configuration updates on every windows bootup

[weirdami]

Is there a problem if a windows machine starts updating the configuration files every time you boot it up? What's the problem? I haven't been changing the configuration or installing anything lately.

[blobrana]

Hum,
something is obviously changing (them on the fly)!

Er, like a virus?

but it could be a newly installed program correcting a registry entry (that is reset when you reboot) or  McAfee updating ?

[Ilwrath]

but it could be a newly installed program correcting a registry entry (that is reset when you reboot)

Yeah... I've seen this happen a lot on Win95/98/ME machines.  Especially if the newly installed program was a custom (IEAK) version of Internet Explorer.  It seems to be the worst offender for causing this problem.

(I'm assuming you're running the 9x-family, WeirdAmi?  I haven't seen this happen on NT/2k/XP.)

I'd probably check the machine for viruses, spyware and browser "helpers" first, though.  If nothing shows up, download yourself a known-clean version of IE from Microsoft.  

(Pretty much, any time you want to shuffle around the bugs on your Windows machine, just update IE.  It's amazing how many bug fixes and new bugs are introduced each version!)

[graffias79]

Check in the registry that there is nothing stuck in:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce

or

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce

[weirdami]

(I'm assuming you're running the 9x-family, WeirdAmi? I haven't seen this happen on NT/2k/XP.)

It's Windows98 (not even SE). I can't even get windows update to work. I've tried to install SE over the top, but I get a message telling me to buy the upgrade version. I gave up on it and figured I should keep all the old software that works ("works") on this computer (very old) instead of looking for newer versions which require much newer, more powered machines.

I can't even do Real Media anymore because I tried to upgrade to the new version from G2 and the new version won't work on this machine and it uninstalled the old version. I only tried to upgrade because when I started the old version it kept telling meit was out of date and wouldn't work with the new real media files. Arg!

@graffias79
I checked those registry entries and they were empty.


Anyone know if there's a zonealarm-capable firewall for pentium 44mhz? :-)

[Linchpin]

pentium 44mhz

cant you get a better CPU to fit your mobo?

[Hammer]

It's Windows98 (not even SE). I can't even get windows update to work. I've tried to install SE over the top, but I get a message telling me to buy the upgrade version

I guess you tried to install Windows 98 SE OEM Edition on an existing Windows 98 installation.

One can do following;
1. Delete the old Windows directory
2. Format C drive.  

PS; Make sure you have a working DOS boot disk.

[Hammer]

cant you get a better CPU to fit your mobo?

Depands on the Socket i.e. Socket 4(60-66MHz), Socket 5 (75-133MHz) and Socket 7*(75-200MHz).

*Non-Super Socket 7.

[blobrana]

Hum,
Thats strange i haven`t ever come across a pentium 44Mhz ...

Socket 3?
overclocked PCI?
 

[weirdami]

cant you get a better CPU to fit your mobo?

I won't be upgrading this thing. Waiting for AOS4. :-)

[weirdami]

It was the Spybot Teatimer thing that monitors regeistry changes. I guess it needs to do something at bootup. I turned it off and no more weird updatings.



-edit-

And now I discover that the programs list in the "add/delete programs" thing is empty. It happened while I was uninstalling things to find the culprit. I'll try a defrag and see if that helps. Might have been all those reboots I had to do because that teatimer thing kept screwing up the uninstall of zonealarm. Which is how I found out it was the culprit, actually. :-(