Advanced SystemCare totally hosed my PC

In all the 6 years I've been working with anti-malware and anti-virus software, and reg cleaners, etc, I have NEVER encountered any software that crippled my computer instead of helping it. Many softwares caution against the worst and so, we take backups, but the worst never ended up happening. With ASC, it was different.

I downloaded Advanced SystemCare 3.1 Free version yesterday. The download and install was easy enough. But just to be on the safe side, I do a system restore everytime before I install new software. So I did that this time too. During this time, the software asked me if I wanted to create another restore point. Why not? I clicked yes.

After I got around to using the software, I checked the option that said, create a backup of the entries being changed or deleted. Then I did a simple Scan and Repair in the "Maintain Windows" and "Diagnose System".

That was it. My internet connection was gone. I cant even PING my router! My system shutdown was now taking forever as well.

I tried rolling back the changes from the ASC backups. No luck. What's horrible is that for the FIRST time, my system Restore fails to work. I am a little angry, I admit, but even in an impartial state of mind, I would point to ASC as the culprit.


ASC might not be a harbinger of death for your system, but it certainly was for mine. Here a piece of software I'll NEVER use again or recommend to anyone.

 

Hello Probprince,

# Review tweaking of your Services;

# Run MBAM; Run your anti-virus.

PROROOTECT

 

While I didn't care for its previous incarnation (Advanced WindowsCare), I have Advanced SystemCare v3.1.2 Pro installed on my Vista SP1 and XP SP3 PCs and have been quite satisfied with it.

There's your real problem. Windows System Restore simply isn't reliable or nearly as comprehensive as backup imaging software. Whether it's ASC or any other program which "cleans" your registry and/or changes system settings, the potential for disaster exists. It's imperative before running this type of program to make a full backup image with imaging software (e.g. Acronis True Image, ShadowProtect, Paragon Drive Backup, Macrium Reflect, etc.) or Immediate System Recovery software (e.g. FirstDefense-ISR). If you'd made a genuine backup image of your system before installing or using ASC, you could simply restore your PC to that state. I've lost count of how many times Windows System Restore either didn't function at all or failed to correct the problem. I've rarely found the backup files created by registry cleaning programs to actually fix the problems such software caused. If you're going to use registry cleaner and system tune-up programs then IMHO backup imaging and/or ISR software is a must.

I'm sorry about your experience with ASC, but I encourage you to obtain and use some form of backup imaging software. There are plenty of threads on Wilders where free versions are discussed.

 

I completely agree with Karen's comments (esp about a disk-image backup), and imho any reg cleaner can create havoc. CCleaner's reg cleanup is considered by most to be very safe, yet it definitely trashed some of my entries that were required by Norton Internet Security (recovering its backup immediately fixed the problem).

 

prorootech, i'm sorry i dont understand what your reply means. My hardware is just fine. I have no viruses either. It's just ASC is too aggressive for me. I realize, from the other threads I read at Wilders about ASC, you are a big fan of it, but it's not for me.


karen and aaron, thx for your replies. I am in the process of manually changing back the changes. for some reason, my regualr settings were wiped out and ip autoconfiguration was enabled. Now, I just found out that all my networking settings have been messed with. Guess I'm looking at a reinstall of XP. Ugh....

Aaron, I have been using CCleaner for the last 3-4 years and it never went wrong for me. I learned an important lesson: Don't fix what isn't broken. Someone smack me up the head...

Karen, thx for the tip about backup imaging software. I guess I have to look more into it now. Which one do you suggest?

 

What I suggest is having two backup imaging programs (or one imaging and one ISR program) with backups stored on a second internal or an external hard drive (or both) as well as a program to regularly backup designated files and folders. If you only have a single hard drive, if it fails then your backup images stored on that drive aren't going to do you any good. Besides protection in case of a primary hard drive failure, another advantage of a second internal drive is backups can be created/restored faster than with an external drive connected by a USB or firewire cable. Some advantages of an external drive are the ability to store images and other backups for multiple PCs, having the backup available and independent of the PC, and the ability to store the backups in a different location in case the PC is stolen or destroyed.

