If you find a file named Msiexec.exe in any folder other than “C:\Windows\System32” (Msiexec.exe that located in this directory is the legitimate system file of Windows OS), then most likely this file is a virus that part of an unwanted software from the adware (sometimes called ‘ad-supported’ software) family. The adware is a type of harmful software that alters your PC’s web browser settings so that you will be randomly re-directed to an intrusive advertisements. You need to follow the guide below as quickly as possible It will clean your PC system from the Msiexec.exe adware virus and thereby remove all annoying pop up advertisements. Moreover, the step-by-step guidance will help you to block the ability to penetrate of more harmful viruses and trojans on your personal computer.
Technically, the adware is not a virus, but it does bad things, it generates lots of advertisements. It may download and install on to your system other harmful and unwanted software without your permission, force you to visit misleading or malicious web-sites. Moreover, the adware can install browser hijacker. Once installed, it will rewrite your internet browser setting such as startpage, newtab and default search provider with an unwanted web site.
In addition to that, as was mentioned earlier, the Msiexec.exe adware virus to also modify all internet browsers shortcuts which located on your Desktop or Start menu. So, every infected shortcut will try to redirect your internet browser to undesired ad web-sites, certain of which might be malicious. It can make the whole PC more vulnerable to hacker attacks.
The tutorial below explaining steps to get rid of Msiexec.exe virus problem. Feel free to use it for removal of the virus that may attack Google Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer and MS Edge and other popular web browsers. The step-by-step tutorial will help you remove adware and thereby clean your internet browser from all unwanted advertisements.
How to remove Msiexec.exe from Windows (10, 8, 7, XP)
In the step-by-step guide below, we will try to cover the Windows 10, 8, 7 and XP and provide general advice to delete Msiexec.exe adware virus. You may find some minor differences in your Microsoft Windows install. No matter, you should be okay if you follow the steps outlined below: delete all suspicious and unknown applications, reset internet browsers settings, fix web-browsers shortcuts, remove malicious scheduled tasks, use free malicious software removal utilities. Certain of the steps will require you to reboot your computer or close the web site. So, read this guide carefully, then bookmark or print it for later reference.
Remove Msiexec.exe virus without any utilities
These steps to remove Msiexec.exe virus without any applications are presented below. Be sure to carry out the step-by-step steps completely to fully delete this Msiexec.exe virus which cause undesired advertisements to appear.
Delete suspicious software by using MS Windows Control Panel
First, you should try to identify and delete the program that causes the appearance of undesired ads or web browser redirect, using the ‘Uninstall a program’ which is located in the ‘Control panel’.
Press Windows button , then click Search . Type “Control panel”and press Enter. If you using Windows XP or Windows 7, then press “Start” and select “Control Panel”. It will open the Windows Control Panel as shown on the image below.
Further, click “Uninstall a program”
It will open a list of all programs installed on your system. Scroll through the all list, and uninstall any suspicious and unknown applications.
Clean up the internet browsers shortcuts that have been hijacked by adware
Once the adware virus is started, it can also change the web-browser’s shortcuts, adding an argument such as “http://site.address” into the Target field. Due to this, every time you open the web-browser, it will show an intrusive web-site.
Right click to a desktop shortcut for your internet browser. Choose the “Properties” option. It will open the Properties window. Select the “Shortcut” tab here, after that, look at the “Target” field. The adware virus can modify it. If you are seeing something such as “…exe http://site.address” then you need to remove “http…” and leave only, depending on the browser you are using:
- Google Chrome: chrome.exe
- Opera: opera.exe
- Firefox: firefox.exe
- Internet Explorer: iexplore.exe
Look at the example like below.
Once is done, click the “OK” button to save the changes. Please repeat this step for browser shortcuts which redirects to an unwanted web-pages. When you have completed, go to next step.
Delete unwanted Scheduled Tasks
Once installed, the Msiexec.exe virus can add a task in to the Windows Task Scheduler Library. Due to this, every time when you open your PC system, it will display an annoying page. So, you need to check the Task Scheduler Library and get rid of all harmful tasks that have been created by ‘ad-supported’ program.
