Weird Icon Overlay Appearing Over Shortcuts/Executables - Hardware & Software

vflt is the ShrewSoft Lightweight Filter, and it's related to your VPN software. It's failing to start when the computer starts up. And it looks like the HP Health Check service is still enabled but some of its files are either damaged or deleted. I'm going to guess that this is the probable cause for the big drag on Windows loading the actual desktop on boot -- it's trying to start your VPN and HP shit and trying a few times when they fail before giving up. Let's try this. Hit Winkey+R to get the Run box up, and then type services.msc, hit enter. If you get a UAC prompt during this process, the answer is yes. Scroll through the services list until you find a service that is named HP Health Check Service, or something [I]extremely[/I] like it. There should be a matching option. Right-click, properties, change the drop-down from automatic/manual to Disabled. Hit stop for good measure. For the HP thing, we can probably live without that for now; I'm thinking that you want your VPN working properly, so we're not just disabling the filter service. Uninstall and reinstall the ShrewSoft package in your VPN suite (if you can reinstall just that one component--if not, rip the whole thing out and refresh? if that doesn't fuck you on keys or verification). If you just want to test to see if that solves the problem, disable it, but I'd definitely look at this before you rely on the VPN again, just in case something isn't working properly.

1) i tried shrewsoft very briefly before uninstalling it a while back 2) im pretty sure openvpn doesnt have anything related to shrewsoft (and even then, i have openvpn set to not run on startup) 3) ive disabled hp health check service from automatically starting 4) i dont really use my vpn except for 1 specific, rare purpose, so ill uninstall it and see what happens 5) im going to sleep, so ill be back on some time tomorrow

Oh, in that case, disable the ShrewSoft service, vflt, it didn't get properly removed. [B]Don't[/B] uninstall your OpenVPN shit, then. :v: For the BSODs, I have a feeling it's your video driver that's causing the issue. You're basically getting hit with a Stop 0x1E exception; in plain English terms, something with kernel-level access (usually drivers!) is trying to do something it shouldn't, and it has such high-level access that the only thing the computer can do to protect itself from the driver/whatever shitting itself is to BSOD and shut the whole system down. Your graphics drivers are about 15 months out of date. The latest version is 13.9 and it's available for Windows 7: [URL="http://support.amd.com/en-us/download/desktop/legacy?product=legacy2&os=Windows%207%20-%2032"][B]32-bit[/B][/URL]/[URL="http://support.amd.com/en-us/download/desktop/legacy?product=legacy2&os=Windows%207%20-%2064"][B]64-bit[/B][/URL] And thank you for your cooperation and patience, too. Sorry I didn't zero in on this faster, but I wanted to make sure I covered the bases and eliminated malware as a suspicion.

1) im not sure where i would find the vflt service (i checked msconfig and services.msc for anything relating to shrewsoft or vflt and couldnt find anything) 2) ive updated my video driver 3) im very glad that i dont have malware; got lots of valuable stuff here 4) i wont uninstall openvpn 5) thank you for sticking with me and actually trying to help me out :downs:

Try resetting to the default aero theme, that's the first thing that comes to mind regarding the icons after seeing your screenshots.

that didnt help anything

[QUOTE=Wingz;42977884] 3) im very glad that i dont have malware; got lots of valuable stuff here [/QUOTE] This is a friendly reminder that regular backups are widely regarded as quite a good idea.

Make sure there isn't anything about ShrewSoft still installed. Wingz, do you feel a bit brave? Because I think I have an idea on how to fix this, but it requires a tool that is very powerful (it's basically msconfig on steroids) and can brick Windows if misused. Don't worry, if you follow my instructions and don't go full-retard clicking on things, the chance of bricking is very very very low. :v: But, like msconfig, it's a tool with consequences, not a toy. If you're going to do this, make a system restore point [B]now[/B]. Go into Control Panel > System > System Protection (left sidebar) > Create Assuming I haven't scared you off yet, here's what you need to download: [URL="http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb963902.aspx"]Autoruns[/URL]. Sysinternals was purchased by Microsoft, and it's because their Windows tools, like Autoruns, were so good. They're now official Microsoft tools, so you can trust this as far as malware goes. Open Autoruns as administrator once you've unzipped it into a folder. Accept the EULA. As soon as the main window loads, hit esc to cancel scanning. Go into Options, Filter Options, check "Hide Microsoft Entries", and then click the Rescan button that becomes active. This is to minimize the chance that we fuck up Windows even by accident. Go to the drivers tab after it's finished rescanning everything. Look for something named vflt (in the leftmost column) or anything with ShrewSoft in the publisher column. If it's yellow and image path begins with "File not found: (some path)", [B]and[/B] it's vflt/ShrewSoft, uncheck the corresponding checkbox. Check any of the other tabs for vflt (I highly doubt you will find any, but worth a look), uncheck if you find them. Reboot, cross your fingers that Explorer kicks in faster.

