Restoring my Avast icons to the system tray

[system]

Okay, I have run a couple of different troubleshooting steps, and in order to have some information here about it, I have logged each step as I did it. What I did, unfortunately, did NOT return the resident Avast icon to the systray. Perhaps the following can be used as what doesn’t work.

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Attempting to make the following happen:

Avast Resident protection [Quoting from the program’s beginner panel explaination].
“You don’t have to execute it (it activates automatically when you start your computer) and if everything is OK, you won’t even notice it is running. Its presence in the system is indicated by a small icon with the avast! symbol (lowercase ‘a’ in a ball) in the notification area (next to the clock). The second avast! icon, related to VRDB functions (see the help for more information), is also displayed here - as a lowercase ‘i’ in a ball. These two icons can be co-joined into one should the user feel the need to do so.”

Before doing the following troubleshooting steps, I did this:

1. Opened Windows Defender
2. Clicked “Tools” on top area of program
3. Clicked “Options”
4. Scrolled down to “Real-time protection options” and un-ticked
   “Use real-time protection”
   –I did this as a way to ensure that Windows Defender was not blocking the avast icon in the systray.

THEN, to troubleshoot Ad-Watch, I did the following:

5. Right click Ad-Watch monitoring icon in systray
6. Click “Restore Ad-Watch”
7. Un-tick “Automatic”
8. Open Ad-Watch Settings
9. Un-tick “Lock start-up section”
10. Move ashDisp.exe shortcut from Startup folder to desktop.
11. Re-boot computer

Result: no Avast Icon in systray.

Next try is to completely shut down Ad-Watch.
12) Right click Ad-Watch monitoring icon in systray
13) Click “Restore Ad-Watch”
14) Un-tick “Load Ad-Watch on Windows start up”
15) Re-boot computer

Result: Ad-Watch did not load, as expected, but still no Avast Icon in systray.

16. Launched Avast

Result: Still no Avast Icon in systray.

Windows Task Manager reports …
ashMaiSv.exe
ashServ.exe
ashSimpl.exe (cuz I launched Avast in step 16)
ashWebSv.exe
AswUpdSv.exe

… these as all running. ashDisp.exe is not in Windows Task Mgr.

Next step:
17) Clicked on ashDisp.exe on desktop

Result: ashDisp.exe is running in systray and is also showing in Task Manager.

Ad-Watch is not loaded.

Next step:
18) Loading Ad-Watch

Shows up as “Ad-Watch.exe” in Windows Task Manager.

Next step:
19) Registry Mechanic: ran and watched Startup Programs and Temp Files / Shortcuts entries (those were the only entries it found) to see if it was removing ashDisp.exe. I verified each one by right clicking and reading the full path and file it was looking to remove. There were no entries having to do with Avast that Registry Mechanic wanted to remove. Just to be sure, I re-booted the computer after using Registry Mechanic’s “repair” button. (I have it set to give me a system restore point before every change so if something disappears I can get it back)

Result: Startup folder entry of ashDisp.exe successfully launched the Avast icon in systray. So, no change. Also, no double icon (thinking if it launched it in addition to startup folder entry, I’d most likely have 2 icons or 3 there.) So Registry Mechanic neither seems to remove it nor restore it.

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Conclusion: The specific steps I took, both un-ticking the “Automatic”, “Lock start-up section”, and “Load Ad-Watch on Windows start up” within Ad-Watch did not restore the automatic ashDisp.exe. Neither has turning off Windows Defender real-time protection.

I next restored all of the above to the way they were before I took these steps, as well as putting the ashDisp.exe shortcut BACK into the startup folder and re-enabling Windows Defender real-time protecton.

Sorry this didn’t pan out, but at least it’s a record of some attempts to stop the two programs that watch my startups.

NOTE: My thinking about what watches start ups and what doesn’t:
HijackThis doesn’t watch startups. Neither does Spybot: Search & Destroy when the teatimer is not running (and I don’t use teatimer). Spyware Blaster appears to block unwanted activity in browsers, so that wouldn’t be the cause.

So, for me, the only programs I’m concerned with are Ad-Watch and Windows Defender. So far, I haven’t found anything that indicates either of these programs is stopping ashDisp.exe from loading. There are a plethoria of settings in Ad-Watch. If anyone is well versed in all it’s settings and has other ideas, I’m more than happy to try them out.

[alanrf]

It has been a while since I used Windows Defender. It ran into some internal errors a while back so I un-installed it, but I never experienced it being responsible for preventing the avast start-up registry entries.

Thanks for being prepared to think about and apply problem analysis … may I express a concern? I am fairly certain that avast will only attempt to create its startup registry entries during a full installation. It is possible that a “repair” of avast may cover this too but I think it is most certain in the simple install.

I am not familiar with Ad-Watch (I keep on mis-reading it for Ad-Aware … which I do use). I will see if I can find it and check its effects on my avast installation.

[alanrf]

Stupid me! Ad-Watch is a paid part of Ad-Aware.

I shall ponder anew.

[DavidR]

@nobodyz post:11

I wrote: “you needn’t answer this post unless my conclusion above* is incorrect.”

You answered, but said nothing about my conclusion being incorrect. Hope you’re
not wasting precious time with this just out of curiosity. You really needn’t.

I didn’t respond to that point because I don’t have AdAware’s ADWatch and your assumption was correct, but I did respond because other things that you wrote. It would be crazy simply not to post because of any pre-requisite to posting.

