DCOM and certificate issues?

 
(Kaspersky v18.x is intended for computers with a very old CPU that does not support SSE2; v19.x is for CPUs that support SSE2)

Kaspersky 18.x (2018) was actually the last to officially support Vista. Windows XP was also supported, so not really surprising that SSE2 was not required. Granted, I have seen a few reports of people using 19.x on Vista, so the OP could try that at his own risk. Certainly no version of Kaspersky after 2019 should be attempted on Vista.

.. .I haven't finished reviewing your Speccy snapshot, but I noticed you stopped updating your Vista SP2 OS on 13-May-2013 ...

Hi originaljgf:

 

The following eight security updates won't patch your Vista SP2 OS back to end of support on 11-Apr-2017 but if you want to make your system a bit safer while you're deciding how you want to proceed here's a good place to start.

Download links for five important patches [KB3205638 (rel. 13-Dec-2016) /  KB4012583 (rel. 14-Mar-2017) / KB4015380 (rel. 11-Apr-2017) / KB4019204 (rel. 09-May-2017) / plus KB4018271 (rel. 09-May-2017, recommended since you have IE9 installed)] are listed on page 1 of m#l's thread Updates not working, it has been searching for updates for hours in the MS Answers forum (see Note 1 in the footnotes).

Two of those standalone .msu installers, KB4019204 and KB4018271, have a release date of 09-May-2017 (i.e., after the end of extended support on 11-Apr-2017).  That is because Microsoft released five emergency out-of-band security updates for Vista SP2 in May and June of 2017 that patch vulnerabilities for the NSA-leaked exploits EnglishmanDentist, EsteemAudit and ExplodingCan. Once you have installed the above patches you should also install the remaining three critical updates [KB4018466 (rel.09-May-2017) / KB4021903 (rel. 13-Jun-2017) / KB4024402 (rel. 13-Jun-2017)].  Download links can be found in the MS Answers thread More Shadow Brokers Exploits Patched June 2017 for Win XP and Vista.
-----------
32-bit Vista Home Premium SP2 * Firefox ESR v52.9.0 * Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1.2522-1.0.365 * Speccy Portable v1.32.740 * HWiNFO Portable v7.06
HP Pavilion dv6835ca, Intel Core2Duo T5550 @ 1.83 GHz, 3 GB RAM, Western Digital Scorpio 256 GB SATA HDD, NVIDIA GeFoce 8400M GS
-----------
64-bit Win 10 Pro v20H2 build 19042.1110 * Firefox v91.0.0 * Microsoft Defender v4.18.2107.4 * Malwarebytes Premium v4.4.4.126-1.0.1413
Dell Inspiron 15 5584, Intel i5-8265U CPU, 8 GB RAM, Toshiba KBG40ZNS256G 256 GB NVMe SSD, Intel UHD Graphics 620
 

The following eight security updates won't patch your Vista SP2 OS back to end of support on 11-Apr-2017 but if you want to make your system a bit safer while you're deciding how you want to proceed here's a good place to start.

Download links for five important patches [KB3205638 (rel. 13-Dec-2016) /  KB4012583 (rel. 14-Mar-2017) / KB4015380 (rel. 11-Apr-2017) / KB4019204 (rel. 09-May-2017) / plus KB4018271 (rel. 09-May-2017, recommended since you have IE9 installed)] are listed on page 1 of m#l's thread Updates not working, it has been searching for updates for hours in the MS Answers forum (see Note 1 in the footnotes).

You mean we are still recommending speed-up patches even though there has been no Windows Update to speed up for a year now!?

KB4018271 was certainly not the last cumulative update for IE9, which continued to receive support for the sake of Server 2008 SP2 - not even the last update with an SHA-1 signature by a long shot. I could provide a link, but the OP has previously expressed a disinterest in IE.

Of course a Vista SP2 purist who was always suspicious of updates earmarked for Server 2008 SP2 has little choice but to be nonchalant about any vulnerabilities discovered within the last four years or more. Still, the omission of any reference to CVE-2019-0708 (BlueKeep) is astonishing, since Microsoft did recommend a patch for Vista.

