No problem. You are in the UK, why not pack it up for the night and get back on it tomorrow. I am almost sure the issue is with the Daemon Tools driver, not malware, and that it can conflict with other drivers on your system. It might even have something to do with the sound issue as well, we'll see. I'll be gone in about an hour myself, and be back in the morning.

I uninstalled Daemon tools and deleted the sptd.sys file.

I then rebooted and ran RKR again but it froze again. However this time two more issues were raised

HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Prefetcher\TracesProcessed


HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Prefetcher\TracesSuccessful

it takes around 12-15 minutes to get scan and get to where it says "Cleaning Up". It then freezes and no other activity happens. All programs are shut down and the internet disconnected. I have just reconnected and It has now been on the cleaning up stage for around 30mins.

I'll try again and leave it on over night.

I woke up this morning to an error message informing me that RKR had encountered a problem and had to close down.

I also just tried to run GMER again and it threw the same BSOD.

This is very strange. Have you had other issues with this install of XP (other than the sound which I know isn't working)? I have seen situations with new installs of XP that have gone bad somewhere during the install and then start to develop strange issues.

When and exactly how did you do this install? Give me a brief step by step that you used. There is a definite proper sequence that one needs to follow for the install to go right every time.

BTW, I rarely see issues like this with RkR.

I assume you have all your data backed up on the external drive. Correct?

Hi sorry for the late reply. I just followed the usual method....

1. I backed everything up & inserted my XP CD before powering down the PC. (This is an original fully licensed XP CD)

2. I chose the boot from the CD drive option when promted

3. I chose the C partition for installation of XP.

4. I then chose to format the drive using the more thorough option (not quick option)

5. Followed the instructions and it was installed.

Hmm not sure what else to tell you.

& yes you are correct all my files are backed up on the external drive.

Also I did find the PC quite slow when I re installed XP. In particular scrolling down in internet explorer was very slow and jerky. I downloaded NVIDIA 7500 display adapters and everything seemed to work much better. Obviously I do not have anything to compare with as previously I was running Vista

I recommend that you make sure your data is backed up and then reinstall. I have a gut feeling that your install of XP went wrong somewhere. XP is quite sensitive to the sequence in which you do a full reformat and reinstall.

Before you do that, though, what kind of installer CD do you have? Full retail (the one with Microsoft logo holographs on it), or an OEM installer? And, what SP? I need some more info and I will give you a step by step for doing a fresh reinstall, including all the things you need to download before trying a reinstall.

I am also going to want you to run some hardware diagnostics first to make sure that your hardware is working properly and that we download all the proper drivers and security software before doing the reinstall.

One other thing, you mentioned having a question about your drives. What is that?

Hi Bruiser,

I have the full reinstall version of XP complete with SP 2, it is a gold disc with holographs on it.

I have backed up my docs and ready to go.

The question about my drives was regarding removable drives E through to J. Has Daemon created these drives? I know I have 7 USB slots (that I can count anyway). Two at the front and five at the back. However when ever I plug in a pen drive windows assigns it a different drive letter altogether. Also these drives never go they are constantly there but have no data associated with them. Drives associated to my usb flash drives go once i disconnect my drive, and these drives never go. How can i get rid of them? I suspect it has something to do with Daemon but can not be sure, as you can tell I am only an intermediate user and base my guesses on only limited knowledge.

Thanks

No, it isn't anything to do with Daemon Tools. You have an internal built in (I think) flash card reader for Compact Flash Cards, etc., in your system case. Maybe on the front side or in a drive bay? XP sees that hardware as hard drives, at one per slot, and assigns them drive letters. The way to get rid of them is to disconnect the card reader, but then once you do connect it they will return.

Pen drives are assigned drive letters depending on the sequence in which they are plugged in. There's not much you can do about that.

Having said that, here is a nice utility that you can use to clean out USB devices that you are not using but which the system remembers:

http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/usb_devices_view.html

Good on the installer CD that makes things easy. I will post some detailed instructions later, but before I do I need some better hardware information, so we can predownload all the needed hardware drivers, and store them on your external USB drive or a pen drive. I assume you already have the installers for your security software saved on the external drive, but if not, grab copies of those as well. Finally also download the IE7 installer from here:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/downloads/default.mspx

Next, please download PCWizard from here:

http://www.cpuid.com

Install and run it. The first screen is a summary. Right click on the upper right hand panel, choose Select All, then Copy and then paste that info into your next post. Do the same thing with Devices and Multimedia. You will find them by simply pointing your mouse over the icons.

XP really needs to be installed in a definite sequence, or else you can start to develop problems later. It's simple once you have done it, but if you haven't mastered that sequence, doing things out of sequence or missing a step can cause future issues, and that may be what happened here. Also doping it the way I will suggest minimizes the potential for becoming infected by malware during the installation process.

