Microsoft Windows
Malicious Software Removal Tool

To quote Microsoft:

The easiest way to run this software is actually to not run it at all. When you update your computer every Patch Tuesday there will be a new version released and automatically downloaded. When the download installs it is run and if there's nothing wrong it's never heard from again unless you opt to run it from the command line or download it manually and run it.

If you'd like to run the Malicious Software Removal Tool at a time other than Patch Tuesday then this would be the link:
Malicious Software Removal Tool

If you have the software downloaded (Download details) on your computer and suspect that you have a problem then you can simply run the software from the command line.

1. Press the Start button
2. Click on Run...
3. Type %WinDir%\System32\MRT.exe
   (Some switches are available for this tool - see below)
4. Click OK (or press Enter)

Available switches for this tool are as follows:

If you want to view the log from the resulting scan then enter %WinDir%\Debug\mrt.log in the Run... dialog. This should open it (the log) in a standard text format.

If you desire even more information about this tool (which might be too much), such as the malware that it looks for and can clean, then you should see this:
The Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool helps remove specific, prevalent malicious software from computers that are running Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, or Windows 2000

You may be interested in:
Deployment of the Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool in an enterprise environment

OS: 2000 & XP > Security
Date: 11/15/05

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