Hopefully the OP has better ways to pass the time while deciding how best to obtain a more satisfactory OS.

Edited by Abzyx, 13 August 2021 - 11:53 AM.

Sorry for the dilatory response, medical tests occupied much of this past week.

 

Malwarebytes was removed after its trial period at end of June;  only thing it ever complained of was possible adware in a template installer for a payware aircraft for MS FlightSim 2004 (technically it is adware in that it shows ads for the company's other products while installing the templates).

 

Windows Defender disabled entire time I've had system.  Used Avira for several years, switched to Panda Cloud, went with Kaspersky when they released a free version;  it is running and scanning.  Same with Firewall, used PCTools on XP and Vista systems (doesn't work with Win7 or later).

 

"...a clean reinstall of Vista SP2, followed by a re-install of minimal third-party software ..."

If that were an option I would have already either:

- used the recovery drive and wiped out the HD, resetting the system to "off-the-shelf" condition, or

- reformat the drive and install Win7

 

But much of the software i want to retain, for the same reason I'm not just buying a new system.  (Since Win95 I have never reinstalled an OS,  solely because of that idiotic registry;  you cannot just reinstall the OS and get back to work, you must spend another month reinstalling and reconfiguring all your programs even though they still exist on the drive.   If I must do all that, I'll do it on a new computer ...until now.)

 

"...that is still compatible with Vista SP2..."

It all was, and is, compatible;  I used it then, and am using much of it now.   The additions made when first firing up the system in early June were simply Kaspersky updating itself, Java update, and installing UnHackMe. 

 

As previously stated, I have considered cloning the C drive and trying an update install of Win7 over Vista.  I know this is not recommended, but many do it every time a new OS is released.

 

"DriveGleam" is a simple utility for monitoring drive activity (https://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/drivegleam.html).

 

 hwinfo.LOG   130.55KB   7 downloads

 

Can you go to device manager and expand all entries and take screenshots and post them here?

 

 devman.png   611.83KB   1 downloads

Hi originaljgf:

 

So if I understand correctly:

• You have a Gateway T5246 eMachine with 2 GM of RAM (~ 90% in use) that has had multiple hardware upgrades since purchase.
• You currently have a 400 GB Hitachi HDT725040VLA360 that you've partitioned into multiple drives, and the C:\ (boot) partition has only 12 GB of free disk space (and I'm still not clear from your conversations <here> with nasdaq if your VSS error was fixed and you are now able to create restore points, assuming you have enough free disk space to do so).
• You don't want to upgrade your Firefox v28 browser (rel. 18-Mar-2014) to Firefox ESR v52.9.0 and/or create a new Firefox user profile with the latest Adblock Plus v3.11.1 as your only browser extension to see if that stops your browser hijack and/or fixes your file download problems.
• You don't want to upgrade your PC Tools Firewall Plus from v6.0.x.x (v6.0.0.88 rel. ~ 26-May-2010) to v7.0.0.123.
• You don't want to upgrade your Thunderbird email client from 17.0.4 (rel. 11-Mar-2013) to v38.5.0 (which seems to be the last Win XP/Vista version according to the support article <here>)
• You don't want to uninstall any software that you don't use on a regular basis [e.g., including outdated utilities like your CCleaner v3.22 (rel. 24-Aug-2012); note that CCleaner Free v5.64 (rel. 03-Mar-2020, Portable version available at https://download.ccleaner.com/portable/ccsetup564.zip) is the final release compatible with Win XP and Vista]
• You don't want to uninstall Java RE or the Adobe Flash Player (which reached end-of-life on 31-Dec-2020 per the Adobe announcement <here>) which are known to be vulnerable to exploit.
• You don't want to re-install Malwarebytes Free v3.5.1-1.0.365 and run another Threat scan to see if it can find any malware or PUPs missed by Kaspersky (which would allow you to post your Malwarebytes scan log along with a fresh set of FRST logs in the Malwarebytes Windows Malware Removal Help & Support board per their instructions <here>).
• You don't want to manually install any .msu standalone installers for your Vista SP2 OS (last updated 13-May-2013), including the five critical security updates released in May/June 2017 that are listed in More Shadow Brokers Exploits Patched June 2017 for Win XP and Vista.
• You haven't tested with a new Windows user profile with Administrator rights or tried resetting your Hosts file back to it's default value

You also said in post # 19 that you have a working Win 7 SP1 machine but that you don't know if it "will run another year, another week, or will die as i type this;  hence the desire to resuscitate the Vista system." so it doesn't sound like your main computer is in imminent danger of failing.