[QUOTE=elixwhitetail;42982736]Make sure there isn't anything about ShrewSoft still installed. Wingz, do you feel a bit brave? Because I think I have an idea on how to fix this, but it requires a tool that is very powerful (it's basically msconfig on steroids) and can brick Windows if misused. Don't worry, if you follow my instructions and don't go full-retard clicking on things, the chance of bricking is very very very low. :v: But, like msconfig, it's a tool with consequences, not a toy. If you're going to do this, make a system restore point [B]now[/B]. Go into Control Panel > System > System Protection (left sidebar) > Create Assuming I haven't scared you off yet, here's what you need to download: [URL="http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb963902.aspx"]Autoruns[/URL]. Sysinternals was purchased by Microsoft, and it's because their Windows tools, like Autoruns, were so good. They're now official Microsoft tools, so you can trust this as far as malware goes. Open Autoruns as administrator once you've unzipped it into a folder. Accept the EULA. As soon as the main window loads, hit esc to cancel scanning. Go into Options, Filter Options, check "Hide Microsoft Entries", and then click the Rescan button that becomes active. This is to minimize the chance that we fuck up Windows even by accident. Go to the drivers tab after it's finished rescanning everything. Look for something named vflt (in the leftmost column) or anything with ShrewSoft in the publisher column. If it's yellow and image path begins with "File not found: (some path)", [B]and[/B] it's vflt/ShrewSoft, uncheck the corresponding checkbox. Check any of the other tabs for vflt (I highly doubt you will find any, but worth a look), uncheck if you find them. Reboot, cross your fingers that Explorer kicks in faster.[/QUOTE] ill try that, but i'll feel a little better after i make a full backup first ill respond after i tried that, but dont expect a response for atleast a day

Fingers crossed. The steps I give should cause no problems whatsoever unless something is really fucked up on your system, but I'm hesitant to instruct others to use Autoruns (without me being there to take over/etc. as it happens) because of the potential for stopping Windows from booting up properly.

are you sure i should use it? is it necessary?

the original icon has been replaced by a pure black square occupying the same amount of space [editline]27th November 2013[/editline] i havent ran autoruns yet tho

Well, autoruns will help you do something about the laggy startup with Windows. I... really have no idea at this point what the icon problem is and how to fix it. To be quite honest, I think the best thing at this point, if you're unwilling to put up with the way things are happening right now, is to make sure all your data's backed up and then do a wipe and reinstall of Windows. There are two reasons for this. One, I'm not 100% certain that suspicious shit isn't still lurking in your system, we just haven't gotten out the really big scary tools to try and really find them. The reason I haven't is, well, they're big and scary, and the main problem is the icon thing, so it'd be attempting to fix the wrong problem. The icon thing could be the one symptom of infection and whatever's in there is really good at hiding, but it's a bit of a long shot. Doing a complete wipe/reinstall will get rid of everything but the really really nasty shit like BIOS viruses, and those require more hands-on help than I'm able to provide over a forum. :v: Two, reinstalling Windows cleans out all the shit you've accumulated since the last time it was installed, and it runs snappier. It also lets you make some decisions on what to not install this time around. If you're going to do a reinstall, I recommend [URL="http://ninite.com"]Ninite.com[/URL] for installing your apps after you've finished getting Windows installed and patched with Windows Updates. What it is is a tool that batch-downloads and automates installation of a number of common programs (web browsers, media players, common utilities, etc.). Great for a fresh reinstall, because it pulls the latest versions of the programs from their official sources.

so my only choice at this point is a clean install? :(

It's all [I]I[/I] can think of. Windows is basically acting kind of brain-damaged, and it all seemed to start after that BSOD. Either the BSOD scrambled something and Windows is not recovering nicely when given the chance by things like the System File Checker (when we ran sfc /scannow), or the BSOD was caused by something (a virus, a bad driver, or existing, previously-undetected Windows brain-damage) that has gotten worse since the BSOD. And a clean install of Windows is likely going to fix all of that. It's also good to clean out the cruft every so often, although if you went through a clean install less than a year ago this might be more frustrating than usual.

nah, i clean installed a few years ago ill probably do that thx for all the help either way you really tried and i appreciate that

