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Malwarebytes Issues


ebrke

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Does anyone have any experience with Malwarebytes website? Using Malwarebytes Premium for windows 7 and Web Protection will not start, gives no explanation or error msg. This has been working for years, but no more. MB site doesn't seem to give any help under Support other than to say that web protection option is disabled in free version, but this is Premium. Do I really have to create an online account with them and go to a forum for help? Am I missing something?

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V.T. Eric Layton

Corrine is going to be the one who needs to answer this. I don't think any of the Linux users here have Win on their systems or use MB. Sorry, Elizabeth. Corrine will pop in and see this. Patience.

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I did finally create an account on MB forums and post a question, but don't know how effective that will be. Thanks Eric, I'll wait for Corrine.

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I haven't had any issues with MBAM in years, but when I did, the easiest fix was removing it completely using the support tool, and then reinstalling it.

 

https://support.malw...m/docs/DOC-2674

 

They say it's not necessary but .... IMHO, Make sure you have the key in a safe place before you start.

Edited by Pete!
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From time to time something won't turn on. I've found the easiest thing to do is close it using the tray app (Quit Malwarebytes) then go to the program listing and click on it.

It is impossible to turn it on from the tray icon if it loads and is off. I used to reboot the computer and hoped when it loaded it would be on. Then I discovered it was a time saver to Quit the program then turn it on.

 

I've posted on the Malwarebytes website for years. I've managed to get help there. I'll keep an eye out for your thread.

 

I run MBAM premium on 4 Win 7 computers and 1 XP computer.

 

Did you post in this section?

https://forums.malwarebytes.com/forum/41-malwarebytes-3-support-forum/

Edited by zlim
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I agree with Pete! I have been a long time Malwarebytes Premium user. While the move from Malwarebytes Antimalware (MBAM 2.x) to the newer Malwarebytes 3.0 was arguably a total fiasco with many MANY reports of various protection services suddenly disabling themselves, they eventually sorted those problems out. It is only occasionally now when I have seen this problem again and generally, it is easy to resolve.

 

I recommend the following course of action.

 

If not there, make sure you have installed the most recent version. That alone often resolves it. If already fully updated, a simple reboot often works.

 

If still having problems, then as Pete! suggests, download (but don't install - yet) the latest version. Then uninstall Malwarebytes and reboot (rebooting now is important to clear any hooks - especially those that might be corrupt and causing this problem). Then install the latest version. That should do it!

 

Of course, make sure you have your correct registration ID and License Key (I keep mine in my password safe) before uninstalling. Before uninstalling, go to the Malwarebytes control panel, click on Settings > Account Details for that information.

 

FTR, I run Malwarebytes Premium along with Windows Defender on all my main systems with no problems. You will often see cautions about running two real-time antimalware solutions at once, but have no fear. Malwarebytes and Windows Defender play very well together.

 

Years ago, the concern was potential conflicts. I used to say it was like two dogs guarding the same bone, each wondering what the other was up too. But the developers have sorted those issues out so conflicts are no longer a problem. Today's concerns are simply wasting (hogging!) system resources unnecessarily - often to the point of significant degradation of performance. But both Windows Defender (WD) and Malwarebytes (MB) are light on resources, they don't cause conflicts, and they complement each other very well.

 

That said, Microsoft has designed WD to, by default, gracefully step out of the way if another antimalware solution is installed. So to allow both WD and MB to run in real time at the same time, open Malwarebytes control panel and click on Settings > Application tab and scroll down to the "Windows Action Center" section. Tick "Never register Malwarebytes in the Windows Action Center and you are good to go.

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Unfortunately, rebooting and stopping and starting MB makes no difference. I've turned MB off temporarily--this is my elderly mother's laptop and she gets upset with the notification about web protection popping up all the time, and I'll run manual scans for now. It may be a day or so before I can get time to work on this, but I appreciate the advice that confirms what I was hoping to avoid--reinstalling the darn program. Their support tool looks like more trouble than this situation is worth--I'd rather just uninstall and reinstall and hope that fixes things.

 

I've had MB on this laptop for years alongside ESET security software without issues--I guess they stay out of each other's way.

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I was hoping to avoid--reinstalling the darn program.
At least that is a simple and quick task.

 

As for ESET, as noted earlier staying out of each other's way (avoiding "conflicts") hasn't been a problem for many years. It was more of problem back in the day with XP when it was not uncommon for users to have multiple "layers" of security programs installed - that is, antivirus, antitrojan, antiworm, antispyware, antithis and antithat.

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........ Their support tool looks like more trouble than this situation is worth--I'd rather just uninstall and reinstall and hope that fixes things......

Using the support tool isn't really any more time consuming than a normal uninstall.

If the normal uninstall doesn't get rid of the problem, you might end up using it anyway.

Edited by Pete!
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Sorry, I don't know how I missed this thread. I must have had blinders on.

 

I also agree with Pete's suggestion. Even though your license information will be remembered, I'd still make a point of writing it down, "just in case".

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Just for the record, I have version 3.6.1 of Malware Bytes Premium installed and it is working OK. I run it alongside ESET Internet Security 12.0.31.0 without problems.

Edit: Just got an update to 3.7.1 and no problems.

Edited by raymac46
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I finally did get a reply on MB Forums, but adding their suggested folders/files to ESET exclusions did not help MB issues with Web Protection; also, that has never been an issue before. When I have time I will uninstall/reinstall MB with new version of software and see if that helps. Thanks for your continued support and suggestions.

