DISAPPOINTMENT with COMODO

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DISAPPOINTMENT with COMODO

Hello:

It is with great frustration that I post this message. In the past two weeks, I have been it seems (for lack of a better way to describe it), at war with COMODO products.

Following a July 9th Microsoft auto-update (those who had installed ZoneAlarm as their firewall), may have lost connectivity to the net. Of course, this is a known issue now, and Check Point has introduced an update. At the time, I uninstalled ZoneAlarm, which I had not been using extensively anyway, to try Comodo’s CFP.

Also at the time, I installed the BOClean and the SecureEmail products as well. It can only said that after install, my disk use went-up by 100% at least. Not only that, as a Mozilla - Thunderbird user, my client was left useless; every time I attempted to open Thunderbird to connect and retrieve email (POP or IMAP), the client would immediately crash. In checking for known or rising Thunderbird issues, I found there to be none outstanding with such a lead-in.

Finally, figured out that Comodo products were doing this, and began to uninstall products, one at a time. Regained my email functionality finally, only to realize that Comodo left a whole bunch of back-wash/crud/left-over hooks in the registry, which did not get taken out during uninstall.

Subsequently, I attempted to remove COMODO specific registry entries with the hope that this will cure it; only to realize that my net functionality was placed out of commission as a consequence. Apparently, removing the COMODO SecureEmail registry hooks tears-apart the .net framework somehow.

I cannot say now how this is happening but, there seems to be no end in sight at this point.

I wonder how others have completely rid their systems of these hooks!

I am looking to gain some insight into what the experience of others may be in this area.

Below, I am including a couple of screen-shots of what I see in the registry, in relationship to this problem, and also what those registry entries seem to be doing in terms of running processes.

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First of all : greetings

Now I will try to help you with your problems :slight_smile:

Also at the time, I installed the BOClean and the SecureEmail products as well. It can only said that after install, my disk use went-up by 100% at least. Not only that, as a Mozilla - Thunderbird user, my client was left useless; every time I attempted to open Thunderbird to connect and retrieve email (POP or IMAP), the client would immediately crash. In checking for known or rising Thunderbird issues, I found there to be none outstanding with such a lead-in.
I assume you were using CFP V2.4, if so you can find the answer [url=https://forums.comodo.com/help_for_v2/cmdagent_heavy_cpu_usage_solution-t18341.0.html]here[/url]
Finally, figured out that Comodo products were doing this, and began to uninstall products, one at a time. Regained my email functionality finally, only to realize that Comodo left a whole bunch of back-wash/crud/left-over hooks in the registry, which did not get taken out during uninstall.
Normally, Comodo uninstalles great, (at least here) but I always advise using [url=http://www.revouninstaller.com/]Revo Uninstaller[/url]. But you can try [url=https://forums.comodo.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=17220.0;attach=17692]this tool[/url] which will clean all leftovers.
I am looking to gain some insight into what the experience of others may be in this area.
:)

I hope I could clear it out just that bit more :slight_smile:

Xan

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Xan: Thanks, good to meet you too… actually, I was using the very latest version of CFP

Xan: UNFORTUNATELY, Revo does not get into the registry much (as deeply as I will need it to go), therefore, this presents a problem. Actually, what I need help with most is to figure out how to UNHOOK SecureEmail without causing ‘svchost’ problems (on boot-up) and other network connectivity problems. This is what I would need to do.

I DID try the ‘batch’ file removal tool to uninstall remaining CFP hooks last night. Since this is not purely a CFP issue, rather SecureEmail too, I am not sure how to proceed. For now, I will keep experimenting.

But, I believe that this product should be withdrawn from use until such time that someone can figure out why it breaks ‘what’ it breaks!!

Thanks!

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Hey,

I’m sad none of these could help you, so I’m hoping others can.

I would like you to make a topic in the Bug Reports of Secure Email, because no problems with it are reported at all. ??? But please follow these simple rules so they can help you out faster :slight_smile:

Please provide the following when you post for Help:

*Your Operating System and Whether if it is 64 bit or 32 bit.

*Security Software installed (Anti-Virus, Anti-Spyware, etc).

*How you produced the problem (How you got to the issue in the first place).

