The most convenient means of removing malware

It's probably all about what antiviruses are and what they can do. But the antivirus as a means of removing malware is not always convenient. To constantly monitor the system, it consumes too much resources, and in order to conduct periodic checks, we must allocate time. On old and slow computers, the presence of the antivirus loads the system very heavily.

Another reason why an antivirus is not always the best means of removing malware is to reduce the life of your hard drive. The presence of antivirus at times increases the load on it, and if it already has "broken" sectors, it is better not to take risks.

A convenient alternative is special tools for virus removal. There are many more than antivirus programs. And even there are quite good free options.

First of all, it is necessary to mention Windows Defender. This free malicious software removal tool from Microsoft can be updated every month along with system updates via the Internet. Recall, the company does not prevent the receipt of updates, even for pirated versions of the OS, so that these computers do not become carriers during the "epidemics".

You can start Defender by typing mrt.exe in the console (the Start button> Run). Then follow the prompts. The utility runs on demand, you can check the entire system, select folders and disks, run a quick virus scan. You can read more about the Advocate in the Windows help.

In addition to Defender, Microsoft offers the tools Removal Tool and Security Essentials, which also often update their databases, are available for download for free and without restrictions.

Its own utilities are produced by manufacturers of well-known antivirus programs, such as Dr.Web, Kaspersky Anti-Virus, McAfee and others. Such a program for virus removal can be transferred to a USB drive and used to test different systems, as it is not necessary to install it. Some manufacturers can offer special versions of programs to protect the portable drive, starting work while connecting the USB flash drive to the computer.

The malicious software removal tool can be packed into a set of utilities for system optimization (so-called tweakers) or offered as a separate product. It should be noted that only an experienced user can fully use all the tools offered. And for some programs, such as HijackThis, knowledge of what the virus looks like is required. Otherwise, you risk deleting harmless and necessary system files. Typically, the program will offer you a list of suspicious objects and options for actions or will check and delete the files itself. The latter method of work is the least effective, since only the most suspicious or most harmful objects for the system are deleted.

The main advantage of any virus removal tool is that it can be launched only at the user's request.

In many cases, it does not necessarily have to be in memory all the time. Although this depends on the specific purpose of the utility.

And for any tool to work well, it, like a heavyweight antivirus, needs to update its databases from time to time (in some cases, you download not the database, but the new build of the program).