Mainboard : Packard Bell BV Cuba MS-7301
Chipset : VIA P4M890
Processor : Intel Core 2 Duo E4300 @ 1800 MHz
Physical Memory : 1024 MB (1 x 1024 DDR2-SDRAM )
Video Card : Nvidia Corp GeForce 7500 LE
Hard Disk : ST3250820AS (250 GB)
Hard Disk : Seagate (320 GB)
DVD-Rom Drive : Optiarc DVD RW AD-5170A
Monitor Type : AOC International AOC - 16 inches
Network Card : VT82C570 MV IDE Controller VT6102 Rhine II Fast Ethernet Adapter
Operating System : Microsoft Windows XP Professional 5.01.2600 Service Pack 3, v.3264
DirectX : Version 9.0c

Type of mouse : PS/2 Compatible Mouse
Type of keyboard : Standard 101/102-Key or Microsoft Natural PS/2 Keyboard
Joystick : None
HID Devices : No
TWAIN Device : HP Photosmart 3200 TWAIN
TWAIN Device : WIA-HP Photosmart 3200
WIA Device : HP Photosmart 3200
SCSI Host #0 : 1 Device(s)
Disque : Generic USB CF Reader USB Device
Disque : Generic USB MS Reader USB Device
Disque : Generic USB SD Reader USB Device
Disque : Generic USB SM Reader USB Device
Trusted Platform Module : No


--------------------------------------------------


Device Audio : High Definition Audio Controller
Device multimedia : AVIVideo
Device multimedia : CDAudio
Device multimedia : Sequencer
Device multimedia : WaveAudio
Device multimedia : MPEGVideo
Audio Compression : Microsoft IMA ADPCM CODEC
Audio Compression : Microsoft ADPCM CODEC
Audio Compression : Microsoft CCITT G.711 A-Law and u-Law CODEC
Audio Compression : Microsoft GSM 6.10 Audio CODEC
Audio Compression : DSP Group TrueSpeech(TM) Software CODEC
Audio Compression : Microsoft G.723.1 CODEC
Audio Compression : Windows Media Audio
Audio Compression : Sipro Lab Telecom ACELP.net audio codec
Audio Compression : Indeo® audio software
Audio Compression : Fraunhofer IIS MPEG Layer-3 Codec (advanced)
Audio Compression : Messenger Audio Codec
Audio Compression : Microsoft PCM Converter
Video Compression : Cinepak Codec by Radius
Video Compression : Intel 4:2:0 Video V2.50
Video Compression : Intel Indeo(R) Video R3.2
Video Compression : Intel Indeo(R) Video R3.2
Video Compression : Intel Indeo® Video 4.5
Video Compression : Intel IYUV codec
Video Compression : Microsoft RLE
Video Compression : Microsoft Video 1
Video Compression : Microsoft YUV
Video Compression : Microsoft YUV
Video Compression : Toshiba YUV Codec
Video Compression : Microsoft YUV
Video Compression : Microsoft H.263 Video Codec
Video Compression : Microsoft H.261 Video Codec
Video Compression : Indeo® video 5.10

Hi,

OK, here we go. You should print these instructions so you have them handy during all the following steps.

1. Please download and save the following items to one of your external devices:

VIA Hyperion Pro Driver Package: http://www.viaarena.com/default.aspx?PageID=420&OSID=1&CatID=1070

Drivers for your HP Photosmart

nVidia's latest drivers

Network: http://www.viaarena.com/default.aspx?PageID=420&OSID=1&CatID=1190&SubCatID=125

Sound drivers: http://www.viaarena.com/default.aspx?PageID=420&OSID=1&CatID=1010&SubCatID=104

2. Please follow these instructions carefully:

Open Notepad by clicking on Start, then Run, and entering the word:

Notepad

in the run box. Next tap <Enter>. Open the Notepad Format Menu and uncheck Word Wrap. Then copy and paste the following code in GREEN to Notepad:

I followed your instructions to the letter. All went well until i tried to install the audio drivers. I was given an error message saying "Sorry the installer wizard could not find the supported hardware in your system....Still no sound.

Also how would update my keyboard drivers currently when I press shift+2 I get an @ sign when I should be getting a " sign

Thanks

Oops I forgot to metion that I couldnt install the network drivers either. However after downloading all critical updates for windows, I was asked to download the VIA network drivers as an optional update. So no probs.

I then tried to download another audio driver linked below.

http://www.viaarena.com/default.aspx?PageID=420&OSID=1&CatID=1010&SubCatID=154&Old=1

It started working and thought I had cracked it when a message suudnely popped up telling me that winows had found new hardware..and audio device. Sadly 15 seconds or so later an error message popped up saying that it could not find the HD audio device!?!

Confused!

Oh and thanks again for your patience and help

Hi,

On the shift <2> did you set all the Regional and Language settings in its' Control Panel for the UK? I think you have the US settings there, because on US keyboards, that is an @.

On the network drivers, that driver set installer probably needed the ethernet cable plugged in. In any case, XP saw the network natively, and you have it working, so no big deal.

Sound, sigh! OK on that page there are several different driver sets. I assume you installed the latest, but did you install the "VIA HD Audio driver package" or "VIA HD Audio Codec Windows Driver" which appears lower down on that page? Whichever you installed, try the other one. There are also two diagnostics, one for each of those driver sets, could you run them and let's see what they report. Finally, open Device Manager, and see if the sound is listed in the sound section of Device Manager, and if there are any yellow or red error marks next to anything.

If that still won't find the hardware, and you are sure the on-board sound is enabled in your BIOS, then the only other possibility at this point is that your motherboard is having issues. We have really eliminated everything else. Since that system is probably still under warranty, I would contact the manufacturer and request them to replace the motherboard for you. If you don't want to go through that hassle, or the system is out of warranty, then I would suggest getting a sound card, and turn off the on-board sound in the bios. Fortunately, they aren't all that expensive to buy. We can get them here from on-line stores for as little as $8, and up, with a decent selection for under $30.

Now, why that part would fail just at the same time as you switched from Vista to XP, that's a puzzle I just can't answer, but strange things do happen and it might just be a coincidence.