When malware infects a computer, it gains control of many components that are key to the system's operations, making it very difficult to remove. Malware can use some of these system components to hide itself and prevent other software from detecting and removing it.

If you can't install or run a security application in the first place, then how are you supposed to detect and remove the malware?

The short answer is that you would have to shut down the operating system in order to remove the malware. And that' s where PC Tools' Alternate Operating System Scanner (AOSS) comes in. The PC Tools AOSS is a FREE bootable antivirus and antispyware software that can scan your computer and run security programs when your PC won' t boot into your operating system properly.

Bootable antivirus and antispyware software like PC Tools' AOSS enables your security programs to run on an Alternate Operating System, which can access the files and registry of the sleeping operating system. It' s like putting the operating system under general anesthesia so that the AOSS can scan through all of the sleeping operating system's files-even ones that had previously been hidden by other applications or malware. AOSS functions by loading an alternate, smaller operating system that runs the scanners, which in turn scans the files and registry entries of the sleeping OS, using patented PC Tools Spyware Doctor™ signatures to identify malicious entries. The user is then given the option to remove these entries. Since the malware is not running, the AOSS can easily find and remove any malware, even the most sophisticated rootkit.

Avoid the hassle of having to manually delete malware from your PC in the future by protecting your PC today. In most cases, when the AOSS is necessary, the bootable antivirus and antispyware package will detect and remove the main components of a threat while an antispyware program like Spyware Doctor is mainly necessary to clean up any remaining traces of the malware. Additionally, Spyware Doctor guards the system while it's in operation, which is something the AOSS can't do. Spyware Doctor can prevent malware from infecting your PC in the first place, and prevention is always better than cure. If your PC does become infected with especially tenacious malware, however, then the AOSS offers a cure for the most persistent of infections.