help clean computer

Hey yall. Somebody my mom works with wants me to come look at their computer this week to fix it, but I don't know what needs fixing. I know that last week it crashed and I'm pretty sure they got it set up again, but I don't know exactly what the problem is (I assume its virus related). I'm pretty sure its a vista box but I'm not sure. Whats some good free anti virus, spyware, etc that I can intall and run off of either a flash drive or if I need to I can run them off my old iPod (that I use for external storage now). I would rather not install things on their drive but if I have to I could. They also probably have mcaffe or something similar so I don't know if that would effect anything. Also any good diagnostics and such programs? Looking for free stuff btw. Thanks.

 

If you're in need of some free anti-virus scanning/software, you could either download AVG Anti-virus or Avast! Both run very well for a free anti-virus program. Though I do have an anti-virus program that runs off a USB, I'd rather not link to it as it is not from a credible source. AVG or Avast should suffice as an anti-virus program. If you absolutely do not want to install software on the computer, you can always do an online scan from Trend Micro. Trend Micro's HouseCall usually gets the job done when you are not able to install an anti-virus program directly onto a computer. It's a bit slow, but it gets the job done.

As for anti-spyware/malware/rootkit detection, removal, and prevention, I'd recommend Spybot Search and Destroy or Ad-Aware 2008. Both of these, in the past, have helped me immensely in removing spyware. They are both also free and are very effective for a freeware.

Make sure you also update their system via Windows Update. People sometimes forget to update their computer regularly and end up missing important updates/security patches for their computer. This not only solves some issues but also prevents them as well.

That's all of the useful freeware programs that I can think of off the top of my head. All of the other ones I normally use include software that costs money (in this case, I have it billed to my company.) I'll update you if there's other programs that I forgot to mention.

@edit: Some people here have suggested using Avira AntiVir, which have been said to have higher detection rates than both AVG and Avast. Though I have not tried it myself, it has pretty high ratings, so I'll admit that it might be better. Might want to try that out.

@edit2: You might want to visit this for other good programs that you could use (that is, if the issue is virus/spyware/malware related). Click here. This thread has been started by your fellow NBR members and it's indeed very useful.

 

If its virus/malware related(it could just be a driver/hardware issue), then installing the programs is recommended.

Also, take a look at John's Malware guide(no relation to any NBR forum members ). Its mentioned in the sticky and is a very comprehensive guide on Virus, Adware, Spyware & Trojan Removal. Make sure you read the guide(and 'readme' document in the zip) all the way through.