You could try using the trial/demo key of avast if this has been a clean install of avast (using add remove programs, reboot, run the uninstall utility, reboot, install), I know you have been having some issues in that regard. It will allow 60 days unrestricted use, so you should be able to install Comodo as the change of avast registration key (when this is eventually resolved) shouldn’t effect any comodo settings in regard to avast.
Edit: One thing I didn’t mention, I admire your persistence as you have not had an easy ride so far, but it is worth it in the end.
Thanks David. I have the trial key that runs out at the end of May.
This was as clean an install as I could manage without reformatting!
I’m persisting because I consider that there is no other AV worth having - I’ve tried several and I just like the way that Avast works (btw, the first time that I checked the newsgroups to which I subscribe, Avast asked about 3 of them due to white space - damned good that!).
No problem, if you can confirm what Igor (Alwil software, avast developer) has asked and we will see if he has any better ideas than I did (most likely).
At the first installation, trial period is 60 days. From the second, it drops to 6 days. It’s an antipiracy police.
The Home key is valid through 14 months.
Right now, what is your situation?
Yes, under normal circumstances, but I’m assuming he is getting the expiry date from the about avast which I would have though would be correct. I also believe (from his other troubles) that he has used the avast uninstall utility.
Sorry, you’re right… I’ve forgotten this possibility…
I suggest an installation from the scratch:
Uninstall avast from Control Panel first.
Boot.
Use Avast Uninstall for complete uninstallation. Maybe it will be necessary to disable the self-defence module of avast (Troubleshooting tab of settings) if it will be possible to enter the program settings or, at least, boot into safe-mode and start aswClear.exe from there.
Expiry date is 30th. May, so 60 days (that sort of shows that the removal and installation were ‘clean’)
David: yesterday I went through the procedure that you suggest - at least Avast is up and running.
One suggestion is that Avast can’t write to the .ini file. It isn’t read-only; my account (Peter) has full Admin. rights (when I looked at Groups and Users I was told that I couldn’t as Server Service wasn’t running; it’s now enabled and my Group is Administrator and Peter with full rights).
I wonder if there might be another Service needed, but I’d not changed any of them.
I’d rather not do yet another re-installation, pleeeese.
The new self-defence module I would have though it would have allowed avast to modify it but not an outside process (I don’t fully know how it works). If that assumption is correct then it is likely to be something else, what I can’t think of other than what you have tried with permissions.
I have personally opened the avast4.ini to make manual changes with the self-defence enabled and when I came to save the changes I got an alert a ‘are you sure you want to do this’ style message. Once I confirmed Yes the changes were saved, I exited and reopened to confirm the changes were still there and they were.
So I don’t know if somehow the self-defence module is getting in the way, you could try disabling it and see if it makes a difference (I’m not too hopeful of that), Program Settings, Troubleshooting, check the 'Disable avast self-defence module and click OK.
As far as services are concerned, using the services.msc and find the avast services, see below, (the two we are looking at should be Automatic and running).
avast! Antivirus
avast! iAVS4 Control Service (this one must be running for the update process to work).
Check these and look for dependencies and ensure any services they depend on are running.
avast can write in it’s own avast4.ini file.
Is there any message that is saying the contrary?
Which application (name and path) is trying to change the ini file?