Need some computer help...

[Rick Lee]

I have totally lost my desktop on my laptop. Make sense? I was able to get to the web by holding down control/alt/delete and digging up an old link. And I can get to my desktop files. It's just that no icons appear on my actual wallpaper. I've rebooted many times. No dice. How do I fix this? Thanks.

[rcecale]

CTRL-ALT-DEL to get to the Task Manager. On the "Applications" tab, click on the "New Task" button.


In the following window, type the word "explorer" and hit the "OK' button.



See if this brings up your desktop.

Randy

[ejm914]

Try right click on the desktop, select arrange icons, select show desktop icons

[Joeaksa]

Also right click on "start" and open explorer. Desktop will be at the top.

[Rick Lee]

Recale, I can ge my desktop to show up as a file or program. But my actual desktop is still not populated with icons. Right clicking does nothing at all on my empty desktop. No dice.

[Jim727]

Rick -

Does -Alt--Tab- give you anything?

[slodave]

You say "right-click" does nothing? Try this link:

Your Desktop Icons Are Missing in Windows XP

Dave

[Rick Lee]

Originally posted by Jim727
Rick -

Does -Alt--Tab- give you anything?

Yes, I get the normal menu with tabs and running programs.

[rcecale]

Okay, Rick, give this a shot then.

Download this zipped file and save the two files to your computer. Copy the file shellfix.reg to a floppy or thumb-drive and then follow the directions in the shellfix.txt file.

ftp://ftp.f-secure.com/anti-virus/tools/shellfix.zip

What this does is corrects a Registry entry that calls the Windows shell to load properly.

The registry edit is provided below, in case you want to do it manually...

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon]
"Shell"="explorer.exe"

Randy

[Rick Lee]

Slodave, thanks but that doesn't work for me, since it requires me to right click my desktop, which I can't do. Nothing happens. Rececale, will try this. I'm also missing my bottom toolbar and start menu.

[VaSteve]

Reboot and see if it gets any better. I lost my bottom bar surfing porn or something. It came back the next day when I rebooted. I'm sure you weren't surfing porn...

[red-beard]

Have you tried re-booting and coming up in safe-mode?

[nostatic]

every once in awhile I forget why I own a Mac.

Hmm...actually I don't. Really. Having to load registry hacks? Egad...

Hope it sorts out Rick.

[Rick Lee]

Rcecale, that's not working for me. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. I followed the instructions, though I did not save the file to an external disc. I just followed the instructions in the second file and directed the new task tab to where I have it saved in my documents. Rebooted and no dice. Also got a run dll error on restart.

Steve, yes, I have a lot of porn on here, but I do regular virus and spyware scans.

Red, what do I do in safe mode? I've only ever used it when I had someone on the phone walking me through it.

[rcecale]

Try downloading this little program called HiJackThis

"HijackThis lists the contents of key areas of the Registry and hard drive--areas that are used by both legitimate programmers and hijackers. The program is continually updated to detect and remove new hijacks. It does not target specific programs and URLs, only the methods used by hijackers to force you onto their sites. As a result, false positives are imminent, and unless you're sure about what you're doing, you always should consult with knowledgable folks before deleting anything."

Post a copy of the log file generated and we'll look through it for anything suspiscious.

Randy

[Rick Lee]

Thanks. Here it is.

Logfile of HijackThis v1.99.1
Scan saved at 9:41:24 PM, on 4/10/2007
Platform: Windows XP SP2 (WinNT 5.01.2600)
MSIE: Internet Explorer v6.00 SP2 (6.00.2900.2180)

