# Computer problem - Software can't download updates **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 25, 2011, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-problem-software-cant-download-updates/593989 "2011-08-25T01:45:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ambihelical\_Hexnut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4491bb/32.png) [@Ambihelical\_Hexnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambihelical_Hexnut)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-problem-software-cant-download-updates/593989/1 "2011-08-25T01:45:55Z")
Hi all, My computer recently got infected with malware, and I had to perform a system restore to a time before the infection in order to get rid of it (various anti-malware software failed to remove it). However, since I did this, any software that needs to connect to the internet to download updates hasn’t been able to do so. This includes my antivirus software (F-Secure) and Windows Update (I’m using Vista and I get error code 80070005). I am still able to browse the internet OK, it’s just the software updates that have stopped working. I have tried the suggestions given [here](http://social.technet.microsoft.com/forums/en-US/itprovistasetup/thread/95edbee4-a75c-48ad-91d1-5316a96f9567/) but nothing has worked - does anybody here have any other ideas? ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-problem-software-cant-download-updates/593989/2 "2011-08-25T01:47:35Z")
My guess is that the virus is still there blocking your applications from updating, see if you can smoke the thing out with a different application than you were using before. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-problem-software-cant-download-updates/593989/3 "2011-08-25T02:21:17Z")
My guess is that something in the registry is borked. I experienced something a bit like this after a malware attack on my daughter’s computer a couple of years ago. After cleaning the malware, we could connect to the internet - iTunes worked - but no browser (tried IE, Firefox and Chrome) would start up, even after reinstalling it from a flash drive. I had to do a factory reset, and so might you I fear, or else (what amounts to much the same) a full wipe and reinstall of Windows. ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2011, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-problem-software-cant-download-updates/593989/4 "2011-08-26T02:03:37Z")
What you did rarely fixes a virus problem in any real way. Virus has borked some aspect of internet and or proxy settings, and none of your software has a valid pather to the internet any more. ---
**Author:** ![Ambihelical\_Hexnut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4491bb/32.png) [@Ambihelical\_Hexnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambihelical_Hexnut)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2012, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-problem-software-cant-download-updates/593989/5 "2012-02-28T19:59:06Z")
Epilogue - It’s been more than six months, during which I’ve simply made do without security software and the latest updates to my programs, but I feel that I should let you know how I got things working again, just in case anyone else runs into this problem. It turned out that the malware had also hidden all of my files (but because I have the “show hidden files, folders and drives” option turned on, it took me a long time to realise this). Even then, I dismissed the fact that the files were hidden as an unimportant detail; after all, the files were still there, could still be accessed, and I could see them OK with “show hidden files” turned on, so what difference did it make except for slightly fainter icons? Eventually, as I created some new files, I started to find the mishmash of faint and regular icons to be slightly jarring, so I downloaded a program called unhide.exe (obtained from [bleepingcomputer.com](http://bleepingcomputer.com)). After running and restarting, everything was fixed!:D:D:D I had no idea that hiding a file made more than cosmetic changes.