Boot.ini and Quick Launch disapears after each boot

So, Microsoft took care of another hour of my life I’ll never see again…

The problem:

On a computer, after each boot the files c:boot.ini and the folder Internet Explorer from C:documents and settingsuserapplication datamicrosoftinternet explorer are erased. After fiddling with malware scanning, registry tweaks the problem was still there.

The solution:

I found someone on a forum noting that uninstalling Internet Explorer 8 fixed this problem for him. What? Ok, I understand that IE8 might screw around with the Quick Launch, but boot.ini? That’d be the day?

Well, to cut it short, uninstalling IE8 solved the problem. I bet that it’s not IE8, it was probably some update to IE8 that borked everything. Well, we agreed that IE8 should go all together, just to be sure.

So, it was not a virus after all, well, maybe just the virus called Windows.

So if you cannot create the Quick Launch toolbar, or if you create it’s folder and it goes away on every boot, simply go to control panel -> add remove programs, check show updates and unintsall Internet Explorer 8. Do yourself a favour and install Firefox. Or Opera. Or Chrome. Or Safari. Heck even text mode lynx would be better and safer.

Well done Microsoft!