windows update keeps shutting off

[Louds3]

hey all,

my girlfriends machine is a Dell Dimension 5100, windows XP only on a few months old. I keep enabling Windows Update and it keeps shutting itself off. I first suspected a virus or some kind of malware, Ad-Aware and Bitdefender both came back with nothing. She used to have Norton AV Suite thing but I removed it (all of it but this Norton Security Center console that notifies you when something is unsecure, which is how i keep knowing that windows update is off). Anyone have any ideas? I can't think of anything and a google search didn't return much.

steve

[EzyStvy]

Majority of the time, updates only come out on the second Tuesday of the month...

Anyway, check her "services" and made sure AutoUpdate AND BAckground Intelligent are turned on.

[Louds3]

hmm, just checked it out and both are on. this is very odd, maybe a call to Dell is in order but I doubt they will know anything.

steve

[GaryRouth]

This may have to do with the fact that Norton disables the Windows XP Security Center in favor of it's own version (as you've noticed). It changes several registry values as it does this.

Norton is particular about the order of uninstallation for some of its products. Try uninstalling the Norton Security Center (if all the other Norton software has been uninstalled, it seems logical that the Norton Security Center should go too). Disconnect from networks while you try this. Then try re-enabling the Windows Security Center from the Windows XP Control Panel. Then try re-enabling the Automatic Updates & see if things stay put. If you don't have any other firewall running, of course make sure that the Windows XP firewall is running.

Best of luck
. . . Gary

[. . . might want to run a double-check on your local antivirus by scanning over at TrendMicro's HouseCall or Panda's ActiveScan, just to make sure nothing was missed . . . ]

[Louds3]

Thanks Gary, I'll give this a shot tomorrow. Bitdefender has caught a virus at c:\kc which I deleted the other day, comes up at Trojan:BehavesLike.LowZones so I deleted everything it found. I got rid of everything Norton finally tonight, I'll try the rebuild tomorrow if that doesn't help.

Part of the problem is that my girlfriend and her sister use the computer and everytime a ZoneAlarm or MS Anti-spyware warning message pops up they think "what the heck does this mean!" and click ALLOW! kind self defeating huh?! oh well

steve

[scomac]

Have you run Spybot Search and Destroy? There are spyware components loaded into the registry that Ad-Aware misses that shut down autoupdate, security center, and autonotify. Spybot will fix the problem and Ad-Aware won't, just in case it's not Norton that is disabling them.

Scomac

[glc]

Sounds like a candidate for an Ewido scan.

[Louds3]

that's what I thought too so I tried it, didn't work. I've tried Ewido, Spybot. MS Antispyware (which is always on anyway), Ad-aware as well as Bitdefender and Trend Micro House call online. i will check it again tomorrow when i go back over there. thanks for the suggestions

steve