Three weeks ago my computer had 117 files infected by the W32.Kwbot.C worm, W32.Ronoper worm, and VBS.Loveletter. After downloading the latest updates for the virus scanner these files were cleaned. However, each time the scheduled scan runs, the following message is displayed: ‘Scan type: Realtime Protection Scan. Event: Virus Found! Virus name: W32.Kwbot.C.Worm. File: C:System Volume Information_Restore{0EEF225C-01B8-49AC-97C0 29E39370948F}RP132A0020184exe. Location: Quarantine. Action taken: Clean failed : Quarantine succeeded : Access denied’. This poses the question as to whether the virus still lives on the computer. There is a second, unrelated problem. When I insert a CD to play music, Windows Media Player advises that the computer must go online and makes all of the tracks unavailable. Do you have any suggestions? The computer is running Windows XP.

Windows Me and XP have a feature called System Restore. This Windows utility creates ‘restore points’ on the computer. In the event of a major system problem, you can rollback the computer to one of these restore points in order to make the computer work properly. The restore points are created on a regular basis by Windows, and are stored in the _Restore directory. It is possible that when a computer has been infected with a virus, a restore point was created while the computer was infected. This is what has happened in your case. The reason the virus scanner cannot clean the infected file is Windows denies all external programs access to the _Restore folder in order to maintain the integrity of the restore points. In order to remove the virus, we will need to disable system restore (in the process all restore points are initally deleted) and then run a complete virus scan. Go to the ‘Start’ menu > ‘Control Panel’. Switch to ‘Classic View’ and open the ‘System’ control panel. Click the ‘System Restore’ tab. Tick ‘Turn off System Restore’. Click OK. A warning message will appear saying all restore points will be deleted. Click OK. Restart the computer. Make sure the latest virus definition files have been downloaded, and run a complete system scan of all files on all hard drives. Once this has been completed, re-enable System Restore by following the same procedure as previously mentioned, but untick ‘Turn off System Restore’. This should bring it back to normal.

Regarding your second problem, this could be caused if Windows Media Player is attempting to download additional information about the CD from the internet. In Windows Media Player, try going to the ‘File’ menu > ‘Work Offline’. Alternatively, if you update to Windows Media Player 9 you can disable this function. In WMP 9, go to the ‘Tools’ menu > ‘Options’. In the window that appears, click the ‘Privacy’ tab. Disable ‘Retrieve media information for CDs and DVDs from the Internet’. Click OK to save and close the window.