May 22 2007

Are RunDLL files Malicious?

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Many are, many Trojans bring along files that mimic legitimate Windows system files. These files may have names such as explorer.exe and RUNDLL.exe so they can hide out on your system without your knowledge. Because the number of worms, viruses, Trojans and other Malware programs disguising themselves by naming their files RUNDLL.exe are so many, no one single do-it-yourself solution exists. It all depends on the specific infection you have. A quick search for RUNDLL.exe on one of the leading anti-virus websites came back with close to 500 different worms, viruses, Trojans and other forms of malware that disguise some of their files as RUNDLL.exe files. That’s close to 500 different techniques needed for RUNDLL repair!

Rundll Problem Detection and Repair

For starters, you can check to see if a RUNDLL process is running by hitting Control + Alt + Delete and opening the Task Manager. Click on the “Processes” tab and search for RUNDLL. If you find RUNDLL, select it and click “end process”. This will stop the malware. Since the malware that uses the RUNDLL.exe disguises often modifies the registry, many solutions deal with editing the system registry. This is a dangerous job for the average computer user and shouldn’t be entered into lightly. Let’s take a look at cleaning the registry of a fairly simple RUNDLL.exe infection that comes in the form of the WORM_POP.B worm. Not all RUNDLL.exe removals are as easy as this one. In fact, many of the registry edit solutions take up pages with instructions.

After stopping the RUNDLL process in Task Manager, open the Registry Editor by typing in “regedit” after choosing Start/Run.

In the left pane, double-click: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE>Software>Microsoft>
Windows>CurrentVersion>Run

In the main panel, find the following entry: Microsoft Service = “Rundll.exe” and delete it.

Exit the registry editor and get yourself a reputable Anti-virus, Antispyware, and Registry Cleaner program!

The real solution for RUNDLL repairs is a good, and up to date, anti-virus and anti-Spyware program. These programs will scan your entire system for known RUNDLL issues and can fix them automatically without the need to perform do-it-yourself registry editing.

Anytime you access and edit the system registry you put your computer’s health on the line. One misplaced keystroke and you could render the entire system inoperable. You don’t want to risk that do you?

Instead, let the software developers and engineers do the hard work.

If you need RUNDLL repair, click here!

With close to five hundred variants, and counting, RUNDLL repairs are no easy task to identify on your own. In addition, with five hundred different RUNDLL repair instructions for each variant, playing trial and error could cause more damage than actual system clean up.

Invest in a good product and it will solve your RUNDLL errors and protect you from future infections. Most importantly, keep it current with the latest updates and patches.

Try the Registry Cleaner and Performance Optimizer is FREE to detect & repair RunDLL Errors! Click to Download Now!

March 22 2006

What is a DLL File?

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A DLL, or Dynamic Link Library, is a collection of small executable files or functions. They can be used to perform a number of tasks in the same way that any executable file is used to perform tasks. However, the functions and features that a DLL offers is much more restricted. There are also a number of other distinct differences between a DLL and an EXE file that we cover later in the guide. For now, though, it is important to realize that while a DLL is essentially an executable file, it cannot be run independently.

It sounds counter intuitive and more than just a little confusing but a DLL is a small executable that must be run through a main executable. A program can call a DLL file to perform a very specific task and, in doing so, it reduces the amount of system memory (RAM or Random Access Memory) that the main program needs to use.

In place of potentially hundreds of lines of code, a program can call a DLL function by using just a few lines of code. The DLL is then opened, the function performed, and the DLL closed. This means that your system memory is free to run without this code for the remainder of the time. The DLL file was introduced in a bid to save system resources when programs were becoming more competent, but before computer systems included so much RAM as standard. They are still used today because they offer a streamlined and much improved user experience.

However, for all of the benefits of the DLL file, it is certainly not without its potential problems. DLL error messages occur with alarming regularity for some users and virtually all of us will experience one of these errors at some point during our computer using lives. Unfortunately, DLL errors can also be accompanied by more serious errors. Software can become impossible to open, system errors more frequent, and you may also experience the blue screen of death or even a phenomenon dubbed as DLL hell.

Some applications naturally rely on the use of more DLL files than others. Theoretically, it would be possible to write an entire application using nothing but DLL calls, although in practice a program will require some skeletal programming to make it unique. The Windows operating system includes a large number of standard DLL files within its system folders but other applications, as well as the software associated with peripherals and other hardware, may also install DLL files into the appropriate section of your computer system.

DLL files are often updated to include new features, improve on existing features, and to generally update the way they operate. In most cases applications can run along more than adequately using the older versions, but with major changes it may be necessary to update the DLL you use. While this can cause errors with other applications that rely on the same DLL, application installers and updaters should check with the Windows registry to determine whether the update will cause any conflicts or errors.

DLL files are not only used to perform routine functions within applications. They are also executed in order that an application can communicate with other hardware on your system. For example, a common use of a DLL file is the print DLL. When called, this DLL will ready the printer and then execute the necessary code to complete the print. Other hardware such as your speakers, and input devices such as a scanner also have associated DLL files that work in a similar manner. All in all, the job of a DLL, is to save system memory on your computer and to make programs more uniform in their execution of regular functions.

A DLL file is a library of dynamic links. This means that a single DLL can contain a number of functions or features. When a DLL is called it is important that the program only calls the correct function within that DLL otherwise errors can occur. This process of calling only a small part of a DLL is referred to as a Declaration. Incorrect declarations, like incorrect calls, can cause serious errors with software and with your system as a whole and is one of the leading causes of DLL errors. Again, though, this is not actually an error caused by the DLL itself.