What software is recommended to clean malware off an iMac?

What software is recommended to clean malware off an imac?

What software is recommended to clean malware off an imac?
Why do you ask?  If you believe you are infected, most of the time that is a false belief.  Very few problems people have with a Mac are actually caused by malware.  If you can clarify, we can help you solve the problem, whether it's malware or not.
For more information about malware, see my Mac Malware Guide.  If you want anti-virus software after reading that, either ClamXav or Sophos are good, free choices.

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  • What software is recommended for the maintenance of mac?

    What software is recommended for the maintenance of mac?

    How to maintain a Mac
    1. Make redundant backups, keeping at least one off site at all times. One backup is not enough. Don’t back up your backups; all should be made directly from the original data. Don’t rely completely on any single backup method, such as Time Machine. If you get an indication that a backup has failed, don't ignore it.
    2. Keep your software up to date. In the App Store or Software Update preference pane (depending on the OS version), you can configure automatic notifications of updates to OS X and other Mac App Store products. Some third-party applications from other sources have a similar feature, if you don’t mind letting them phone home. Otherwise you have to check yourself on a regular basis.
    Keeping up to date is especially important for complex software that modifies the operating system, such as device drivers. Before installing any Apple update, you must check that all such modifications that you use are compatible. Incompatibility with third-party software is by far the most common cause of trouble with system updates.
    3. Don't install crapware, such as “themes,” "haxies," “add-ons,” “toolbars,” “enhancers," “optimizers,” “accelerators,” "boosters," “extenders,” “cleaners,” "doctors," "tune-ups," “defragmenters,” “firewalls,” "barriers," “guardians,” “defenders,” “protectors,” most “plugins,” commercial "virus scanners,” "disk tools," or "utilities." With very few exceptions, such stuff is useless or worse than useless. Above all, avoid any software that purports to change the look and feel of the user interface.
    The more heavily promoted the product, the more likely it is to be garbage. The most extreme example is the “MacKeeper” scam.
    As a rule, the only software you should install is that which directly enables you to do the things you use a computer for, and doesn't change the way other software works.
    Safari extensions, and perhaps the equivalent for other web browsers, are a partial exception to the above rule. Most are safe, and they're easy to get rid of if they don't work. Some may cause the browser to crash or otherwise malfunction.  Some are malicious. Use with caution, and install only well-known extensions from relatively trustworthy sources, such as the Safari Extensions Gallery.
    Never install any third-party software unless you know how to uninstall it. Otherwise you may create problems that are very hard to solve.
    4. Beware of malware. Malware is malicious software that circulates on the Internet. This kind of attack on OS X used to be so rare that it was hardly a concern, but it's now increasingly common, and increasingly dangerous.
    There is some built-in protection against downloading malware, but you can’t rely on it — the attackers are always at least one day ahead of the defense. You can’t rely on third-party protection either. What you can rely on is common-sense awareness — not paranoia, which only makes you more vulnerable.
    Never install software from an untrustworthy or unknown source. If in doubt, do some research. Any website that prompts you to install a “codec” or “plugin” that comes from the same site, or an unknown site, is untrustworthy. Software with a corporate brand, such as Adobe Flash Player, must come directly from the developer's website. No intermediary is acceptable, and don’t trust links unless you know how to parse them. Any file that is automatically downloaded from the web, without your having requested it, should go straight into the Trash. A web page that tells you that your computer has a “virus,” or that anything else is wrong with it, is a scam.
    In OS X 10.7.5 or later, downloaded applications and Installer packages that have not been digitally signed by a developer registered with Apple are blocked from loading by default. The block can be overridden, but think carefully before you do so.
    Because of recurring security issues in Java, it’s best to disable it in your web browsers, if it’s installed. Few websites have Java content nowadays, so you won’t be missing much. This action is mandatory if you’re running any version of OS X older than 10.6.8 with the latest Java update. Note: Java has nothing to do with JavaScript, despite the similar names. Don't install Java unless you're sure you need it. Most people don't.
    5. Don't fill up your boot volume. A common mistake is adding more and more large files to your home folder until you start to get warnings that you're out of space, which may be followed in short order by a boot failure. This is more prone to happen on the newer Macs that come with an internal SSD instead of the traditional hard drive. The drive can be very nearly full before you become aware of the problem.
    While it's not true that you should or must keep any particular percentage of space free, you should monitor your storage use and make sure you're not in immediate danger of using it up. According to Apple documentation, you need at least 9 GB of free space on the startup volume for normal operation.
    If storage space is running low, use a tool such as OmniDiskSweeper to explore the volume and find out what's taking up the most space. Move seldom-used large files to secondary storage.
    6. Relax, don’t do it. Besides the above, no routine maintenance is necessary or beneficial for the vast majority of users; specifically not “cleaning caches,” “zapping the PRAM,” "resetting the SMC," “rebuilding the directory,” "defragmenting the drive," “running periodic scripts,” “dumping logs,” "deleting temp files," “scanning for viruses,” "purging memory," "checking for bad blocks," "testing the hardware," or “repairing permissions.” Such measures are either completely pointless or are useful only for solving problems, not for prevention.
    Let go of the Windows mentality that every computer needs regular downtime maintenance such as "defragging" and "registry cleaning." Those concepts do not apply to the Mac platform. The machine should not be a focus of your attention. You shouldn't have to think about it at all. It should be a transparent, almost unnoticeable tool by means of which you communicate, work, and play. If you want a computer that depends on you to keep going, use a PC.
    The very height of futility is running an expensive third-party application called “Disk Warrior” when nothing is wrong, or even when something is wrong and you have backups, which you must have. Disk Warrior is a data-salvage tool, not a maintenance tool, and you will never need it if your backups are adequate. Don’t waste money on it or anything like it.

