Coldheart

Hi @exile360and @AdvancedSetup First of all, I do apologise for the very late response - especially since exile360 provided a quick and detailed response to me - but please know I do appreciate the help. I have been busy with other things and so have only now had the chance to reply properly. Following your advice, I did check my firewall and AV settings, and everything is as it should be: I added the exceptions mentioned in the article you linked to Avast, tried disabling it, then ZoneAlarm, then both at once, but to no avail. ZoneAlarm I have set to ask me about each application's behaviour before it's trusted, and so it long since has Malwarebytes' behaviour, including updating, added to the trusted list. I did stop short of uninstalling each program in turn, as before I went to do so it somehow occurred to me to try running Malwarebytes as an administrator (I use a standard user account for my day to day computer activity) as closing it requires elevation but launching does not. As a result, over the last several days I have managed to get Malwarebytes to update consistently, running as an admin. No error message about contacting the licensing server, and it has updated consistently without failure since changing this. Perhaps it's coincidence, and so I will do further testing to confirm this. Needless to say, if the errant behaviour returns I will try temporarily uninstalling Avast and ZoneAlarm, to eliminate them. Hopefully though, the issue is resolved. Thanks again to exile360 for your prompt response, and to AdvancedSetup also for your input. Much appreciated. I'll update the thread if/when there's any developments. If the issue returns, I'll eliminate the AV and firewall by uninstalling each in turn, rebooting in between, to try and eliminate those. However, I have not changed anything in either (other than adding the exceptions in Avast) since the problem arose. I'll let you know

Hi everyone. Apologies in advance for the long post, but I want to be as thorough as I can in the opening post. I hope this is the correct forum to post this, but if not then I apologise. It's been forever since I logged in, but decided to dust off my old account since I'm having an issue with Malwarebytes updating. In the 10+ years of using MBAM, it has been nothing short of stellar and I can honestly say there has been been a single issue with it until the last few months. I'm running Windows 10 v1909, but previously used it on Windows 7 about ten years without incident. As the title indicates, I've had this (albeit intermittent) problem with Malwarebytes, wherein I run it and am presented with the message "Unable to contact license server. Check your network settings or contact your system administrator for help." I should note that I am only using the free version, so it's not a major issue but it's still puzzling. When I attempt to check for updates, it will act like it is checking for updates but keeps saying Malwarebytes is up to date. This, despite the last update I had was 26 September - so clearly this is not the case. I have used the Malwarebytes Support Tool 1.7.0.827, and under the advanced tab have checked all of the four boxes under Repair System - individually and all at once. This did seem to work once or twice, but I'm not sure. As I mentioned earlier, the problem is intermittent. Take for example my last update on 26 September; I had not run the MST or done anything else I can think of, but it did manage to successfully update. A few days later, and it returned to the "Unable to contact license server..." and has been like that since. I have tried rebooting, but to no avail. I also tried the Clean function in the Support Tool, but again to no avail. I was eventually able to reinstall and update, but it did not work reliably as I have attempted it I would say four or five times. As per respinoza's post I have used the Gather Logs function and will attach them to this opening post in the hope that somebody will have an idea why I am facing this issue, as Malwarebytes will update some times, but not others, with no apparent reason either way. Again, it is not vitally important since I don't have the Premium version, but I would sincerely appreciate any insight and possible assistance on the matter. Many thanks in advance. mbst-grab-results.zip

Hi Anne, Which custom hosts file are you using? HPHosts or the MVPS hosts file which I posted previously? From the screenshot you attached before, it looked like you were using the latter. If that's the case, then what I do is just visit their website occasionally, and see if it has been updated. So, it's manual insofar as you have to visit the website and download the hosts.zip file each time you wish to update your hosts file in this manner. However, as John previously said, HPHosts has an auto-update program. I don't use this one myself, so I can't comment specifically, but what issue are you having with updating?

I've used a custom hosts file for years, in lieu of an adblocker. The one I use is the MVPS hosts file, which does get updated from time to time. Plus, it can be placed in the correct folder (and the old one renamed and not deleted) with an included batch file, which automates the process. David has already explained the distinction between a file and a program; a batch file, however, is a small text file file which carries out a set of instructions. It is however, not a program. It can also be referred to as a script, as it carries out pre-written instructions to complete a purpose. Hope this helps.

Yes. You can run 32-bit software on a 64-bit system, but not the other way around.

I've heard before that the so-called "fixes" to the Registry made by CCleaner are sometimes not fixes at all. While I'm not the most confident in diving into regedit and tinkering with the Registry, at the same time I do have an understanding (albeit limited) of it, and what's ok and not ok to delete. While I've recently been using regedit to clean up some issues related to pesky Microsoft software, I don't usually and generally trust CCleaner to remove unnecessary entries. That said however, I don't blindly click "Fix issue"; I read what the entry is before deleting it. Same goes with using regedit - as I said I'm not too confident in my knowledge of it so I always perform a full registry backup before making any changes that I'm not too sure about. But to cut a long story short, I've never had any problems in using the Registry feature of CCleaner - or any other feature of the program for that matter.

