Solved cannot open combofix.exe

[Jonathan_King]

Hey everyone,
I have one computer running XP Home x86, and I am certain it has a virus. I had ComboFix in a folder of utilities I downloaded, but when I tried to run ComboFix.exe, nothing happened. I know the file is not corrupted, because when I run it on my Windows 7 machine, it will open up (but give me a compatibility error message). Why will the XP machine not respond when I try to run the program?

 

[Tews]

Have you run a full scan with your anti virus???

 

[zigzag3143]

Have you run a full scan with a current virus app like mse, or eset?

 

[Jonathan_King]

Yes, I have, with both AVG and Threatfire, and nothing turns up.

 

[Tews]

Delete the file, then reinstall it... have you made a backup of all your files?

 

[Jonathan_King]

No, I have not backed up at all. What file should I delete? ComboFix? It is not an "installable" program; it is a stand-alone executable.

 

[ultraplanet]

Try renaming combofix.exe to something else like say sally.exe it doesn't matter what you call it. Some malware writers configure their wares to watch for combofix and prevent it from running. You should download a fresh copy of combofix first though.

 

[Lunarpancake]

run in safemode also try renaming as someone above said

 

[gamepro127]

Hey everyone,
I have one computer running XP Home x86, and I am certain it has a virus. I had ComboFix in a folder of utilities I downloaded, but when I tried to run ComboFix.exe, nothing happened. I know the file is not corrupted, because when I run it on my Windows 7 machine, it will open up (but give me a compatibility error message). Why will the XP machine not respond when I try to run the program?

DOWNLOAD Thank you for downloading Malwarebytes Anti-Malware from Download.com

After downloading, install the file. Now run "Malwarebytes anti-malware" by clicking the desktop icon created during install. Now update it, and do a quick scan (Cant remember what to click as I only have ESET for security). Remove everything it finds and reboot.
Finally, do an online scan: Free ESET Online Antivirus Scanner

+Rep if I helped! I will try to +rep you back!

 

[Jonathan_King]

Thanks everyone, I will try each of these and then get back to you. I appreciate your help.

 

[Jonathan_King]

Ok, Thanks everyone. I download ComboFix again, and sure enough, it was the virus that was blocking it. A simple change in name solved it. Thanks again for your help!

 

[Dinesh]

even smitfraudfix is a good spyware and virus remover.