Press Windows and R keys on your keyboard together. It will show a prompt which called Run. In the text field, type “taskschd.msc” (without the quotes) and press OK. Task Scheduler window opens. In the left-hand side, click “Task Scheduler Library”, as displayed in the following example.
In the middle part you will see a list of installed tasks. Select the first task, its properties will be display just below automatically. Next, click the Actions tab. Necessary to look at the text which is written under Details. Found something like “explorer.exe http://site.address” or “chrome.exe http://site.address” or “firefox.exe http://site.address”, then you need remove this task. If you are not sure that executes the task, then google it. If it’s a component of the malicious programs, then this task also should be removed.
Further press on it with the right mouse button and select Delete as shown below.
Repeat this step, if you have found a few tasks that have been created by adware. Once is finished, close the Task Scheduler window.
Msiexec.exe adware virus automatic removal
Manual removal is not always as effective as you might think. Often, even the most experienced users may not completely delete Msiexec.exe adware which cause undesired ads to appear. So, we advise to check your computer for any remaining harmful components with free adware virus removal applications below.
Scan and free your browser of Msiexec.exe adware with Zemana Anti-malware
We recommend using the Zemana Anti-malware that are completely clean your computer of the adware virus. The utility is an advanced malicious software removal program designed by (c) Zemana lab. It’s able to help you get rid of PUPs, browser hijackers, malware, toolbars, ransomware and Msiexec.exe adware virus that reroutes your internet browser to undesired ad pages.
Download Zemana Free from the link below.
163872 downloads
Author: Zemana Ltd
Category: Security tools
Update: July 16, 2019
Once the downloading process is finished, close all windows on your machine. Further, launch the install file named Zemana.AntiMalware.Setup. If the “User Account Control” dialog box pops up as shown on the screen below, click the “Yes” button.
It will open the “Setup wizard” that will assist you install Zemana AntiMalware on the personal computer. Follow the prompts and do not make any changes to default settings.
Once installation is done successfully, Zemana Anti-Malware will automatically launch and you can see its main window like below.
Next, click the “Scan” button .Zemana Anti Malware (ZAM) program will scan through the whole personal computer for the Msiexec.exe adware which cause undesired pop up advertisements to appear. A scan may take anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes, depending on the number of files on your machine and the speed of your PC. When a threat is detected, the count of the security threats will change accordingly.
After Zemana AntiMalware (ZAM) has completed scanning, Zemana Free will open you the results. Review the report and then click “Next” button.
The Zemana will begin to remove Msiexec.exe adware virus that causes a lot of undesired popup advertisements. Once finished, you can be prompted to restart your computer.
Automatically delete Msiexec.exe adware virus with Malwarebytes
You can remove Msiexec.exe adware virus automatically with a help of Malwarebytes Free. We advise this free malware removal tool because it can easily remove hijacker infections, ad supported software, potentially unwanted programs and toolbars with all their components such as files, folders and registry entries.
- Please download MalwareBytes Free from the following link. Save it on your Desktop.
Malwarebytes Anti-malware
326196 downloads
Author: Malwarebytes
Category: Security tools
Update: April 15, 2020
- At the download page, click on the Download button. Your internet browser will show the “Save as” prompt. Please save it onto your Windows desktop.
- After the download is complete, please close all applications and open windows on your personal computer. Double-click on the icon that’s called mb3-setup.
- This will open the “Setup wizard” of MalwareBytes Anti-Malware onto your system. Follow the prompts and do not make any changes to default settings.
- When the Setup wizard has finished installing, the MalwareBytes Anti Malware (MBAM) will launch and display the main window.
- Further, click the “Scan Now” button for checking your system for the Msiexec.exe adware that redirects your web browser to intrusive ad web pages. This task can take some time, so please be patient.
- When the scan get completed, MalwareBytes AntiMalware (MBAM) will show a screen that contains a list of malicious software that has been detected.
