Hi Trevor 
I know this is not a popular piece of advice…but windows auto updates can cause more harm than
good. Too many times and too many needless problems over the years, I finally advised folks to
turn OFF auto updates for windows and learn to do manual updates if necessary.
Some Microsoft updates end up costing people in more ways than one, with most thinking that
they are harmless, but I can tell you from experience, they are not always ‘harmless’ and can end up costing
for repair service, etc. Do NOT disable auto updates based upon my experience, I am just sharing how many times
I have seen updates from M$ go bad, and render stable systems corrupt. This costs most folks money to get back
up running stable, and often it can require a full re-install of the OS. Good news is you were able to revert back before
the update mess, and you got your system back…if you used system restore and the restore point you used had any
malware within it, then it is likely you became re-infected, which if your system is running like a tortoise, it may be
the case, unfortunately.
Many of the M$ updates are simply not necessary for a securely functioning computer, although some security
updates considered ‘critical’ should be considered, remember there is always potential set backs because some updates
may break other applications. In computing, there is often trade offs in choosing a stable system, or feeling the need to
install everything M$ throws at you during an update. It is wise to choose only updates that are considered ‘critical’ and leave the
rest alone.
Bottom line: the goal is to have a secure stable system, using quality security products such as Avast! and at the very least,
using the windows firewall, or a better choice would be a more featured firewall along with Avast! free. Then learn about
the latest M$ updates and which are considered ‘critical’, then check to see if they are causing any issues for users before
downloading and installing them. I have found this approach takes more effort from users, but it also has assisted many to maintain
a stable system while getting users MORE involved in the update process instead of blindly allowing any updates offered that are
not considered ‘critical’ security related “patches”.
I hope you can get the system cleaned up, if not, the same advice goes for XP. If you reverted back to XP, I advise installing service
packs, SP2 then SP3…if your copy of XP already has SP2 integrated and it should if the XP install disk is newer than August 2004, then
you can download the full XP SP3 service pack, install it while XP is still “clean”…then after reboot, if things appear stable, then proceed
to install the necessary software you generally use. Then image your freshly installed and updated XP. Then, install your security apps.
If you run into any problems, you will have a clean image to restore to without having to reinstall windows.
Just some thoughts to try and maintain system stability and reduce tech service costs in the long run.
Best wishes to you!
All my best!
Jim
im about to say F-it and install XP on the pc as i have not had issues with XP.