"Insufficient resources" error

Viruses and worms
1

Hi folks, any suggestions for dealing with the following would be greatly appreciated:

I have a Dell Dimsneion desktop running Windows XP pro 2002, SP3, with Intel Core2 Quad CPU and 2 GB RAM. Total free space on the hard drive is at 80% (373 GB).

Last week while working on the PC, switching between MS Outlook, MS Word and Mozilla Firefox windows, I noticed letters and then entire words missing from the screen. This got progressively worse until I could see no letters at all and only images remaiing on any web page. I thought this might be a virus so I decided to save what I had and shut everything down. Saving proved impossible because I got a pop-up system message stating “Error: Insufficient system resources exist to complete the requested service” each time I tried to save my document and unfinished emails.

I shut down manually, then rebooted and scanned with Avast and MBAM - no threat showed up at all. I ran CCleaner and Puran Defrag and rebooted. After that all was well until today, when the same shenanigans started again. Again, no threat detected with the scanners.

I have found on some on-line forums that this was an occasional problem with XP SP2 a few years ago, and apparently until a patch was released it could recur every 2 to 10 days.

I did not have anything open that would cause a big draw on memory; I have in the past been able to run several bigger programs at once without issue (e.g. AutoCad, Google Earth, and Photoshop plus MS Office programmes could run together very happily once upon a time), so why does it happen now when I only have a web browser, word doc and emails open?

I’d be obliged if anyone can help me identify what actually causes this and how I might avoid it happening again. Thanks everyone.

2

Other security software installed? Versions? Version of Avast?

EDIT: Modified original questions.

3

Latest Avast version (it auto updates daily), with no other security software installed or running.

4

Avast! AIS?
Avast! Free?
Firewall?
Any other a/v installed? Uninstalled? Remnants?

5

Avast free antivirus. No other security software installed or running. Just Avast. Nothing else.

Windows firewall also running.

6

Really sorry I was not clear enough in eliciting additional information about what you have installed or running on your system.

You have my apologies.

Avast! 7.0.1451? Free? 7.0.1456?

Have you ever had another antivirus other than Avast! running on your system in the past? If so, how did you remove?

Even a/v’s that come bundled with your system when new, but never used or run can cause problems with Avast!.

Look to my signature line below; once you have more than twenty posts here, you can, if you wish, display relevant system information there.
Of course, this is completely optional.

Numerous posts have been made here about version 7.0.1451 causing memory leaks similar to your situation.

Feedback?

7

OK. I’ll try again. :wink:

System info as per my original post.

Windows Firewall is on.

Avast Free antivirus. Latest version, 7.0.1456.

No other antivirus software installed, except the MBAM I mentioned. So otherwise none. Nothing. Never. Just Avast Free antivirus. No other a/v of any description. I’m certain of that.

As I’m typing this, words are disappearing from my screen again. Bugger, bugger, bugger…

8

Next step is to go to this link: http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=53253.0

Attach resulting logs here for Malwarebytes, OTL, aswMBR. Do not run any fixes/repairs until told to do so by a malware expert.

A malware expert has been notified. Logs are needed to see if any malware is on your system.

9

Monitoring

10

Logs attached here. OTL did not generate the Extras.txt file this time.

mchain - thanks mate :wink:
Essexboy - hello 8)

11

Nothing there so I believe we are either looking at a memory leak or a memory problem

I will remove an old Kaspersky driver and then check out the memory

Warning This fix is only relevant for this system and no other, using on another computer may cause problems

Be advised that when the fix commences it will shut down all running processes and you may lose the desktop and icons, they will return on reboot

Run OTL

[*]Under the Custom Scans/Fixes box at the bottom, paste in the following

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/73555776/OTL_Fix.GIF

:OTL DRV - [2011/02/23 21:16:42 | 000,007,168 | ---- | M] () [Kernel | On_Demand | Stopped] -- C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\utixnje1.sys -- (utixnje1) O3 - HKU\S-1-5-21-2004140645-1288346511-1728600152-1010\..\Toolbar\WebBrowser: (no name) - {2318C2B1-4965-11D4-9B18-009027A5CD4F} - No CLSID value found. O6 - HKLM\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Restrictions present

:Files
ipconfig /flushdns /c

:Commands
[purity]
[resethosts]
[emptytemp]
[CREATERESTOREPOINT]
[Reboot]


[*]Then click the Run Fix button at the top
[*]Let the program run unhindered, reboot the PC when it is done
[*]Open OTL again and click the Quick Scan button. Post the log it produces in your next reply.

MEMORY

Please download Windows Memory Diagnostic,
Save it to somewhere you will remember.

Preparation
After downloading the tool, run it and accept the EULA.
You will be asked to either make a floppy disk or create a CD image.
If you want to use a floppy disk, insert a floppy disk and hit the top button.
If you want to use a CD then hit the bottom button and save the ‘windiag.iso’ to a place you can remember.
Once you have saved the ‘windiag.iso’ you will have to burn it to disk, a good program to use is ISO Recorder.

Starting the Diagnostics
Now you should have the CD burnt or the floppy created. The next step will be to run the diagnostics.
Insert your CD or floppy and reboot the computer. You should get prompted to boot from the CD or floppy.
If you didn’t get prompted to boot from CD or floppy you will have to change the Boot Order in the BIOS so that CD or floppy comes before the hard drive.

The Results
Once the Diagnostics start running, let it run for about 4 full passes. Preferably overnight.
When the scan has done 4 full passes, or an overnight scan, look at the bottom of the screen.
The bottom of the screen will indicate if any errors have been found.
If errors have been found please check how many under the “results” part of the bottom table.
You can then reboot your machine by pressing the ‘X’ key.
Please report back with your findings.

12

You’re welcome. Thank you for the logs. ;D

Cleaned your computer of dust/dust balls recently? If not, will let essexboy give you the goods on how to do that. Machine was manufactured when?

13

Hi essexboy.

A bit of a proiblem… I have created the CD with the windiag.iso file. It was a new blank CD with nothing else on it.

But it won’t boot from the disk. The BIOS configuration has the CD drive as priority, but it seems not to recognise the .iso file. Even when I changed BIOS so that the disk drive was the only source for booting, I got an error message stating “no bootable disc present”. I burned a second disk of a different brand, same result.

Is there something I can do?

Anyway, here is the second OTL file from that quick scan.

14

OK I have just re-read the instructions and they are not really explicit enough

Download and install ImgBurn http://www.imgburn.com/index.php?act=download

Once that has installed then ensure that windiag.iso is on your desktop
Double click windiag.iso and ImgBurn should open to burn it to disc
You need to select Write image file to disc

Screenshots here http://www.imgburn.com/index.php?act=screenshots

15

Thanks mate.

The diagnostic scan found nothing. :-\

16

OK next possible area would be the video card …

Reboot the computer and immediately start pressing and releasing F8 to get to the safe mode menu
At the menu select VGA mode this will run your video card at the lowest resolution… So it will look a bit crap, but do you still get the same problems ?

17

Thanks essexboy,

I’m reluctant to sitch to VGA mode because I am using the PC for photography and graphics stuff and I need good colour range and high resolution.

I haven’t had the same problems so far since that other clean up stuff. It usually happens if the PC is left on for a long time (18+ hours), so I’ll see how I get on and come back to you here if it starts up again.

Thanks everyone.