Other questions

Q: Why can´t I use the boot-time scan? That option is greyed out in the menu!

A: Boot-time scan is available on NT-based Windows systems only (Windows NT, 2000, XP, 2003 and Vista). Also, it is currently not supported in 64-bit operating systems.

Q: How can I schedule a scan in specified time?

A: At first - keep on mind that this feature (scheduler) is in PROFESSIONAL edition of avast! only; it´s not available in HOME edition. If you have the PROFESSIONAL edition, start avast! in enhanced interface, in left pane click on SCHEDULER. Then click on Scheduler in tool bar, from the menu choose "create event" and specify the scan type, period and so on as you wish.

Q: The blue ball icons have disappeared from my system tray. How do I get them back there?

A: If you´re using Windows XP, the icons are probably hidden. In that case right-click on your Taskbar and choose Properties. A dialog box "Taskbar and Start menu properties" would appear. Then uncheck Hide inactive icons check box.

If you´re not using Windows XP, OR if the previous solution doesn't fix the problem, run the ashDisp.exe program (it´s in C:\PROGRAM FILES\ALWIL SOFTWARE\AVAST4 directory). It should bring the icons up again. If they disappear after restart again, make a shortcut to the ashDisp.exe file in your Start-up folder.

Q: When the file scanning is finished, avast! comes up with a number of files listed as "unable to scan", even though I have used a thorough scan. Should I be concerned?

A: Some files are permanently locked by the system or they are in password-protected archives. These files cannot be scanned. It is normal and you don´t have to be worried about that.

Q: Hay un círculo rojo en el icono de avast! (la bola azul con la "a" en el medio) en la bandeja del sistema, y cuando hago clic en ella aparece un mensaje de error diciendo "el subsistema AAVM ha detectado un error RPC". Cómo puedo arreglarlo?

A: Primero, utilice la actualización de Windows para estar seguro de que todos los componentes de Windows (incluyendo "RPC") están al día. A continuación, reinicie su ordenador y compruebe si el problema persiste. Si siguiera teniendo el mismo problema, siga estas instrucciones:

1. Haga clic con el botón derecho del ratón en el icono MI PC y seleccione ADMINISTRAR.
2. En la columna izquierda, despliegue SERVICIOS Y APLICACIONES.
3. Haga clic en SERVICIOS.
4. En la columna derecha, mire el estado del sevicio avast! Antivirus.
5. Si el servicio no está determinado para iniciarse automáticamente, fíjelo de esta manera (haga clic en él con el botón derecho, seleccione PROPIEDADES, y fije el TIPO DE INICIO a AUTOMÁTICO). Reinicie el ordenador después de haber hecho el cambio.
6. Si ya estaba determinado como "Automático", compruebe el Estado del Servicio. Si no figura como "Iniciado", intente iniciarlo (haga clic con el botón derecho en él y seleccione INICIAR).
7. Si no se pudiera iniciar el servicio, puede ser que la instalación de su avast! esté corrompida. Intente corregir la instalación de avast!. Haga clic en INICIO -> PANEL DE CONTROL -> AGREGAR/QUITAR PROGRAMAS -> avast! Antivirus -> CAMBIAR/QUITAR y seleccionar REPARAR.

Q: When I start avast!, it opens a small blue window with the basic description of usage. There´s also a "Don't show this window next time" checkbox. But if I check it, I get an error "Object doesn´t support this property or method". What´s the solution?

A: This problem isn't actually caused by avast!. That behaviour is caused by a bug in Internet Explorer. Use Windows Update feature to update Internet Explorer and the problem will disappear.

Q: I have just installed avast! and rebooted. But after that my computer is totally frozen! What should I do now?

A: This can happen if you install avast! on a computer where another antivirus is already installed. It will cause a conflict between them and the computer freezes.

The best precaution is to never use two or more antivirus programs at the same time.
The solution: Uninstall the other antivirus using the safe mode of Windows.

To start your computer in Safe mode:

1. Start Windows, or if it is running, shut Windows down, and then turn off the computer.
2. Restart the computer. The computer begins processing a set of instructions known as the Basic Input/Output System (BIOS). What is displayed depends on the BIOS manufacturer. Some computers display a progress bar that refers to the word BIOS, while others may not display any indication that this process is happening.
3. As soon as the BIOS has finished loading, begin tapping the F8 key on your keyboard. Continue to do so until the Windows Advanced Options menu appears. If you begin tapping the F8 key too soon, some computers display a "keyboard error" message. To resolve this, restart the computer and try again.
4. Using the arrow keys on the keyboard, scroll to and select the Safe mode menu item, and then press Enter.

Q: How do I set up avast! to work together with the Windows Disk Protection feature from Microsoft Shared Computing Toolkit?

A:

Microsoft Shared Computing Toolkit contains an interesting feature called Windows Disk Protection. Upon each system restart, this feature discards any changes made to the disk during a Windows session, keeping the disk contents in a well-defined, healthy condition. For example, in case of a virus infection, removal of such a virus is as simple as restart of the machine because all changes made to the disk (i.e. files, registry entries etc.) are automatically reverted with each system restart.

This feature can be very useful, but needs extra attention regarding the installation of proper (wanted) updates, such as operating system updates and virus definitions updates. Windows Disk Protection provides built-in support for the installation of Windows patches as well as updates of some antivirus programs. Unfortunately, as of April 2006, avast! is not directly supported.