- Review the report and then click the “Quarantine Selected” button. After the clean-up is finished, you may be prompted to restart the personal computer.
- Close the Anti-Malware and continue with the next step.
Video instruction, which reveals in detail the steps above.
Run AdwCleaner to remove Msiexec.exe
The AdwCleaner utility is free and easy to use. It can check and remove malicious software such as Msiexec.exe virus, potentially unwanted programs and ad supported software in Firefox, Google Chrome, Microsoft Internet Explorer and Edge web-browsers and thereby remove all annoying popups. AdwCleaner is powerful enough to find and remove harmful registry entries and files that are hidden on the computer.
Download AdwCleaner tool from the link below.
225147 downloads
Version: 8.4.1
Author: Xplode, MalwareBytes
Category: Security tools
Update: October 5, 2024
When the downloading process is finished, open the folder in which you saved it and double-click the AdwCleaner icon. It will start the AdwCleaner utility and you will see a screen as shown on the screen below. If the User Account Control dialog box will ask you want to open the application, click Yes button to continue.
Next, click “Scan” .AdwCleaner program will scan through the whole PC system for the Msiexec.exe adware that causes a large number of undesired advertisements. Depending on your personal computer, the scan can take anywhere from a few minutes to close to an hour. During the scan AdwCleaner will detect all threats present on your system.
Once the scan is finished, you can check all items detected on your computer as displayed in the following example.
Next, you need to click “Clean” button. It will open a dialog box. Click “OK” button. The AdwCleaner will remove Msiexec.exe adware virus that causes multiple intrusive ads and popups and move threats to the program’s quarantine. Once that process is complete, the utility may ask you to restart your system. After restart, the AdwCleaner will open the log file.
All the above steps are shown in detail in the following video instructions.
Run AdBlocker to stay safe online
In order to increase your security and protect your computer against new intrusive ads and harmful web-pages, you need to use ad-blocker program that blocks an access to harmful advertisements and sites. Moreover, the program may stop the display of intrusive advertising, that also leads to faster loading of sites and reduce the consumption of web traffic.
Installing the AdGuard ad blocker application is simple. First you will need to download AdGuard by clicking on the following link. Save it to your Desktop so that you can access the file easily.
26578 downloads
Version: 6.4
Author: © Adguard
Category: Security tools
Update: November 15, 2018
After the download is complete, double-click the downloaded file to launch it. The “Setup Wizard” window will show up on the computer screen as displayed below.
Follow the prompts. AdGuard will then be installed and an icon will be placed on your desktop. A window will show up asking you to confirm that you want to see a quick tutorial like below.
Press “Skip” button to close the window and use the default settings, or press “Get Started” to see an quick tutorial that will help you get to know AdGuard better.
Each time, when you run your PC system, AdGuard will start automatically and stop pop ups, as well as other harmful or misleading web-sites. For an overview of all the features of the program, or to change its settings you can simply double-click on the AdGuard icon, which is located on your desktop.
How did you get infected with Msiexec.exe adware virus
Most commonly the Msiexec.exe adware is bundled with freeware. So, think back, have you ever download and run any free programs? Because most users, in the Setup Wizard, simply click the Next button and do not read any information like ‘Terms of use’ and ‘Software license’. This leads to the fact that the computer is infected and all your web browsers configured to open a large number of annoying pop up ads. Even removing the free software that contains this adware virus, the undesired popup ads does not disappear. Therefore, you must follow the guidance above to free your personal computer from the Msiexec.exe adware and thereby delete all unwanted ads.
Finish words
Now your machine should be clean of the Msiexec.exe adware virus that causes a huge number of undesired pop-up ads. Remove AdwCleaner. We suggest that you keep AdGuard (to help you block unwanted advertisements and intrusive malicious web pages) and Zemana (to periodically scan your system for new viruss and other malware). Probably you are running an older version of Java or Adobe Flash Player. This can be a security risk, so download and install the latest version right now.
If you are still having problems while trying to remove Msiexec.exe from the Windows 10, 8, 7, XP, then ask for help in our Spyware/Malware removal forum.