Hi - I'm a newbie at using Adaware. Sorry if this is a very basic question.

I just ran it and it found a number of issues, which it listed, with small boxes to tick/check. I ticked them and tried to select the option to quarantine the items, but I was asked to name a file, which confused me. Then I just gave up on this and clicked next, and it said it would remove them all, which sounded OK, so I went with that.
What is the difference between quarantining and removing, and is it ever vital to quarantine? If so, how do you do it? And was what I did OK?

Thanks.

Hi oliver098,

No problem - we all start with new software all the time.

Click on the "Configuration Cog" in the upper-right of the main Ad-Aware status screen, then select "General". Make sure that "Automatically quarantine objects prior to removal" is selected (has a green tick in front of it), as in this screen-shot:

Click to view attachment

It is always best to quarantine any objects found, just in case they are files/folders required by your system or a program. Keep the quarantine file for at least 2 - 3 weeks, before you think about deleting it, for the same reason (the default path for logs is C:\Documents and Settings\(user name)\Application Data\Lavasoft\Ad-Aware\Logs).

If your scan is picking up tracking cookies, they are harmless (but annoying) text files.

If your scan logs show MRUs (Most Recently Used items), you can stop them appearing by setting your scan parameters as in the following screen-shot (they are just a list of programs/processes most recent used on your system):

Click to view attachment

Note the red cross and the green tick.

If you are unsure about any of your other settings, just click on the "Help" button on the main Status page - it is very useful.

Regards,

Spike

Thanks, that's helpful.

Just tried. Automatically quarantining things is ticked - so I take it I don't have to deliberately quarantine anything - the found items will be kept in the quarantine section anyway, until I want to remove them?

So, next time I am presented with a list of found items, do I still tick them all and then click next? (I'm assuming if you don't tick things nothing is done to them at all, or is this not the case?).

PS my default set-up re the MRUs was the opposite of your suggestion. So, you're saying it's more handy to have it search for low-risk threats, but not ' negligible' ones? It soudns from what you said like the software could otherwise decide vital programs are some sort of threat?? Sounds a bit over-zealous (and unhelpful) of it?

I also notice you went for a full system scan, whereas it suggests a smart scan. I take it the full version is preferable to make sure everything is picked up?