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I've got to say that MB forums have some serious problems. I was told to download a tool, run the program and post the results. I was a little impatient, but I hate people who just abandon help requests, so I did what they suggested. I did modify the resulting .txt so that user names from the laptop did not show. I don't know if that caused a problem or what, because when I attempted to post requested results MB forum told me I was trying to post what appeared to be suspicious content and linked me to a help page so I could report the problem if the content was legitimate. Unfortunately their link lead to a page with only an employee login, so I was stuck there. Now anything at all that I attempt to post on the forum is refused as suspicious. I gave up.

 

I should have just uninstalled and reinstalled and stayed away from the MB forum. When I reinstalled new version the problem seemed to be solved, although I'm wondering for how long. If I continue to have problems with the software, I'm just going to uninstall and forget it.

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I should have just uninstalled and reinstalled and stayed away from the MB forum. When I reinstalled new version the problem seemed to be solved, although I'm wondering for how long. If I continue to have problems with the software, I'm just going to uninstall and forget it.
Well, there's no guarantee it will not happen again. I have had to do it more than once over the years. According to my downloads folder, it looks like the last time was in May of last year and the time before was March of 2017. Too often, but not really a big deal.
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Too often, but not really a big deal.
You're right.

 

I'll have to find another platform for this user anyway at win7 EOL--she's 91 and would never be able to cope with win10.

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Too often, but not really a big deal.
You're right.

 

I'll have to find another platform for this user anyway at win7 EOL--she's 91 and would never be able to cope with win10.

"Classic Shell" can give Win 10 the look and feel of classic Windows versions, including Win 7.

There are others, that may or may not be better, but this one is free.

 

I first used it to adapt to Win 8, and kept it when I went to Win 10.

I'm currently set up so left clicking the start button opens a classic interface, and a middle click opens the Windows 10 interface.

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If she is mainly a surfer then a Chromebook might be the way to go. I'm thinking about that route for my husband.

 

As long as I can get Firefox on whatever I buy, he'll be "good to go".

Based on how seamlessly my 3 android devices update in the background with no problem, you won't have to worry about updating problems.

 

I didn't like Malwarebytes on my android devices so I removed it. I do use ESET but I'm not sure if it works in ChromeOS or just linux and android.

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"Classic Shell" can give Win 10 the look and feel of classic Windows versions, including Win 7.
Yes, but the developer of Classic Shell decided to cease development way back in December 2017 because it was too much of a challenge and too time consuming to keep it current and compatible with the ever evolving Windows 10. See: Classic Shell no longer in development.

 

While it currently still works, there is no guarantee it will after the next Windows Update. I am not suggesting those currently using Classic Shell get rid of it, just be aware it may soon stop working. But I don't recommend anyone looking for an alternative now install Classic Shell.

 

I use, recommend and actually prefer Start10 which also brings back the familiar W7 Start menu and desktop and for just a one time cost of $5 for a lifetime license, it is well worth it. It has a decent 30 day trial period too, if still unsure. This is, IMO, the best W10 start button alternative.

 

StartIsBack and Pokki are two more popular start screen alternatives. StartIsBack is not free, but pretty close at $4. Note Pokki apparently has not been updated for Windows 10, but is reported to work (for now) in compatibility mode.

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I saw that before and it was not being updated. Good see it is now. :) I still personally prefer Start10 but it is good to see a viable alternative is still out there.

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I appreciate the suggestions, but although I hesitated to bring this up in a windows thread, I'll have to move her to linux. I really can't afford to buy her new hardware, and I doubt win10 would run well on what she has now. OpenSuSE with xfce should be okay on her Lenovo ThinkPad, and it won't really look or behave any differently than the old windows she's used to.

Edited by ebrke
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If she's like my husband, just put an icon for the browser on her desktop and she won't notice the difference! When I switched him from FF to Palemoon, I simply told him he's using a different browser and to click that instead.of what he was clicking. Since I load his 3 home tabs and make sure his bookmarks are on, all he noticed is that it was faster.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I have to mention this about MBAM. Twice in about the last 5 days, when I cold boot my desktop computer, I get a notice that malwarebytes tray icon has stopped working. Clicking on the program in all programs shows everything is working but the tray icon still doesn't appear. I have to reboot the computer to get the tray icon.

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I cold boot daily. I don't let the computers on at the end of the day, I always turn them off.

Also, I haven't noticed this behavior on the other 3 Windows 7 computers in the house and they too have been cold booted (two of them daily) the other one perhaps booted 3 times in the past week or so.

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I cold boot daily. I don't let the computers on at the end of the day, I always turn them off.
Turn them off, how? If you don't unplug them from the wall or flip the master power switch on the back of the power supply (if it has one), that is NOT a cold boot. Shutting down via Windows Start menu or using the case's front panel power button simply puts the computer into standby. There is still +5Vsb standby voltage distributed across many points on the motherboard (hence "live" or still "hot", not "cold"). Only unplugging from the wall or flipping that switch removes even the standby voltage and only then is it "cold".
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Okay so I put them into "standby" but not sleep or hibernate

The lines between those are very fuzzy. Standby is a sleep mode.

 

Hibernate (typically only for notebooks) can mean a "cold" state, or a standby mode because the hiberfil.sys file is still created and can load almost instantly from standby or take a little longer from a cold start. In either case, you restart where you left off.

 

See: https://www.thewindo...tates-windows-8

 

Note for PCs, there is Hybrid Sleep and is probably what you are doing on your PCs as this is the default mode.

 

See: https://www.thewindo...on-in-windows-7

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Well it did it again this morning. It's the only computer that has the problem. (All 4 computers are plugged in and shut down nightly so whatever you want to call it, all 4 computers start from the same state in the morning when they are powered up.)

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Not wanting to hijack this thread but at this point, all I can suggest is uninstalling, rebooting and reinstalling the latest version - then see what happens.

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