15 replies to this topic

[hello2007]

im looking for a program that can delete installed driver software thats on my usb ports. I used to have one back in march but i forgot what it was called i got it of a cellphone webpage does anybody know what im talking about?

[exile360]

What sort of device driver software are you referring to? If it's just a driver, Autoruns can be used to delete them.

[hello2007]

you know when you plug a camera or mp3 player or cellphone in your usb port it installs the driver automatically? well thats what i need something that clears these installs. I had one that was perfect i just cant remember it to find it. It would clean all the usb ports in a second and if you replugged your cellphone the computer would act like it never seen your cellphone before and do a auto install of the driver software again instead've recognizing your phone because the usb driver deleter would delete everything that was installed on the usb ports

[exile360]

Ah yes, I seem to recall that being in the registry. It uses built in drivers already on your system, but it assigns something to it in "other drive types" or something like that. The same happens with USB flash drives. I'll see if I can't track down the reg key and give you a file that will nuke the entries there. You can run it and it should wipe them out, then they'll be recreated when you plug your devices in again.

Just wondering, why would you want to have Windows always reinstall the drivers for those devices? Wouldn't it be more convenient and quicker just to leave them loaded?

[exile360]

You might try USB Devices View by NirSoft. Here's the description of what the tool can do:

Quote

USBDeview is a small utility that lists all USB devices that currently connected to your computer, as well as all USB devices that you previously used.
For each USB device, exteneded information is displayed: Device name/description, device type, serial number (for mass storage devices), the date/time that device was added, VendorID, ProductID, and more...
USBDeview also allows you to uninstall USB devices that you previously used, and disconnect USB devices that are currently connected to your computer.

[hello2007]

exile360, on Oct 27 2009, 11:39 PM, said:

Ah yes, I seem to recall that being in the registry. It uses built in drivers already on your system, but it assigns something to it in "other drive types" or something like that. The same happens with USB flash drives. I'll see if I can't track down the reg key and give you a file that will nuke the entries there. You can run it and it should wipe them out, then they'll be recreated when you plug your devices in again.

Just wondering, why would you want to have Windows always reinstall the drivers for those devices? Wouldn't it be more convenient and quicker just to leave them loaded?

1, i plug alot of devices into the usb ports and alot of junk compounds over time,2, i just did a mistake with a wireless network adapter-plugged it in before installing the cd first so i had to use another port to do the install in order now i cant use that port untill i delete the contents for that device. Lastly virus & malware not sure if it cleans them but i think it does if there is any nasty stuff in there

exile speaking of delete data have you tried ashampoo uninstaller 3 or 4? it makes a log file when you install a program and keeps the log and when your ready to uninstall it will uninstall every last file trace that came with it

[exile360]

Nope, I've never used any of Ashampoo's stuff, though I've heard of them before. That sounds pretty cool. I've considered using similar tools before, but I'm always concerned about the proper removal of services and low level drivers (such as kernel mode drivers installed by AV's and the like). Most uninstaller programs don't remove them properly or can't so I try to use the regular Add/Remove routine first, then use something like CCleaner's reg cleaner or Revo Uninstaller for cleanup if needed. Autoruns is very handy for that task as well, since it shows many loading points for files and where they are in folders and where their entries are in the registry.

[hello2007]

exile360, on Oct 27 2009, 11:48 PM, said:

You might try USB Devices View by NirSoft. Here's the description of what the tool can do:

doesnt seem bad, ill give it a shot.

[exile360]

Yes, Nir Sofer makes some marvelous tools .

[exile360]

Looks like you should be able to create a batch file that calls USBDeview.exe with the /remove_all_disconnected command to automatically remove all the drivers for disconnected devices .

[hello2007]

exile360, on Oct 28 2009, 12:25 AM, said:

Nope, I've never used any of Ashampoo's stuff, though I've heard of them before. That sounds pretty cool. I've considered using similar tools before, but I'm always concerned about the proper removal of services and low level drivers (such as kernel mode drivers installed by AV's and the like). Most uninstaller programs don't remove them properly or can't so I try to use the regular Add/Remove routine first, then use something like CCleaner's reg cleaner or Revo Uninstaller for cleanup if needed. Autoruns is very handy for that task as well, since it shows many loading points for files and where they are in folders and where their entries are in the registry.

it wont create a full file of every security program because it monitors all the stuff added to your computer during that current period so when some progams require a reboot after install it won't record the final parts because you'll need to reboot but then again most security progams have there own removal tool

do i need to download autoruns if i want to try it or is it somewhere in my system? i typed autoruns in the search box in the start menu and nothing appeared

[exile360]

Autoruns can be found here. It's one of my all-time favorite programs. It's great for killing autostart entries, removing malware, troubleshooting/removing browser plugins and shell extensions and context menu entries, deleting drivers and services and tons more. It's a powerful utility, just make sure you use it cautiously . The other nice thing is, it backs up every change you make as long as you disable an entry by unchecking it instead of right-clicking and selecting Delete so you can always restore it back. It's also completely portable so you don't have to install anything .

[hello2007]

exile360, on Oct 28 2009, 12:48 AM, said:

Autoruns can be found here. It's one of my all-time favorite programs. It's great for killing autostart entries, removing malware, troubleshooting/removing browser plugins and shell extensions and context menu entries, deleting drivers and services and tons more. It's a powerful utility, just make sure you use it cautiously . The other nice thing is, it backs up every change you make as long as you disable an entry by unchecking it instead of right-clicking and selecting Delete so you can always restore it back. It's also completely portable so you don't have to install anything .

thanks exile may i ask what is the extra application in the zip file that goes by the name of autorunsc? i double clicked it being the curious person i am and a quick cmd line type box showed for a second and then disappeared and nothing happened

[exile360]

It's a command-line version of the program . Details on its use are in the help file as well as the web page I linked to above.

[hello2007]

thanks, im surprised most security programs dont provide usb protections especially with the modern all in one packs.

Im going to check how shaq's doing with his new team now

[exile360]

Kaspersky does. It blocks autorun from flash drives by default and offers to scan them before you can access them. You can skip the scan if you like or let Kaspersky scan the drive for infections . Of course, by default, USB drives can't auto-execute anyway, so that helps a lot.