ESET Knowledgebase

Solution

1. Bookmark/save this article
   Before proceeding we highly recommend that you bookmark this article in your web browser , print it for reference or view it on another device so that you can easily return to it and continue on to the next given step (for example, in step 4 you will have to access this article again after restarting your system in Safe Mode).
    
2. Repair Executable (.exe) File Association
   
Executable file associations specify how a computer opens most programs. Malware can sometimes disrupt file association and block certain programs. To repair executable (.exe) file associations:

1. Right-click the link below, select Save As (Save link as for Firefox users) from the context menu and select your Desktop as the save destination:
   
   
   • File association repair tool
     
     
2. Once the download is complete, navigate to your Desktop and double-click the exe-fix.bat; or right-click it and select Run as administrator.
   
   
3. Run ESET Rogue Application Remover (ERAR)
   The ESET Rogue Application Remover (ERAR) will detect and attempt to remove rogue applications that are infecting your computer or making undesired changes to your registry.
   
   
   • Run ERAR using the steps in the following article:
     
     
     • How do I use the ESET Rogue Application Remover (ERAR)?
        
   • If ERAR fails to remove a detected threat, or does not find one, continue to step 4 (run the ESET Online Scanner). 
    
4. Run the ESET Online Scanner (using default settings)
   The ESET Online Scanner looks at your system from a different perspective than a typical ESET Computer scan. To run the online scanner, follow the steps in the Knowledgebase article below: 
   
   
   • How do I run the ESET Online Scanner in Safe Mode with Networking?
    

   Important!

   Leave detected threats in the quarantine. Files in the quarantine will not run on your computer again as they are stored there in an inert, encrypted format that is useful for analysis.


5. Restart your computer and observe system behavior
   If, after completing steps 1-4, you restart your machine and no longer notice the issues / symptoms that brought you to this article, you do not have to continue to step 6. If your issue / symptoms persist, continue to step 6 below.
   

   NOTE:

   If steps 1-4 alleviated the symptoms you were experiencing, but you were unable to complete one of the steps above, we strongly recommend that you go back and attempt that step again.

6. Gather logs and contact ESET Customer Care
   To complete this step, send a copy of a Scan log, Detected Threats log and SysInspector log to ESET Customer Care following the steps in the Knowledgebase articles below: 
   
   
   • Create a SysInspector log
   • Access Computer scan and Detected threat logs