As far as imaging software, ShadowProtect is highly regarded by many folks on Wilders. I believe it's the most expensive option and I found the company to be primarily interested in corporate users, not individuals. Personally, I use three imaging programs on each of my PCs, configured to automatically create backup images on different days with these images stored on internal and external hard drives. This is overkill but I obtained three of the six programs for free and the others at highly discounted prices; my cost for these six imaging programs is around the price of a single ShadowProtect license.

What's "best" is what works well on your PC and what you're comfortable with. Acronis True Image has a well-deserved reputation for being "buggy" but I haven't had any major problems with v9 and the last two versions of TI 2009. As the ATI sub-forum here on Wilders reveals, Acronis has a long history of releasing programs which obviously needed more beta testing. If you have a Seagate or Maxtor hard drive in or connected to your PC, you can obtain (from Seagate) a free stripped down version of True Image v10. It only makes full (not incremental), manual (not scheduled) backup images but I found it quite reliable.

All of Paragon's backup software which I've tried have worked fine and their tech support is among the best. Besides their pay versions, they offer Paragon Hard Disk Manager 8.5 Special and Drive Backup Express which are free. I use the former on my XP SP3 PC to make manual and automatic scheduled backups.

I'm also satisfied with Macrium Reflect. I use the full version (obtained for free from giveawayoftheday), but they also offer a free version. My sole qualm about Macrium Reflect is I find its method of scheduling backup images to be bizarre.

IMHO, FirstDefense-ISR is the hands down choice for the best ISR program. For reasons which defy credulity, the full version of FD-ISR is no longer available for purchase. FirstDefense Rescue is available from Horizon DataSys, but this stripped down version limits you to a single backup snapshot. The second choice is probably Rollback Rx but I have no personal experience with this. It functions in a very different manner than FD-ISR.

Besides backup imaging/ISR software, I recommend using a program to create regular scheduled backups of your important files/folders and store them on a hard drive other than your primary. I use Titan Backup but there are plenty of similar programs, free and shareware, which do a competent job.

 

Well, I just want to say that this is a well written introduction to probably the most important aspect of computer security: Recovery.

I also would recommend ShadowProtect Desktop, although it has admittedly a steep price (A trial and restoring an image is absolutely essential before buying anything). I have Acronis TI 9 on one computer which works well, but is rather slow.

 

Hello ProbPrince,

Have you WinSock problems? Look to: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/811259

See also Winsock XP Fix: http://www.spychecker.com/program/winsockxpfix.html

I have this possibility also in: Nemesis Anti-Spyware/Tools/WinSock Fix

...and in SREng ( System Repair Engineering )/System Repair/Advanced Repair/WinSock Reset.

In Advanced SystemCare 3, you have another possibility: click on Restore: here you have all Backups.

After all, mayby use PingPlotter Freeware: http://www.pingplotter.com/products.html - fast, effective and graphical traceroute-based troubleshooting - with multi-threaded query engine and 'copy as image' capability.

PRO

 

ProbPrince, have you read in the #Post4 on thread: 'Advanced WindowsCare 3 beta ...' this: 'On the first time: NOT TO FORGET 'Windows Services' these are your settings of services then: Right Click/Ignore This Problem - to be made with every Service - and your settings is saved in Ignore List! ...OK ...' ?

ProbPrince, have you read in the #Post34 on thread: 'Your NEW BEST Free Softwares ...' this: '... Windows Services [ Attention - save your setting Services! - easy: right-click ...]' ?

Advanced SystemCare is BETTER for everyone!

For You - also.

Yours PROROOTECT

PS. Have a Good Day.

 

osaban and karen, thx for your advice. I'm trying out some of the programs you mentioned

 

Imaging Utilities: ...must... mention.... Terabyte: http://www.terabyteunlimited.com/index.htm
probprince you sound like a competent user : check it out: amazing utilities.


next best imho for ease of use :Macrium

 

jv16 PowerTools 2009 has been released, like ccleaner totally reliable but much more features