Member Avatar for Tomas Lopez

Hi, I have a question, what happens if i delete all the Temp files?, not the Internet Temporary Files but the Temp Files, the thing is that I'm running ZoneAlarm Antivirus and it says that there are a couple of files infected, the infection is called Win32.Bettlnet.AR, I tried deleting them and it fails to delete, then I tried looking for the files in the Temp Folder to delete them, but I don't find them, so that's why I was thinkig of deleting all the Temp Files.
Can anyone advise me please, I would really appreciate it.
Thanks.

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— deleting temporary files is usually safe: temp folders hold caches, installers and short-lived data, not core Windows files. The two risks are that (1) a running program can lose unsaved state if you remove its active temp file, and (2) some files will be locked by the system or a running process so they cannot be deleted until that process stops. If ZoneAlarm reports Win32.Bettlnet.AR and you cannot delete the files, that usually means the file is in use, protected, or already handled by the AV engine.

Helpful, non-destructive steps to try:

  1. Locate the temp folders first (user and system): open Run and type %TEMP% or %TMP% for the current user; check C:\Windows\Temp (or C:\WINNT\Temp) for system temp; on older XP installs user temp is under C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Local Settings\Temp. Show hidden/system files in Explorer if needed.
  2. Close all user apps (save work) and try deleting the contents. Do not delete the Temp folders themselves. Empty the Recycle Bin afterward.
  3. If deletion fails because the file is locked, identify the lock: use a handle/process viewer (Process Explorer or Handle from Sysinternals) to see which process holds the file handle and stop that process if safe. A clean boot into Safe Mode or an offline environment will also release most locks.

About the infection and what and touched on: quarantine first rather than immediately shredding — that preserves a sample for analysis and avoids removing something the AV misidentified. Update your antivirus definitions and run a full scan. If the AV cannot remove the file because malware is active or self-protecting, use an offline/rescue scanner (bootable AV environment) or boot from external media to scan and delete outside of the infected Windows session. If files reappear after deletion or the system shows other signs of compromise, back up personal data, disconnect from the network and consider a clean reinstall.

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Member Avatar for swatkat

Hi,
You can delete all the "Temp" files. But, some of the temp files will be in use, by some application, in that case you can not delete those files. Instead of searching for temp files manually, you can use applications like CCleaner, CleanUp! etc. Download and install them, and run them to clean junk files. It's better to run these to tools in SAFE mode, so that those "in use" temp files can also be deleted.
You can tweak these tools to clean more thoroughly, run CCleaner, click "Options" button and here go to "Settings" tab and uncheck the option "Only delete files in Windows Temp folder older than 48 hours". Click "OK" to exit from the Options and click "Run Cleaner" to start cleaning. Run CleanUp!, click "Options" button, move the "Quick Setup" slider to "Thorough CleanUp!" and click "Yes" for the warning message and exit from Options. Click "CleanUp!" to start cleaning. After cleaning, click "Close", and choose "Yes" to restart the PC.

Member Avatar for Tomas Lopez

Thank You very much.

Member Avatar for dcc

Dosen't your AV provide you with a means of deleting the infected files?

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