A fix that doesn't work in every situation, but has for me I would say 80% of the time: 1. Reboot your machine and repeatedly press F8 until you see the Boot Options menu 2. Select Safe Mode with Networking 3. Using your browser, download, install and update MBAM 4. Run the Quick scan 4. Reboot and this time let Windows boot as usual If you are still having problems, go over steps 1 through 3 again, however choose Full scan this time instead. Reboot once more, then hopefully you should be rid of the problem(s) that are on your machine. Like I said though, it's not guaranteed to work, although it has worked for me the vast majority of times. Hope this helps.

So, is the problem sorted? Drive formatted to FAT32? I skimmed over the myriad of posts, but SOCIOPATH, has it been a success? I'd like to think so over almost 200 posts.

I agree that Oracle VM VirtualBox is a good virtualisation solution. It's open source under the GNU GPL, gets regular updates, is robust and reliable, as as well as being easy to use. I used to use Microsoft's Virtual PC - which is also free - however I prefer VirtualBox and would recommend it to anyone who wants to install an OS within an OS. I am running Windows 7 on my host machine, but have XP SP3 installed virtually; comes in handy.

I see there's been quite a bit of back-and-forth going on in this thread since I left. Buttons: is Ubuntu really necessary to format a HDD into FAT32? I'm quite sure that it can be done in Windows XP, via the My Computer context menu for the device. Right-click --> Format --> then select FAT32. It works on the simple principle as a USB pen drive, I'm sure. And also, you said that in XP you cannot boot from USB. You are booting from the BIOS, and booting from USB, so the hard drive and the OS installed on it does not come into the equation. And a good program for installing Linux distros onto USB devices is UNetbootin - http://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/. I have personally used it a number of times without incident. It saves using a disc, and provided your BIOS allows you to boot from USB, it is great for getting the job done. SOCIOPATH: What is it that you are stuck with at the moment? Perhaps I can help. Buttons was very good to have helped you for so long last night (I would have stayed longer, but it was past 3 am when I logged off), but since I'm not doing anything I will be more than happy to talk you through the process.

Yes, it's doubtful you'd be able to retrieve the back-up software after it's gone. And no, you won't need to install anything - it should just be plug and play. Windows probably installed a driver for it when you first connected it. Formatting the hard drive will not remove this driver from your system so you should just be able to plug it in and use it without any problems.

I understand your hesitation; I would hate to waste a few hour's formatting a disk only to find out the annoying software was still there. Anyway, look in your Application Data folder and delete the folder specified in the post you made. That should get rid of it, but I would look to see if it's installed in the Program Files folder at C:\Program Files. Also look in Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel, as it might be listed there for an easy removal. As for the external hard drive itself - any and all data on it will be deleted, without exception. Any software on it that makes it act as a CD drive will be deleted, and you will have a clean, empty external hard drive to put on whatever you want. Beyond this, you shouldn't face any more problems. I am quite certain of this (unless I am very much mistaken). Just remember to format in to FAT32 and not NTFS, for compatibility with your 360. I hope I've made this clear, but if you want further explanation, I'm willing to give it.

No problem. I've personally never really used external storage on my 360. One of the reasons being you couldn't transfer it onto the console's hard drive - rather, you had to watch it from the USB pen drive which is not really that efficient or convenient. I would say though the only drawback to having to format into FAT32 is the file size limit. Any one file can only be 4 GB in size. So, as long as you've only got standard def (640x480 or similar) movies and not 720p HD versions (in which case in excess of 4 GB file size is not uncommon), you shouldn't be hampered by the requirement.

To answer your question regarding connecting it to an Xbox 360 - from experience I do not know. I would imagine FAT32, same as the PS3, but I'm not 100 percent so you might want to test for yourself, or do a bit investigation on the internet. As for getting rid of the pesky software: it depends on where it's installed. If it's on your computer, it shouldn't be difficult to remove. Have a look in your Start Menu or Program Files folder. Even try Add/Remove Software in Control Panel. Likewise, if it's installed on your external hard drive, then a complete format should get rid of it for good. In fact I'm sure it will. I do not understand what you mean about a "virtual CD"; please elaborate. As for the links - I'll take a look tomorrow (or should I say later today) as I'm getting pretty tired now so am not running at full battery and need to recharge. Hope this helps, and I will get back to you on the links and help you out more on the matter.

Also, I just looked on the PC Self Help Articles and Guides board and happened upon this. It may be of use to you, or at least of some interest. Format USB Thumbdrive to NTFS A bit of domestic help, right from the horse's mouth so to speak.