  • My MAC BOOK PRO is slow - which software is recommended to clean it from unnecessary files ?

    My MAC BOOK PRO is slow - which software is recommended to clean it from unnecessary files ?
    thanks

    Why is my computer slow?

  • What is the recommendation for cleaning ones sensor? I have a 5D.

    What is the recommendation for cleaning the sensor on the 5D III
    Thank you,
    M

    The manual recommends using a blower when the automatic cleaning fails - or better yet, sending it to Canon for service.  Sometimes - rarely - a blower will work and is the simplest and reasonably safe thing to use.
    Otherwise many like the Sensor Swab solution.  It is tedious and expensive, but I have used it effectively several times - especially on the 5D that seemed more prone to spots than the newer models.  The problem I always have is going from bad to worse to finally better - a lot of patience is required and wasting or going through several of the swabs is not uncommon.  Maybe my technique sucks, but I find it takes a lot of time and swabs to be eventually be satisfied.  That said, I have never caused any damage and I have always managed to finally get the sensor clean.   Along with the swabs, good lighting and magnification (reading glasses or similar) is also necessary as the spots that look huge on a photo will be nearly invisible.
    http://www.sensorswab.com/
    Steve
    EOS 5D MKIII

  • My Macbook Air is sending a message saying my hard drive is almost full. What software is recommended to delete unused files and to delete duplicated files? Thank you.

    What software is recommended to create space in my Macbook Air's hard drive?

    Empty the Trash if you haven't already done so. If you use iPhoto, empty its internal Trash first:
              iPhoto ▹ Empty Trash
    Do the same in other applications, such as Aperture, that have an internal Trash feature. Then restart the computer. That will temporarily free up some space.
    According to Apple documentation, you need at least 9 GB of available space on the startup volume (as shown in the Finder Info window) for normal operation. You also need enough space left over to allow for growth of the data. There is little or no performance advantage to having more available space than the minimum Apple recommends. Available storage space that you'll never use is wasted space.
    When Time Machine backs up a portable Mac, some of the free space will be used to make local snapshots, which are backup copies of recently deleted files. The space occupied by local snapshots is reported as available by the Finder, and should be considered as such. In the Storage display of System Information, local snapshots are shown as  Backups. The snapshots are automatically deleted when they expire or when free space falls below a certain level. You ordinarily don't need to, and should not, delete local snapshots yourself. If you followed bad advice to disable local snapshots by running a shell command, you may have ended up with a lot of data in the Other category. Ask for instructions in that case.
    See this support article for some simple ways to free up storage space.
    You can more effectively use a tool such as OmniDiskSweeper (ODS) or GrandPerspective (GP) to explore the volume and find out what's taking up the space. You can also delete files with it, but don't do that unless you're sure that you know what you're deleting and that all data is safely backed up. That means you have multiple backups, not just one. Note that ODS only works with OS X 10.8 or later. If you're running an older OS version, use GP.
    Deleting files inside an iPhoto or Aperture library will corrupt the library. Any changes to a photo library must be made from within the application that created it. The same goes for Mail files.
    Proceed further only if the problem isn't solved by the above steps.
    ODS or GP can't see the whole filesystem when you run it just by double-clicking; it only sees files that you have permission to read. To see everything, you have to run it as root.
    Back up all data now.
    If you have more than one user account, make sure you're logged in as an administrator. The administrator account is the one that was created automatically when you first set up the computer.
    Install the app you downloaded in the Applications folder as usual. Quit it if it's running.
    Triple-click anywhere in the corresponding line of text below on this page to select it, then copy the selected text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C:
    sudo /Applications/OmniDiskSweeper.app/Contents/MacOS/OmniDiskSweeper
    sudo /Applications/GrandPerspective.app/Contents/MacOS/GrandPerspective
    Launch the built-in Terminal application in any of the following ways:
    ☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)
    ☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.
    ☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Terminal in the icon grid.
    Paste into the Terminal window by pressing command-V. You'll be prompted for your login password, which won't be displayed when you type it. Type carefully and then press return. You may get a one-time warning to be careful. If you see a message that your username "is not in the sudoers file," then you're not logged in as an administrator. Ignore any other messages that appear in the Terminal window.
    The application window will open, eventually showing all files in all folders, sorted by size. It may take a few minutes for the app to finish scanning.
    I don't recommend that you make a habit of doing this. Don't delete anything as root. If something needs to be deleted, make sure you know what it is and how it got there, and then delete it by other, safer, means. When in doubt, leave it alone or ask for guidance.
    When you're done with the app, quit it and also quit Terminal.

