Post-Rootkit/Trojanhorse Removal, CD/DVD/ Webcam/ Mic/ graphics card u

**Using an HP Pavilion dv6700 CTO Entertainment Notebook running Windows Vista (from a friend who bought it from a friend without the Owner’s Manual, Vista CD, or anything else). Appears to have been infected with rootkit and Trojan horses by the first user. 1. I already followed Select Real Security’s “Malware Removal Guide for Windows.” 2. I used Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool to remove a rootkit and Trojan horses. 3. I then repaired the internet connection using the Farbar Service Scanner. 4. I installed AVG immediately and cleaned the remaining viruses, and I used CCleaner to remove the remaining temporary files, etc. Somewhere in the whole process, the laptop was involuntarily upgraded from Vista to Windows 7 before I got the chance to create any restore point. I DID NOT ever select or see the option for an upgrade. Now I have the problem of “This copy of Windows is not genuine” with no product key to activate it. Windows Update is working and now the computer has all the latest Windows 7 drivers. And even though I repaired the internet connectivity, the following devices are not recognized by the system, but some of the correct drivers are supposedly installed and “working properly” in device manager: CD/DVD Rom drive Webcam Microphone VGA (graphics) card I don’t know if this is due to the Windows 7 upgrade or the long-standing infection that crippled them. Please help. 1. How did I get upgraded to Windows 7 without my knowledge? 2. All I have is a Windows XP SP3 recovery disc. Should I downgrade? 3. How can I get the laptop to recognize the webcam, CD drive, graphics card, and microphone hardware again without a restore point and with no Vista recovery disc?

Keep in mind that Windows Anytime Upgrade is not a "Free" option. Yes, you might qualify for a reduced fee, but you will still have to pay for a license of the new Windows operating system. The machine should have a Certificate of Authenticity pasted on the bottom. That COA will serve as your pre-existing qualifying Microsoft product, from which upgrade discounts will be determined. Check with Microsoft Activation. Also keep in mind that Upgrading is not an instantatious nor unattended process. There had to have been several steps, and opportunities to select options and authorize continuing. Therefore, the notion of an upgrade simply occuring without user permission is not realistic. Sure it is possible for a user to not really know what is going on during an upgrade and to give best-guess responses without really knowing what is being agreed to and continued. Once you have a valid license and activated Windows, you may benefit from going to the HP site where you can look-up your specific machine in Support and most likely download any drivers that are not presently functioning. As to "upgrading", and the serial hand-to-hand adventure through which that machine has passed. "I" would not be willing to inherit any possible prior mistakes purpetrated by prior owners. Clean full installation of Windows operating system would give you a fresh start which you could rely on. Best Regards

"Thanks" for the unhelpful but totally arrogant reply. It told me more about "you" than about how to solve my PC issue. "I" did not buy the laptop. "I" am repairing it for a friend. "I" majored in English so at least I have communication skills that don't abuse quotation marks.

"Thanks" for the unhelpful but totally arrogant reply. It told me more about "you" than about how to solve my PC issue.

"I" did not buy the laptop. "I" am repairing it for a friend. "I" majored in English so at least I have communication skills that don't abuse quotation marks.

seems to me the only "arrogant" reply is yours.

1. How did I get upgraded to Windows 7 without my knowledge?

impossible.

2. All I have is a Windows XP SP3 recovery disc. Should I downgrade?

no.

3. How can I get the laptop to recognize the webcam, CD drive, graphics card, and microphone hardware again without a restore point and with no Vista recovery disc?

go to the manufacturers site and download the correct drivers for the operating system and laptop, as previously stated.

Once you have a valid license and activated Windows, you may benefit from going to the HP site where you can look-up your specific machine in Support and most likely download any drivers that are not presently functioning.

in all honesty if i were you and your "FIXING" it for a friend and have done such a good job so far that you've managed to install an illegal copy of windows 7 on it without realizing, then i'd take it to a repair shop and pay them to put it right so i could at least give it back to my "friend" in the same state or better it was in when he lent it to you.

i didn't major in anything so you'll just have to put up with any grammer or spelling mistakes i've made in this reply.

Sorry you took my reply to be arrogant and non-helpful.

It seems you have already invested a great deal of time and energy trying to bring this machine back to proper performance.
That things are still not working properly can be quite frustrating.

I suppose it is possible that a prior owner or user initiated the Anytime Upgrade.
If a prior owner/user upgraded, but did not license and activate Windows 7, they may have created parallel installations of Windows, one being Vista and another being Windows 7.
I suppose further that the prior or still existing infection may have corrupted Boot Manager (what used to be boot.ini in XP)

During your process of freeing the machine from Trojan/malware, you may have corrected the corruption of Boot Manager, thus causing Windows 7 to appear as if out of nowhere.

It would be interesting to know what scripting appears in the Boot Manager.
Though the utility for making changes of Boot Manager is called BCD.exe, you can get a quick look at what is there in Boot Manager by using System Configuration Utility (msconfig)
Select the BOOT tab.
Let us know what items appear in the box.

For most users of Windows 7, it should read:

Windows 7 (C:\Windows) ; Current OS ; Default OS

If Vista or any other OS is listed, then the machine probably did have a parallel installation of more than one OS at some time in the past.
Is it correct to understand that the machine appeared to be running Vista, when you first received it and before you began your repair work?
_____________________

As to using "quotation marks" in my previous post, I surrounded "I" with quotation marks with intent of communicating that it was me speaking for what I would most prefer if the machine was my own.
"I" just wouldn't leave old, overlapping updates, and remnants of serious infection on a machine if I needed to use and rely upon it.
Thus, "I" would be considering a format and fresh installation of the operating system at this point.

"You" may have other thoughts and preferences.
The ultimate outcome is user choice.

Hope this all works out for you.
Let us know if you make serious progress.
Others may learn from your hard work.

Best Regards