Jump to content

Huge protect folder


Recommended Posts

Guest Jande9
Posted

Hi, In trying to diagnose why my virus scan takes so long, I discovered that

I have a folder

documents and settings/user account/application data/microsoft/protect

that contains 1.1 million files! It takes over an hour just to list the

contents in Windows Explorer.

Anybody know what these files are for and can I delete them?

Thanks

Jan in Vancouver

Excuse me if this was a double post but my previous attempt at posting

dissappeared when I logged in.

  • Replies 3
  • Created
  • Last Reply
Guest Tom Willett
Posted

Re: Huge protect folder

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_protection_application_programming_interface

 

 

"Jande9" <Jande9@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message

news:A182BBD9-D2D2-4480-A553-8D4A011DD30E@microsoft.com...

| Hi, In trying to diagnose why my virus scan takes so long, I discovered

that

| I have a folder

| documents and settings/user account/application data/microsoft/protect

| that contains 1.1 million files! It takes over an hour just to list the

| contents in Windows Explorer.

| Anybody know what these files are for and can I delete them?

| Thanks

| Jan in Vancouver

| Excuse me if this was a double post but my previous attempt at posting

| dissappeared when I logged in.

Guest Jon Scott
Posted

Re: Huge protect folder

 

"Jande9" wrote...

> Hi, In trying to diagnose why my virus scan takes so long, I discovered

> that

> I have a folder documents and settings/user account/application

> data/microsoft/protect

> that contains 1.1 million files! It takes over an hour just to list the

> contents in Windows Explorer.

> Anybody know what these files are for and can I delete them?

 

 

A little googling:

http://forums.techarena.in/showthread.php?s=e5191fb1361a4d6c6eeab5b220098fd4&t=710192

http://www.spywareguide.com/product_show.php?id=2372

 

Jon.

Guest Jande9
Posted

Re: Huge protect folder

 

 

Thank you very much for this info. I checked when the folder containing the

million files was created, and it was the week that the virus you pointed to

was discovered.

I have now deleted the whole thing. Windows Explorer couldn't do it as my

machine kept crashing, so I used CCleaner. It took over 5 hours to delete

(I'm not sure how long exactly as I had to go to work after the first 5

hours) but it is now gone.

It also solved a related problem as lsass.exe would thrash my hard drive for

3 hours every time I booted up, and that does not happen any more, and now a

virus scan only takes about 20 minutes.

Thank you again

Jan in Vancouver

 

 

"Jon Scott" wrote:

> "Jande9" wrote...

> > Hi, In trying to diagnose why my virus scan takes so long, I discovered

> > that

> > I have a folder documents and settings/user account/application

> > data/microsoft/protect

> > that contains 1.1 million files! It takes over an hour just to list the

> > contents in Windows Explorer.

> > Anybody know what these files are for and can I delete them?

>

>

> A little googling:

> http://forums.techarena.in/showthread.php?s=e5191fb1361a4d6c6eeab5b220098fd4&t=710192

> http://www.spywareguide.com/product_show.php?id=2372

>

> Jon.

>

>

>


×
×
  • Create New...