@nobodyz post:11

I already know how to move a shortcut into my startup folder. I said I am using that already.

Because of your comment didn’t clearly state which shortcut you were going to use, one which requires activation every time or the startup folder shortcut, so I clarified it.

@nobodyz post:11

Why should I give you a list of security programs you can’t give me directions on how to work with them to avoid this problem?
You haven’t even been able to tell me what to do with AdAware AdWatch. shrug

You just curious? ???

Primarily because you came here seeking help about missing avast icons and the primary cause of this is other security programs removing them.

The fact that I don’t know how to check this in adwatch is neither here nor there, when I do know it has startup monitoring that can block new startup entries. You then have to do the investigation of a program function which you do have shrug. I can’t possibly know about every security application or have it installed on my system, I’m just an avast user like yourself, all I’m doing is pointing you in a direction.

Curiosity has nothing to do with it, trying to help has.

But now I do feel like I’m wasting my time in having to justify questions and answers, so I shan’t waste any more.

[system]

Has any one had the problem of only one of the icons not appearing in the tray? The icon that allows for the making of the VRDB [not the small letter ‘a’], while the avast icon is appearing. It has not appeared since the program was installed, and I haven’t combined them either. Is there then a way to initiate this process without the icon? I could not find anything on that either . . . Thanks. Gary Charles

[oldman960]

Can you check to see if they are merged? If they are, when you right click the “a” icon, you will have a heading called unmerge. You can look in the ini file and see if merge is on or off. see here http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=1647.15 The default location is
C:\Program Files\ALWIL Software\avast4\Data).

A repair may resolve it if the above check out. From control panel, add/remove highlight avast, add/remove button, scroll down to repair. You must be on line to do this.

[system]

I didn’t see a heading called unmerge, but I will look again when I get back to my computer at home, and I’m taking a copy of the sheet that you linked to with me so I can go a long by that. I had tried to uninstall and reinstall a couple of times, but that also didn’t help. I tried it with Zone Alarm turned on and turned off, so . . .

Thanks a lot for the help!!

[oldman960]

No problem and welcome to the forum.

The lines in the ini file that you may have to edit or add are

[VRDB]
MergeIcons=0
Disabled=0
ShowTaskbarIcon=1

Just scroll down in the ini to the vrb section and compare. If one or more of the lines aren’t there, add them to the vrb section. Use the link as a guide to what 1 and 0 represent.

Please post back your results either way. Thanks.

[system]

I haven’t gotten to this last recommendation yet, but in answer to the first one, kind of sort of, since the VRDB file is pre-set for running while the screen saver is on, you just have to wait for it if the small i icon isn’t there, I found out while waiting. I did reset the ‘ShowTaskbarIcon’ to opposite of what they were, I think to zero [I’m not on my computer again, so I think that’s what I did], but the MergeIcon and disabled tags were not there, and I haven’t restarted the computer yet, so I’m not what it’s going to give me back yet, and so I’ll put these new lines in too before I restart, and then we’ll see . . . But at least the VRDB kicked in all my itself! Thanks again, and I’ll let you know soon!! Gary

[Lisandro]

@GaryCharles post:29

I did reset the ‘ShowTaskbarIcon’ to opposite of what they were

Do not guess… make it for sure… check ‘Settings’ in my signature for a full description of the options.

[system]

Hello!! Now that I’ve had a better look at the VRDB in the ini file, I think I need a list of all that’s supposed to be there, and after what it should come!! I don’t even have this section in my ini file! I’ve gone from top to bottom of the ini file, and this section doesn’t appear. What should be in this section exactly, and what does it come after. I can’t compare my ini file to what people are listing at all; they just don’t match up, although I have an idea of where by going up from the bottom . . . Thanks. INI files are a new world to me too, so . . .

[oldman960]

In mine it’s the last section, right after [quick]

[Splash]
KeyUsage=1

[Simple]
ShowHelpCheckList=0
SkinUseLayeredWindows=0

[AAVM]
CheckFloppies=0
CheckCDRom=0
CheckRemovables=0
ShowTaskbarIcon=1
AnimateIcon=1
CheckFullScreenApps=0

[Chest]
MaxSize=256

[InetWD]
UseRAS=0
AssumeAlwaysConnected=1

[Quick]
EnableSkins=0
InfectionExitApp=0
ShowResults=0

[VRDB]
LastFile=
FullComplete=1189915581

[Lisandro]

@GaryCharles post:31

I don’t even have this section in my ini file!

Just add it. When it’s not there, the default values are used.

More about the ini file click ‘Settings’ in my signature.

[system]

Well, finally, after a lot of testing, adding, and all that fun stuff, nothing worked. Finally then I just added the ashDisp.exe file to the task folder, scheduling it to run at start-up, not in the start up folder [since that also didn’t work], and now I get the double icons at start up all the time, and the computer is happy once again!

[oldman960]

Well, I suppose that’s one solution. ;D

I don’t know why adding the shortcut to the startup folder didn’t work.

[Lisandro]

@GaryCharles post:34

now I get the double icons at start up all the time

One is starting using Windows Registry and the other by the link on startup folder.

Try Startup Delayer. This freeware controls the windows startup (Windows 98\Me\2k\XP) that does not follow a strict order. On its advanced mode you can delete entries (doubled).