Icons on desktop have dissapeared

[PcEthuaist]

some folders and files on my desktop have dissapeared. I do not know when but probably yesterday or so. I also have 0 mb of free space on C drive, and I am not sure whether or not all of the missing folders are in my recycle bin or not because I forget what each folder contains. I also checked for malware with malwarebytes with safe mode. Another wierd thing is that mse can't update and comes with an error message that says that it has expired.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

You need to get a genuine copy of windows,this is why this stuff is occurring!

 

[PcEthuaist]

This is a genuine copy of windows, it is the copy that was OEM with the laptop

 

[ksiemb]

some folders and files on my desktop have dissapeared. I do not know when but probably yesterday or so. I also have 0 mb of free space on C drive, and I am not sure whether or not all of the missing folders are in my recycle bin or not because I forget what each folder contains. I also checked for malware with malwarebytes with safe mode. Another wierd thing is that mse can't update and comes with an error message that says that it has expired.

There are procedures for recovering Icons/folders etc, but are OS version dependent.

windirstat portable (CNET download) will show you where all the info on your hard drive is.

Truthfully though, you have classic symptoms of being infected.

 

[PcEthuaist]

Yeah, I suspect that myself. I just don't know what to do to find out if I truly am if no anti virus, anti malware, anti spyware programs can detect an infection. Another theiry could be that when I go to web pages on firefox which is in my c drive, that the webpages overwrite other things on my HD. What should be my next step from here to determining infection or not?

 

[ksiemb]

You could try a system restore, to a date, prior to when you noticed things happening. In my readings, I have seen that the Win restore is not that effective, because it does not backup all registry hives. I use erunt.

You could also attempt a repair from your Win Cd, or Recovery Console.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/307654

Sounds like you have used alternate methods of scanning for malware and/or viruses, and that is good.

 

[rickrick]

This is due to the attack of virus, malware. The solution to the problem is to use a specific reliable antivirus.

 

[aford10]

Since you have 0MB of free space on your C drive, you'll need to create an AV boot disc to scan the PC (unless you have another partition you can install an AV scanner to).

Here's the link to the AVG rescue disc. You can create a boot disc, and scan the PC for infections.
http://www.avg.com/us-en/avg-rescue-cd-download

Once that's done, run through the malware guide in my signature. That should remove any remaining infections. Though, from there, it's a matter of repairing any damage the infection has already caused.

 

[PcEthuaist]

All right this is very strange, some more things on the desktop have dissapeared ( I do not know which since other's in my household have used it without permission), and I have a gigabyte of free space on c drive. As I said, I have used your tutorial on removing viruses and nothing.

 

[Brian_12]

Hi,

Some virus/malware infections will hide all the files and shortcuts on your computer. To make your files visible again, download Unhide to your desktop.

Once downloaded, double-click on Unhide and allow it to run. It will remove the hidden attribute on all files and attempt to restore Quick Launch and Start Menu items to their proper location.

After that, try following the steps in this virus/malware removal guide: http://www.selectrealsecurity.com/malware-removal-guide

It contains instructions that will remove most malware infections.

I hope this helps you,
Brian