The other two forums didn't seem to be the place to post this, so I came here. If I need to move my question, let me know.
Dell Inspiron 17R i17RM-8389sLV || Win 8.1 with all current updates
On July 6 I connected to the internet fine. There was an update from HP (drivers for a printer) and AVG (free) did it's usual update. There were no MS updates. Then, AVG popped up threats that it saved me from. There were 10 of them. After that, I could not access the internet from my Chrome browser. I then tried IE. Neither worked.
However... I was still able to download mail, MS was able to toss ads up in Win 8, and AVG was able to update. Still, I could not access the internet.
I uninstalled the HP drivers. No help. I tried restoring, but kept getting an error message that the restore did not complete, maybe anti-virus was stopping it. I disabled AVG but got the same message. I tried restoring to an earlier point and got the same results. I stopped trying to restore, (I tried four times total.) Now, I can't get e-mail or AVG updates, but MS updates (there were 12 this morning) and ads are still able to load. The wireless connects. I've turned it off and on. I've connected to several wi-fi networks, but still cannot connect to the internet. Also, everything else (software, etc.) seems to be working fine. I just can't get on the internet.
The files AVG removed are were labelled as being infected with Adware Generic5.AYPP (9 files) and Adware Generic5.AVWY (1 file) and are listed below. (AVWY is noted; all others are the AYPP.)
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c:\Program Files (x86)\Intel\Intel(R) Management Engine Components\DAL\Jhi_service.exe (3032)
c:\Program Files (x86)\Wyse\PocketCloud\WyseRemoteAccess.exe (3420)
c:\Program Files\Intel\Intel(R) Rapid Storage Technology\IAStorDataMgrSvc.exe (6424)
C:\Windows\SysWOW64\plsapp.dll
C:\Windows\SysWOW64\plsapp.dll
C:\Program Files (x86)\PureLeads\plsapp.dll
C:\Windows\SysWOW64\plsapp.dll
C:\Windows\SysWOW64\plsapp.dll
c:\Program Files (x86)\Dell Digital Delivery\DeliveryService.exe (7076)
(AWVY) C:\Documents and Settings\Karen\AppData\Roaming\OpenCandy\8F96C748092041B880222AFF0547D56E\PureLeadsSetupx21701.exe
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I'm trying to avoid REFRESHING the system (or RESTORING). Will I be able to? Do I assume the files noted above are infected and I should restore them from the AVG vault? I'm betting one or all of the files are what I need to put the machine right.
What else can I try, or am I at the REFRESH point?
Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.