. There is likely to be a pop-up see image, click yes. This should restart the resident scanners.