Win98se and missing Avast4! icons?!!

Avast Free Antivirus / Premium Security
1

I have recently downloaded and installed for the first time the avast4!.x Home program. It seemed to have installed perfectly and when I re-booted I noticed that the PC froze at the point when you can see the screen with the window logo, the words ‘MSWindows98’ and the message ‘windows is shutting down’ at which point I have to do a cold re-boot.

When the PC has re-booted the two Avast4! icons are in the taskbar and everything works as it should; I can even update from 4.7.977 to 4.7.1001. After awhile I noticed that my Firefox and Thunderbird icons had disappeared leaving a square outline where they were supposed to be. I re-booted and when it was complete my Thunderbird and Firefox icons were back and the two Avast4! icons were missing. I checked for errors using Scandisk and the errors it found were saved in a file. When I checked to see what was in that file it was headed ‘*…*avast! Report…This file is generated automatically……*Task ‘Resident protection’ used…Started on 03 May 2007 12:47:55…'UPS: 000733-1. 13/04/2007…’

I uninstalled and reinstalled and this time my Firefox and Thunderbird icons were not affected. When I rebooted the avast! icons had disappeared and when I tried activating the file ashDisp.exe it wouldn’t work. I made a shortcut to the desktop after uninstalling and reinstalling the program and this didn’t work either.

I also use ZA firewall and Lavasoft Adware. Avast! is accepted by the firewall and I have tried installing and running Avast! with Adwatch not running and it didn’t seem to make any difference.

I’ve looked for possible solutions on this forum and haven’t found any that seem to apply to my case so I would be grateful for any assistance that can be given that would allow me to run the program because, from the little I have seen of it, I am impressed.

2

Have (or did) you another AV installed in this system, if so what was it and how did you get rid of it ?

If not I would suggest a clean install, uninstall, reboot, run the uninstall utility (see below), reboot, install, reboot.

Download the avast! Uninstall Utility, find it here and save it to your HDD so you can find it later.

It would probably be best to download the latest version of avast http://www.avast.com/eng/programs.html and save it to your HDD, somewhere you can find it again. Use that when you reinstall.

3

Thank you for your prompt reply.

I had Norton Systemworks 2003 loaded before and used the Norton AV. I got fed up with Symantec and removed the ‘complete’ program about a year ago using windows add/remove utility. This did not completely remove the program and I found that Symantec were aware of the problem because they had a document already prepared entitled ‘Removing Norton SystemWorks 2003 from Windows 98/ME after add/remove program does not work’ It’s a manual delete program that takes between thirty to sixty minutes to complete and I never found the time to do it until now!

I have ‘completely removed it’ now apart from the entries in the ‘hkey_local_machine\software\microsoft\windows\currentversion\run’, the ‘\run-’, the ‘\runservices’ and the ‘\runservices-’ sections of the registry. These appear to be connected to the ‘Start Up’ (SU) section of the ‘System Configuration Utility’ (SCU) because every time I delete the Symantec references in either the registry or the SU in the SCU they reappear again. In the case of the registry if I delete the symantec references in the 'run section and then go to the ‘run-’ section and delete the references there and go back to ‘run’ I find they have reappeared! In the case of the SCU when the boxes are unchecked they reappear checked on boot up.

I have explained all this because I then did exactly as you suggested, although I now notice on rereading your suggestion I haven’t. You suggested a clean install, uninstall (without a reboot in between?) etc,. I did a clean install, rebooted, ran the uninstall utility, rebooted and then installed again and rebooted. After the reboot the icons were in the taskbar. I then did a short cut to the desktop of ashDisp.exe and found that the shortcut wouldn’t work. I then rebooted and found the closing down window froze as described in my first message. I did a cold reboot and when windows was up and running the icons had disappeared the shortcut still did not work and when I checked the hard disk with scandisk I found that there were three lost file fragments which I had saved into files. the first was headed ‘SQLite format 3’, the second was headed as ‘avast! report’ as described in my first message and the third was headed ‘avast! virus recovery database type 1’.

Hope all this detail helps to resolve the problem.

4

It was my intention that you reboot between stages and I believe this is what I did suggest.

If not I would suggest a clean install, uninstall, [b]reboot,[/b] run the uninstall utility (see below), [b]reboot[/b], install, [b]reboot[/b].