 

I guess I'm finally out of suggestions.  As I noted before, I'm not a hardware specialist so hopefully cryptodan will be able to find something relevant in your HWiNFO v7.06 log that I've missed.
-----------
32-bit Vista Home Premium SP2 * Firefox ESR v52.9.0 * Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1.2522-1.0.365 * Speccy Portable v1.32.740 * CCleaner Free Portable v5.64.7613
HP Pavilion dv6835ca, Intel Core2Duo T5550 @ 1.83 GHz, 3 GB RAM, Western Digital Scorpio 256 GB SATA HDD, NVIDIA GeFoce 8400M GS
-----------
64-bit Win 10 Pro v20H2 build 19042.1110 * Firefox v91.0.0 * Microsoft Defender v4.18.2107.4 * Malwarebytes Premium v4.4.4.126-1.0.1413
Dell Inspiron 15 5584, Intel i5-8265U CPU, 8 GB RAM, Toshiba KBG40ZNS256G 256 GB NVMe SSD, Intel UHD Graphics 620

Edited by lmacri, 16 August 2021 - 08:54 AM.

Can you go to device manager and expand all entries and take screenshots and post them here?

 
devman.png

I would definitely add more ram to your system and install a more up to date system or switch to Linux.

As previously stated, I have considered cloning the C drive and trying an update install of Win7 over Vista.  I know this is not recommended, but many do it every time a new OS is released.

Too bad the drive was not cloned or imaged before the OS became corrupt. I have to side with the naysayers: Not sure I ever heard of a successful in-place upgrade from Vista to Windows 7, which is one reason I stayed with Vista for so long. (I reinstalled Vista in 2015, and yes it was quite a chore even though Windows Update still worked on Vista at that time.) I could really only suggest a clean install of Windows 7, or perhaps Linux, or a newer PC. If you have a smartphone, you could just use that for web browsing.

"...so it doesn't sound like your main computer is in imminent danger of failing."

 

Daily vid driver crashes, reinstalling drivers at least once a week, games requiring 3D functions either have abysmal frame rates or crash, occasional white screen when online which may clear up or may require system restart.  When/if we get the Vista system fixed, I wipe the HD on this laptop and give it to anyone who wants to play with it.

 

This is like a car with a rod knocking;  you may drive it like that for another 5000 miles, or the engine may blow before you leave the driveway;  but you don't wait for the engine to fail before planning a replacement.

 

"Not sure I ever heard of a successful in-place upgrade from Vista to Windows 7"

That's what I've heard for thirty years - don't install W98 over W95 ... all the way down to don't install W10 over Win8.  But ...Microsoft does it every day;  how many people running Win10 will get W11 sent down the internet as an "upgrade" install?  How many got W10 this way, whether over Vista, Win7, or Win8? (it was available as an upgrade to all three)

"I would definitely add more ram to your system"

 

This mobo has a max of 2gig (I looked into that years ago when upgrading the cpu).

 

"and install a more up to date system"

 

If that were a viable option I'd have reformated the HD and installed Win7 two months ago.

 

"or switch to Linux."

 

Oh, that is something I've wanted to do for years;  if i could there would be nothing Microsoft on my system at all.  But, like many people, probably half my computer usage is games, and i've read too many threads over the years of people trying to get various windows games working in Linux;  usually with comments like, "it works, except...", or, "I've got it working, but....".   And it's all the "except" and "but" I don't want to deal with.