Running processes:
C:\WINDOWS\System32\smss.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\winlogon.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\services.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\lsass.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\svchost.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccSetMgr.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccEvtMgr.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccProxy.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\SNDSrvc.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\SPBBC\SPBBCSvc.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\CCPD-LC\symlcsvc.exe
C:\WINDOWS\Explorer.EXE
C:\WINDOWS\system32\spoolsv.exe
C:\Program Files\Symantec\LiveUpdate\ALUSchedulerSvc.exe
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\RUNDLL2000.EXE
C:\Program Files\Norton Internet Security\Norton AntiVirus\navapsvc.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\nvsvc32.exe
C:\Program Files\Analog Devices\SoundMAX\SMAgent.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\svchost.exe
c:\windows\system32\webpnt.exe
C:\WINDOWS\wsttrs.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\taskmgr.exe
C:\Program Files\Outlook Express\msimn.exe
C:\Program Files\Messenger\msmsgs.exe
C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe
C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\IEXPLORE.EXE
C:\DOCUME~1\RICKLE~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\Temporary Directory 1 for hijackthis[1].zip\HijackThis.exe

R0 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Start Page = http://www.hotsheet.com/
R1 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Default_Page_URL = http://ie.redirect.hp.com/svs/rdr?TYPE=3&tp=iehome&locale=EN_US&c=Q304&bd=presario&pf=laptop
R1 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Connection Wizard,ShellNext = http://ie.redirect.hp.com/svs/rdr?TYPE=3&tp=iehome&locale=EN_US&c=Q304&bd=presario&pf=laptop
O2 - BHO: AcroIEHlprObj Class - {06849E9F-C8D7-4D59-B87D-784B7D6BE0B3} - C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 7.0\ActiveX\AcroIEHelper.dll
O2 - BHO: (no name) - {53707962-6F74-2D53-2644-206D7942484F} - C:\Program Files\Spybot - Search & Destroy\SDHelper.dll
O2 - BHO: ʵÓÃËÑË÷ - {6CFD436C-7AAD-4e50-992F-C0C87A94CAD2} - C:\Program Files\superutilbar\superutilbar.dll
O2 - BHO: (no name) - {77701e16-9bfe-4b63-a5b4-7bd156758a37} - (no file)
O2 - BHO: Norton Internet Security 2006 - {9ECB9560-04F9-4bbc-943D-298DDF1699E1} - C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\AdBlocking\NISShExt.dll
O2 - BHO: NAV Helper - {A8F38D8D-E480-4D52-B7A2-731BB6995FDD} - C:\Program Files\Norton Internet Security\Norton AntiVirus\NavShExt.dll
O2 - BHO: (no name) - {f4d74aaa-a178-4463-846b-b4bc87a024e0} - C:\WINDOWS\system32\ixt0.dll (file missing)
O3 - Toolbar: Norton Internet Security 2006 - {0B53EAC3-8D69-4b9e-9B19-A37C9A5676A7} - C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\AdBlocking\NISShExt.dll
O3 - Toolbar: Norton AntiVirus - {C4069E3A-68F1-403E-B40E-20066696354B} - C:\Program Files\Norton Internet Security\Norton AntiVirus\NavShExt.dll
O3 - Toolbar: ʵÓÃËÑË÷¹¤¾ßÌõ2.0 - {03465FF5-00AE-411a-9C34-960ED566EC03} - C:\Program Files\superutilbar\superutilbar.dll
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [AGRSMMSG] AGRSMMSG.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [NvCplDaemon] RUNDLL32.EXE C:\WINDOWS\System32\NvCpl.dll,NvStartup
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [nwiz] nwiz.exe /install
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [ccApp] "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccApp.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [QuickTime Task] "C:\Program Files\QuickTime\qttask.exe" -atboottime
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [iTunesHelper] "C:\Program Files\iTunes\iTunesHelper.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [HPDJ Taskbar Utility] C:\WINDOWS\system32\spool\drivers\w32x86\3\hpztsb1 2.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [mppds] C:\WINDOWS\mppds.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [upxdnd] C:\DOCUME~1\RICKLE~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\iexplore3.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [System] C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\Updaterun.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\RunOnce: [wsttrs] C:\WINDOWS\wsttrs.exe
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [MSMSGS] "C:\Program Files\Messenger\msmsgs.exe" /background
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [r63hxwy958mjuq] C:\DOCUME~1\RICKLE~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\iexpl0re.exe
O4 - Global Startup: Adobe Reader Speed Launch.lnk = C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 7.0\Reader\reader_sl.exe
