Conflict between Avast Free 2015 and Windows Explorer

Avast Free Antivirus / Premium Security
1

Hi,

My credentials: Windows 8.1 Pro w/WMC, totally updated, spanish version, legal, not pirate. HDD: Seagate Barracuda 500GB, 6GB RAM, Pentium E5300 dual core, functioning perfectly since 2009. Since 2013 using without problem Avast Free, actually in version 2015.10.2.2215

Ok, after the introduction, my sins, sorry, my problems: last week (Holy Week in my country) I did a clean install of Windows. Everything was smoothly until installed Avast. Windows Explorer presents a totally strange behavior: does not respond, freezes, restart the desktop, other applications do not respond, etc., totally erractic.

Uninstall Avast Free 2015 and, ¡voila!, everything returns to normal. ¿What is happening? Has anyone experienced something similar?

Thanks in advance. My best regards.

2

I ask because a lot of people mix these up…

Are you actually saying:

  • Windows Explorer (as in the application you use to look at the files on your computer)
  • Internet Explorer (the browser you use to surf the internet)
  • Explorer.exe (the process that presents the desktop and allows windows applications to run)
    ?
3

Did you happen to notice if Defender had been disabled? Widows should have disabled it automatically once it detected Avast but sometimes this process has bugs.

Also was/is there any other security software installed alongside of Avast when this happened?

4

Have you removed any pre-installed antivirus software?
Did you disable Windows Defender?
Any other security software you have now or ever had?

5

Hi,

I’ll try to repond to all of you send me your comments, thanks.

  1. Windows Explorer, not Internet Explorer.
  2. Please correct me if I wrong, but explorer.exe is part of Windows Explorer. ¿Right?
  3. No. I do not have installed another antivirus, antimalware, etc., etc., etc.
  4. Yes. Windows defender is disable when Avast is installed. I always check this. Totally disable.
  5. My Windows 8.1 Pro is a retail version, and do not have pre-installed antivirus, etc. It’s a clean SO.
  6. No other security software is installed alongside of Avast Free 2015. The only one.

Weird, ¿right? But is real…

What do you think about the conflict between Avast and KB300850?

6
  1. Pretty much everything is tied into explorer.exe, but Im trying to pinpoint if you are talking about just the GUI for windows explorer or if you somehow drilled down to the process level and are seeing something there.
7

cmolinap@ can you please try to do a custom install of Avast and during the process untick the option for NG in the centre column of features to be unticked, I suspect that the E5300 dual core might not have enough power to run the NG component :-\

8

Since you are dealing with a clean install of windows…
and all the Microsoft updates were installed…
and if everything that is on your computer was installed there prior to your clean install of windows and worked well with the latest Avast version…

then the culprit may be something happened during the installation of Avast.

Did you install Avast prior to doing the windows updates or after?

9

Hi,

Ok, I understand your point. Let me explain this: in the task bar you have a shortcut to Windows Explorer; if I click up this icon the problems begins. When Avast Free 2015 is installed.

And, Avast was the last app that I installed.

10

I mean, after Windows installation and before to install any program, I always update totally the system. After that…programs.

11

Hi CraigB, thanks.

Good point. It is possible. Ok. Let me try…standing by…

Meanwhile…NG module…¿What is supposed to do?

12

That is interesting… never heard of that one.

I would do a custom install and make sure NG is unticked as CraigB suggests above and if it’s not that then I’d recommend a clean install of Avast using the uninstall tool or as a last resort start over from scratch with windows. I’ve installed windows from scratch on many occasion and think everything is great and then out of nowhere it has shown some very strange behavior that made me start over again and then that behavior disappeared.

Make a system image after you do a clean install of windows and download the updates that way you don’t have to go all the way back to zero.

13

It creates a virtual environment on your computer… been very buggy since its introduction.

14

Sorry I missed your reply, yes it’s as dprout69 said… it’s for creating a virtual environment to securely run processes on your system in a protected area.

It shouldn’t install on systems that are deemed as incompatible but sometimes depending on what information it collects in the install process it can still be installed when it shouldn’t.

15

Right click the icon unpin from the taskbar.
Then reset it back to the taskbar. it may be that the path is corrupted

16

Hi essexboy, thanks for your comment.

Good point, but I think that if the path is corrupted, it will remain corrupted although Avast is removed. However, I’ll make the test.

Today I need to solve some important matters, so at this moment I am retaking again the tests.

Best regards,

17

Hi guys,

Ok. Tests done.

  1. I unpin the taskbar shortcut of file explorer, and reinstall it. Nothing.
  2. I install Avast Free 2015 again, and unticked NG module. Nothing.
  3. I did a low level format to my hdd and reinstall Windows from scratch and, before all updates were installed, I’ve installed Avast. Nothing.
  4. I did again a low level format to my hdd and reinstall Windows, installed Avast followed by updates. Nothing.

OK. One thing I am quite sure: the problem is between Avast and taskbar. I uninstall Avast and everything returns to normal with the taskbar.

Finally, I am more sure of something: did not have this problem. If you have not reinstalled Windows, would not have the problem. It’s the same Windows I’ve used: Windows 8.1 Pro Spanish 64 bits w/WMC.

18

Not receiving any conflict on my 8.1 although I am using start8

19

Try updating Windows to 8.1 before you install Avast.
At this point, you need to totally remove Avast including using the removal tool.
Once that’s done, do all of the required updates. After that’s finished and you’ve done your last reboot,
Reinstall Avast using a custom install as recommended by CraigB.
As suggested by dprout69, creating an image backup after you’ve totally updated Windows 8 is also an excellent idea.