The .NET Framework is an add-on component to Microsoft’s Windows Operating System. It is closely integrated with technologies such as ASP.Net and just about anything with the .NET attachment in place. So what purpose does it serve? The framework is designed with developers in mind, making it possible to create code that serves programs with a wide range of technologies and additional Windows services. It is popular for its security and usability, while being free to obtain if you have a genuine copy of Windows to use it on. The biggest mistake that people make when downloading their .NET Framework and expecting to be up and running comes from the lack of an environment to serve the structure. .NET requires the use of Microsoft IIS. IIS - or Internet Information Services - is an advanced web server, produced by Microsoft to provide an infrastructure for programs such as Windows Server. If you are trying to run the .NET Framework without IIS installed and operational, you will be in for lots of errors. IIS is fundamental to the framework and without it, you’ll be left with nothing. Another issue stems from situations where IIS has been uninstalled and reinstalled, but the paths and keys haven’t been updated for the .NET Framework to run correctly. If you have IIS mapping to the wrong script locations, you will need to update your settings accordingly. To do this, there is a small utility with the name aspnet_regiis.exe. By running this program, you will be able to use ASP.Net and repair the mappings so that the .NET Framework and IIS are on the same page. Also when using ASP.Net on the NET Framework, you may run in to a problem where an error is returned along the lines of the one below: Access denied to ‘C:\Inetpub\Wwwroot’ directory. Failed to start monitoring directory changes. Server cannot access application directory ‘C:\Inetpub\Wwwroot\ Virtual Directory Name \’. The directory does not exist or is not accessible because of security settings. Both errors indicate a problem with the security permissions for the wwwroot, which will affect the accessibility of .NET Framework applications. You will need to add read, execute and list capabilities to the .NET account via the advanced properties of the root folder. This should clear up any access violations and enable use of the framework. We can’t stress highly enough the importance of keeping your .NET Framework version up to date and current with the latest technologies. Web server technology is constantly evolving and if you try to use the latest applications on an ageing framework, you’ll be confronted with all kinds of compatibility errors. Make a habit of downloading the latest Microsoft .NET Frameworks as and when they become available, including all security patches and service packs, of which there are plenty. Finally, it’s important to have an effective registry cleaner ad to make good use of it by clearing out your old .NET framework settings as they become corrupt. The .NET Framework adds many keys to the registry and running a sweep of the registry once a month should fix up most stray errors along the way.

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If you receive an error stating “Cannot find C:\Windows\System32\System32.exe” when booting your copy of Windows XP, it’s highly likely that you’re suffering from a well documented problem associated with the W32.KWBot.C.Worm virus.

Also known as Worm.P2P.Tanked.14 and Win32/HLLW.Kwbot.C, this particular virus operates through the Kazaa and Limewire sharing environment. It’s a medium threat virus, so while it isn’t totally destructive, it can cause some significant damage to your system.

So, naturally you’re already thinking, how can I get rid of this threat? Well the good news is that it’s quite easy to remove, as long as you’re careful when working and don’t go making any brash mistakes!

The actual “Cannot find C:\Windows\System32\System32.exe” error is thrown AFTER the virus has been removed. Not a very successful removal after all, you’d think. And you’d be right. The major anti-Virus suites are all guilty of an occasional loophole. In the case of the System32.exe error, that loophole is usually an incomplete removal of all registry traces of the W32.KWBot.C.Worm virus.

If you run through a standard virus scan of your computer and delete a few troublesome looking files, it’s possible that the next time you boot Windows; you’ll be presented with this error. To get to the bottom of it, we need to access the Windows registry and make a few slight alterations to remove the last traces of the virus.

Now, as ever, you should note that using the Registry Editor requires a great deal of attention. It’s not the sort of utility that you open up and play around with callously. In fact, a single bad edit can leave you locked out of your Windows XP system!

We would suggest that you download one of the many free registry cleaners if you’re lacking confidence in the area of critical system edits. In fact, we can’t stress it highly enough. A registry cleaner will usually get rid of stray entries and you’ll notice that the errors disappear with them.

But for the sake of knowing what you’re doing to your system, here’s how you can remove the W32.KWBot.C.Worm virus entries manually.

• Go to Start, then Run, and type “regedit”.
• Locate the following keys:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\Run\SystemSAS system32.exe HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\Run\CMD cmd32.exe HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\RunServices\SystemSAS system32.exe HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\RunServices\CMD cmd32.exe HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\RunOnce\SystemSAS system32.exe HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\RunOnce\CMD cmd32.exe HKEY_Local_Machine\Software\Krypton

• Click on the Edit menu option.
• Delete each key.
• Find the HKEY_Local_Machine\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\Shell key.
• Click on the Edit menu option
• Click Modify and enter Explorer.exe as your value.

Finally, you will need to delete any of the remaining corrupted entries from the Kazaa and iMesh libraries. You will only need to do this for the program which you have installed.

Search for any values that point to C:\%Windir%\User32 or C:\%Windir%\UserTemp, and delete them.

You should then save your registry and restart Windows. In most cases, the error will have disappeared. If it remains, you will definitely need to download a comprehensive registry cleaning utility. This will search out any extra complications. As an absolute last resort, a full Windows repair may be necessary. This shouldn’t be considered until the other avenues have been exhausted. The registry edits above will fix the problem nine times out of ten.

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It’s the screen that we all dread. It nearly always means that there’s something seriously wrong with an operating system, and in many cases, fixing it can require drastic measures. Yes, of course. We’re talking about the blue screen of death!

One of the errors that you might encounter is marked as 0×00000000.