O4 - Global Startup: HP Digital Imaging Monitor.lnk = C:\Program Files\HP\digital imaging\bin\hpqtra08.exe
O4 - Global Startup: HP Image Zone Fast Start.lnk = C:\Program Files\HP\digital imaging\bin\hpqthb08.exe
O4 - Global Startup: Microsoft Office.lnk = C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office10\OSA.EXE
O4 - Global Startup: Quicken Scheduled Updates.lnk = C:\Program Files\Quicken\bagent.exe
O8 - Extra context menu item: E&xport to Microsoft Excel - res://C:\PROGRA~1\MICROS~3\Office10\EXCEL.EXE/3000
O9 - Extra button: (no name) - {08B0E5C0-4FCB-11CF-AAA5-00401C608501} - C:\Program Files\Java\j2re1.4.2_03\bin\npjpi142_03.dll
O9 - Extra 'Tools' menuitem: Sun Java Console - {08B0E5C0-4FCB-11CF-AAA5-00401C608501} - C:\Program Files\Java\j2re1.4.2_03\bin\npjpi142_03.dll
O9 - Extra button: Create Mobile Favorite - {2EAF5BB1-070F-11D3-9307-00C04FAE2D4F} - C:\PROGRA~1\MICROS~4\INetRepl.dll
O9 - Extra button: (no name) - {2EAF5BB2-070F-11D3-9307-00C04FAE2D4F} - C:\PROGRA~1\MICROS~4\INetRepl.dll
O9 - Extra 'Tools' menuitem: Create Mobile Favorite... - {2EAF5BB2-070F-11D3-9307-00C04FAE2D4F} - C:\PROGRA~1\MICROS~4\INetRepl.dll
O9 - Extra button: Messenger - {FB5F1910-F110-11d2-BB9E-00C04F795683} - C:\Program Files\Messenger\msmsgs.exe
O9 - Extra 'Tools' menuitem: Windows Messenger - {FB5F1910-F110-11d2-BB9E-00C04F795683} - C:\Program Files\Messenger\msmsgs.exe
O14 - IERESET.INF: START_PAGE_URL=http://ie.redirect.hp.com/svs/rdr?TYPE=3&tp=iehome&locale=EN_US&c=Q304&bd=presario&pf=laptop
O16 - DPF: {01F67ABB-0559-11D6-B9C5-00104B9CDDB0} (WMCDirectTree.cTree) - http://bdrcentral.wmcdirect.com/cabs/WMCDirectTree.CAB
O16 - DPF: {2119940C-F1CE-4258-8B96-41ECCA2BB184} (FTUploaderCtlX Control) - http://www.fototime.com/ftweb/activeX/WebUploadControl.cab
O16 - DPF: {6A344D34-5231-452A-8A57-D064AC9B7862} (Symantec Download Manager) - https://webdl.symantec.com/activex/symdlmgr.cab
O16 - DPF: {712362BF-E411-4F43-99D2-EB15F80AF1DB} (MsneDiag Class) - http://entimg.msn.com/client/msnediag3718.cab
O16 - DPF: {8E27C92B-1264-101C-8A2F-040224009C02} (Calendar Control 8.0) - http://bdrcentral.wmcdirect.com/cabs/Calendar.CAB
O20 - AppInit_DLLs:
O20 - Winlogon Notify: WgaLogon - C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\WgaLogon.dll
O21 - SSODL: eupeptic - {8670ee50-01f9-47da-ac1e-cf8549e9e521} - C:\WINDOWS\system32\axlet.dll (file missing)
O23 - Service: Automatic LiveUpdate Scheduler - Symantec Corporation - C:\Program Files\Symantec\LiveUpdate\ALUSchedulerSvc.exe
O23 - Service: Symantec Event Manager (ccEvtMgr) - Symantec Corporation - C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccEvtMgr.exe
O23 - Service: Symantec Internet Security Password Validation (ccISPwdSvc) - Symantec Corporation - C:\Program Files\Norton Internet Security\ccPwdSvc.exe
O23 - Service: Symantec Network Proxy (ccProxy) - Symantec Corporation - C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccProxy.exe
O23 - Service: Symantec Settings Manager (ccSetMgr) - Symantec Corporation - C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccSetMgr.exe
O23 - Service: COM Host (comHost) - Symantec Corporation - C:\Program Files\Norton Internet Security\comHost.exe
O23 - Service: InstallDriver Table Manager (IDriverT) - Macrovision Corporation - C:\Program Files\Common Files\InstallShield\Driver\11\Intel 32\IDriverT.exe
O23 - Service: iPod Service - Apple Inc. - C:\Program Files\iPod\bin\iPodService.exe
O23 - Service: LiveUpdate - Symantec Corporation - C:\PROGRA~1\Symantec\LIVEUP~1\LUCOMS~1.EXE
O23 - Service: Norton AntiVirus Auto-Protect Service (navapsvc) - Symantec Corporation - C:\Program Files\Norton Internet Security\Norton AntiVirus\navapsvc.exe
O23 - Service: Norton Protection Center Service (NSCService) - Symantec Corporation - C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\Security Console\NSCSRVCE.EXE
O23 - Service: NVIDIA Driver Helper Service (NVSvc) - NVIDIA Corporation - C:\WINDOWS\System32\nvsvc32.exe
O23 - Service: Pml Driver HPZ12 - HP - C:\WINDOWS\system32\HPZipm12.exe
O23 - Service: Symantec AVScan (SAVScan) - Symantec Corporation - C:\Program Files\Norton Internet Security\Norton AntiVirus\SAVScan.exe
O23 - Service: Symantec Network Drivers Service (SNDSrvc) - Symantec Corporation - C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\SNDSrvc.exe
O23 - Service: SoundMAX Agent Service (SoundMAX Agent Service (default)) - Analog Devices, Inc. - C:\Program Files\Analog Devices\SoundMAX\SMAgent.exe
O23 - Service: Symantec SPBBCSvc (SPBBCSvc) - Symantec Corporation - C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\SPBBC\SPBBCSvc.exe
O23 - Service: Symantec Core LC - Symantec Corporation - C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\CCPD-LC\symlcsvc.exe

