Can't start ccleaner, can't uninstall it either

[Lys]

Hi !

I can't find any answers anywhere so i'm posting here. I just can't start ccleaner (it has always worked perfectly fine these last years and I didn't change anything that I can imagine). I can't uninstall it either so I can't fix the issue by a reinstallation. Something notable : malwarebytes also stopped working and also can't be uninstalled, suddenly. And according to the task manager, it is currently running (malware bytes too). But it doesn't seem to be.

I tried a few things I found on the internet like disabling firewall, checking the registry, admin mode, stuff like that. it's been a few weeks now since it last worked I believe.

As malwarebytes has a repair tool, I tried that, because maybe it's the same issue for both ... It just keeps "scanning for issues" forever and is not doing anything else.

Hope you can help !

Thank you

Lys

[nukecad]

As Malwarebytes is also being affected then that is more important, and whatever is glitching Malwarebytes is probably also causing the issue with CCleaner.

I'd sort out the Malwarebytes as the priority.

I assume that you are using the latest version of the Malwarebytes Support Tool, mb-support-1.8.4.896.exe, and not one you had saved earlier.

Restart your computer - that's click on 'Restart' not on 'Shutdown'.
Once it's restarted try the Malwarebytes Support Tool again.

The tool should uninstall and reinstall your Malwarebytes if there is a problem with it.
https://support.malwarebytes.com/hc/en-us/articles/360038524914-Malwarebytes-Support-Tool-FAQs

If the Support Tool is not repairing Malwarebytes then things may be more serious and your computer may have become infected.

We can't do malware removal on this forum, but Malwarebytes is one of the places we point people to get your machine checked over and fixed if necessary.
Register/Logon to their forum and start here: https://forums.malwarebytes.com/topic/9573-im-infected-what-do-i-do-now/

Note that your are currently going to get quicker help from the trained experts there on the forum.
Currently if you raise a Support Ticket with Malwarebytes it's taking 5-7 days to get anything other than an automated acknowledgment, they are very busy and there is a long queue of tickets.

[Lys]

Hi, thank you ! I did just what you said. I finally succeeded in removing all traces of malwarebytes from my computer and it now works perfectly fine !

[nukecad]

Good to hear that worked for you, and that it wasn't a bigger problem.

It's always worth remembering that with Windows 10 a 'Restart' is the thing to use rather than a Shutdown/Boot.

Restarting clears more system data and starts the Windows 10 system afresh, thus clearing any lingering glitches that may be in the system kernel.
Shutdown hibernates (at least part of) the kernel, and so glitches can persist following a shutdown/reboot.

Did you reinstall Malwarebytes?
If not then Windows Defender should automatically take over your AV protection.

PS. You can run Malwarebytes and Windows Defender side-by-side, many do that for an extra layer of protection.
Simply set Malwarebytes Premium not to register in the Windows Security Centre and both Malwarebytes and Windows Defender will then be protecting your machine:

[Lys]

Nah, I had to use specific tools to delete malware bytes and it was quite annoying and time consuming so I didn't reinstalled it yet haha

[Andavari]

1 hour ago, Lys said:

Nah, I had to use specific tools to delete malware bytes and it was quite annoying and time consuming so I didn't reinstalled it yet haha

Like allot of antivirus vendors they do have their own official tool that removes it rather well, it's called Malwarebytes Cleanup Utility.

[nukecad]

15 hours ago, Andavari said:

 it's called Malwarebytes Cleanup Utility.

That utility is now part of the Malwarebytes Support Tool we talked about and linked above.

That Cleanup Utility, Farbar Recovery Scan Tool (FRST), MB-Check, & MB-Grab were all combined into one easy to download/use tool a few years ago now.

PS. You can still find/download the old 'utility' on it's own from some websites, but it's an old version from their archives (check the date) and may/will not work properly with newer Malwarebytes vesrions.