Windows XP: Google Sites Won't Open
It will be interesting to see
by MarkFlax
- 1/8/09 12:52 PM
In reply to: Just For Grins... Please Try... by Grif Thomas
if this is the same problem.
Sorry Grif, I've been tracking this discussion because I have seen a number of such problems reported lately, and one in particular in V&S about a member unable to log into Dell's secure payment page that we have not been able to resolve.
I know that is not the same as Google, GMail and Yahoo, but some of the symptoms seem similar, and this file wdmaud.sys may be a common cause if it is elsewhere than System32\Drivers directory.
But I'm holding off for the moment until I see more.
Mark
Mark, We're Dealing With It On the McAfee Forums Also
by Grif Thomas - 1/8/09 8:23 PM
In reply to: Just For Grins... Please Try... by Grif Thomas
Seems like wdmaud.sys is hiding from the normal scanning process, much like a rootkit.
We'll see.
Grif
I found wdmaud.sys
by xelaw - 1/8/09 10:48 PM In reply to: Just For Grins... Please Try... by Grif Thomas
I found wdmaud.sys in my /system32/drivers folder. What does this mean? According to Windows Explorer, it was last modified on 13 April 08, long before I started having any problems.
Xelaw, That File Is LEGITIMATE.. Don't Delete..
by Grif Thomas - 1/9/09 3:16 PM
In reply to: Just For Grins... Please Try... by Grif Thomas
If you read my post in the thread mentioned in my earlier link, you'll see the "C:\Windows\System32\drivers\wdmaud.sys" file is intended to be there.. It's only a problem if the file resides in the C:\Windows\System32 folder, exactly as Mark mentioned below.
Hope this helps.
Grif
In reply to - I found wdmaud.sys
by MarkFlax - 1/9/09 2:52 AM
In reply to: Google Sites Won't Open by xelaw
I've started this new sub-thread as forum limitations restrict sub-thread lengths.
xelaw, I am sure Grif will confirm this, but if that wdmaud.sys file you found is in C:\Windows\System32\Drivers, then it is probably the right file and is needed by the system to work correctly. Don't delete or modify its name.
It was only if you had found another version of wdmaud.sys elsewhere in the System32 folder itself, (and not in the Drivers sub-folder), that this could have been a cause for your problems.
Hopefully Grif will have some other ideas for you, as this disabling of Google search seems to be a growing problem.
Mark
Another File/Driver To Check For..TDSSserv.sys
by Grif Thomas - 1/9/09 3:19 PM
In reply to: Google Sites Won't Open by xelaw
Please follow Marianna's instructions in the link below to search for the "TDSSserv.sys" file/driver:
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-6132_102-0.html?forumID=32&threadID=319948&messageID=2926532#2926532
Hope this helps.
Grif
bogus websites - wdmaud.sys file the culprit apparently
by njwxgirl - 1/13/09 4:39 PM In reply to: Google Sites Won't Open by xelawI had a google problem. Windows XP sp3, firefox. Using google in the search box at the top of the browser gave me a page full of bogus links. The supposed web page titles and summary info looked legit, but the links didn't match.
On the AVAST forum someone said they had success fixing the problem by removing a bogus file:
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\wdmaud.sys
I had this file, renamed it, and that seems to have cleared up my problem.
Monster Market Redirect
by Festerf - 1/14/09 2:25 AM In reply to: bogus websites - wdmaud.sys file the culprit apparently by njwxgirlI discovered the problem i had was with a monstermarket redirect which was not removed correctly on the first scan of anti spyware software... after running combofix all was sorted 
thanks for your time guys
And Did You Read The Earlier Post From THIS Thread
by Grif Thomas - 1/14/09 8:07 PM
In reply to: bogus websites - wdmaud.sys file the culprit apparently by njwxgirl
Same thing...Here's that link:
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-6142_102-0.html?forumID=5&threadID=323656&messageID=2946795#2946795
Hope this helps.
Grif
Spam Search Results ob Google & Yahoo caused by "wdmaud.sys"
by PsychoRocketRanger - 2/6/09 4:23 PM In reply to: bogus websites - wdmaud.sys file the culprit apparently by njwxgirlI was having the same trouble...
