Cannot exit Safe Zone using Switch Back

[william.wirthtorres]

I cannot get out of the SafeZone Browser using the provided directions.  Please advise how to close/exit SafeZone.  My Operating System is Vista 64bit

SafeZone was launched while updating Adobe Shockwave to 11.6.
1.   Selecting the Switch Back button causes the screen to quickly fade then return.
2.   Selecting Turn off SafeZone from the avast menu in the bottom left causes the screen to quickly fade then return.
3.   Alt-Tab (and similar key combinations) will not switch between windows.
4.   Ctrl-Alt-Del launches the Windows logon screen with the choices to Restart, Logoff, and Start Task Manager.  However:

• Task Manager launches under/behind SafeZone and is inaccessible]
• Logoff and Restart do as expected, but when I log back in, SafeZone automatically restarts within 1 second of my desktop becoming visible

5.   Restarting Windows in SafeMode made no difference; the behaviour remained the same.
6.   Alt-F4 (or any Hotkey combination) does not respond

[ady4um]

When you are still in SafeZone, can't you press <alt>+<F4> to close/finish/exit?

Task Manager also has an option -> always on top, so maybe you could try under Windows Safe Mode to set this option.

[AndyR]

I have this problem this morning also...

I do not have avast Pro; start up my PC and boom; safe zone takes over; no way to kill it.

I found that turning off virtualization on my motherboard stops it from opening; but now I cannot do any work.

I think avast got a bug last night?

[AndyR]

THE FOLLOWING FIXES THIS PROBLEM (for me)

• Restart Computer and Enter BIOS.
• Find setting for virtualization
• Turn off virtuialization
• Save changes and exit bios
• Log in to windows
• (I attempted update of avast but there were none maybe dont need to do this)
• Restart computer
• Turn virtualization
• problem solved

[william.wirthtorres]

When you are still in SafeZone, can't you press <alt>+<F4> to close/finish/exit?

Task Manager also has an option -> always on top, so maybe you could try under Windows Safe Mode to set this option.

Tried Alt-F4.  No response.  I tried Alt-F1 thru 12, F1 thru 12, Alt-Tab, Ctrl-Alt-Tab, Alt-Shift-Tab, Shift-Tab, Winkey-Tab, Winkey-D, Ctrl-Winkey-D, Menu key, Aero key, Flip3D key, Ctrl-Alt-Esc and a few others.

When I rebooted into Safe Mode and logged on, Safe Zone restarted immediately.  I had a similar issue in the past while installing a video driver; the installer screen kept hiding the Task Manager.  Now, I always leave Task Manager set to Always On Top.

THE FOLLOWING FIXES THIS PROBLEM (for me)

• Restart Computer and Enter BIOS.
• Find setting for virtualization
• Turn off virtuialization
• Save changes and exit bios
• Log in to windows
• (I attempted update of avast but there were none maybe dont need to do this)
• Restart computer
• Turn virtualization
• problem solved

Andy, tried your idea.  For me, it didn't work.


The problem account on the PC is the only active administrators account (The built-in Admin account is disabled).  The PC has a few standard user accounts setup.  I am able to logon to the machine with a standard user account without SafeZone popping up.

I'm going to try to uninstall Avast from inside the standard account.  However, the Avast self-defence module is enabled.  Perhaps UAC will prompt me for authentication.  If that works I will logon the admin account and try to reinstall Avast.

If that doesn't work, I'll try inserting my Windows desk and selecting repair.

[ady4um]

I'm not sure if the following will success under a non-admin account, but try it.

Download Avast's Clear Uninstall Utility from http://www.avast.com/uninstall-utility (you might want to use a second system and save it on a USB drive).

Boot into Windows Safe Mode, using whichever account let's you work inthere.

Copy the aswclear.exe to your system and run it, selecting the appropriate Avast folder and version.

Reboot into Windows Normal Mode to test and please report back.

[JerryDorey]

What seemed to eventually work for me, after many hours, (and even then, I'm not entirely sure how I succeeded) was to right-click on the desktop Avast icon as soon as it was visible. This seems to inhibit the automatic startup of SafeZone, while the system is waiting to find out what you want. Then open Avast as administrator, and click 'Change Settings', which seems to start a reload of (parts of?) Avast. While that's going, use Ctrl-Alt-Del to shut down Avast. After a bit, the settings box appeared, and I was able to unset SafeZone (since, for me, it hasn't been very 'safe', especially as I never selected it in the first place!) Good luck! P.S. If you can't right-click in time as that user, and you have another user-profile set up, you might try doing the same thing, operating as that other user.

[peroa]

Can anybody please tell me how to get out of this effin' safe zone?
 

[YoKenny]

Can anybody please tell me how to get out of this effin' safe zone?
 

Click on the left pointing arrow at lower right corner. 

[peroa]

Can anybody please tell me how to get out of this effin' safe zone?
 

Click on the left pointing arrow at lower right corner. 

My computer was turned off for 5 days, today i come back, start it up again and after logon I get the safe zone on my desktop and no matter what I click it won't turn off.
So let me put it this way, nice and gentle, HOW THE F*** DO I GET RID OF IT!

[ady4um]

@peroa,

Use a different Windows user, if you have one already. Then change the safezone setting in Avast and reboot into your normal Windows user.


If that doesn't work, then run the removal tool under Windows Safe Mode from http://www.avast.com/uninstall-utility. Skip the "add/remove programs" alltogether. Then reinstall the latest stable version of Avast under Windows Normal Mode.

[peroa]

@peroa,

Use a different Windows user, if you have one already. Then change the safezone setting in Avast and reboot into your normal Windows user.


If that doesn't work, then run the removal tool under Windows Safe Mode from http://www.avast.com/uninstall-utility. Skip the "add/remove programs" alltogether. Then reinstall the latest stable version of Avast under Windows Normal Mode.

Thanks, will try.

[kelly9583]

i have tried everything everybody has said and it hasnt worked 
tried f8, tried the bios thing and still nothing
PLEASE SOMEONE HELP !!!!!!!

[essexboy]

Once in safe zone did you try shutting down using the off button (bottom left Avast icon )

No problems here on Win7 64bit

[deanguzzi]

I had the problem of being unable to exit Safe Zone, after an attempt to de-install a program.  I suspect that the safe zone was entered when Avast didn't recognize the uninstall routine, but in any case here's what fixed it.

1.  Donwloaded  http://www.avast.com/uninstall-utility
2.  Restarted Windows in Safe Mode with Networking, and deinstalled Avast.
3.  Restarted Windows and verfied proper operation.
4.  Reinstalled Avast Free version
5.  Right clicked on the Avast task bar icon, and reinstalled the License Key file for Avast Pro.
6.  Avast reloads / upgrades.
7.  Restarted Windows - works fine.

Found the probram I was trying to deinstall was still installed.  When I attempted again to deinstall it, the box appeared asking whether to use SafeZone or to go ahead and open the uninstall routine(s).  I chose the "load normally" option (versus starting Safe Zone) for each of four deinstallation routines.  Restarted and all working properly now.

Hope this helps.