What is the MS Malicious Software Removal Tool & how to use it?

In early 2005, Microsoft started releasing a software product called the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool which is used to help scan user's computers and remove viruses and malware. MRT uses a signature database they update on a monthly basis. Because this database does not have virus signatures and patterns for EVERY virus in the wild, it is meant to just help prevent the infection and spread of the most prevalent issues. For this reason, you still need to have antivirus software on your computer even though the Malicious Software Removal Tool is being run on your computer.

Normally, this removal tool is downloaded via Windows Update and runs silently in the background to check for infections on the computer. Because it runs a quickscan for the worst infections, you need to run a more thorough scan of your computer once in a while. The following are the steps for how to run the Malicious Software Removal Tool manually:

1. Click on Start, Run.
2. Type MRT and Press Enter.
3. You'll be presented with the following screen, click on the Next button.
4. Normally, the removal tool runs the Quick Scan, but for more thorough results, choose FULL SCAN and click Next.
5. Now the Malicious Software Removal Tool will scan your entire hard drive for infections and problems.
6. Once the scan is completed, you should see the following screen if your computer is free of infection.
7. If you click on the View Detailed Results of the Scan option on the Results page you should see which viruses, worms, and trojans the removal tool scanned for and if an infection was found.
8. Click Finish on the Scan Results page to exit the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool.

To open the MRT log, follow the instructions below:

1. Click on Start, Run

2. Type the following and Press Enter

notepad c:\windows\debug\mrt.log

3. The log file will open in Windows Notepad. Each scan will log its results in the file. If you had an infected file, you will see something