This FAQ entry provides you with step-by-step instructions on how to configure WDP to work correctly with avast! Professional or Server editions. Please note that we don’t recommend using the managed version of avast! (avast! NetClient Edition or avast! NetServer Edition) with Windows Disk Protection as the configuration data defined on the management server cannot be persisted on the protected disks, and the management server may become confused by the agent‘s volatile nature).

Instructions for avast! Professional or Server Edition (version 4.7 or higher):

1. If Windows Disk Protection is already enabled, turn it off (this may require machine restart)
2. If avast! is not yet installed, install it now; when asked for restart, let the computer restart
3. When the computer starts, run avast! (e.g. by clicking its desktop icon), and
   • insert your license key (or license file in case of Server Edition)
   • when the program starts, go to Program Settings --> “Update (Basic)” page and set both Virus database and Program update schedule to Manual
4. Run the Windows Disk Protection application:
   • In the Restart Action section, click the Turn on button
   • In the Critical Updates section, set the updating schedule according to your preference – we recommend using daily schedule as we release avast! virus definition updates at least several times a week. Please note that the machine must be running at the time you schedule the updates for, as they won’t take place otherwise. That is, if you set the schedule for 3:00 AM, be sure to keep the machine(s) running overnight.
   • On the “Antivirus Script” line, click the browse button, navigate to the folder where avast! is installed (typically C:Program FilesAlwil SoftwareAvast4) and select the updating script wdp-ash-updscript.vbs (or, in case of avast! Server Edition, wdp-asw-updscript.vbs).
   • Confirm with OK; the program will display a “No antivirus software detected” message – you can safely ignore it. When asked for restart, let the system restart.

The above procedure ensures that the avast! virus definitions are correctly updated. Program updates, however, will need to be done manually. I.e., as soon as there’s a new version of avast! released (you can find this information e.g. on our main web page http://www.avast.com), it is recommended to restart the machines with Windows Disk Protection set to the “Save changes with next restart” mode, and perform the program update manually through avast! user interface.

Q: How can I add another language to the avast! program?

A: If you already have the latest avast! installed and would like to add the new language only, you don't have to download the whole program again. You can just modify installed components of avast program via Control panels - Add/Remove programs.

Q: I didn't find the answer here in FAQs. What are my other options?

A: You can visit our forum. You don't have to register for browsing and searching. Registration is required only if would like to post a new topic.

Q: What should I do when I see this error message: "Unknown error. Program cannot set property into main Storage"?

A: Solution described in this FAQ should not be used with the program version 4.7.
This error message is displayed when your ODBC drivers are too old, or damaged, or if they aren´t installed properly. avast! before version 4.7 uses these drivers by default. There are two solutions for this problem:

• Install current ODBC drivers provided by Microsoft. You can download them from this page.
• Don´t use the ODBC drivers, use XML instead. To make avast! use XML drivers, follow these steps:
  1. Open the file avast4.ini located in C:\PROGRAM FILES\ALWIL SOFTWARE\AVAST4\DATA in Notepad.
  2. Find the section [COMMON]
  3. In this section, change the line
     Database=ODBC to Database=XML
  4. Save the file
  5. Restart your computer

Q: I have installed 'avast! 4 Home' and everytime I try to open it, I get an error message stating: "unknown error message", "Application cannot load skin. Function usiGetSkin Failed". How can I fix this?

A:

1. Select START -> RUN...
2. Enter the following command:
   • If you have Windows NT or 2000:
     C:\WINNT\SYSTEM32\REGSVR32.EXE ACTSKIN4.OCX
   • If you have Windows 95, 98 or ME:
     C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\REGSVR32.EXE ACTSKIN4.OCX
   • If you have Windows XP:
     C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\REGSVR32.EXE ACTSKIN4.OCX
3. Press OK (or Enter).
4. A message saying that the file was successfully registered should appear.

Q: The provider of 'On-Access Scanner' called 'Outlook/Exchange' is still waiting for a subsystem to start. Is anything wrong?

A: No. This provider runs only when MS Outlook (not Outlook Express!) or MS Exchange is running. If you don't use any of these programs, the provider doesn't run either.

Q: After I installed avast!, my Internet options were set to "Never dial a connection", and whenever I change them, it comes back. What should I do?

A: Go to the avast! settings and define your Internet connection type (dial-up or permanent connection). It´s in UPDATE (CONNECTIONS) section.

Q: What is the difference between avast! HOME and avast! PROFESSIONAL?

A: You can compare both versions here

Q: After updating my avast! Home/Professional to version 4.7.826, it no longer works. If I try to run it, it doesn't seem to be doing anything, or displays an error message.

A:

Unfortunately, version 4.7.826 contained a bug that could, under certain circumstances, cause setting of incorrect access rights on the avast program files, preventing the program from functioning properly. Namely, the problem may occur if any of the following three conditions is met:

• the operating system was previously updated from Windows NT 4.0; or
• avast was installed in a different folder than the default Program Files folder (that was offered to you by the installer); or
• previously, the system volume was converted from FAT32 to NTFS.

Solution
In order to correct the situation, please take the following steps:

1. Uninstall avast! using the avast! uninstall utility (this is more reliable than the Add/Remove Programs applet in Control Panel).
2. Restart the computer.
3. Download the latest version of avast! from our website:
   
     - Professional Edition: download from here.
     - Home Edition: download from here.
   
   and install it.

The latest version does not have the problem, and should function correctly.

We apologize anyone who faced this problem.