  • What software is good to burn DVDs from my iMac ?.

    What software is good to burn DVDs from my iMac ?.

    It's what iDVD is for. If you don't have it:
    Why is there no iDVD on my new Mac? How do I get it and how do I install it?
    https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-3673
    To burn a DVD with iDVD from the latest version of iMovie, you have to export the movie using the Export button and select 480p as the size. Open iDVD and start a new project, then drag that exported movie file into the iDVD menu window, avoiding any drop zones you see.

  • How do i clean fingerprints off my iMac 27" screen?

    I have the 27" late 2012 model iMac and was wondering how to clean fingerprints off the screen.While my family does a videochat we kinda move the scrrenup,down,left or right to view the whole room and nov there are fingerprints on the screen.If i clean them the screen becomes even worse.I cant buy anything too expensive.
    Thanks,
    smatef

    I have a similar problem though I have the 21.5", in my case I followed the cleaning directions exactly (except in a few cases where I got some of the cleaning fluid on the display, old habit I guess as that's what the instructions on the cleaner I occasionally use says).
    Anyway, even when I follow the directions exactly I am left with smear marks on the glass that can take at least a fortnight to completely eradicate. Regardless of whether I am using water or an LCD cleaning solution.
    Something about the newer anti-glare coating is preventing proper cleaning of the display!
    Is there a workaround solution, an officially licensed cleaning solution designed for the new coating, or am I doomed to take weeks to clean my screen each time?
    I didn't have this problem with my early 2006 iMac 17", with that one I could use the cleaning solution and a quick wipe with both sides of the provided cloth and the screen was like new.

  • What software is recommended for printing CDs?

    CDs are not included in the online Avery templates. World label divides the CD up like a mosaic, and I just want to add one or at the most two pictures. Disclabel at smilesoftware.com looks to have potential but costs $35 which I am willing to spend if others recommend it. I have a stack of Avery #8692 labels (CD Labels) so I would prefer to use these if I can. Thx.

    Pages can do it.
    Download the Word template for your particular labels from the Avery site:
    http://www.avery.com/avery/en_us/Templates-%26-Software/Templates/Labels/CD-%26- DVD-Media-Labels-%26-Inserts/CDDVD-Labels-2-per-sheet-plus-4-spine-labels_Micros oft-Word.htm
    and open that in Pages, then position your images and text over the areas marked out in the template.
    Peter

  • What software is recommended for tuning a Desktop Mac -- cookies, etc

    Have had my Mac for nearly seven years now.  Starting to slow down a little.  Is there a legitimate software package that I need to get to clean things up -- eliminate cookies, etc.  I'm from the windows world -- work -- and I expect to repair.  BTW, I am on the most current software release.
    Phil

    Got lots of old macs here, but find they don't need a lot of mainanence as does windows (and the registry). Whatever browser you use, I would use it's built in functions to clean history and cookies and whatnot, and then for overall stuff I use MainMenu v.2.12 from www.incrediblebee.com, which I really like and have used for years. I use & prefer the old version, as picured here:
    It's chockefd full of fun things to do!

  • What software version is needed to use icloud on imac?