This shows max ram being 4gig

http://www.ascendtech.us/gateway-mcp61sm2ma-4006232r-motherboard_i_mb64gat4006232r.aspx

"You don't want to upgrade your Firefox v28 browser (rel. 18-Mar-2014) to Firefox ESR v52.9.0 and/or create a new Firefox user profile with the latest Adblock Plus v3.11.1 as your only browser extension to see if that stops your browser hijack and/or fixes your file download problems.

• You don't want to upgrade your PC Tools Firewall Plus from v6.0.x.x (v6.0.0.88 rel. ~ 26-May-2010) to v7.0.0.123.
• You don't want to upgrade your Thunderbird email client from 17.0.4 (rel. 11-Mar-2013) to v38.5.0 (which seems to be the last Win XP/Vista version according to the support article <here>)
• You don't want to uninstall any software that you don't use on a regular basis"

I never said any of that.

 

But look back through this thread, I've had a dozen things thrown at me to try, with no priorities.  Some I have tried to dismiss as not being viable in my situation, others I question their efficacy at this stage.  But proceed on the concept that everything was working fine when this system went into storage, two months ago I bring it out, install a new PS, and, over the next week or so, discover some anomalies ...though 99% of the software, from word processors, to graphics editors, to games is still working fine.  So I find it hard to believe there is "massive corruption" when those few  issues are mainly related to the browsers and java.  Of everything offered, what has priority?  What should I do first?

 

"You don't want to uninstall any software that you don't use on a regular basis"

Define "regular basis";  is it not easier to leave them in place than to install, use, uninstall?   In my toolbox are tools I use maybe once a year, but i leave them there (and it's more crowded than my HD).

 

As for all the updating, I am more interested in finding the problems with what I have, then consider what needs to be updated.  (Long a proponent of Firefox, i have come to hate it;  it seems that rather than compatibility Mozilla's major concern with each new version is to make absolutely certain it is completely, across the board, incompatible with every existing plug-in and extension, so the end user spends half their time trying to find new versions, usually not as acceptable as the old ones, and then in a couple of months gets to do it all over again.)  Install a new Firefox, and the problem migrates to it, then what?

 

I rarely use Thunderbird, keeping it configured was more trouble than just accessing my email accounts individually (and I'm down to just three now anyway).

 

Never new there was a later version of PCTools Firewall;  it was not compatible with anything later than Vista, and was purchased by Symantec to become part of Norton Suite, so figured what I had was the last.  But for now, I disabled the firewall and it made no difference to the issues, so enabled it again.

Edited by originaljgf, 19 August 2021 - 07:01 PM.

This shows max ram being 4gig

http://www.ascendtech.us/gateway-mcp61sm2ma-4006232r-motherboard_i_mb64gat4006232r.aspx

 

 

Interesting, I d/l'd a manual some years  ago and it said max 2gig;  also wrote to supplier online and was told 2-1gig or 1-2gig.  I'll be irritated indeed if I could have had 4gig in there all this time.

"You currently have a 400 GB Hitachi HDT725040VLA360 that you've partitioned into multiple drives, and the C:\ (boot) partition has only 12 GB of free disk space (and I'm still not clear from your conversations <here> with nasdaq if your VSS error was fixed and you are now able to create restore points, assuming you have enough free disk space to do so)."

 

It has long been my practice to have a C drive or partition solely for the OS and a few programs that insist on being installed there.  Another drive for "productive" software such as word processors and graphics editors, a third for games, and a fourth as a "warehouse".

 

I've no idea what VSS is (Volume Shadow Service tells me nothing), or whatever error was associated with it;  I ran the diagnostics requested and posted the reports.

 

 

FWIW, my comments  here are not being argumentative, merely seeking enlightenment;  I look at things from engineering logic ...and have long questioned computer "logic".

This shows max ram being 4gig

http://www.ascendtech.us/gateway-mcp61sm2ma-4006232r-motherboard_i_mb64gat4006232r.aspx

 
 
Interesting, I d/l'd a manual some years  ago and it said max 2gig;  also wrote to supplier online and was told 2-1gig or 1-2gig.  I'll be irritated indeed if I could have had 4gig in there all this time.

EMachines modified the motherboard to only 2gig max.