Laptop got XP defender virus, moved the virus now exe files don't work

[Denvers Dawgs]

Removed the Xp defender virus using Rkill & malwarebytes. When I try to open a program (exe file) it prompts me with the open with popup. I noticed that the exe is no longer listed as an application, but is now a g4 file? any ideas how to fix this.

Also, Xp defender has diabled my symantec endpoint protection. File System Auto-Protect is malfunctioning. any ideas how to fix that

[aedipuss]

bummer. did you try system restore? it may be you were infected with the new 2013 version of the defender trojan that requires different removal steps. at this point you may need to format/reinstall windows.

[jollyjohn]

get rid of symantec

[deadrats]

Removed the Xp defender virus using Rkill & malwarebytes. When I try to open a program (exe file) it prompts me with the open with popup. I noticed that the exe is no longer listed as an application, but is now a g4 file? any ideas how to fix this.

Also, Xp defender has diabled my symantec endpoint protection. File System Auto-Protect is malfunctioning. any ideas how to fix that

let's take this slowly; i'm assuming you're running windows xp, correct? it may sound like a silly question but i'm guessing that it can infect all windows OSes.

when you say that .exe's are now .g4 files, do you mean that the .g4 is appended to the .exe like this some_program.exe.g4 or that the .exe portion has been replaced with .g4 like some_program.g4?

you should be able to correct the problem by opening up a command prompt as admin and using rename like this:

rename drive_letter:\ *.g4 *.exe

you should also be able to do it recursively using the "for" command:

for /r %x in (*.g4) do ren "%x" *.exe

if you have an xp disc you can also use system file checker, open a command prompt and use the following command:

sfc /scannow

depending on how screwed up the system is you may be prompted to pop in an xp disc.

[vcd4ever]

Removed the Xp defender virus using Rkill & malwarebytes. When I try to open a program (exe file) it prompts me with the open with popup. I noticed that the exe is no longer listed as an application, but is now a g4 file? any ideas how to fix this.

The "exefile" entry in the registry is probably still corrupted, but you should be able to fix this by downloading and adding this "link removed, not needed anymore" to the registry by double clicking on the "exefile.reg" file and then restarting the computer.

vcd4ever.

[ranchhand]

If vcd4ever's file above doesn't work, you can perform a repair installation using your XP retail or OEM system disk. A repair reinstall will overwrite the critical system files but leave your data and programs alone. You may have to reinstall any service packs not on the disk, but that is a minor thing. Sometimes it is easier to do this than spend hours/days trying to repair various system files. BTW, you can use any XP system disk as long as it is your type of XP. If it asks for the key # just use yours. Perfectly legal.

[Denvers Dawgs]

Removed the Xp defender virus using Rkill & malwarebytes. When I try to open a program (exe file) it prompts me with the open with popup. I noticed that the exe is no longer listed as an application, but is now a g4 file? any ideas how to fix this.

Also, Xp defender has diabled my symantec endpoint protection. File System Auto-Protect is malfunctioning. any ideas how to fix that

let's take this slowly; i'm assuming you're running windows xp, correct? it may sound like a silly question but i'm guessing that it can infect all windows OSes.

when you say that .exe's are now .g4 files, do you mean that the .g4 is appended to the .exe like this some_program.exe.g4 or that the .exe portion has been replaced with .g4 like some_program.g4?

you should be able to correct the problem by opening up a command prompt as admin and using rename like this:

rename drive_letter:\ *.g4 *.exe

you should also be able to do it recursively using the "for" command:

for /r %x in (*.g4) do ren "%x" *.exe

if you have an xp disc you can also use system file checker, open a command prompt and use the following command:

sfc /scannow

depending on how screwed up the system is you may be prompted to pop in an xp disc.

The program names are still listed as "program".exe but the type of file has been changed from application to g4. An example would be, using a text doc as an example. Name.txt, but instead of file type saying Text Document, it would say g4. hope I'm explaining this better.

[mike20021969]

See post #8 here: http://forums.majorgeeks.com/showthread.php?t=239548
It solved (#9) a similar problem for the poster.

In short, it's the EXE File Association Fix found here:
http://www.dougknox.com/xp/file_assoc.htm

Be sure to read the NOTE: at the top of the page I linked to though.