# Please Help! Win7 Cubase 7.5 major issue!



## guydoingmusic (Jan 18, 2015)

I'm running Win7 64bit. This afternoon when I booted the computer, everything seemed fine. I logged on. And most of my files on the desktop (mainly icons) have disappeared. There was a notification in the right hand corner.. I tried to click on it and then it just disappeared. My desktop background had completely reverted to the original install. My UA Apollo had the main volume now completely turned down and all preferences inside the "Console" were reset to factory default. I opened up Chrome... all reset... Win7 taskbar prefences were reset.

Basically EVERY preference I have appears to have been reset to default. 

Cubase was no longer on the desktop. I went to the Steinberg folder. Opened Cubase. I am now greeted with 2 error messages. One says "Skin file 'skin' not found!" I clicked 'OK' and it the second error reads "Could not load GUI Resources!" I click "Ok" again and Cubase closes out. I googled the errors and saw where this has happened in the past to people. 

I go to Cntrl Panel/Programs(whatever the correct address is) and NOTHING from Steinberg appears. No Cubase. None of it's components - PadShop, Groove Agent, etc. It's like it's not even there. Yet all the folders appear to be perfectly fine.

What would cause all of this??? Malware? Virus? Windows being Windows?

Not even sure where to begin at this point. I'm in the beginning stages of figuring this out. So any help or direction or just ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Again.. I'm running Win7 64

*Oh and I have tried System Restore - but there are no restore points now either*


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## RiffWraith (Jan 18, 2015)

Sorry to hear of your troubles.

Sounds like a virus. If most desktop icons have disappeared, and you are noticing that programs that were once installed are now not visible in the ctrl panel, that is def not a Cubase issue. The fact that there are no more restore points also speaks to a potential virus.

Try doing a system restore by booting using startup repair:

http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/7728/tro ... s-7-vista/

If that doesn't work, you will need to do a recovery from your image file.

Good luck.


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## RiffWraith (Jan 18, 2015)

Just had another thought.

Do you log on to a user profile that you created, or is this just the standard admin profile? If the former, might be that this particular user profile is corrupted, in which case try logging in to the admin profile.


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## guydoingmusic (Jan 18, 2015)

I have only the one profile which is the standard admin deal.

I also have subsequently found several files and folders missing out "My Documents". Which keeps really pointing to the "virus".

I entered into Startup Repair... once there, I can't get my keyboard or mouse to respond. (Sigh) Looking for a solution on THAT now.  

So if this is a virus and I can't get this to work? Any virus/malware removal tools recommended?


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## guydoingmusic (Jan 18, 2015)

And thank you so much for the help, Riff!


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## RiffWraith (Jan 18, 2015)

guydoingmusic @ Mon Jan 19 said:


> I entered into Startup Repair... once there, I can't get my keyboard or mouse to respond.



Depending on your kbd/mouse/MB, you may need a PS/2 kbd/mouse.



guydoingmusic @ Mon Jan 19 said:


> So if this is a virus and I can't get this to work? Any virus/malware removal tools recommended?



Virus/malware removal tools may delete a virus and malware, but they won't get back your missing apps and files. But that only applies if that data is_ missing_. If the stuff is there but inaccessible, virus/malware removal tools _may_ help.

I recommend a few things:

1. Boot your computer into Safe Mode w/Networking. Go to the Kaspersky site: http://usa.kaspersky.com. Install, do an update, and do a full scan. If you find you cant do that; go to a different computer, and from the same site, make a bootable CD. Insert that into the problem computer, and boot from that CD (you may need to change the boot order in the BIOS). Do the scan from the CD.

2. Boot your computer into Safe Mode w/Networking. Get Malwarebytes: www.malwarebytes.org. Install, do an update, and do a full scan. Scan may take a couple of hours.

3. Get the AVG Rescue CD: http://www.avg.com/us-en/avg-rescue-cd. Burn to CD or DVD. As above, boot from that CD, do an update, and do a full scan.