I'm on Windows XP Pro SP 2, using Firefox 3.0.6
When I used Google, Live, or Yahoo searches, I'd get link results like: police-xp.com, toseeka.com, antivirus-scan.com, antivirus.com, moxiesearch.com, couponmountain.com, monstermarketplace.com, areaconnect.com, searchexplorer.com, and info.com.
When I'd search using Blackle (an energy-efficient version of google), Gigablast, Altavista, and Lycos I get the normal link results that I am used to; sites like: law.cornell.edu, usconstitution.net, wikipedia.org, house.gov, law.emory.edu, archives.gov, findlaw.com, gpoaccess.gov, and memory.loc.gov...
I'd also get normal search results from Google & Yahoo IF & ONLY IF I went through a proxy server
To add to my wonderment, when I searched Google, Live, or Yahoo and got the weird links, I'd still seem to get the proper site descriptions....
I had been having this problem since Google's "This Site May Harm Your Computer" issue on Saturday, Jan. 31st, for which I was up and had experienced first-hand, though I am not sure if they're related, but it sure is suspicious, as I had tried clicking Google's info link about "This Site May Harm Your Computer", but that page would never load, it would just go to a blank screen. When I clicked on the website result link, instead of taking me to my desired website it would take me to the info page that previously would not load, but would offer me no way of getting to the actual site. About 30 minutes later that issue was gone, but I then started getting the bogus link results...
I cleared my history, cookies, & cache. I made sure that I had the most up-to-date installs on my OS, browser & its plugins. I scanned my PC with AVG, TrendMicro, Adware, Spybot Search & Destroy, and with HijackThis... they all found nothing...
Totally frustrated, I downloaded Norman AntiVirus and scanned with that and it found that "C:\WINDOWS\system32\wdmaud.sys" was infected with W32/Agent.LED. Norman deleted the file, and all was well after that.
As an example of the problem I created a pic with screen shots here: http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u81/stormyygirll/All-ConstitutionSearch2-5-09-1.jpg
It shows, side-by-side, my Blackle, Google, & Yahoo search results for "U.S. Constitution".
Yep, Previously Suggested In This Thread..
by Grif Thomas - 2/6/09 7:04 PM
In reply to: Spam Search Results ob Google & Yahoo caused by "wdmaud.sys" by PsychoRocketRanger
Here's that link:
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-6142_102-0.html?forumID=5&threadID=323656&messageID=2946795&tag=forums06;posts#2946795
Interesting information about that malware file.. At the original posting of this thread, in early January 09, NONE of the major malware detectors were aware of the problem and as such, did NOT detect it as malware.. All of them do now..
Good job and hope this helps.
Grif
My Problem is Solved
by xelaw - 2/8/09 3:31 AM In reply to: Yep, Previously Suggested In This Thread.. by Grif Thomas
Since I started this thread, I feel obliged to state how MY Google problem was finally solved:
The cable company technician came today and replaced the modem with a new one, and now all Google sites seem to work. Still don't understand
how a faulty modem can discriminate against just Google, but it
happened.
How to Make Chrome work on Windows XPS3
by miglenda - 4/25/09 10:33 AM In reply to: Google Sites Won't Open by xelawHi..No doubt you have this resolved by now as it is April /09
If not..This will fix it..Thankfully, someone found out that it was Ctfmon.exe that was causing Chrome to always fail for some reason. So, all you need to do is to simply disable the process and Google Chrome would work just fine. The trick was how that can be done. Again, that merely requires you to check out the Microsoft's support site and the instructions are all spelled out there. In fact, it tells you how to remove Ctfmon.exe entirely.
But before removing it, you might want to check and see if you really need the process or not. Now according to Microsoft, ‘Ctfmon.exe monitors the active windows and provides text input service support for speech recognition, handwriting recognition, keyboard, translation, and other alternative user input technologies.’ Sounds to me like something I don't need at all (thankfully!)
And apparently, all you need to do is to unregister a couple of dlls, reboot and you'll then be able to enjoy using Chrome! Yup. A very simple and painless fix indeed!
Run Regsvr32 /U on the Msimtf.dll and Msctf.dll Files
1. Click Start and then click Run.
2. In the Run dialog box, type the following command:
Regsvr32.exe /u msimtf.dll
3. Click OK.
4. Repeat steps 1 through 3 for the Msctf.dll file.
5. Reboot.
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