Did my best. Also, rule 1. :v: If I had the computer in front of me, I'd probably be doing a much more thorough dig to figure out what the fuck, but I'm not comfortable with giving you instructions to do that sort of thing on a forum. That's how you end up being forced to reinstall Windows and sooner than you wanted to. :v:

whats rule 1? [editline]30th November 2013[/editline] oh, my drivers. i tried updating beforehand, just never went to the site to see that they were actually outdated

Well, making sure your drivers are up to date should help prevent further BSODs (hopefully), but it's not likely going to fix the icon problem unless something's [I]really fucked up[/I]. If updating the drivers from the link I gave you on page 1 fixes the icon problem, strongly consider a clean reinstall because what. :v: If you've already updated them by this post, well, never mind then, heh. And thank you again for your patience and cooperation. I love it when people actually read and follow my instructions without skipping steps because they're impatient or bored. :v:

Theres one thing i didnt see mentioned that id like to bring up. Certain viruses can cause BSOD's to happen. Years ago, i had one that kept giving me a BSOD. The code came back as a driver related error, so i tried to resolve it as if it was. Updated drivers, etc. Eventually i ended up running some scans, found the virus, removed it, and the BSOD issues were resolved. It sounds to me like the OP's best chance is to wipe the system, after backing up data, and reinstalling windows. It is possible to remove it if its a virus, but itd potentially take longer than wiping and reinstallling

[QUOTE=FordLord;43023907][B]Theres one thing i didnt see mentioned[/B] that id like to bring up. Certain viruses can cause BSOD's to happen.[/QUOTE] Okay, I'm not flaming you, because you're trying to help, but it [I]really[/I] undermines your credibility when you demonstrate that you didn't even read the OP in the very first thing you type. [QUOTE=Wingz;42961651]So, for about a week or so, this icon as appeared as an overlay above the icons for my internet shortcuts and executable files. It has also been recently replacing the normal icon that it overlays with a blank paper-like icon after running the shortcut/executable, no matter what the previous icon was. [B]I don't have a virus as I have ran MSE and Malwarebytes numerous times and they have both found nothing.[/B][/QUOTE] I also had Wingz run a utility that scans for rootkits and other nasty stuff, and it also turned up negative. That was also on page 1.

[QUOTE=elixwhitetail;43023920]Okay, I'm not flaming you, because you're trying to help, but it [I]really[/I] undermines your credibility when you demonstrate that you didn't even read the OP in the very first thing you type. I also had Wingz run a utility that scans for rootkits and other nasty stuff, and it also turned up negative. That was also on page 1.[/QUOTE] I have read the entire thread.I do not see anything mentioned specifically saying that the bsod could be from a virus. MSE and Malwarebytes are good for general protection, but from my experience, they both let BSOD causing viruses slip by. Ive had quite a few malware issues slip by malwarebytes, and had to run other programs when issues appeared. I do see GMER used, and that it didnt find anything, but i still dont see anything mentioned that the bsod could be from a virus

[QUOTE=FordLord;43024026]I have read the entire thread.I do not see anything mentioned specifically saying that the bsod could be from a virus. ... but i still dont see anything mentioned that the bsod could be from a virus[/QUOTE] [IMG]http://i.imgur.com/rOCOjmn.png[/IMG] My faith in your reading comprehension skills, and therefore your technical competence in general, continues to fall.

[QUOTE=elixwhitetail;43024074][IMG]http://i.imgur.com/rOCOjmn.png[/IMG] My faith in your reading comprehension skills, and therefore your technical competence in general, continues to fall.[/QUOTE] I do see that now. No need to be a douchebag about it. And id say my technical competence is pretty good. Got A+ certified a few years ago without looking at a book or anything. Though, A+ is pretty easy to get

[QUOTE=FordLord;43024813]I do see that now. No need to be a douchebag about it. And id say my technical competence is pretty good. Got A+ certified a few years ago without looking at a book or anything. Though, A+ is pretty easy to get[/QUOTE] A+ certification means nothing if you fail to understand the situation and don't pay attention to what has already been attempted. I'm not trying to troll you, but if you want anyone to take you seriously in the technical support forum, two strikes in a row is not putting you in the best light.

[QUOTE=elixwhitetail;43024828]A+ certification means nothing if you fail to understand the situation and don't pay attention to what has already been attempted. I'm not trying to troll you, but if you want anyone to take you seriously in the technical support forum, two strikes in a row is not putting you in the best light.[/QUOTE] I understood the situation and paid attention to what had been attempted. You had him run one scan program as a general checkup, and put one blurb as an afterthought about how it could be a virus. There werent exactly tests run to determine if it was a virus, and the possibility that it could be a virus couldve been brought up much sooner and in a way that is more than a word tacked onto a list