Problem with Avast user interface

Avast Free Antivirus / Premium Security
1

Regarding Avast Home Free: version 4.8 build Sep2009(4.8.1368)

For the last few weeks I have had a problem with the Avast user interface

When I exit from the user interface a small display panel is left on the screen in the position that it occupied when the user interface was in use.

It is impossible to get rid of this little object without restarting windows.

To view an example of this go here:
http://www.koehler.me.uk/special/Avast_problem.htm

Please advise me as how to cure this annoying problem.

2

There is a workaround to these graphical artefacts remnants of menus, etc. that you could give a try.
Edit avast4.ini using Notepad [Common] section, add the following line to the section SunbeltKPFHack=2, save the file, you will be prompted by the avast! self-defence module if this is OK answer Yes.
See http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=37609.msg315764#msg315764

McAfee Site Advisor causing similar issues with avast: http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=40840.msg342656#msg342656

Igor says the last word here:
http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=22698.msg188440#msg188440

See here, please:
http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=37609.msg315764#msg315764

3

Many thanks to the person who responded to my posting. The following is addressed to that person.

I obtained a copy of avast4.ini from: Program Files\Alwill Software\Avast4\DATA\

Here are the last few lines of that file together with the one that you advised me to add (SunbeltKPFHack=2) at the end:

IgnoreLocalhost=1
AutoRedirect=1
[Splash]
KeyUsage=1
[Simple]
ShowHelpCheckList=0
[VRDB]
LastFile=
FullComplete=1262156389
SunbeltKPFHack=2

Have I got it right?

Anyway Windows won’t let me replace the original file with the modified one. This probably because it is opened by a running application.

So, what do I do next?

It would seem to me that for a company like Alwil Software to release an application with a very visible and irritating bug like this one is rather bad form! One would expect Alwil to fix the problem as soon as possible.

4

If you used notepad to do the edit, you would get a message from the self-defence module is it OK to update, or words to that effect, answer yes.

If you used any other text editor the self-defence module would effectively block it as the file would only be opened with read permissions.

The bug isn’t one of its own making and the hack is to change how avast acts under that circumstance and get round that bug.

5

No. You need to add that line in the [Common] section, not in the [VRDB].

It’s not really a bug, but a problem that occurs in some computers, with some applications installed, with some hardware configurations. That is not a “solution” but more a “workaround”.

6

I inserted your line in the Common section of the .ini file.

The rogue item is no longer left on the screen.

Thanks very much for your help.