no longer able to customize desktop after virus

[itfellow]

I have a friend whose Windows XP Home PC got hit with some spyware and a virus or two. I'm pretty sure I got that all cleaned off using various anti-virus and anti-spyware tools, but the virus appears to have done some damage that I have not been able to figure out how to completely undo.

For example, the user was no longer able to change the background on the desktop, nor could the user see anything under Start->Programs even though there are a number of programs installed on the PC and they all show up in the Documents and Settings\user\Start Menu\Programs directory. Even when I installed a program (Microsoft Office), the entry for that installation did not show up in Start->Programs.

The user is an adminstrator, by the way.

Any ideas on what this virus could have done and how I might repair it?

 

[w1nn3r]

Hello,

Seems like it might have damaged critical windows files, or perhaps explorer itself. To check this you'll need to run the following command from the run box in the start menu or by hitting Windows key + R,

sfc /scannow

this will check all windows OS files for corruption.

 

[linney]

If the System File Checker doesn't work in fixing the problem, have a look from Safe Mode and see if things work there. If they do then perhaps you have some malware remaining, if they don't work in Safe Mode you might have to consider a repair install.

Try repairing windows by running it over itself. You will lose all your windows updates but your files will be untouched.

How to Perform an In-Place Upgrade (Reinstallation) of Windows XP (Q315341)

http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q315/3/41.asp