Hi

I installed bearshare on my home PC, just to see what all the fuss was about on P2P files, sharing saving it into a new file in my documents & settings folder. As well as the Bearshare, it installed a tool bar, bearshare logo on google, and an icon in the bottom right of the screen. next to the clock. I haven't attempt to download anything, & it was only installed for about half an hour.
I then uninstalled it via the start/all programmes/uninstall beashare route. But this process removed/deleted(?) all applications on my deskdesp, and deleted all my files, just leaving the my computer, internet explorer, outlook, icons on my desk top. I managed to get all the applications back by restoring the settings to a previous date, but not any files. It looks like all my personal files, photographs, personal folders etc have all been deleted. It's also deleted some minor Windows tools - ie all the different choices of pictures for icons for different users, there's just the default chess piece logo. Norton anti virus hasn't found anything on what's left of my system.

Does anyone know how this has happened, if there's likely to be any hidden nasties within my computer, and what I can do about it? I'm assuming all my files are iretreivable. Fortunately I have some files saved on a back up disk drive, but at the moment I daren't switch it on in case there's something in the system that will wipe that too. Do you reckon it's safe for my to access my back up disk drive?

That will teach me to access things I don't know much about!

Any help and advice appreciated
cheers
H

I recommend you use system restore to go back to a restore point before you installed BearShare.

Using XP System Restore