Try a repair of avast. Add Remove programs, select 'avast! Anti-Virus,' click the Change/Remove button and scroll down to Repair, click next and follow.
What is your firewall ?
Does it allow avastSvc.exe internet access ?
- If it does delete the entry for it and try to collect your email again, this should force the firewall to ask permission again.
Whilst the above is related to the ability to collect email there may also be some form of application blocking in your firewall, which may stop it completely.
If the above doesn't have any affect, then a clean reinstall would be best:
Download the latest version of avast
http://www.avast.com/free-antivirus-download and save it to your HDD, somewhere you can find it again. Use that when you reinstall. Direct link to the avast free antivirus version 5.0.462 released today,
http://files.avast.com/iavs5x/setup_av_free.exe.
Download the avast! Uninstall Utility,
find it here ensure you get the version5 one (it has uninstall tools for both 4.8 and 5.0), aswClear5.exe and save it to your HDD.
- 1. Now uninstall (using add remove programs, if you can't do that start from the next step), reboot.
- 2. run the avast! Uninstall Utility from safe mode, first for 4.8 if previously installed and then for 5.0, once complete reboot into normal mode.
- 3. install the latest version, reboot.