A link worth looking at, which is a program removal tool that can remove the remnants of a number of different Norton Programs:
Removing your Norton program using SymNRT

With the icons in the taskbar it shouldn’t be necessary to create the shortcut, which was a work around until such time as you got them back. However, you said it didn’t work, but didn’t say why it didn’t work (error messages, etc. what happened) ?

With the scandisk fragments relating to two avast functions, it is hard to say when these were created when you first installed or later, but you could try a repair of avast. Add Remove programs, select ‘avast! Anti-Virus,’ click the Change/Remove button and scroll down to Repair, click next and follow. You need to be on-line to do this. This may have an effect if the fragments were related to the current install.

5

It should be faster than that…

  1. Remove NAV through Add/Remove programs from Control Panel. Boot.
  2. Use Symantec removal tool following the three steps defined in the SymNRT tool info or here.
  3. Boot.
  4. Install avast! Boot.
  5. See what you get.

Full SymNRT info:

  1. Download and save these three files to the Windows desktop:
    a) ftp://ftp.symantec.com/public/english_us_canada/linked_files/tsgen/MSIFIX.bat
    b) ftp://ftp.symantec.com/public/english_us_canada/linked_files/tsgen/SymNRT.exe
    c) ftp://ftp.symantec.com/public/english_us_canada/linked_files/tsgen/SYMMSICLEANUP.reg

  2. Run the three files that you just downloaded
    a) On the Windows desktop, double-click the MSIFIX icon.
    Click Run.
    A black window may appear very briefly.
    b) On the Windows desktop, double-click the SymNRT icon.
    Click Run.
    Click Next.
    Click I accept the License Agreement, and click Next.
    Type the letters and numbers that you see in the white box, and then click Next.
    Click Yes or OK at each prompt.
    You may need to click more than once. Your computer may be restarted for you more than once.
    You may be asked to repeat some steps after the computer restarts.
    c) On the Windows desktop, double-click the SYMMSICLEANUP icon.
    Click Run, and then click Yes.
    Click OK.

  3. Boot.

6

Thank you DavidR and Tech for both replies. I’ll go away and see how I get on with your suggestions and will let you know the results later.

7

I now have some results.

First of all, DavidR. You were so specific about the reboots after each stage and that is why I queried whether you meant a reboot to be inserted between the first clean install and uninstall as listed below.

Quote
If not I would suggest a clean install, uninstall, reboot, run the uninstall utility (see below), reboot, install, reboot.

SymNRT.exe is for Vista /XP /2000 and Norton_Removal_Tool_9x.exe is for Win98/ME. I did come across the file earlier but only after my manual exertions. I used it and although it reported complete a removal it still left the previously mentioned entries in the registry and the SU check boxes in the SCU still stay checked.

The ashDisp.exe doesn’t work when you try to run it. It tries to load, indicating the hourglass whilst doing so and then closes, the hourglass disappears and I hear a little ‘trill’ sound as it closes down. There are no error messages shown.

The file fragments referred to are as a consequence of not closing down properly. This only happens on the close down after the installation reboot and I wondered if there could be some connection between this happening and the disappearing icons? When I finish this message I’ll give your ‘repair’ suggestion a whirl and let you know how I get on.

Tech, I tried your suggestions without success I’m afraid.

I ran MSIFIX but the program couldn’t find the files it was looking for. The folder ‘dllcache’ no longer exists and so has probably been dealt with in the removal process. Is the deletion of that folder the fix that is required?

Running the Norton removal tool was dealt with in my reply to DavidR above.

I double clicked the SYMMSICLEANUP icon as you suggested and a window came up asking ‘are you sure you want to add the information in c:\windows\desktop\symmsicleanup.reg to the registry?’ Yes/No? I accepted ‘Yes’; was this the right thing to do?

As I stated earlier none of this has made any difference to the Norton remnants in the run and runservices part of the registry or the SCU I mentioned earlier and I still can’t run avast4! unfortunately. Do you think they are affecting Avast4!?

I appreciate all the help you’ve both given me on this and hope that you can find a solution to this problem; preferably sooner rather than later! It’s so frustrating to be nearly there and yet so far… and then there’s the time; I should be on the garden! How do I explain that to to my wife?!

8

The suggestion was for a clean install and the information after it was how to achieve that clean install by first removing all remnants of avast before ‘a clean’ installation.

