Solved Which programs you recommend for : Anti-Malware , Registry Cleaner , D

[Maniax2]

Just did a clean install wanna start fresh with the usual programs to keep Computer stable , not sure how well have this years are the programs i used before doing nowadays so asking the community for recommendations i previously used:

Anti Malware = Spybot Search & Destroy (is it anti-malware or just anti spyware?)
Registry Cleaner = Ccleaner
Driver Finder = iObit Driver Booster 2
Defrag = Auslogisk Defrag

i like free versions that are capable , are this still the best ? any other utility ive missed to keep pc clean and stable?

pd: getting a partition for windows 8.1 pro will this programs work on that other OS as great as in 7 pro?

 

[Layback Bear]

Do your self and your compute a favor.
DON'T use a IOBit programs or you will be doing another Clean install.

IOBit programs do more damage to a system than they do good.

CCleaner is a good program. I use it often at the default settings except it does not start until I tell it to.
Like any program that messes with the registry you must have the proper knowledge and use it very carefully if at all.

I know very little about Spybot.
I use Malwarebytes Premium along with Microsoft Security Essentials.

My choice for anti spy ware I use Super Anti Spyware on demand (Free)

Microsoft Security Essentials - Microsoft Windows

https://www.malwarebytes.org/lp/lp4/02_r/?gclid=CLjgz5TFtMQCFUQ8gQodMGMAAg

SUPERAntiSpyware - AntiAdware. AntiSpyware. AntiMalware.

 

[oscer1]

First thing do not use registry cleaners they can do more harm then good. Malwarebytes for malware.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

Anti Malware = Spybot Search & Destroy (is it anti-malware or just anti spyware?)
Registry Cleaner = Ccleaner
Driver Finder = iObit Driver Booster 2
Defrag = Auslogisk Defrag

I'll give you what I think is the general consensus here on this forum:

Spybot S and D: don't hear much about it compared to 5 years ago. It may still be OK, but it's faded in popularity. Malwarebytes is very popular on this forum and elsewhere. There's a free version and an annual subscription version of about $25 a year I think. The latter provides real time protection; the former can scan and remove malware, but does not keep bad stuff from getting on your PC.

CCleaner: excellent program, but most would tell to avoid the registry cleaner portion as well as all registry cleaners. If you insist on a registry cleaner, CCleaner is the one least likely to make you regret it.

Driver Finder: generally pointless or inaccurate or unnecessary. iObit programs in particular are frowned on as often lead to problems.

Defrag: most regard Windows built in as fine, but Auslogics is OK if you want another program. Some defraggers can cause problems with Windows System Restore if I recall correctly.

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

I prefer Avast free for my AV (Anti-Virus program). However, it does have a recent bug (fixable, I recently learned, but not a real concern as long as one is using less than half of the space on the drive with the OS installed) for people who already have it and install the latest upgrade but, supposedly, that doesn't happen to people who do a new install. Right now, because of the Avast bug It's not supposed to get permanently fixed until June), I'm not recommending any particular AVs other than to stay away from MSE (it consistently ranks at the bottom of AV tests), McAfee (it ranks low in AV tests and is a resource hog), and Panda (it has a recent bug that bricks computers and, although that has supposedly been fixed now, it might still be possible to download a buggy version). Whatever you choose, do not install and run more than one AV at a time.

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware (MBAM) is a program that can be run with an AV to hopefully catch anything the AV might miss. MBAM free is a good backup for an AV but one has to manually update the definitions and do manual scans. The paid version can be set to update and scan automatically but you will have to buy a new version every year. I highly recommend using MBAM, free, or paid, with whatever AV you choose.

I also like Spybot Search and Destroy free. It is a good antispyware program. I do not recommend the paid version; it includes a poor AV. Spybot free does have to be manually updated and scans have to be manually run. Also, make sure you get Spybot from the source since, a while back, there was a clone of Spybot circulating around that actually was spyware. Many experts consider Spybot to be malware because of past experience with that clone.

Super AntiSpyware (SAS) comes in bot a free and paid version. The free version has to have updates and scans done manually. The paid version works full time and does scans and updates automatically but has to be renewed annually.

Web of Trust (WOT) is a browser add on that rates the safety of websites and will alert you if you try to go a dodgy or downright unsafe one.

While CCleaner is popular with geeks, I personally do not like it and do not recommend to newbies as it can be pretty aggressive, sometimes to point of doing more harm than good. I prefer Glary Utilites; it is much safer and has yet to cause any harm on my computers. Besides cleaning the registry of empty entries, it will also clean out browsing history and unused temp files. It also has a variety of other tools that simplify or supplement many Windows tools, such as managing startup programs and completely removing programs. I run daily scans with it.

Windows Defragmenter is fine; I do not feel there is a need for third party defraggers. Just don't set an SSD to autodefrag.

 

[Maniax2]

thank you very much for the info , i see now what you say about iObit , felt like a good program ages ago havent really used it much now i noticed that some drivers given by the program are not correct , regarding CCleaner i feel is ok and i keep good track of backup registry just in case...

i guess im ok with spybot + malwarebytes .

ill check about the system restore issues with this defrag that i have.

antivirus necesary this days?

pd: ty for the WoT site

 

[LMiller7]

Some form of antivirus is necessary more than ever before. Malicious software has become very sophisticated in recent years and combating it is a difficult problem. Of course Microsoft has it's own Microsoft Security Essentials which many consider sufficient, others do not. I will not debate the point.

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Some form of antivirus is necessary more than ever before. Malicious software has become very sophisticated in recent years and combating it is a difficult problem. Of course Microsoft has it's own Microsoft Security Essentials which many consider sufficient, others do not. I will not debate the point.

Coward ! I don't blame you, though; it is a hot button topic. As much as I feel MSE is the worst of the worst, I do have to admit it beats the holy hairy heck out of nothing.

 

[Victor S]

You should learn to image your system. I installed Win 7 once - 6 years ago. See http://www.sevenforums.com/backup-restore/
I've been using MSE for about 4 years. The few times a virus got through, it was a simple matter of restoring an image.
But systems go haywire for other reasons too. An image of a clean system solves all ills.
You do have to be willing to organize you data.
I use CCleaner for clearing caches.