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re: Illegal Operation Spool32 at startup Friday, July 25, 2008 at 4:50 pm Posted by bob wells (1636 messages posted) Marianne, Try booting into Safe Mode. Reboot and hold the F8 key down till Boot Menu appears. Select Safe mode & hit enter. If it starts in Safe Mode you will see Safe Mode in all 4 corners of the screen. Open Device Manager,(right click My Computer & select Properties, the click on the device manager Tab.) and see if any problems are indicated by either a Yellow !, or ?. Possibly a Red X. Spool32 is Printer associated and I'm guessing you have a USB Printer, which you might want to disconnect first. The problem will probably in the USB portion of Device Manager. Post back here with what you find. Copy error messages exactly and completely as they appear on screen. BW __________________________________________________________ There's nothing to learn from someone who already agrees with you. On Friday, July 25, 2008 at 4:32 pm, Marianne wrote: >Please Help!!!Glad I have another computer to try and resolve this. When I start >the computer I get the screen that says windows 98, then the blank desktop comes >up with the Box stating Spool32 Illegal Operation and will shut down and freezes >the cursor moves with the hour glass and can't hit the close button and that's as >far as we go. When I shut it down and start-up again, held control key down and >chose to use prompts. Put in scanreg/restore, restarted again and the same problem. > Can I put anything in to get rid of this spool32 box? [Reply or follow-up to this message] re: Illegal Operation Spool32 at startup Friday, July 25, 2008 at 5:59 pm Posted by Keith Stanier (1655 messages posted) Marianne wrote: |When I shut it down and start-up again, held control |key down and chose to |use prompts. bob wells wrote: Try booting into Safe Mode. Reboot and hold the F8 key down till Boot Menu appears. I would think its a printer problem as you've stated Bob. |Select Safe mode & hit enter. Marianne has already said she is holding the Ctrl key as it boots which is just the same at intermitantly pressing F8. [Reply or follow-up to this message] re: Illegal Operation Spool32 at startup Friday, July 25, 2008 at 6:07 pm Posted by bob wells (1636 messages posted) Keith, May also be a Trojan! Trojan moves Spool32.exe from C:\windows\System, to C:\Windows, plus a bunch of other malware files. http://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/virusencyclo/default5.asp?VName=TROJ_JUNTADOR.K&VSect=T Just relaying the method I use to access Boot menu. Control key does not work on all systems AFAIK. F8 seems universal. If I'm mistaken but achieves same result, What's your point? __________________________________________________________ There's nothing to learn from someone who already agrees with you. On Friday, July 25, 2008 at 5:59 pm, Keith Stanier wrote: >Marianne wrote: >|When I shut it down and start-up again, held control |key down and chose to >|use prompts. > >bob wells wrote: >Try booting into Safe Mode. Reboot and hold the F8 key down till Boot Menu appears. > >I would think its a printer problem as you've stated Bob. >|Select Safe mode & hit enter. > >Marianne has already said she is holding the Ctrl key as it boots which is just the >same at intermitantly pressing F8. [Reply or follow-up to this message] re: Illegal Operation Spool32 at startup Friday, July 25, 2008 at 8:13 pm Posted by Marianne (3 messages posted) Is there a way to type in a prompt command to run a virus scan? Are there any other prompt commands I could try? I'm learning and reading alot with this problem. It just drives me nuts that I can't get into the computer to at least get the start tab or any programs. Our computers are networked...can I do anything from any of the others to delete any files or add anything? Grabbing at straws...... [Reply or follow-up to this message] re: Illegal Operation Spool32 at startup Friday, July 25, 2008 at 8:21 pm Posted by Marianne (3 messages posted) Hi Bob, Thanks for replying so quick. Wen to eat something. Started it up with the control key down and entered safe mode. Screen has safe mode in all 4 corners. The spool32 illegal op box still there. Can't even click to close it. Before I did this i was looking at microsoft site and it said to do command prompt and type in scanreg/fix. It started going through it and got to 73% and message came up Repairing c:windows\system.dat and Windows found errors in system files and was unable to fix. Try to delete some system files to free up disc space in windows drive. Yea..how do you do this) If it doesn't work need to install windows to new directory. At this point I also typed in scanreg/restore and it did nothing. I thought it was something to do with the printer also. I did disconnect the printer yesterday. Can't scan norton for viruses or anything because I can't get rid of that illegal op box. It's about 11pm here and I'm getting a headache from working on this all day and will continue tomorrow morning. I appreciate your input. Keep trying to help me. Thanks Marianne [Reply or follow-up to this message] re: Illegal Operation Spool32 at startup Friday, July 25, 2008 at 9:29 pm Posted by gewg_ (4444 messages posted) If, before posting again, you made sure the **No preview** box near the bottom of this page http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/win98/config is NOT ticked, you could see what your posts look like BEFORE submitting them. I also recommend that folks who don't know how to format HTML *DO* tick the **Check this box to preserve your spacing** box. (The Webmaster did a lousy job of explaining that.) After that, your posts shouldn't look like a blob: http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/win98/1217042504 |[...]Started it up with the control key down and entered safe mode. |Screen has safe mode in all 4 corners. |The spool32 illegal op box still there. Can't even click to close it. | |[...]scanreg/fix[...]got to 73% and message came up |Repairing c:windows\system.dat |and Windows found errors in system files and was unable to fix. | Marianne | I'm thinking the **infected** thing Bob came up with sounds more and more apt. |[...]Can't scan norton for viruses or anything |because I can't get rid of that illegal op box. | :Our computers are networked... :can I do anything from any of the others to delete any files or add anything? : Marianne : If you can't get an OS running well enough to start up apps, "networked" is like plugging in a broken TV. If there other computers about, the 1st thing I'd do is pull the HDD, mount it in another box as a slave, and try to disinfect it there. :Is there a way to type in a prompt command to run a virus scan? : You're a real glutton for punishment. 8-) For starters, the app would have to be a DOS app. These folks still do a DOS AV: http://www.google.com/search?q=Fprot+DOS The database is going to be bulky enough that it would have to be burned to a CD, so you'd need a DOS device driver to read that drive and you'd have to have a CONFIG.SYS tweaked to load it. I suspect[1] that Fprot's stuff is an ISO that makes a bootable optical disk and, if your box can boot to a CD, you'd tweak your CMOS Settings to get that. ...Do you REALLY want to go down this road? [1] I haven't messed with it to know. [Reply or follow-up to this message] re: Illegal Operation Spool32 at startup Saturday, July 26, 2008 at 10:47 am Posted by bob wells (1636 messages posted) Hi Marianne, Try this idea, if it fails, your best bet is to pull the HDD and slave it to another Computer and do an Online malware scan. Restart the computer in SafeMode, when the error appears, hit Control-Alt-Delete keys simultaneously, this should open the Task Manager, Close Program Dialog box. Use the END TASK button to stop any process you do not recognize, and any thing like GBot. This link contains detailed removal instructions and a list of files that need to be deleted plus registry values that need to be changed. Just a note, you must be ale to work in REGEDIT to finish the Manual removal. This Trojan is set to reload itself when you run an EXE file. http://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/virusencyclo/default5.asp?VName=TROJ%5FJUNTADOR%2EK&VSect=Sn Print out the list for future refrence. Now, if Contrl-Alt-Delete did not work to clear the programs from memory, and allow you to proceed with the removal process, you'll have to pull the HDD. Install it in another Computer as a slave then Run Trend Micro Housecalls on-line. There is a link at the bottom of TM page I sent you. Click the link to open the page, then save the link to Favorites on the Computer you will use to run the TM Scan .You should be able to select the Problem Drive only on TM SCAN. Good hunting! BW __________________________________________________________ There's nothing to learn from someone who already agrees with you. On Friday, July 25, 2008 at 8:21 pm, Marianne wrote: >Hi Bob, >Thanks for replying so quick. Wen to eat something. Started it up with the control >key down and entered safe mode. Screen has safe mode in all 4 corners. The spool32 >illegal op box still there. Can't even click to close it. Before I did this i was >looking at microsoft site and it said to do command prompt and type in scanreg/fix. > It started going through it and got to 73% and message came up Repairing c:windows\system.dat >and Windows found errors in system files and was unable to fix. Try to delete some >system files to free up disc space in windows drive. Yea..how do you do this) If >it doesn't work need to install windows to new directory. At this point I also typed >in scanreg/restore and it did nothing. I thought it was something to do with the >printer also. I did disconnect the printer yesterday. Can't scan norton for viruses >or anything because I can't get rid of that illegal op box. It's about 11pm here >and I'm getting a headache from working on this all day and will continue tomorrow >morning. I appreciate your input. Keep trying to help me. Thanks Marianne http://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/virusencyclo/default5.asp?VName=TROJ%5FJUNTADOR%2EK&VSect=Sn"> [Reply or follow-up to this message] Tip: Use one of the [Reply or follow-up to this message] links above to add a message to this thread Search this forum Start a new thread on a different subject Report abuse of the forum Return to the Windows 98 Discussion Forum