Persistent Firefox/Taskbar Malfunction Help Request

Hello Jack,

I got to looking a bit at your TechExpress link, it looks like you have two firewalls running:
eTrust Firewall
ZoneAlarm

It is generally recommended to have only one antivirus program and one firewall running on a system at any given time. In this case, I am thinking the problems you are having may be caused by the security software you have running, rather than the "nasties". Try disabling/uninstalling ZoneAlarm and give me an update.

You might also want to check the eTrust Internet Security options to make sure it isn't blocking your internet access.

You can get a hardware firewall if you would like, there is more information in the following link:
Home PC Firewall Guide

Regards,

Ax

Hi Ax, You're not the first person to say that I've got two firewalls on; I haven't (as far as I'm aware). I certainly haven't installed Zone Alarm, and can't find it on my laptop… I did get it somewhere in my head that Zone Alarm might be a part of the CA "eTrust" suite, but that's probably wrong. I certainly can't see any sign of Zone Alarm in the Add/Remove programmes window; or in the start menu; or on a standard files & folders search. I can't see any eTrust options that look like they might block internet access. I'm not clear as to why the firewall might have an affect on browser (page loading, form-filling, and text-selection etc…) The "-12263" error is recognised as a FF thing, yet the stated causes on googled sites seem to not be the problem for me. Do you think totally uninstalling FF and then reinstalling might help? That would seem to not be the right solution to me, as the effects are present in windows and IE7 as well, and seem to be like what you'd expect of some programme (like adware or a malfunctioned installation of someaught) interfering with the system in general - the mouse button, the taskbar, etc… as though there was someaught bad in the registry. I'm curious as to why it appears that I've got more than one firewall?!

Hey Jack,

Well I wouldn't want to be giving you the same incorrect advice all over again!

I certainly haven't installed Zone Alarm, and can't find it on my laptop… I did get it somewhere in my head that Zone Alarm might be a part of the CA "eTrust" suite, but that's probably wrong.

I looked into it and you are correct. I'm pretty sure now that the file referenced, although licensed by ZoneAlarm, is a valid part of the CA eTrust Security Suite.

I'm not clear as to why the firewall might have an affect on browser (page loading, form-filling, and text-selection etc…)
The "-12263" error is recognised as a FF thing, yet the stated causes on googled sites seem to not be the problem for me.

Case in point, I worked on a system once where Norton had it so locked down that Norton Internet Security could not download it's own updates! The lesson here is that you never know and can't always assume something "nasty" is the problem.

I've found a reference on how to prevent the issue you are experiencing:
Fix for using IE7 with Ezarmor e-trust products vsmon.exe …

Although it won't resolve our issue now, it now gives us a better picture at what we are dealing with. We are still going to attempt resolution of these issues. Again, please be patient because sometimes we can only take one step at a time and see how we fare.

Please read the following instructions in entirety before attempting to perform any of the steps listed.*
________________________________________________________________________________

Copy these instructions to a text file and save it on your system in case at any time through the process you cannot access the internet. Please ask any questions you have regarding the instructions before you begin the fix.

Please uninstall IE7 by using the following instructions:
How to uninstall Internet Explorer 7

You may also want to uninstall Firefox at this point.
________________________________________________________________________________

Once completed, completely uninstall the "CA eTrust Internet Security Suite" from Add/Remove Programs. Restart your computer and make sure nothing is still running from the software. Open the task manager (Ctrl-Shift-Esc) and make sure none of the following files are listed in the Processes tab:
ISafe.exe
vsmon.exe
VetMsg.exe

If they are listed, you will have to boot into safe mode (restart your system and repeatedly press F8 for the boot menu). At this point, you would need to delete the following files:
C:\Program Files\CA\eTrust Internet Security Suite\eTrust EZ Antivirus\ISafe.exe
C:\Program Files\CA\eTrust Internet Security Suite\eTrust EZ Antivirus\VetMsg.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\ZoneLabs\vsmon.exe

You can actually delete the whole "C:\Program Files\CA\eTrust Internet Security Suite\" directory if you want.
________________________________________________________________________________

If you make it to this point, you may proceed to install IE7 and Firefox. Please give me an update at this point if possible. Follow these IE7 Installation instructions:
Internet Explorer 7 - Installation Instructions

*Make sure you have all the installation files (i.e. IE7, Firefox, CA eTrust ISS) already downloaded to your computer before doing these steps, since if the CA eTrust Internet Security Suite came from your ISP, they may not allow internet access without it.
________________________________________________________________________________

After successfully installing your browsers, proceed to install the CA eTrust Internet Security Suite. Please give me another update at this point.

Regards,

Ax

I don't know if I can do all this. "*Make sure you have all the installation files (i.e. … CA eTrust ISS) already downloaded to your computer before doing these steps," I received all this equipment as part of a DSA (Disabled Students Allowance) provided by the British govt (via standard intermediaries). The CA suite came pre-installed by the authorised DSA eqpt. supplier, and I've got an IT support contract with them for the duration of my studies as part of the deal. Obviously I'm not so naive, and am aware that plenty of solutions to problems can be found online in places such as WTT, without having to resort to "IT support", who aren't always as speedy or savvy as they purport to be, even if they're funded - I would guesstimate that some of the people on sites like these may be IT support people! My prejudice being that people on these fora are more au fait with these issues than the IT support people who work for small businesses that resell computers and overpriced bits and bobs. Another part of the motivation for coming here is that it increases the collective awareness of computer annoyances and makes it more likely that solutions become more prevalent than problems globally. In short, I haven't got the setup software for the CA suite; and I don't want to mess up my warranty. just nervous of making things worse really… I'll have a think and a read. we may have reached a cul-de-sac here.

