After the scan

[sisterbea]

I feel like an idiot, but I have a question. When I do the Avast scan and the results come up, do I need to do anything about all the things that show  up? I mean, do I delete everything on there? No viruses showed up, but a lot of those results say unable to scan. I thought I had read everything about this virus protection, but I didn't see anything pertaining to this. Thanks for any guidance!
Sisterbea  

[techie101]

Never think you are silly or an idiot for asking a question here.  We learn by asking!

Anyway, it depends on what Avast is telling you after the scan is complete.  Most of the files you see listed are probably passworded files, or located in the System Restore directory.  Avast will tell you that it was unable to scan them (for whatever reason it states)
In most cases...not to worry.

I would need to see the list in order to advise you any further.  However, if there were any files that Avast was worried about, it would say so and give you a choice to Delete the file/s or Move the file/s to the Chest (where they won't hurt your computer until you can figure out what to do with them. hahaha)

If you know what to do with a Screen Capture program, then send me a pic of the Avast log.  You can get a free one at www.gadwin.com

If you don't have a clue as to what I am talking about, don't worry....sometimes I don't either. hahaha

Let me know if I can help further.

 

[Hornus Continuum]

Sisterbea,

Some general advice:

Don't delete a file until you know what it is.  Instead, move it to another directory or preferably quarantine it (move it to the Virus Chest).  This way you will have the file so that you can have it analyzed if necessary, or you can restore it if it turns out to be crucial to your computer's operation.

If you must delete it, make sure you can replace it with a copy from a backup or from your installation disks.  Of course, if you know what application the file is associated with, and if you decide you can do without it, by all means delete the file and uninstall the application.

Use an online scanner to confirm the presence of the virus.  You may have gotten a false positive -- well with some lesser AV program but not with Alwil's fine product   .

Consult newsgroups for more information.  Start with the viruses and worms forum right here.  Search the web for instructions explaining how to clean the infection from your computer.  You may have to remove it manually, but you may also find a utility that will do it automagically.

Regards,
Hornus