Sorry I wasn’t aware of the limitation, never having used Norton security products, thanks for the information.

The ashDisp.exe shortcut should just place the icon in your system tray, no other action is carried out, so I assume that the icon also isn’t displayed ?

9

I think, fingers crossed, I’ve resolved the problem. I’d read elsewhere on this forum that the likely ‘culprit’ is probably other security software and so it has proved to be in this instance except that the real culprit was me. I hadn’t disabled my AdAware program sufficiently to stop it from preventing Avast4! making the necessary alterations in the registry. Now that the necessary alterations have been made the program is now working OK.

One thing I should have remembered from my WFWG days, was that when a conflict occurred, then the cause could be isolated by loading each command one by one into the autoexec.bat until the conflict occurred again. I should have done the same with the Selective Startup tool in the System Configuration Utility of Win98.

Thanks for all your support and for your very helpful forum too. I’m sure I’ll be visiting it again so that I can get the most benefit from Avast!

10

Yes, I didn’t even mention it as a possible as you said what security software you had ‘adaware’ but you had disabled adwatch.

It really annoys me when programs like this take autonomous action without even asking or informing the user or their default settings are to delete.

You should still be able to use adwatch provided you can set it to ignore ashDisp,exe and you would also have to consider disabling it when ‘you’ are installing a new program.

Anyway glad the problem is resolved.

Welcome to the forums.
Stick around and browse the forums, especially the sticky topics at the top of each of the forums, not to mention the avast help file. They provide a wealth of information to help you get the best from avast.

11

My two avast! icons have gone missing again after two days of being available for use and I can’t get them back even when 'ashmaisv.exe and ashserve.exe are the only two programs to be loaded on reboot. The shortcut to ashdisp.exe doesn’t work either when double clicked; the hour glass is seen briefly and the closing down trill sound is heard as it closes down afterwards. I would be grateful for a solution to this problem if anyone has one. Thanking you in anticipation.

12

If they have gone and you just reboot even with everything else disabled they won’t come back the registry key and probably the file are gone if it were a similar issue with adwatch.
Check if the C:\Program Files\Alwil Software\Avast4\ashDisp.exe file is present ?
Check the registry entry, HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run, there should be an avast! entry with a data value containing the path to ashdisp.exe - like this C:\PROGRA~1\ALWILS~1\Avast4\ashDisp.exe

Have a look in adaware, adwatch, quarantine, etc. as anything removed by adaware is usually backed up so you can restore it.

If not you will have to do this manually.

As a temporary measure until this is resolved you can create a desktop shortcut for this file C:\Program Files\Alwil Software\Avast4\ashDisp.exe (the avast icon and interface to the providers). Right click on the file and select Send To, Desktop (create shortcut). You will need to run this after each boot until the problem is resolved.

Check the option in the Appearance tab of Program Settings. Or Make a link to ashdisp.exe in your startup folder.

Or Add the path to ashDisp.exe into a value named avast! in the Windows Registry key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

13

Thank you DavidR for your reply.

The registry key has gone but not the file which is still listed but, as stated in previous messages, does not work when it is double clicked. It doesn’t work either when the shortcut on the desktop is clicked on either. I think the file somehow has got corrupted because, after re-entering the registry entry for ashdisp.exe and rebooting with all running programs disabled apart from ashserve, ashmaisv and ashdisp, the icons do not re-appear and the shortcut doesn’t work either.

At the moment the only way to get the program to run is a complete uninstall and re-install almost every time the PC is switched on!

14

Well we have to find out what is killing the registry entry and thst sounds like another security application or possibly a registry cleaner.

What other applications do you have run on boot ?

If the file somehow got corrupt then try a repair of avast. Add Remove programs, select ‘avast! Anti-Virus,’ click the Change/Remove button and scroll down to Repair, click next and follow. You need to be on-line to do this.

I have gone over some of your previous answers and picked some salient points.

  1. This to me would seem to be something intercepting the call and may be ralared to point 2.

  2. If avast finds elements of another AV it may disable some of its own processes to try and avoid a conflict. However, this is usually not the avast icon, ashdisp.exe and we often see a red circle and bar over the avast icon as an indication of the presence of or remnants of another AV.

Low level registry legacy keys (virtual device drivers) may still be loading and that could cause conflict.