[red-beard]

reboot. While the screen is black, before you see the windows startup occuring, press F8. You may need to press it a few times. You will then be presented with the choice to start up in safe mode.

[Rick Lee]

But what do I do once in safe mode?

[id10t]

dpkg-reconfigure x-window-system

[rcecale]

Okay, there are a few things that catch my eye. Others will prolly chime in as well:

1.) Line R0
R0 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Start Page = http://www.hotsheet.com/
-Is this really your home page? It looks more like a site that some form of spyware would point you to.

2.) Lines R1 and R2 have links that point you to the AOL Home Page. Do you use this page?

3.) These two lines look suspiscious as he11...especially the one with bold text. Look as though you've got some spyware or maybe even a virus messing things up for you.
O2 - BHO: ʵÓÃËÑË÷ - {6CFD436C-7AAD-4e50-992F-C0C87A94CAD2} - C:\Program Files\superutilbar\superutilbar.dll
O2 - BHO: (no name) - {77701e16-9bfe-4b63-a5b4-7bd156758a37} - (no file)

4.) Same as item 3, above...
O3 - Toolbar: ʵÓÃËÑË÷¹¤¾ßÌõ2.0 - {03465FF5-00AE-411a-9C34-960ED566EC03} - C:\Program Files\superutilbar\superutilbar.dll

If you have AdAware or Spybot, and are able to launch them from the Task Manager, try doing that. If not, run HiJackThis again and delete these lines.

One other thing, in researching this, I've seen quite a few references to the Nimda virus. Go to Symantec's Website and downlod the Nimda Repair Tool.

Randy