Tips
Virus removal or re-install?
July 5, 2008
By Gabriel Estrada
Has your computer recently become completely unusable due to a virus infection? I work with a lot of infected computer and believe me the virus removal process is no fun. The first step would be to scan your computer with Norton, or your antivirus program of choice, and hopefully the problem will go away. But what do you do when you scan and rescan and you still can't remove the viruses that are causing the problem?!
The first thing I always ask people before I attempt to repair their computer is if they have any important files that they do not want to lose. The answer that I get 90% of the time is 'Yes!'. If this is the case for you then you have to first backup all of your important files such as pictures, videos, and word documents. If you need more information creating a backup read my other article Backup Important Data.
After you have backed up your important files you have 2 choices: 1) Spend hours continuing to remove the viruses using other virus removal tools or 2) Spend 2-3 hours re-installing your operating system and re-storing your files and programs. For the average person that doesn't know much about computers I recommend re-installing your system for the following reasons:
1. Requires less time.
2. It is less frustrating.
3. You can feel safe that the viruses are completely removed.
Most computer manufactures ship their computers with a system recovery option installed on the computer. You might want to contact your computer manufacturer, such as Dell or HP, to get more information. If your computer does not have the system recovery option, you can request CDs to be mailed to you by your manufacturer. Alternatively, if you have the Operating System disc, say Windows Vista or XP, then you can perform a clean installation.
Once your system has been recovered or re-installed, then all you have to do now is recover all the files you backed up earlier and re-install any programs you previously had installed.
This might seem like a lot of work, but it is sure better than paying someone else to fix it for you.
. Please email any questions to gabriel@intouchcs.com thank you.