seeker Posted June 6, 2007 Report Share Posted June 6, 2007 Hi,I am a novice and would greatly appreciate your help.Whenever I do a Norton virus scan, the scan shows files that are being checked on my computer, such as .exe and .dll files in my Windows and System32 folders. However, I can not find some of those files when I use Windows Explorer or Search, even when hidden files are included. What is going on? Is there another program besides Windows Explorer that can help me find those files?Thank you,seeker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andsome Posted June 6, 2007 Report Share Posted June 6, 2007 You state that you are a novice. Best to leave hidden files well alone. There is no point in looking for trouble. If everything is running OK there is no need to look. There is no reason to look as far as I can see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ɹəuəllıʍ ʇɐb Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 There are two reasons why you might not see some files in Windows ExplorerWindows hides certain system filesExplorer does not show certain common file extensions such as 'exe', so it will show you only e.g. 'iexplore' instead of the full 'iexplore.exe' file nameThese options can be changed, of course, but as Andsome mentioned in his post, it's best not to mess around with system files and settings if you are not 100% sure what you are doing.On the other hand, if you want to learn about the workings of Windows, it is not bad to experiment with your system. However, make sure you have a full system backup that you can restore in case you break something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eight-Oh-Eighty-Eight Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 You state that you are a novice. Best to leave hidden files well alone. There is no point in looking for trouble. If everything is running OK there is no need to look. There is no reason to look as far as I can see.While I agree with this 100%, I'm always about educating people. First thing to teach, don't touch any of these until you know what you're doing. Now, under the view menu there is a view options, somewhere in there you can select to make all items visible. I'm on my Mac now so I can't be more specific, but it is there, just need to do a little looking. -8088 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andsome Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 As Pat says, keep well away unless you have a full back up. Acronis is available to subscribers of this forum. I have made a lot of mistakes in learning about my own computer, but had the good sense first of all to learn how to reinstall Windows, after making ONE mistake and having to pay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seeker Posted June 7, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 Hi all,Thank you for your responses, but my main concern is that there are things on my computer which shouldn't be there. The names of some of those files clearly betray sinister forces at work-- maybe a hacker or something. So of course I would backup my system before I experimentally deleted any of those files, but I just need to know how to find those files in order to delete them. So how can I find those files ?In the Search feature, I had clicked the option to show all hidden files. But I don't see any such option in Windows Explorer; if there is one, would you kindly let me know where it is ?Thanks again!seeker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcb2001 Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 In XP go to:control panel - folder settings - show (tap) 1. uncheck hide commonly know file types. (cant be more correct, since i am running a danish version).2. and check show all system files.And good luck killing your OS - its actually fun learning that way! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andsome Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 If you think something has got onto your computer, it is best to visit the forum on the link below, and post a Hijack this log.Click here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seeker Posted June 10, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2007 Hi all,Thanks for your instructions on showing hidden files, etc. , but I tried that and still cannot find certain .exe and .dll files that Norton 360 shows as being checked in my Windows and System32 folders.Why cannot Windows Explorer "see" those files, even after I have opted for all hidden and other files to be shown?Is there any program that can be downloaded to search those folders on my computer more thoroughly than Windows Explorer?Thank you,seeker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boris Posted June 10, 2007 Report Share Posted June 10, 2007 Do you have the names of any of these hidden "certain .exe and .dll files" that Norton is said to be checking ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eight-Oh-Eighty-Eight Posted June 12, 2007 Report Share Posted June 12, 2007 In XP go to:control panel - folder settings - show (tap) 1. uncheck hide commonly know file types. (cant be more correct, since i am running a danish version).2. and check show all system files.And good luck killing your OS - its actually fun learning that way!I would definitely recommend that everyone show all file extensions. It's an old but effective trick to name something whatever.jpg.exe and give it the icon of a JPEG. Windows hides the exe and you simply think it's a pic (or some other harmless file type) and before you know it you have something bad running on your computer.-8088 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael___ Posted June 22, 2007 Report Share Posted June 22, 2007 You could be seeing a scan of a file's metadata or something similar. Files are just containers. They can be used to store entire directory hierarchies. TrueCrypt for instance can create hidden volumes within another encrypted volume. File metadata can be done the same way. A Jpeg can be used to store another file within it. I am not that familiar with that type of thing, but I know it exists. Perhaps your AV software is scanning something stored in metadata and that is why you are seeing filenames that aren't listed in the normal file system.I can't tell you how to investigate, because I don't know, but this would be a possibility to look into.Oh and as far as not messing up your system, no one ever learned anything by being too afraid to try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaz Posted June 26, 2007 Report Share Posted June 26, 2007 zxtree.exe is good utility, so is the cmd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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