Page 1 of 3

Norton Removal

PostPosted: Wed Nov 28, 2007 1:32 am
by a1
OK I need simple steps to remove Everything that relates to Norton Anti-Virus and all the other parts of its junk. I need simple as I have stated before that means i do not need to reformat my drives. I hear Norton is like Cancer.

thanks

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Wed Nov 28, 2007 2:04 am
by ozzy72
DON'T use the uninstaller tool from Symantec ;)

Do the following;
1. Go to Start --> Control Panel --> Add/Remove Programs.
2. Scroll down to your Norton program
3. Click Change --> Remove All.  You will be asked to restart your PC. Do so.
4. Now go to Start --> My Computer --> Program Files. Right click on each Symantec folder and select Delete.
5. While you are in Program Files go to the Common Files folder at or near the top of the Program Files window. Delete every Symantec folder there. And, again, restart your PC.
6. Go to Start --> Search --> All Files and Folders --> More Advanced Options. Check each option except for "Case sensitive" Now type in Norton and delete each Norton folder from the search results (Again, right click, choose "Delete"). One more time, restart your PC.
7. Repeat step 5 except type Symantec in the "Search" box.

The next step is trickier: go into the Registry.

1. First thing to do is Back up the Registry. But suffice it to say that the presence of uninstalled security software in the Registry can conflict with newly installed security software and cause system freezes. So can folders of "uninstalled" programs for that matter.
2. Once again, go to Start, then click on "Run". Type in "regedit"
3. Go to the top of the Regedit window. Click (+) next to HKEY_CURRENT_USER. Go down the thread until you see Software. Click on Software and scroll down the thread until you see Symantec. Right click on Symantec and choose "Delete".
4. From there go down to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE and repeat step 3. Restart your PC.
5. Click (+) next to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, now: Click (+) next to Software, Click (+) next to Microsoft, Click (+) next to Windows and Click (+) next to CurrentVersion.
6. Select the Run folder. Right-click and delete each Symantec entry you see (if present). Restart your PC.

That should completely eradicate Norton Antivirus from your system!

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Wed Nov 28, 2007 2:13 am
by a1
THank you. That is what I mean by simple. :D Any other tips are welcomed at this point.

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Wed Nov 28, 2007 3:24 am
by Ashar
There is no real way of getting rid of Norton without reformatting...At least that's what Nick told me a couple months back ;)

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Wed Nov 28, 2007 4:10 am
by Fozzer
I had the annual subscription version of "Norton System Works".

I also had to Format my Hard Drive, to get rid of it completely!... :'(...!

..bleedin' annoying!... >:(...!

F.... 8-)...!

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Wed Nov 28, 2007 7:05 am
by ozzy72
The method I've put in works and is a lot less hassle than a reformat and reinstall!

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Wed Nov 28, 2007 6:39 pm
by a1
Wait wait so if I use this method and there are some traces of it left, what is the worst it can do to my system if it doesn't have any of it's other parts? :-/

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Wed Nov 28, 2007 6:48 pm
by Wii
There is no real way of getting rid of Norton without reformatting...At least that's what Nick told me a couple months back ;)

I didn't have norton but Zone Alarm and it is still haunting our laptop ;D Not my problem anymore. ;)

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 1:11 pm
by ozzy72
This method will really get rid of the whole thing leaving none of the evil N-word stuff haunting your system ;)

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 1:15 am
by a1
OK so I don't see any posts that might make me question the method for now so I will start the deletion this weekend.


Just to make sure everything is in right order:

Do what Ozzy says

Get a new antivirus suite

re-check everything

and I am done.



I want another confirmation that there will be no problems that Norton is still in my system using this method in a post if possible.

As you can See I am quite nervous at doing this as Norton gave me major problems in the past.

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 1:17 am
by a1
Oh one more thing.


How about my ports. Will they all work properly without Norton? Because when the computer started up and The antivirus wasn't started i could not connect to any applications that use the Internet such as IM software and email.

This got me quite scared so If you wouldn't mind answering this question also.


Thanks :)

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 3:37 am
by Fozzer
This is the only Norton you need...trust me!.....>>>

Image

I've got a free "AVG" Motorcycle parked inside my Computer... [smiley=thumbsup.gif]...!

Paul.... 8-)...!

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 9:37 pm
by Groundbound1
Oh one more thing.


How about my ports. Will they all work properly without Norton? Because when the computer started up and The antivirus wasn't started i could not connect to any applications that use the Internet such as IM software and email.

This got me quite scared so If you wouldn't mind answering this question also.


Thanks :)

Should be ok. (I can't say for certain, as I've always avoided Norton like the plague) Before you try it though, search out a little program called "WinsockFix" (freeware). Run it if you find you're having trouble connecting to the net after the Norton removal, and it should reset all your connection settings back to default. I'm not sure if it supports XP Media Center Edition, but it works well on XP Home and Pro. (also a good tool to use if spyware changes your internet settings)

http://www.softpedia.com/get/Tweak/Netw ... kFix.shtml

I've used it myself.

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Sat Dec 01, 2007 3:59 pm
by a1
OK so what should be the better free equivalent antivirus suite? :-/

Re: Norton Removal

PostPosted: Sat Dec 01, 2007 4:54 pm
by MWISimmer
OK so what should be the better free equivalent antivirus suite? :-/


http://free.grisoft.com/ AVG free.

Cheap, effective and doesn't use half of your CPU resources  ;)