I received all this equipment as part of a DSA (Disabled Students Allowance) provided by the British govt (via standard intermediaries). The CA suite came pre-installed by the authorised DSA eqpt. supplier, and I've got an IT support contract with them for the duration of my studies as part of the deal.

I see what your concern is, as well as leaving it to the devices of some overcharging, underdelivering IT Support. Not all are like that, but a few yes, effectively giving a bad rap to the honest, decent guys trying to put food on the table. I suggest you contact them to see what kind of support and turn-around times they offer.

Another part of the motivation for coming here is that it increases the collective awareness of computer annoyances and makes it more likely that solutions become more prevalent than problems globally.

That's exactly why we are here, doing what we are doing right now. But we can't just give up when we're in some rough straits.

Rather than uninstalling the software, disable it, and make sure the aforementioned programs are not running in the task manager. If they are, just highlight, click End Process and confirm. If you can get them to stop running, attempt to reinstall IE7.

Otherwise, if it is just easier, you can try staying with IE6 until Microsoft/CA gets the IE7 issue fixed. In fact, once you uninstall IE7, let me know how IE6 is working, whether better, worse, or the same.

Regards,

Ax

Hi Ax, Well, I disabled an addon to FF2 called "Priv8 SCM" (Site Continuity Management), and it appears to have had a significant effect on performance (so far… I've only surfed a few minutes with it disabled). The mouse hypersensitivity appears to have gone; the filling in of text in this form doesn't seem to be stalling as it did… though it did "twitch" when i was on Gmail a couple of minutes ago). The IE7 PDF issue persists though. I'll hopefully get time to enact your instructions later on in the week (what with children, Hallowe'en, and Bonfire night!). cheers, Jack

Hey Jack, Great to hear FF is feeling better now. No problem at all, work it out in your own time, at your own pace. Please let me know how it goes when you do complete the steps. Happy Halloween! Regards, Ax

Got some strange scrollbar and browser toolbar malfunctions now, along with the old sensitive mouse thing. Must be an FF thing still.

Jack, I'm sure this is probably starting to get a bit frustrating to you, if not already so. OK, I will need you to give me some specific information on exactly what the malfunctions are all about. Please post an updated status of your system, as well as whether you were able to complete the previous instructions. We'll proceed from there. Regards, Ax

I'm not sure what you mean by "an updated status"? It boils down to PDF problems, and mouse hypersensitivity. I'll get back to you when I've uninstalled IE… I'm having trouble finding the time to do even simple things like that… as the little I'm getting to use the computer is spent doing tedious admin at the moment.

Hi again. Well I uninstalled IE7. IE6 is just as slow (unlike before I had the problems); crashes when you follow PDF links still too. As for Windows, the taskbar still has artefacts on it that make be feel that it i'n't right yet; the mouse is still hypersensitive, and text selection is still (although much less of) a problem sometime. Bearing in mind some of the issues were resolved by removing an FF add-on, that's where my suspicion still lays… something that affects the whole system that is used by Firefox. Additions… When I open up more than 5 tabs in FF, I lose the scroll bar. When go to Wikipedia, I can't move the cursor when I'm editing…

Hello Jack,

Sorry to hear you are still having problems. Try running the System File Checker Utility (SFC):
Go to Start | Run, type sfc /scannow, and press Enter.

If SFC does identify missing or corrupted Operating System files, it may ask you to insert your Windows XP installation CD so a fresh copy of the correct file can be copied and pasted into the system files.

If you do not have your Windows XP installation CD, or if errors in the process occur, please post back with specifics or questions.

SFC scan and replacements take about 8-12 minutes depending upon the size of your file tree and the speed of your CPU/RAM. If SFC opens and then closes within a few seconds or under one minute, It did not complete, and must be repeated.

Sometimes, a second scan run of SFC is necessary, even if SFC completes the first time, in order to replace all missing or corrupted files. If SFC completes, you can safely run it a second time for good measure.

A good way to tell whether you should run it again is if you look in the Event Log and see the following Application event entry after running SFC:

Source:	  Windows File Protection 
Event ID:	64002

Regards,

Ax

Reading through this entire thread, in several places I see where it was suggested that you completely uninstall FireFox. Have you tried that yet? If not it would be worth trying. If nothing else it will eliminate one more possible point of failure.

Hello, Which should I do first? 100% Uninstall FF or run SFC? (how can I keep my FF bookmarks and config as well?) I doesn't seem to save my university password properly (https://webmail.york.ac.uk/) - I used to be able to login by just pressing the first letter of my ID, and then selecting the rest from the autocomplete and tapping return twice… now it only does it when it feels like it! cheers, Jack

I would uninstall FF first. You won't lose anything. Your bookmarks, cookeis, etc. are kept in your profile directory under

C:\Documents and Settings\youruserid\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\xxxxxxxxxx

and are left alone when you uninstall FireFox.

If that doesn't help, then leave FF uninstalled and proceed with running SFC. Install the latest FF when done.