    I want to use icloud to share info between my imac and the new ipad. I know I need to update my software...I currently have MacOSX 10.5.8 so I'm wondering what version I need to update to in order to use icloud on my imac. I can't update to Mountain Lion directly, if at all, but I know there must be a version in between that will support icloud.

    Glad you are asking before jumping.  Too many "OMG!  Nothing works anymore!"  threads.
    Start by looking at applications that do not work under Lion: http://roaringapps.com/apps:table
    Make a very good clone of your internal drive (CarbonCopyClone, $40 download) on an external drive.
    Got to macsales.com or crucial.com to max the RAM (does not hurt to even for SL).  macsales and ifixit.com have instructions to change RAM.
    You can always load Lion on an external drive and see how it works (not speed, obviously, as external drives are slower) as far as compatibility with your current software and how much adaptation is required to get fully up to speed with it.

  • What is best way to clean superdrive on an iMac?

    want to know if a cd/dvd cleaner with the little brushes would work?

    You're welcome.  The cleaning discs will have onscreen instructions.  It's very basic & easy.  Insert the disc & let it do its thing.  It will let you know when done cleaning.

  • How do i get malware off my iMac

    thanks for reading i am getting a lot of 3rd part site popping up and maleware and i don't know how to really get ride of all of it
    i have OSX yosemite and again thanks for your time

    Click here and follow the instructions, or if they don't cover the type of adware on the computer, these ones. If you're willing to use a tool to remove it(you don't need to, but may find it easier), you can instead run Adware Medic; this link is a direct download.
    (119497)

  • What do you recommend to resize a partition on Windows Server 2003 R2 Standard Edition SP2?

    I am running Windows Server 2003 R2 Standard Edition SP2 and only have 2.74GB of hard drive space left on a 11.9 GB hard drive.  My D:\ drive has 37.5GB of free space left on a 124GB Hard drive.  I would like to know what software is
    recommended to repartition drive size or another way to repartition drive.
    Thanks 

    You just need to shrink partition D and get some unallocated space, and then you can extend the system drive with the Unallocated space. There is no need to delete or format partitions.
    The most important is guarantee data security. I have such experience resizing partitions.
    The partition tool required reboot to  process, after a while power off in my office, I know the Server must be damaged. Later, when I turn it on, I cannot believe, it continue to process and reboot to desktop several minutes later. What a lucky man.
    A guide I've bookmarked
    how to resize windows 2003 server partitions

  • What software would Apple recommend to clean up the computer?

    What software would Apple recommend to clean up the computer?

    None. There should not be any need for such software.
    What exactly do you mean by "clean up the computer?"

  • What is the recommended security software for a Mac?

    what is the recommended security software for a Mac

    My standard spiel on malware:
    At this time there have been no confirmed Mac OS X viruses (subject to the semantic debate about whether the old iChat exploit, now long since blocked, was properly classified as a virus or a trojan horse, and not counting the Word macro virus that can affect Office v.X or non-updated copies of Office 2004), very few trojans and no adware or spyware. I therefore do not feel that antivirus or antispyware software is necessary at this time as long as users are careful about what they download from the Internet or accept as attachments via email.
    The most common exploit is a recent outbreak of "scareware" that people are encountering while web surfing. This "scareware" pops up and claims that your system is infected with viruses, prompts you to download their "scanner", then tells you that you need to purchase their paid software to remove them. These fake applications, appearing by many names including Mac Defender, Apple Security Center, Apple Web Security, and many others, do nothing at all other than turn off the fake warnings once they have your money. DO NOT fall for these.
    Security precautions for Mac OS X mostly are common sense: don't download and run files from sites you don't know, don't fall for any "you have viruses" messages, don't double-click on attachments in emails you aren't expecting and/or from people you don't know, and make sure you password your system with a non-trivial password and keep that password secure. In addition, don't leave your system available in a public place and unattended where someone unauthorized could use it and potentially install malware (such a policy is also a precaution against theft).
    It is possible for a Mac user to inadvertently forward a Windows virus to a PC user though you'd have to do it manually so the above precautions would probably prevent such virus-spreading, and said Windows virus cannot infect the Mac.
    If you do decide you wish to run antivirus software, I think that the donationware clamXav should be more than enough. iAntivirus has also been recommended by others, though I have no personal experience with it.
    If you are running Windows on your system, either via BootCamp, Parallels Workstation or another solution, then that copy of Windows is subject to all the myriad exploits common to the Windows world, so you need to take full precautions, including running both antivirus and antispyware software.
    Regards.

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