Running a Sweep

You can run a sweep on your computer at any time. Running a sweep means that Spy Sweeper looks for threats installed on your computer and removes them. Initially, it quarantines the item, making it inoperable, but permitting you to restore it if you find you need it to continue using another program. The Quarantine folder is under the folder where you installed Spy Sweeper. You can view quarantined items from within Spy Sweeper. For more information, see Handling Quarantined Items.

Once you find that you do not need the item, you can delete it permanently. For more information, see Deleting Items Permanently.

You can sweep entire disk drives from Spy Sweeper or sweep a single folder from Windows Explorer. To run a sweep from Windows Explorer, you must enable the option for this feature. For more information, see Setting Spy Sweeper Program Options.

You can also set up Spy Sweeper to run sweeps automatically. For more information, see Scheduling Sweeps.

To run a sweep:

Close all programs that are open.
Spy Sweeper may not be able to remove threats associated with a particular program if that program is open. For best results, close all programs that are listed in the taskbar at the bottom of your screen. You do not need to close programs shown in the system tray in the lower-right corner of your screen. These programs are only open in the background.

To sweep one or more disk drives	To sweep a specific folder
Start Spy Sweeper, if it is not already open, and display the main window. For more information, see Starting Spy Sweeper. In the icon panel, click Sweep. For information about the Spy Sweeper window, see Understanding the Spy Sweeper Window. The Step 1 Sweep System panel displays. Click Start.	Start Spy Sweeper if it is not already open. You do not need to display the Spy Sweeper window. It just needs to be open in the system tray. For more information, see Starting Spy Sweeper. From Windows Explorer, right-click the folder you want to sweep. From the pop-up menu, select Run a Sweep. The Step 1 Sweep System panel displays.

Spy Sweeper runs the sweep based on the options you selected. For more information about setting options, see Setting Sweep Options.
The lower-left part of the panel shows what Spy Sweeper is currently scanning. After you run the sweep the first time, Spy Sweeper displays an estimate of how long the sweep will take.
To pause the sweep, click Pause. An Information window displays, letting you know that the sweep is paused. When you want to resume the sweep where it left off, click OK.
To stop the sweep, click Stop.
The following fields display in the panel.

Click to see a description of each field.

Field	Description
Spyware Fingerprints Loaded	Displays the number of fingerprints that Spy Sweeper is looking for. Multiple fingerprints make up the definition of a spy. You should update your Spy Sweeper definitions regularly to ensure that you are using the most current version. For more information, see Updating Spy Sweeper Spyware Definitions.
Memory Items Inspected	Displays the number of pieces of programs that Spy Sweeper swept in your computer's memory. Some of these pieces may be part of spyware, adware, or unwanted programs.
Registry Items Inspected	Displays the number of items in the Windows registry that Spy Sweeper swept. Some registry entries may be associated with spyware, adware, or unwanted programs.
Cookie Items Inspected	Displays the number of cookies that Spy Sweeper swept. Some cookies contain personal information (including surfing habits, user names and passwords, and areas of interest).
Files/Folders Inspected	Displays the number of files and folders on the selected drives that Spy Sweeper swept.
Items Found	Displays the number of definitions matched during the sweep.
Traces Found	Displays the number of traces of spyware, adware, and unwanted programs that Spy Sweeper found. Traces are places where Spy Sweeper finds spyware fingerprints.

When the sweep is finished, click Next.
The Step 2 Remove panel displays, with a list all of the threats found. The following fields display in the panel.

Click to see a description of each field.

Field	Description
Items Found	Displays the number of definitions matched during the sweep.
Associated Traces Found	Displays the number of traces of spyware, adware, or unwanted programs that Spy Sweeper found. Traces are places where Spy Sweeper finds spyware fingerprints. Spy Sweeper looks for all known traces of each spyware, adware, or unwanted program.
List of items found	Displays the list of spyware, adware, or unwanted programs that Spy Sweeper found. Click the plus sign (+) next to an item to see the full path to the traces found and to view the Threat Details on the right side of the panel. Leave the check box next each item and trace selected to remove and hold the item in the Quarantine folder. The icon next to each expanded item shows where the item was found: —Item found in memory. —Item found in the registry. —Item found in a file. —Item found in a folder. —Item found in a cookie.
Threat Details
Name	Displays the name of the currently selected item.
Category	Displays the type of threat of the currently selected item. See the Glossary for definitions of the types.
Risk Rating	Red bars show the risk level of the item. The more bars shown, the higher the risk as follows: 1 bar—low 2 bars—moderate 3 bars—high 4 bars—very high 5 bars—critical
Traces Found	Number of traces found related to this threat.
Description	Displays a description of the found item. For more information, click View more details online. Note: You must be connected to the Internet to see the additional information.

Deselect any item that you want to keep.
By default, Spy Sweeper selects all of the listed items, which means Spy Sweeper will remove the item and put it in the Quarantine folder. You can permanently delete items from the Quarantine folder by manually deleting it or by setting an option to automatically delete it. For more information, see Deleting Items Permanently and Setting Spy Sweeper Program Options.
You can restore items from the Quarantine folder if you find that a program you need will not work properly after removing the associated item. For more information, see Restoring Items.
Click Next to remove and quarantine all selected items.
The remove and quarantine process copies the item traces to the Quarantine folder. Spy Sweeper first encrypts each trace, removes it from its original location (so it will no longer run), then copies it. This process can take several minutes or longer depending on how many traces Spy Sweeper found and on the speed of your computer. A progress bar shows the progress of the removal process and tells you when the process is complete.
If a found item requires an additional tool to complete the removal process, the Additional Threat Removal Tools Required window displays. For more information, see Using Additional Tools to Remove Threats.
The Step 3 Results panel displays the Summary tab with a summary of the sweep and remove processes. For more information about the results, see Viewing Sweep Results.
Click Finish.
The Home panel displays. If you are using the trial version or if your subscription is within 30 days of expiring, a panel reminding you to purchase or renew displays.