So it may be worthwhile finding those entries in the Run and RunServices part you mentioned, first export the complete Registry Key give it a meaningful name and save it to a location you can find it again if needed. Now comes the interesting bit the deletion of the entries (values) relating to the Norton remnants (data) with paths to , take care only to delete these entries and not complete Keys, only Value Names, see image.

If you think you made a mistake you have the .reg file you saved of the exported key.

15

Thank you again.

I’m not running a registry cleaner on this PC and I am running ZoneAlarm and AdAware.

It’s interesting that you picked up on the Norton remnants from previous messages because Adware warned me today that an application was wanting to alter those remnant entries and did I want to accept the alterations. I did and hey presto! they were deleted and are no longer there. For some reason there must have been a time delay on symmsicleanup or msifix!

Now, in the ‘run’ section of the registry is ashdisp, ashmaisv, avast! web scanner, igfxtray (a graphic card program for display adjustment) and scan registry (ms windows)

In ‘run-’ is awmon (adware0, igfxtray and scan registry.

In ‘run services’ is avast! and nothing in ‘run services-’

The boxes that are checked in the start up section of the system configuration utility are, ashmaisv, scan registry, ashdisp, avast web scanner and avast.

The folder in start/programs/startup is empty.

This is the set up before doing the repair you suggested. Because I was online the only two icons in the task bar are those belonging to my broadband wireless network manager and zone alarm, When I press alt, control and delete the close program shows that wireless network manager, post reply- mozilla firefox, explorer, zlclient, vsmon, ashmaisv and ashwebsv are running.

The repair was reported to have been carried out successfully by avast! but no icons appeared in the taskbar and when I tried to run ashdisp I got the same result as before. I rebooted and got the same result.

16

Were only interested in any possible Norton stuff in the registry, leave the avast stuff as it is.

Run-
Something is/was running a registry scan I. What is the location (check the data value as this should contain a path) of this scan registry, that could be what is killing the ashdisp.exe entry. I don’t see why the registry needs to be scanned on start-up or what it is looking for, I can vaguely recall an ms windows registry scan function but I don’t remember what it did.

As far as I’m aware the awmon is AdWatch, so if this is definitely disabled then it might be that the Run- might be disabled startup entries, I don’t know.

The system configuration appears OK for avast, but that scan registry, I would say should be unchecked (not deleted for the time being) as I’m unsure if this may be the problem. But it is a very long time since I used win98. So we need to confirm the path for this scan registry entry.

Whilst it may not be the source of the problem I feel it should be unchecked/disabled. Remember to export the registry key before removing the scan registry entry.

Generally there shouldn’t be any avast items in the start/programs/startup folder.

17

The file Scanregw.exe is MS Windows Registry Checker specific to Win98/ME and by default makes a backup of the registry files and the system.ini and win.ini files the first time the computer is started on any given day. It also, every time the computer is restarted automatically, scans the system registry for invalid entries and if it finds a problem it automatically replaces the damaged registry with the most recent backup up copy. The path is c:\windows\scanregw /autorun and disabling it, as far as I’m aware, is not recommended.

18

Well that is your choice, my concern would be what it considers invalid entries because something is getting rid of the avast ashdisp.exe registry entry and a test for elimination purposes may help, it can always be restored if it is found not to be responsible.

First you could try uninstalling adaware completely as that awmon entry concerns me even if might be disabled in the application. Again you could install it after a test period, ensure you have kept the registration/license key before doing this. It may even be after re-installation that it will take the ashDisp.exe as a legit ‘existing’ process/start-up entry.

19

Thanks for your reply again.

After I sent you the last message I decided to do another uninstall and reinstall since the registry was looking a lot tidier now with even ‘run’-’ having disappeared. I’m pleased to report that despite several re-boots and adding and removing other programs from start up everything has been as it should be apart from one ‘scare’.

That occurred when my FF and TB icons disappeared on the bottom task bar and then followed soon after by the rest of the icons there. The icons in the tray still remained including the two avast! icons. I would have bet a pound to a penny that on reboot the two avast! icons wouldn’t reappear but I was wrong they both appeared and so did all the other icons and the disappearing act hasn’t happened since. So here’s hoping it remains so. Thank you for your support in this matter and if I have to come back to you for further support I hope it’s for a different problem!

20

Your welcome, I’m glad that you persevered and that everything is now as it should be.