For example, you might receive an error like the one below:

STOP: 0×0000009C (0×00000004, 0×00000000, 0xb2000000, 0×00020151) “MACHINE_CHECK_EXCEPTION”

There are several different causes for the 0×00000000 error. But in most cases where you receive it, your system will be unusable. In extreme situations, you might not have any access to the Windows operating system at all. The error often triggers a system restart, and can appear without warning. Needless to say, its one of the more frustrating problems out there! It should also be noted that the error is typically found on Windows XP.

The official Microsoft documentation suggests that the error arises when the Machine Check Exception detects an unrecoverable problem with the hardware on an XP OS. This is slightly ambiguous, so how do we know where the problem is coming from?

To get to a fix, we have to look at the hardware of the system.

It’s possible that you’re suffering from a memory partition problem. A re-format of the hard drive would be the solution in this situation. But it’s much more likely that there’s a problem with the system bus.

System bus errors are painstakingly tricky to fix and you’ll need to take the computer to a technician and cough up for the full repair treatment.

It’s also possible that you’re running off higher specifications than your machine can handle. Over-clocking of the processor is a notorious problem and it is associated with the blue screen 0×00000000 error. To handle the higher performance applications, you should consider an upgrade to the processor and memory.

In most cases, you’ll be well aware if your processor is being over-clocked with unrealistic expectations. Poor performance will be noticeable long before the errors begin to crop up.

Ensure that the system has sufficient ventilation and that the fan is powerful enough to cool the CPU. This is the cause of many a system failure, but many look beyond what can be treated as basic thermal management of the computer.

It’s also important to stay up to date with the latest anti-Virus protection. If you find yourself attacked by one of the malicious shell-targeting viruses that are in circulation, it can have a crippling effect on the system resources.

Download a system cleaning utility and run a thorough check for malicious files. Remove anything that looks suspicious and you should notice an improvement in performance, which can be noted from the Task Manager.

Ultimately, if Windows is refusing to start up, or if the 0×00000000 errors are too persistent to ignore, you should take your computer to the nearest (or cheapest) repair store and ask a qualified technician to troubleshoot the actual hardware components. It’s very likely that the problem is being caused by either damaged memory or insufficient system resources, both of which can be pricey to fix.

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Contrary to popular belief, anti-virus software is only protecting you from half of the malicious content that you’re likely to find on the Internet. The other half comes in the form of Malware; an umbrella term for spyware, adware and several other disruptive applications.

It was only just recently that the top anti-Virus suites implemented scanning software to tackle the new problem. But despite the improvement of actually recognising the issue, it’s still important to have anti-Malware software installed if you wish to effectively wipe out the threat.

Viruses, understandably, take much of the media’s attention with their ability to spread like wildfire and cause severe disruption on a global scale. Yet Malware is much more common and can have a similarly disastrous impact on an operating system’s ability to function properly.

Even with the latest version of Internet Explorer, Malware makes it possible for other web users to hijack your browser and re-direct your every request to a third party website, usually one which sells an affiliated virus removal package.

Indeed, almost all Malware instances point to a commercial product which the user is trying to sell. They have several ways of succeeding. One of the most common is to include spyware with download packages.

An unsuspecting user might initiate a download without reading over the small print in the terms and conditions. When they install the program on their system, it will unpack several other applications. Some of these will operate in the background and the user won’t even know that they’re there. They can gather information about the user’s browsing habits, the sites that they visit and even more worryingly, bank details.

Other adware threats are less discrete and will spring up pop-ups on your desktop. You’ll even see your browser toolbar overtaken by commercial icons if you’re particularly unlucky.

One of the most popular tactics for Malware hackers is to spring up an alert box which states that the system is under attack from a deadly virus. The pop-up is dressed to look like a standard system warning, but it acts as an advertisement which will take the user to another third party website. As you can see, affiliation schemes are a popular target for the hackers.

The solution to all this, as you’ve probably gathered by now, is to protect your system with anti-Malware software. Most anti-Virus programs are extremely well designed to keep out the threat of Trojans and worms, yet they do little to fight off spyware which a user willingly installs without a second thought.

Anti-Malware products work in a similar fashion to virus protection software. They sit in the background and run a discrete check on the files that you download. If known instances of spyware or adware are detected, you’ll be confronted with an alert message and an option to either eliminate the threat or continue.

In most cases, eliminating the threat will simply mean not downloading a certain product. When software is packaged together, it becomes almost impossible for an Anti-Malware utility to sift out the good from the bad.

When you install the program, however, you should receive notification of the third party content that you might not have noticed in the zip.

By far the most popular form of Anti-Malware software is the “Search and Destroy” utility. This tool doesn’t prevent all new occurrences of malicious content, but it will scan your hard drive and sniff out the bad files. You can then opt to place the programs in quarantine and have them immobilised from operating on the system.

Inevitably, having spyware and adware running on a computer will decrease the performance. After rebooting with the files destroyed, you should notice that things run a lot smoother. It’s also a good idea to look out for recurring threats.

Some Malware programs are designed specifically to re-install themselves when a system restarts. They can be hard to remove and even with the top Anti-Malware software on the market, your best hope is to enter Safe Mode and remove the threat from there.

You’ll find that Anti-Malware software is cheaper than the better known Anti-Virus varieties. It’s now possible to get sufficient support for Malware removal through the likes of Norton and Symantec. But there are also several free utilities available on the Internet, and these can be efficient for most spyware and adware instances.

Don’t assume that just because you have virus protection, you’ll be safe from Malware. It’s a very different problem and one which the major companies are only just beginning to address.

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