Sick XP - Random crashes of IE/OE, some BSOD ycsvgd.sys

cianclarke

*UPDATE: Problem solved with an update. Thanks folks!
Now - a dilema - I've never charged for this sort of thing before. I've put in about 5 hours total work, maybe a bit more in scattered bits - of which 2 1/2 hours was running in circles trying to fix the problem. The other 2.5 were spent doing a complete reformat and system restore.

How much would you typically charge a person for this sort of thing? I vaguely know the guy, and he is somewhat of means but I only want to charge, say, half the going rate or something along these lines as I don't mind doing the work.


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So, got a very sick computer in my only slightly capable hands. At present I'm thinking a reformat is due, but in the mean time I thought I'd post the symptoms and see if anybody thinks it can be avoided.
There isn't much to back up - a lot of music and doc's and lotus wordpro is used since this is what the guy is used to, however after that everything can be restored.

First problem - IE explorer and Outlook Express crash randomly (usuall after about 2 minutes), with the following code in the error (send/do not send) box:
0xc0000005
This code also appeared when explorer crashed, once.

Another thing - the BSOD appeared, with ycsvgd.sys - quoting codes:
0x0000008E
0xc0000005
0xf88d7247
Just searching on google, this seems to be a very nasty virus (9/10).

Second last - internet takes ~3mins to connect using external USB wireless dongle.

Finally, Symantec Norton would refuse to update. No online virus scanners worked, I couldn't visit the symantec support site. Might be just because something was blocking activeX or the likes, using FF and IE.

What I did: Uninstalled symantec - it didn't do it right, had to manually pluck it all from the reg. Reinstalled symantec.

Now - there is no internet from the USB dongle (seems to be a bit crap). I tried plugging a cable direct from PC to router, but I can't configure the PC to pick up on the existance of said cable/connection in network connections.





So, after all that. Any ideas - Would he be better off bringing the PC to a very good professional to see if he could fix the problems first, or is it just a reformat job? I'm thinking a pro would charge him a fair ammount and still just reformat..

Thanks

trout

If these are the probs you know about ... what else may be lurking ?

IE and OE errors can often be resolved, via patches & config, but the BSOD is never a good sign... may even indicate hardware issues.

The question to ask yourself is which will be better ... spend time and effort tracking down and resolving a number of issues, or take the hit of a few hours for backup & rebuild. Note I said 'better' not 'quicker'.

From the symptoms described, there may well be virus or spyware lurking on the PC.

If it was me .. I would rebuild.

If you do go for a rebuild, make sure you have a clear picture of all hardware installed & get the latest stable drivers, esp. for sound & graphics cards.
Also make sure you have all the relevant license keys for any installed apps.

It's important to have an up-to-date AV package (i like AVG) and also anti-spyware tools. See the "Essential Free Software" sticky at the top of this forum.

Last piece of advice - Backup the data, and confirm the backup, before you rebuild.

Best of luck:)

cianclarke

Thanks for this, think this is where I'll be headed.
It's not my PC, and this fellow has gone out and bought Norton 2006 - I'm trying to tell him he should *bin* it, and download AGV, Adware and Spybot S&D but I don't think I'll have much luck.

The PC is a dell, so the re-run *should* be a breeze.

shanethemofo

omg man just get firefox and thunderbird

Mozilla firefox- web browser:
www.getfirefox.com

thunderbird- mozilla's version of OE:
http://www.mozilla.com/thunderbird/

shanethemofo

if that doesnt work then.... you get to endure the "pleasent" experience of.... reformatting

Ruu_Old

Apparently ycsvgd.sys is a trojan virus. Get a decent free anti-virus scanner and run it in safe mode. Sounds like he could have more than one virus.

cianclarke

*UPDATE: Problem solved with an update. Thanks folks! *

Now - a dilema - I've never charged for this sort of thing before. I've put in about 5 hours total work, maybe a bit more in scattered bits - of which 2 1/2 hours was running in circles trying to fix the problem. The other 2.5 were spent doing a complete reformat and system restore.

How much would you typically charge a person for this sort of thing? I vaguely know the guy, and he is somewhat of means but I only want to charge, say, half the going rate or something along these lines as I don't mind doing the work.

irlrobins

150e I would say.

shanethemofo

150??? serious???

say 75? (5hrs@€15-for a google jobbie)

irlrobins

Hell yeah. It's not as if it's a friend or anything. Most places will charge you 75e just to look at the damn thing.

cianclarke

Thanks irlrobins and shane. I had the figure of €50 in my head as he owes me another €25 for web updates, but I guess 75 is reasonable, give him the whole lot for 90.
Thanks folks