[Resolved] Desktop seems to have disappeared....

[ASydReign]

Each time I login my computer for the past 2 days instead of showing my desktop the screen is completely black and it only has the My Computer window open. I had removed some unused programs (mostly games) to clear up some space and had ran an AVG scan and a quick scan with Malware Bytes. That is last last thing I remember doing before the problem started.  I have tried doing a system restore to a point before removing the programs and that didn't do anything, it's still the same black screen with the My Computer window open after login. I'm stumped. I can access everything on my computer (like Firefox) through the program files folder and it seems like all my saved documents, pictures and videos are still there, but my desktop is completely gone. Any help would be appreciated!

[PCBruiser]

Hi,

Boot into Safe Mode.  Does your desktop show up there?  Also, please tell us what version of Windows you are using, and which Service Pack.

[ASydReign]

Same thing in Safe Mode. I'm running Vista and I believe I am still using service pack 1. Thank you very much.

[PCBruiser]

OK, now we know one thing, your operating system is damaged.  That could be because of hardware issues, drivers, malware, etc.  So, before doing anything else, it is critically important that you completely backup all your critical data files.  Fixing a damaged operating system can often be accomplished, but sometimes not.  Before taking any risks trying to diagnose or fix it, you must backup everything valuable to you:  data of all forms, bookmarks, passwords, movies, music, documents, etc.  Otherwise there is a real chance that all might be lost if the only alternative is reformat and reinstall, or if it is a result of some hardware issue like a failing hard drive for example.  Post back after you have finished backing up everything you can.

[ASydReign]

Sounds bad. Well, other then pictures and some videos I have nothing of true importance on this hard drive so I organized everything into a folder that I can easily throw onto a flashdrive. Other then losing the time spent installing a bunch of games it isn't to bad. I am about to head to work and as soon as I get off I'm heading to Wal-Mart, picking up a flashdrive and saving all my documents. Whenever you are ready to guide me through you can post the first step and I'll complete it once I'm home. Thank you once again!

[PCBruiser]

Hi,

No way to tell what the problem is at this point.  We will need to start by eliminating the hardware issues first. 

Before you do the backup, I want to use the USB flash drive to create a bootable hardware diagnostic.  Then we'll do the backup to the same flash drive, and after that use the same flash drive with both the bootable diagnostics and backups to test the hardware.  I doubt there is any issues with the RAM, but this might be hard drive related.  The diagnostics will include both tests for the RAM and hard drive.  I can't post the instructions tonight but I will do that tomorrow morning, so hold off on the backups until we create the bootable sectors on the flash drive first, because that requires formatting the flash correctly.

I'll post it all tomorrow morning for you.

[ASydReign]

No problem. Thanks for the help. By the way, how big of a flash drive do you think I'll need? Should 8 gb's be enough? All the data I'm saving only takes up 1.8gbs. Should I go the data disk route instead?

[PCBruiser]

Hi,

I'll be back in a bit.  But, 8GB is fine.  The diagnostic parts shouldn't take 1GB, and the rest can be used for your data.  Do the data backup after creating the diagnostic.  The diagnostic requires reformatting your Flash Drive, and once that is created the remaining 6GB or so should be free for the data backup.

[PCBruiser]

OK, we are now going to create the self booting diagnostic on the pen drive.  It is Linux based and very easy to do.  Go here:  http://www.pendrivelinux.com/universal-usb-installer-easy-as-1-2-3/ and download Universal-USB-Installer-1.8.1.7.exe – December 10, 2010 anywhere you can easily find it.  Then scroll down the page to Currently USB Installable Live Linux Distributions and click the "click" line immediately below it.  A list will open.  You want Ultimate Boot CD about 75% down the list.  Click on the link.  That will take you to instructions for Ultimate Boot CD and you will find a download link on the left hand side.  Download that somewhere convenient.  Next, run Universal-USB-Installer-1.8.1.7.exe and point the installer to the Ultimate Boot CD download.  Follow the on screen instructions and the UBCD distro should now install on your Flash Stick.  That's all there is to it.

Next, do your backups to the Flash Stick, and boot from the Flash Stick.  The Flash Stick should now boot to the UBCD start up menu.  A picture is available on the UBCD site.  You are going to want both the RAM and HDD diagnostics.  Run Memtest86+ for a few hours.  That will test your RAM.  I don't expect any errors, but you can stop the test if you do get a lot of errors.  No errors means your RAM is fine, and that's what I expect to see.

Then test your HDD.  Use Drive Fitness Test, or if that gives you problems try some of the other tests.  DFT should work.  Let's see what that tells us about your hard drive.

If both the RAM and HDD are fine, then we need to next look for malware as the next possible cause of the problem./

[ASydReign]

Sorry I was so slow in responding. Had some issues with a friend landing himself in the slam, haha. I went to the site and I see that they have a newer version in the USB installer that they put up today. I'm assuming that's the one I'm going to want now, correct?

Also, I brought it up before, but will 8 gb's be enough space for everything we are doing?

[PCBruiser]

The new version is fine.  The UBCD will take less than 1GB, and if you only have 1.6GB of data, 8GB will be ample for everything.

Hoov will be handling your issue from this point forward.  I will not be around much for the next few weeks.

[ASydReign]

I have done everything I've been told thus far. The scans didn't seem to come up with any problems so now I am assuming malware is the issue. What are the next steps I should take to repair my desktop? Thank you in advance for all your help!

[PCBruiser]

Please check your PMs.  THX.

[Hoov]

Hello ASydReign, I am Hoov and I will be finishing up with your problem.

One thing I would like you to try is to open Windows Explorer and go to any picture that is on your harddrive, right click on it and select Set as Desktop Background and let me know if anything happens.

Next download CKScanner from here: http://downloads.malwareremoval.com/CKScanner.exe
Important - Save it to your desktop.
Doubleclick CKScanner.exe and click Search For Files.
After a very short time, when the cursor hourglass disappears, click Save List To File.
A message box will verify the file saved.
Double-click the CKFiles.txt icon on your desktop and copy/paste the contents in your next reply.

Also I need you to go to the administration tools in Vista. They are in the Control Panel. Open the Admin tools, then open the event viewer. Over on the left hand side expand the window category and then click on  System. Then up at the top click on Action and then click on Save Events As, type in system as the file name,  make sure file type EVTX is selected, and then navigate so it will save the file to your desktop, then click save. Over on the left hand side and click on Application. Then up at the top click on Action and then click on Save Events As, type in application as the file name,  make sure file type EVTX is selected, and then navigate so it will save the file to your desktop, then click save. Zip them both up into a single zip file, post them back here in your next reply as attachments.

[ASydReign]

Thanks for your help once again and I'm glad bruiser is doing well after the surgery!

It did let me set the desktop background but when I saved the files to the desktop nothing showed up still.

Here is the paste of what the scanner popped out:

CKScanner - Additional Security Risks - These are not necessarily bad
c:\program files\gateway games\bejeweled 2 deluxe\sounds\firecrackle.ogg
c:\program files\gateway games\blasterball 3\data\art\bitmaps\enemies\boss2_crack.jpg.wkz
scanner sequence 3.LB.11
 ----- EOF -----

I tried attaching the logs you requested in the zipped folder but it said the attachment was to large. What should I do?