*If possible, how you tried or resolved the problem (Did you change any settings in CSE or uninstall it, etc)

*Any other details that might help.


You can just copy most of the parts you have posted here :), but as I’m not a mod, I can’t do it for you :-.

I hope you were not using any other security products as that could have caused the clashes :).

Xan

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Xan:

Partially the reason I am so infuriated (:AGY) is because CONVENIENTLY, Comodo forums will not permit to post ‘bugginess’ in the SecureEmail area!! Everything is locked down. This is why I posted things here initially.

Also, there is no indicator anywhere that SecureEmail is problematic. I would say that this is not just problematic, SecureEmail is a wreck of a program, as it is! >:(

For the benefit of others, I present some details:

My operating system is XP - SP3/32 bit. Using Avast Anti-Virus and Spybot S&D.

CSE was uninstalled normally. No abnormal or unconventional approaches were utilized in the operating and uninstall modes.

The rest is here. I believe that CFP is a good product; albeit that it increases the rate of disk utilization. However, I believe that it is a thorough product.

But, if aggravation levels rise from using other less reliable Comodo products, people are less likely to use even the good products.

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The forum part is open now, the only problem was the 1 second time-out so I couldn’t send you a pm >:(.

anyway, this forum is the most open forum I’ve ever seen, so please stop saying such things, we’re here to help each other, not to complain. :slight_smile:

Xan

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Xan:

Perhaps there is a LANGUAGE problem… I did not say anything negative about this specific forum I was referring to the Bug Reporting area of CSE.

And you request that I stay silent with my anger regarding a product that is not quite ready for primetime? Xan, please do not be offended, but, I do not hours to WASTE in my day trying to fix a problem that should have never been caused. Maybe others have that kind of time but, I do not. So, please RESIST the temptation to provide advice that is not in your privilege to give.

I want you to know that I appreciate your help, nevertheless.

Thanks.

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First of all : I was talking about the forum in commen, I mean the whole forum

2nd, I understand that you have wasted a lot of time, but it won’t help you any further. There are people living in whole the world : like Ewen in Australia, me in Belgium (europe :)) and let’s say Melih in Amerika. So the’re different time zones we should think about.

3th : I created a new topic in the beta part here about your problem. I hope they will answer quickly but again, look at the time zones.

I know it’s annoying to have such problems but … sometimes there is nothing to do about it…

Xan

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Hi The Ox,

Sorry to hear about your problems with CSE.
The bug reporting area was open and able to be posted in,just that there hadnt been any posts placed there so i feel we as modderators should shoulder some of the blame for not starting things off.
Have you tried any easy on the registry cleaners like CCleaner(link below) to see if that helps flush out any remnants.

Apologies again for any inconveniance caused.

Regards,
Matty

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Matty,

The bug part was closed indeed, I send a pm to Ragwing asking to open it and he did. So now it’s no problem any more

Xan

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My timing (:SHY) DOH!

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Dear Xan:

Perhaps, the FRUSTRATION is in part due to the fact that there is little WE (you and me) can do about this. The other part of the frustration has to deal with the fact that the design of this product should have been better scrutinized.

I am frustrated also in part because the problem BEGAN roughly around the 10th/11th of July, when Microsoft update wreaked havoc, and I chose to install Comodo products. Here we are at the end of the month, and the problem persists, I still have an INFECTED (hooks into the registry) system that is operating marginally. That is the cause of this frustration. So, the WASTE of time is not just today.

Anyway, thank you for trying to help. Your exchanges are appreciated!

Thanks.

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Dear Matty:

Thanks for your post and your kindness (as that of Xan). I appreciate it. With CCleaner, I use it routinely. But, it does not provide the required level of insight or cleaning that will be required here. I have used RegSeeker to find the Comodo specific enrties, see [url=http://here Comodo Forum]here Comodo Forum. At the risk of being repetitious, please see these short screen grabs that describe the problem a little better.

Also see what the registry hooks are producing. The hooks are causing the following processes to be spawned, look [url=http://here Comodo Forum]here Comodo Forum.

Please realize that I DO NOT believe that the moderators or others here have any responsibility in solving this problem. COMODO IS RESPONSIBLE, and must solve this issue. The moderators of this forum, you Matty, and Xan have all been helpful. But, we must recognize that COMODO us ultimately responsible for their product, and none of US are. (:SAD)

And, all of us (we) do not know what is going on still! That is what is frustrating.

