Help! This doesn't look good!

Error message box (installation-style with thee CD image):

"Windows File Protection"

"Files that are required for Windows to run properly have been replaced by unrecognized versions. To maintain system stability, Windows must restore the original versions of these files.

Insert your Windows XP Professional Service Pack 2 CD now."

Options: Retry, More Information, Cancel

Clicking more information gives me a list of problems that might occur while I was trying to install Windows, eg: incorrect CD. However, I am NOT trying to install Windows!

Please read to the end, as I am unsure whether the warning box tells the truth.

I have no idea why it poppued up. I scanned my PC for viruses using a fully-updated Norton 2003 just yesterday.

I usually run torrents in Azureus with Peer Guardian 2 enabled. My computer has seen nothing new in the past week or so which was not from torrents I have been running for a while.

That is, apart from uTorrent, which I switched over to rather than Azureaus a few minutes agao. But I am still using the same torrents as I was before.

I got uTorrent from http://www.utorrent.com/ (http://download.utorrent.com/1.5/uT....5-install.exe). Is this the official site? Is it safe?

I noticed that Peer Guardian was disabled, while torrents have been running. Is it possible that somebody tried to attack my computer?

I don't wanna do what it says incase it is not a real Windows warning. I can't see anything bad people could do to me by using my real version of Windows; but I don't want to just in case. Is it possible Microsoft has found me out and is trying to disable me?

I really have no idea what happened. Any help would be great, I'm scared to turn my PC off now!

Thanks

Joe

The link you provided is for a registered-user only forum.

We can't see it.

Sorry, this forum doesn't give the option to upload pictures so I linked to post I made elsewhere.

I've replaced the link with the message text.

you can host your images at a free service like http://imageshack.us

just an fyi.

lol Thanks, I didn't think about that.

Anyway, I'm really looking for help on my stated problem.

Anyone got a suggestion?

You installed some program (not this one) that replaced some system files, and WFP is kicking in. Personally I've found WFP to be useless, and have removed it from my Windows install altogether.

But I have not installed anything recently apart from uTorrent (which I do not suspect, as I know it is a very common and trusted piece of software). Could someone else have tried to while my firewall was down?

And what does WFP do? Does it simply tell you of things like this, or does in mend similar problems in the background?

I doubt it. µTorrent's installer doesn't replace any files either (I have the NSIS script right here, so I know exactly what it does), so it had to have been another program. The standalone version runs from location, so that's even less likely.

WFP simply prevents programs from replacing system files protected by catalogues, or at least gives you the chance to revert the change. You can put in the WXP CD and let it revert the change, or just ignore it. Probably won't matter in the end.

Also, Norton is a pretty poor AV program.

ok thanks for the advice. I'm gona revert to the official install, and hopefully I'll know what caused the change if it ever happens again.

So what would you reccomend for antivirus?

Also, Norton is a pretty poor AV program.

My stepmother's email stopped working last week. Turned out Norton had decided that traffic on port 110 was dangerous, so it'd firewalled it. <sigh>

Have you recently patched TCPIP.SYS? Every time I do this I get the WFP warning, which is correct as I DID change a system file. In this case I have to select "cancel" to keep the patched TCPIP.SYS file. Windows then again asks if I'm sure to keep the modified file.

Never hat this message in any other case and with no version of uTorrent. OK, hmm Norton. I don't know if Norton is the cause as I stay far away from those dangerous yellow Boxes

Araldo

Kaspersky, AVG, ClamWin

Thanks for the help guys

I just got ClamWin Glue for FireFox, and every time I open FF now, I am told that the file could notbe found. This same problem is stated on the CW Glue page, but is not answered. Anyone know what to do?

Get Zone Alarm (free version) as firewall, PyRo; as antivirus you can use BitDefender 9.0 Pro but with the built-in firewall DISABLED.

This combination worked great on my computer in the last 2 years and I'm still using it.

So how does Zone Alarm compare with Peer Guardian? I chose PG because it has very nicely updated lists of any Police IPs who may try to access a BitTorrent user.

I use PG 2 too, but only on public trackers and/or when I REALLY have to ban a leecher (the average is once in a month); then I use ZA and PG simultaneously, without any trouble...

But I am on a LAN and I saw that PG does not block the connection attempts from the other LAN users, like ZA; that's why I trust ZA more.

But nobody on my LAN uses computers for anything except viewing webpages and sending email

That's what YOU think... I was joking.

In my opinion ZA is just better (safer) for general use. PG is better for p2p traffic on PUBLIC trackers AND for banning leechers - that's all.

ah ok. Looks like I might use both too then.

Thanks