Something fishy about WinXP.

AuraEdge · February 28th, 2002, 10:11 PM

Those with WinXP, could you look in program files in your windows root drive and see if you have a "/xerox/nwwia" folder or a "microsoft frontpage/Version3.0/bin" folder? They should stand out as the only lowercase lettered folders in program files on my computer. They are also not deletable, and appear to be empty.

I need to know if this is happening to me, or if its more widespread than that.

I think something strange is going on with MS and these folders, but its speculation right now for the most part until I can find out more.

This post is a bit long beyond this point, and is mostly info and speculation to this phenomenon if everyone who has WinXP has these folders on thier computers. If I'm wrong on that point, than everything after this is invalid.

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I think something strange is going on with WinXP and these files, if indeed all XP users have these files autoinstalled on thier systems. Heres my reasoning.

I had thought I had a virus (Nimda) before on my laptop, and I couldnt get rid of it, so I ended up formatting the drive. Before I formatted, I found the /xerox/nwwia folder, and thought it was where the virus was because it appeared empty, yet I couldnt delete it, and when I did delete it by booting under another OS on the laptop, it reappeared on next WinXP boot.

So then I formatted, and loaded up essentials - Office, Norton AV, Firewall all that stuff, and nothing else. The folders were still there. I thought I might have had a BIOS virus. I reformmatted again, and the folders reappeared right after the WinXP install, this time before I even installed Office. That makes absolutely no sense to me, especially for the frontpage folder, since frontpage is not part of windows, but part of office.

Another strange thing is these two folders are also on my desktop, so I thought the virus spread thru my LAN. I mean microsoft doesnt use lowercase letter directories, and they also don't use version numbers in thier directory names.

That would have been a feasable explaination, but my desktop has been protected by norton and firewalls and everything from day one. Also I found this from googling the name of the xerox folder. Almost all the links were japanese. These one i found interesting, by Xerox corperation, which claims nothing to do with this folder.

http://babelfish.altavista.com/urltr...t=url&urltext= - Translated via Babelfish

Quote:

The Windows . under the PROGRAM Files of the XP, the folder of marking name exists, but this the virus or is not that product.

Protect catching, it cannot delete usually this folder, but the Windows . you verify that it is not the trouble regarding our company commodity use on the XP.

Because information of product support service at the below-mentioned URL, in regard to this case from the Microsoft corporation is offered, reference you ask.
Http: //www.microsoft.com/JAPAN/support/kb/articles/j070/0/25.asp

It mentions a virus, but I dont understand the translated context.

By clicking the microsoft link, I get to a page, also in Japanese, that translates to http://babelfish.altavista.com/urltr...0%2F0%2F25.asp -

Quote:

< In > \xerox\nwwia folder of systemdrive \Program Files subordinate being attached
Last date updated: 2002/01/31
Document number: J070025

Being something which is described concerning the product below it does this data.

Microsoft (R) Windows XP Home Edition

Microsoft (R) Windows XP Professional

Phenomenon
When the Windows XP is installed, < > the \xerox\nwwia folder is drawn up to the systemdrive \Program Files subordinate.

Circumstance
This operation is specification of Windows XP.

Details
The \xerox\nwwia folder from the XEROX Corporation way the WIA which is offered (the WindowsImage Acquisition) is prepared in order to utilize the ????? (untranslated text) of correspondence.
In addition, because it is the folder which is protected by the system, it is not possible to delete.

Graham · February 28th, 2002, 10:21 PM

Got em both !!

G

DutchMaster · February 28th, 2002, 10:25 PM

http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winxp/t1007374617

Strange folder indeed

BFlurie · February 28th, 2002, 10:27 PM

Any reference to these folders in the registry? Search in Regedit for:

\xerox

AuraEdge · February 28th, 2002, 10:33 PM

I've done the regedit already for "xerox"
i came up empty.
Searching regedit for "frontpage" now on my newly formmated XP partition...nothing.

I didnt wanna open a can of worms over nothing, but this seemed strange enough to me to look like something out of the ordinary.

I read the annoyance.org thread while looking through the google results (I think it was the only English one), but the guy seemed satisfied since he had just did something with his scanner drivers, so imaging sounded correct. My laptop, on the other hand, has never had a camera or scanner hooked up to it, ever, and the closest thing to imaging it's ever had contact with is an optical mouse; on top of that, its freshly formatted.

A side thing - Win2K and WinXP also dump a "ComPlus Applications" empty directory into your Program Files, but this ones deletable, so I wont make a big deal out of that one.

Mortis · February 28th, 2002, 11:19 PM

Greetings... I have recently installed XP Pro... I havent installed Office yet as I havent had a need for it at home. I just looked and I have the folders that you mention and they are exactly as discribed in the link above... mine are also empty. I am confused- what exactly are you suspecting?

Thanks,
Mortis

DutchMaster · February 28th, 2002, 11:22 PM

Quote:

My laptop, on the other hand, has never had a camera or scanner hooked up to it, ever, and the closest thing to imaging it's ever had contact with is an optical mouse; on top of that, its freshly formatted.

Same here, my friend, although not a laptop

Maybe something just like the Wang imaging that is installed with win98

AuraEdge · February 28th, 2002, 11:42 PM

I honestly dont know what I'm expecting. the folder names just seem very unusual. I'm also not quite convinced about MS's response to it (even though it was only in Japanese), and the fact that theres no acknoledgement of this folder in any other language.

I'm at the point where I dont know what to think and I'm just compiling facts.

Why dump empty folders into program directories in the first place? And why place system files under Program files and not Windows? Why make empty system folders?
Remember the really hidden files? I wasnt able to find any "really hidden" files in these, but it makes me think.

Mortis · February 28th, 2002, 11:49 PM

I see where ya are going... I dont like it. If we cant delete it, but its there- then there has to be a purpose... thanks for the heads up on this. I hope there is some conclusion to this. I dont agree with the gentlemen from the other site being satisfied with his conclusions. I would like to find more conclusive answers and explanations.

Hmmm,
Mortis

AuraEdge · March 1st, 2002, 12:05 AM

We're on the same exact wavelength then.
If this ends up being nothing, I'll be satisfied too, because then I'll know its nothing.

I didnt want to suggest that MS snuck something in with XP, although thats certainly not out of the question for me, but I started this more to set attention to this and to find out what its for, and to get a more conclusive answer.

If anyone else has anything to add to this, please do. I really want to get to the bottom of this...eventually anyways.