Kaspersky might have a similar A/V solution, so you might want to check there.

Good luck.


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## guydoingmusic (Jan 18, 2015)

Ok get this...

I got the keyboard to work in repair mode. No restore points... image files... and nothing wrong with any scan.

Logged into Safe Mode and got the same message I did when I originally booted to my profile. 

"User Profile Service - You have been logged on with the default profile for the system. Please see the event log for details or contact your administrator."


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## RiffWraith (Jan 18, 2015)

guydoingmusic @ Mon Jan 19 said:


> "User Profile Service - You have been logged on with the default profile for the system. Please see the event log for details or contact your administrator."



Ah, that sounds like a Group Policy issue. Could be caused by a virus - that I wouldn't know.

Have a look here:

https://support.microsoft.com/kb/947215?wa=wsignin1.0


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## José Herring (Jan 18, 2015)

It may not be a virus. 

On one of my computers running XP, I lost a user profile. It had become corrupted. So then it defaults to a generic user that may or may not have everything you installed in it.

I was able to get it back, but I can't remember how. 

I did this search for you and it may be something there that can help you.

https://www.google.com/search?q=corrupt ... 8&oe=utf-8


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## TravB (Jan 18, 2015)

As soon as I read your first post, it was obvious that your user profile has been corrupt. I support a few hundred Windows users at my day job and have encountered this a few times. Could be virus related, disk error, sometimes no explanation at all (i.e. power surge, random quark from outer space, etc.).

The result of this type of problem is exactly what you're experiencing, as everything seems to have reverted back to defaults. Because Windows can't successfully load your account profile, the bare Default profile is being used which won't show most of your icons and customization.

The good news is that your original desktop configuration and data *might* still be there. Once logged in, whether in safe mode or otherwise, can you navigate to the C:\Users folder? You should see a folder inside the Users folder named with your original user account, and a Desktop folder within that with all your data. If the Desktop folder has everything you're missing, a simple fix is often to just create a new account and copy everything from your old accounts Desktop folder to your new accounts Desktop folder.

If you don't see your original account within the Users folder, it may still be there but simply be hidden (I've encountered a nasty virus several times that does exactly that, and it scares the hell out people making them think they've lost everything).

To unhide hidden folders while viewing the contents of the C:\Users folder, click on Tools menu (may have to hit the Alt key to reveal), then Folder options, the View tab, then select the option to "show hidden folders, files, and drives."

If your missing account folder then appears, then you probably got the virus that hides user data.

If the hidden data virus is not the cause of your problem, you still have a corrupt user account to deal with.

Here's some more info on this issue from Microsoft...

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/947215

Hope that helps.


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## guydoingmusic (Jan 19, 2015)

Thank you all so much! It appears this is just a corrupted profile. Which is a bit of a relief... but now I just have to fix it.  (that's a fake smile btw) 

Seriously though... I am very grateful for all the replies. Hopefully, I can repay the favor some day. Like if you ever need to be trained as a ninja... or something.


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## Mahlon (Jan 19, 2015)

Ay-ay-ay. Do you have an image file of your system by chance?

Mahlon


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## guydoingmusic (Jan 20, 2015)

Mahlon @ Mon Jan 19 said:


> Ay-ay-ay. Do you have an image file of your system by chance?
> 
> Mahlon


Unfortunately no... But.......

I was able to fix the original problem - corrupted user profile. However, I managed to make a bigger mess in the process. 

That profile is pretty much not gonna work anymore. I had tried the method of copy/paste the User folder over to a new user, and that's where it all botched up. Some of the files were not copied over correctly and in the process of trying to reverse it, the computer would not let me put the files in the original folder. All was a mess. Under the original profile, I can't open explorer. Some programs would open fine... but the wiring under the hood is all wrong now.

So needless to say, that this is something I don't have the time to sort out. It is faster for me to just create a new profile and start from scratch on preferences. 

Now off to write some hit songs, take over Hollywood, become a world changer, feed the hungry, etc.


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