There are virus scanners for viruses. And yet, as a rule, a certain degree of uncertainty remains, even after the pests have been removed. With the free program Farbar Recovery Scan Tool you can have your system checked for suspicious traces.
Viruses, Trojans, ransomware and all kinds of malware threaten Windows systems in particular. On the other hand, it is best to use multi-level protection, which also includes a virus scanner. But the protection does not always work perfectly, i.e. an infection can occur despite extensive protective measures.
In this article we describe how to react correctly to a virus detection. However, a residual risk remains even after you have removed the pest. The best strategy is to restore a clean backup or reinstall Windows. Alternatively, you can use Farbar Recovery Scan Tool to scan and repair your system.
System check with Farbar Recovery Scan Tool
Important: Farbar Recovery Scan Tool does not replace a virus scanner. The program is an analysis and repair tool. Our download bundles the 32 and 64 bit versions of the portable software. So just start the EXE file, nod off the user account control prompt and you’ll see the program overview.
Most users will want to start an analysis. This works quickly by clicking on “Investigate”. If you want to have the log files evaluated in forums such as trojaner-board.de, always look at the exact requirements. For example, it may be necessary to tick “Shortcut.txt” because three log files are generated at the end of a scan.
Farbar Recovery Scan Tool scans the key Windows areas where viruses attach, such as services, drivers, firewall exceptions, installed programs and taps into Windows Event Viewer to gather information. After a few minutes, two or, depending on the additional settings, more log files are generated. These serve as the basis for the analysis.
Check and repair
Up to this point, handling was quite simple, but know-how is now required to analyze the log files. You can look through the files yourself, but it’s better to let specialists take a look here. A very good German-speaking community can be found at trojaner-board.de.
You post the log files there and experienced helpers quickly look through the listed entries and give tips. When problems are found, there is often a repair script that you can run from Farbar Recovery Scan Tool.
To do this, all you have to do is copy the given code and click “Repair”. FRST automatically pulls the contents of the clipboard and carries out the individual steps. A restart then makes sense. FRST writes a log file fixlog.txt again, which you then have to post again for analysis.