greywolf Posted August 4, 2005 Report Share Posted August 4, 2005 I cannot update Ad-aware. For a while now, every time I attempt to update I get a message saying" cannot read downloaded definitions". I uninsalled this utility and then reinstalled but to no effect. Any suggestions as to why this problem occurs? Would I be better off uninstalling totally and relying on spybot or some similar spyware?.On Nellie`s suggestion last week, I have installed Spyguard and I do have Spyware Blaster.Best regards,Greywolf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dadyassa Posted August 4, 2005 Report Share Posted August 4, 2005 Have you got the latest version 106 r1 ?I just downloaded SE1 R58 file. It hung for a few seconds before downloading though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boris Posted August 4, 2005 Report Share Posted August 4, 2005 Its working OK for me ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark2 Posted August 4, 2005 Report Share Posted August 4, 2005 greywolf" cannot read downloaded definitions"I occasionally get that message when there is a new update out, (just now for instance)but in a couple of hours it will be fine (usually) :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andsome Posted August 5, 2005 Report Share Posted August 5, 2005 Have you got the latest version 106 r1 ?I just downloaded SE1 R58 file. It hung for a few seconds before downloading though.SEIR59 is now current Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-pops- Posted August 5, 2005 Report Share Posted August 5, 2005 Have you got the latest version 106 r1 ?I just downloaded SE1 R58 file. It hung for a few seconds before downloading though.SEIR59 is now currentSE1R60 is the one I have. Dated 4 August. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dadyassa Posted August 5, 2005 Report Share Posted August 5, 2005 Have you got the latest version 106 r1 ?I just downloaded SE1 R58 file. It hung for a few seconds before downloading though.SEIR59 is now currentSE1R60 is the one I have. Dated 4 August.You gents are correct, mine also now shows SE1R60 in the window ? :blink: :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarecrow Man Posted August 5, 2005 Report Share Posted August 5, 2005 You can update manually by downloading this file and unzipping defs.ref to your ad-aware folder. It will ask you if you want to replace the current file. Say yes and your updated.http://lavasoft.element5.com/support/download/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greywolf Posted August 5, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 5, 2005 Hello Scarecrow man,Did what you said but no joy. Would it be better to totally uninstall and then reinstall the utility? Or is there a similar freeware utility available I could use instead that is just as good?Regards,Greywolf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarecrow Man Posted August 5, 2005 Report Share Posted August 5, 2005 Try this again.. I will give better instructions.download http://download.lavasoft.de.edgesuite.net/public/defs.zip unzip it anywhere, but remember where you unzipped it to. Copy the defs.ref file from the unzipped folder and paste it into C:\Program Files\Lavasoft\Ad-Aware SE Personal\ it will ask you if you would like to replace it, say yes and you are updated.If this still does not work, download Ad-Aware from here and try the update again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greywolf Posted August 5, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 5, 2005 Uninstalled completely and then downloaded from pc world. Still the same problem.Is the problem with my computer?A frustrated Geywolf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarecrow Man Posted August 6, 2005 Report Share Posted August 6, 2005 If you download the defs.zip file, and copy the defs.ref file into the ad-aware program folder, you are up to date. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greywolf Posted August 6, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 6, 2005 Hello Scarecrow Man,I`m very sorry that I did not say clearly what I`d done. I uninstalled Adaware from my computer and then went to pc world and dowloaded Adaware again and reinstalled. I`m still having the same problem.i connect to adaware, receive the info that there is a new update, click install, the download screen shows five percent download, stops and then says cannot read the file. I have now uninstalled and reinstalled adawre three times. Is the problem my computer?Best regards,Greywolf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark2 Posted August 6, 2005 Report Share Posted August 6, 2005 I had the same trouble with the most recent update, followed SM's instructions above with the defs.zip file,now when checking adaware confirms it is up to date.You could have been unlucky and got a corrupted download owing to pressure on the server, quite common when a new update is available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thos Posted August 7, 2005 Report Share Posted August 7, 2005 I, too, had exactly the same problem, ie the download froze at 5%. It happened several times but I tried again 5 minutes ago and the download sailed through completely in seconds. It does sound as though the server is overloaded at times.Thos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greywolf Posted August 7, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 7, 2005 I will keep trying to download for a day or two but if there is no luck then I will have to ssk a new spyware removal tool. Any suggestion? I do know about spybot but I`m willing to try a lesser known utility.My best regards to you all,Greywolf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarecrow Man Posted August 9, 2005 Report Share Posted August 9, 2005 Spybot Search and Destroy is good. Check this list for information on bad spyware tools. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greywolf Posted August 9, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 9, 2005 Thank you Scarecrowman,I will install Spybot. I have heard that the microsoft windows spyware removal utility is good. What is your opinion?Oh yes, thank you so much for directing me to that list of bad anti-spyware tools. I was shocked to learn there are so many.Best wishes,Greywolf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-pops- Posted August 9, 2005 Report Share Posted August 9, 2005 Spybot S&D and Ad-Aware are complementary, not alternatives. You will frequently fine that one finds things the other didn't so, ideally, you should have both. You might consider a-squared (a²) as well. Ensure you download the free version.I am curious as to why to download the Ad-Aware from PC World. Why not direct from Lavasoft (cut out the middleman). Also, do you download to a file and then install from that or do you install "live" while it is downloading? I always download to file in case something goes wrong and you are not then lumbered with a possibly corrupt file and/or a load of junk installed on your machine.Another thing is how are you un-installing Ad-Aware? Is it through Windows Add/remove or from the specific un-install program in the Ad-Aware folder? You ought always to use the specific un-installer when provided. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarecrow Man Posted August 9, 2005 Report Share Posted August 9, 2005 You've inspired me to write a how-to for manual update.You can view it here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greywolf Posted August 10, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2005 Hello,To answer your questions Pops: I have now downloaded and installed adaware three times. Twice from download.com and once from pc world. I was directed to these sites from the lavasoft site. I wasn`t aware I could download directly from lavasoft. I always download the file and then open it, using the adaware uninstall program. I did, however, once use the windows add/uninstall program.Spybot was downloaded and updated last night successfully.I hope I have clarified everything, Pops. Adaware, I still cannot update. I will study Scarecrow Man`s article.Best wishes to you both,Greywolf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ɹəuəllıʍ ʇɐb Posted August 11, 2005 Report Share Posted August 11, 2005 I've had Ad-aware Pro for a number of years, and it suited me quite fine. However, after installing Spybot Search & Destroy, as well as Microsoft's Antispyware tool, I have found that Ad-aware has quietly become obsolete. Not only have they secretly allowed some spyware back in, at the same time they closed the support forum, and their http://www.lavasoftcustomercenter.com/ does not work at all. Contacting them by email does not result in any replies. I'm afraid that Lavasoft is not the same company as it used to be a few years ago. I cannot recommend their product any longer, especially since better freeware products are available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greywolf Posted August 11, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 11, 2005 Hi pwillener,Your post is actually the first negatine comment I`ve seen about adaware. Because of my problem, I tried to visit the lavasoft help forums to look for an answer only to find the forum non existant.To Scarecrow Man: I did follow your eariler suggestion to download the file, copy and then paste into the lavasoft folder. Worked ok. I did this before I read your article which I have saved. A question though: I was asked if I wanted to replace the extant file with the new one and this is what I did. Would I have lost any important data by doing this?Warm regards to you all,Greywolf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarecrow Man Posted August 11, 2005 Report Share Posted August 11, 2005 You will have lost the old reference file that ad-aware uses to find adware. This is not important, as the newer file usually contains more entries, updated entries and even possibly entries that have been removed as they are no longer required. It will not remove any settings, or personalized options.In my guide, I suggest renaming the old defs.ref to defs.ref.old. This will provide you with a backup of the current ref file, incase something bad happens with the new one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greywolf Posted August 11, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 11, 2005 Hi Scarecrow Man,Thank you for the information. I now have spybot, spywareguard,spywareblaster, adaware{sort of}, and a-squared. Not to mention various other utilities Nellie2 advised me to download because of a virus attack I suffered a couple of weeks ago. Do I need the windows anti-spyware tool with this lot?An over protected greywolf, perhaps?My best regards,Greywolf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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