Thanks, again.

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Sorry OX for your problems. I am a hardcore pc users and through out the years I have tried several products. No just security. I have installed and uninstalled well over 100 different programs. Each one never leaves a clean uninstall. But either way I get my pc back to normal. This is not your case and I am sorry. I know it can be frustrating. I do not know how may Comodo products you installed but if you were just looking to replace Zone Alarm then just Comodo Firewall would have been all you needed. To put all the blame on Comodo is a harsh statement. Maybe its best and easiest just to reformat your hard drive. We are all here to try and help you but sometimes the easiest thing to do is wipe out Windows and start all over fresh. Is your pc running ok now? I sent Melih a pm.

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Are you still having a problem with net connectivity? If so, LSPFix from www.cexx.org could help.

I’ll try and make some time today and look further into the registry entries for CSE.

Bear with us - you’ve definitely got our attention. Having said that, we’ll do what we can, but this may require the attention of actual Comodo staff.

Hang in there.

Ewen :slight_smile:

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Hello Vettetech

Thanks for your post. I understand your point. I can certainly understand things if ‘that which is left’ over didn’t go on to break things. That is the point that I am stressing for forum members, not the fact that Comodo products merely left things behind! I have been in the networld/computing world for longer than I care to remember. It is very frustrating to have to waste time, and make little progress.

I appreciate the suggestion regarding reformating the drive. I am afraid that it is not a practical approach for me at this point. I would like to see if this problem can be handled in another way besides reformating and restoring an image of the drive.

FYI, I did give credit to CFP. I believe that it is a good product. But, as I said, those who encounter significant problems like me are likely to look at a good product less if the problem is harsh as it is. If a program is going to insert such deep hooks into the registry and cause other volatile interdependencies, the coders should pay very close attention to how to pull them out if anyone wanted to.

To answer your last question, my personal machine is running ok, with rather disk utility, which slows things down. I would request that you look at the screenshots I have provided to see if anything can be done to address those issues. Thank you again.

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I have asked Shane to look into this.
we need to find out what the issue is asap!

thank you and pls bear with us.

Melih

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Dear Ewen,

Thank you for your post. I am not having problems with net connectivity at this point. I used RegSeeker to identify Comodo specific registry entries. AFter having identified them, I tried to remove them one-by-one attempting go qualify interdependencies. After having removed some (not all), I attempted to restart the machine. Then before Windows Login screen, I am given an ‘Svchost’ error associated with a memory write job. It allows me to login, but, I do not get access to my desktop or drives. Basically, it freezes at that point.

AT this point, I have to restore registry entries to get the system back without errors. I reinstalled .net framework (ver. 3.5) with the hope that it will ‘disassociate/de-link’ the Comodo hooks, but, no luck so far.

This does NOT seem to me as being a TCP stack problem. This is a registry deal. In my superficial assessment, the focus will have to be ‘on how to remove the hooks’ without breaking things.

Please see the screenshots and see if there is anything there, which you recognize. DOES anyone know what the LSP provider registry hook is for? That seems to be spawning processes in the ‘\Application Data\Comodo\SecureEmail\Logs’ directory. Logically, it seems to me that these ‘log files’ seems to be linked to some monitoring/screening/parsing activitym caused by the registry hook. Any ideas?? That also seems to be tied to the higher disk utilization, which is slowing down performance.

Thanks, Ewen, and everyone! (:WAV)

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Dear Melih,

Happy to bear with you, and Comodo. The frustration is more a human matter than anything else, :-\ particularly when days and oodles of hours (albeit the time commitment has been disjointed and in a catch-as-catch-can fashion) are involved, with little progress.

I will look to have wiser, and more experienced minds than me, provide some insight into this. :slight_smile:

Thanks!

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If its any consolation, since the MS update quite few people in our office started having problems with outlook :frowning:

I first blamed CSE and removed it completely, then re-installed outlook… but things still the same :frowning:

Shane is still investigating if it has anything to do with CSE or not, but people who didn’t have CSE also had outlook problem.

We are not ruling anything out and just wanted to share my personal experience with you.

Melih