Can not access cmd

Ever since I’ve installed avast, this anti-virus program wouldn’t let me access cmd. Everytime I make an attempt to use it, it says a virus has been detected.

Welcome Tassadarmaster

What operating system and Service Packs installed?

Intentional deletion, totally misread original post.

Send the infected file to Chest.
Maybe you should repair your Windows installation, overinstalling or, at least, running sfc /scannow.

Everytime I run cmd into the command prompt, avast automatically popup a box appearing to be the image shown below:

http://i38.tinypic.com/15d6iva.jpg

After I click “No action” I get another message saying “Windows cannot access the specified device, path, or file. You may not have the appropriate permissions to access the item.”

By the way, I am using Service Pack 3
Windows XP.

Have (or did) you another AV installed in this system, if so what was it and how did you get rid of it ?
Avast is the only anti-virus installed into this computer. I previously had nortan anti-virus, never used it. Got rid of it by un-installing it.

For Norton, it will be good:

  1. Remove NAV or Norton 360 through Add/Remove programs from Control Panel. Boot.
  2. Use Norton Removal Tool for Windows 2000/XP/Vista or Norton Removal Tool for Windows 98/Me. Boot.
  3. Install avast! (or repair the installation) and boot.

The Norton Removal Tool uninstalls all Norton 2008/2007/2006/2005/2004/2003 products and Norton 360 from your computer.

For the infection, I suggest a boot-time scanning:
Start avast! > Right click the skin > Schedule a boot-time scanning.
Select for scanning archives.
Boot.
If infected files are found, it’s safer to send them to Chest instead of deleting them.
This way you can further analysis them.

If this is the alert that you get when you try to run cmd, there is an intercept on the cmd.exe file to run this setuprs1.pif file instead.

Program & Tutorial - Also useful as a diagnostic tool - FileHippo Download - HiJackThis and post the contents of the HJT log file here. - HJT Information HiJackThis Tutorial.
Download and run HJT and post the contents of the log file (cut and paste) into this topic, you may need to split it over two or more posts depending on how large it is.

Do as Tech suggest on the boot-time scan, though I don’t know if it would scan .pif files by default.

However, even if avast did move the setuprs1.pif file to the chest it wouldn’t resolve the intercept on the cmd.exe file, hopefully HJT might be able to do something or we will have to find another tool to restore this function.

It’s not avast! blocking cmd, it’s the virus.

Overview -

BackDoor-AWQ!D12D19B7 is a multi part backdoor trojan.

It attempts to hook itself into the system by dropping autorun.inf files into the root of the systems hard drives.

It also disables several tools the system admin would use to recover from the infection.

It redirects the Com+ system to the backdoor component.

http://vil.nai.com/vil/content/v_142325.htm

Ok dude then why is it that when I disable Avast, CMD starts working again?

Because avast! isn’t running, it no longer detects the malware that is hijacking the cmd function and the malware is running setuprs1.pif as your own post, Reply #4 above indicates.

avast! was stopping this malware running and that is why the cmd window wasn’t being displayed.

:slight_smile: use hi jack this and do a scan with norman malware in safe mode works well with both avast and malware antibytes both free and good ;D

Ok, now I really need help. I just ran a full scan using Avast, and now when I try to run CMD, it says it no longer exist. How do I get it back??!! and when the scan thing asked me what to do with infected file, I selected move to chest for every one of them.

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Windows-XP-3282/2008/7/command-prompt-working.htm