Broadband/PC Problems...HELP!

User Name

Hi guys
Ok, Im running Windows XP on a HP computer. Its about 1.5 years old.
The problem is a couple of days ago I got wireless Irish broadband, hooked it up and everything was done properly. However when I went into internet explorer I kept getting a 'Page cannot be displayed' error or 'server cannot be found' despite the fact that the pc was telling me It was connected.

I rang the Irish Broadband and they got me check various settings which were perfect but when they asked me to go to Start - Run and get the command promt I got the following error - " The NTVDM CPU has encountered an illegal instruction" and I had to close the window.The guy told me this must be causing the connection problem.

I also noticed the following program keeps crashing and flashing up on screen "pokapoka79.exe" This appeared after I connected the modem and I then found out its a spyware program. Could this be causing the problems and how do I get rid of it? The Broadband guy told me to reinstall windows but I do not have a copy as my PC came pre installed with it.

I have Windows Recovery installed and I can start up from this so Is there any way I can solve the issue with this?

Any help is much appreciated
Thanks

irlrobins

Sounds like ur Pc is riddled with spyware and possibly viruses.

If you have anti virus software installed (Norton, McAfee), make sure it is up to date and run a full scan. If your subscription is expired, uninstall it and install AVG instead. It is free and works well.

Then install Ad Aware AND Spybot S&D. These programs will hopefully remove any spyware you might have.

Obviously since ur connection is not working currently then you are prob better off downloading these in work if u can and bringing home on a disk.

go with this and see how you get on. Post back if u have further problems. Out of interest do you have IBB ripwave or Breeze?

And can people not drag this thread into a "IBB is shit" rant. Go to Broadband forum for that!

deckie27

Me thinks you got infections
Before you connected to irishbroadband did you have an uptodate antivirus ?

User Name

Thanks guys. I did run Mcafee and it found one suspicious program which could not be deleted so I put it in quaranteen. I think the problem with the Run command might have been there before i got the broadband but not sure. Could spyware stop the browser from being able to connect? Im also unable to do a system restore as it restarts and says " Restoration Incomplete, could not restre to such and such date"

irlrobins

PC sounds well f'd up. Prehaps the best solution is to back up your files and wipe and reinstall. A clean setup will solve all problems.

deckie27

Ye i second that.
Did you get a system restore disk with computer?
Could be the easiest way,
But be ware you sould try and get the antivirus updates on another computer and have Pc's antivirus uptodate before plugging in to irish broadband.
Then next call is windowsupdate do critical first the all the rest.
Then site back and you can browse you favourite p0rn sites in confidence,

User Name

Thanks again dudes, problem is i didnt get a copy of windows with my pc (bought in PC world of coarse!) dont think I have a restore disk either Dont know whether to cancel the broadband or what the hell to do.Will an xp update do the trick even though i already have xp installed? (cheaper to buy than full version) Guess it will all be worth it when im viewing porn in a few days/weeks!

irlrobins

What model PC is it? If it did not come with Windows XP on a disk, or a recovery CD, then chances are there is a image on a hidden partition.

User Name

Its a Hewlett Packard irlrobins, where would I find this image if it was there?

irlrobins

Normally you press one of the function keys on booting in order to access it. F10, F11 or F12 are the usual suspects. you don't know the exact model number do you?

irlrobins

Oh and make sure you back up all your files before you do the windows recovery as all your files are wiped.

User Name

I dont have the model number sorry. So if i reinstall windows it will delete everything?

irlrobins

Yep, the imaging returns your PC to the same state it was in when u first took it out of the box.

So any software or updates you installed and any documents/mp3s/etc are gone.

User Name

Cheers man, ill have a look for that. If I buy an xp upgrade can i do a fresh install on my existing xp or do i need a full version?

irlrobins

you mean if u upgrade from XP Home to XP Pro? mmm, it will prob install ok with the present set up. But since it will leave most of your files intact it will prob still be infected with all that spyware.

I don't think buying a version of XP is required right now. I'd back up all you want to keep, then run the recovery program. Had a quick google and I think for HP pc's it's F10 to start the prog off. So as PC boots keep tapping F10 until it starts.

User Name

Ok thanks a million, I hope the recovery program is there!

User Name

Ok lads I have recovery console on my PC and at startup i have the option to start with that or windows. Is there anyway I can solve the errors with this?

irlrobins

how did u get the recovery console to run?

User Name

I remembered i instaled it somehow last year with a previous problem. I just get the option to run it at every startup so i just select it instead of xp. it then goes into a command prompt but i havent a clue what to do to fix the errors or the registry. I typed help and it gives me a list of commands but not sure which one will solve my problem. Any ideas?

irlrobins

Ah right. With u now. It will do little to solve this problem to be honest.

Drapper

1. recover your cd key :- http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/product_cd_key_viewer.html or http://www.magicaljellybean.com/keyfinder.shtml
2. get a lend of a mates WiXP cd
3. use your key when installing
4. make sure your info is backed up on a External HD or another storage device
5. XP reintal from fresh!!

best solution.........

Note:- be sure your key and the version you are installing are the same.

User Name

Thanks Drapper, thats handy. I hope I can find a Home version though like the one I have.

irlrobins

did F10 not work?

User Name

Dont know man im not at home to check it. Ill try it tonight. I read on HP site that it should work just once and its then deleted which could be bad. i wanted to try a normal restore first then a destructive restore if that didnt work but now ill only get one shot! In a destructive restore will it delete windows?

irlrobins

you got a link to that? Sounds a bit unusual....

User Name

Maybe I misunderstood it but here is the link anyway http://forum.packardbell.com/en/viewtopic.php?t=39188 Cheers

irlrobins

ok now i'm confused!!! Have you got an HP or a Packard Bell PC? You said at start it was a HP PC but this article refers to a Packard Bell PC.

Reading through the article it appears that the user created CD copies of the imaging partition. Part of this process removes the image from the HD partition so that you don't have more than one copy of the OS. So if you don't create the CDs then the image remains.

Of course if you have a HP PC and not a Packard Bell this is all irrelevant.

User Name

Christ im dumb! Im sorry its a packard Bell not a HP. Im not exactly a computer genius as you can tell. Does that cancel out the system restore option?

irlrobins

No, it's still an option. Instructions here:

http://support.packardbell.com/se/mypc/?PibItemNr=instr_recovery_WinPE&PibItemParent=platform_ED1N

User Name

Thanks man, i really appreciate all your help

irlrobins

not a problem

MunsterCycling

3 cheers for IRLROBINS...

irlrobins

Shh!!!! I'm in the library!