How to remove an shell error

The free file information forum can help you determine if shell.exe is a virus, trojan, spyware, or adware that you can remove, or a file belonging to a Windows system or an application you can trust.

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Shell.exe file information

The process known as MS Shell or Earlyon CafeCentra Client belongs to software Gsoft or Earlyon CafeCentra Client by Earlyon Technologies (cafecentra.com).

Description: shell.exe is located in a subfolder of "C:\Documents and Settings". Known file sizes on Windows 7/XP are 119,296 bytes (13% of all occurrences), 117,248 bytes and 21 more variants.
File shell.exe is a file without information about the developer of this file. The program has no visible window. It is not a Windows system file. The program listens for or sends data on open ports to a LAN or the Internet. Therefore the technical security rating is 67% dangerous, however also read the users reviews.

Recommended: Identify shell.exe related errors

If shell.exe is located in the folder C:\Windows, the security rating is 50% dangerous. The file size is 9,728 bytes (45% of all occurrences), 10,240 bytes and 5 more variants. The program has a visible window. There is no description of the program. Shell.exe is not a Windows core file. The application is loaded during the Windows boot process (see Registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\Shell, HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run, HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run, HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServices, HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServicesOnce). It is an unknown file in the Windows folder.

If shell.exe is located in a subfolder of "C:\Program Files", the security rating is 47% dangerous. The file size is 122,880 bytes (27% of all occurrences), 86,016 bytes and 5 more variants. There is no file information. The program is not visible. It is not a Windows core file. shell.exe is able to monitor applications.
If you have any problems with shell.exe, you may want to completely remove Gestionnaire Internet or Paragon Software PenReader (Control Panel⇒Add/Remove programs).

If shell.exe is located in a subfolder of C:\, the security rating is 56% dangerous. The file size is 1,198,592 bytes.

If shell.exe is located in a subfolder of C:\Windows, the security rating is 100% dangerous. The file size is 847,872 bytes.

If shell.exe is located in a subfolder of "C:\Program Files\Common Files", the security rating is 42% dangerous. The file size is 379,392 bytes.

If shell.exe is located in the folder C:\Windows\System32, the security rating is 64% dangerous. The file size is 293,025 bytes.

If shell.exe is located in a subfolder of C:\Windows\System32, the security rating is 36% dangerous. The file size is 309,872 bytes.

Important: Some malware camouflages itself as shell.exe, particularly when located in the c:\windows or c:\windows\system32 folder. Therefore, you should check the shell.exe process on your PC to see if it is a threat. We recommend Security Task Manager for verifying your computer's security. This was one of the Top Download Picks of The Washington Post and PC World.

Score

User Comments

when i start windows, it gives a message that c:\windows\shell.exe not found. i want to remove this error.
anil

There are so many files with the name shell. That is why an attacker could insert a counterfeit file -- for example, turtleshell.exe or SallySellsSeaShells.dll -- with a virus or spyware. How the heck are we gonna know the difference? Well, the Sally one maybe sounds suspicious. But getting back to the point. The more files with the same name makes it easier for the bad guys to mask a fake one as if it fits right in with the others. I used RemoveAny spyware remover program to delete it. They said it was suspicious. I had been having internet and virus troubles before. Now there is no internet. It keeps saying page can't be displayed. According to RemoveAny the one I deleted was located in %user_profile%\application data\microsoft\windows\shell.exe and started by %user_profile%\LOCALS~1\Temp\ChB.exe. They said DrWeb Antivirus detected it as Trojan_MulDrop1.49782. RemoveAny claimed it established internet connections with 188.72.230.135 and newsletterji.com on port World Wide Web HTTP(80). I'm not blaming RemoveAny.
Anonymous

Be careful. Deleting shell.exe may cause screen problems in internet. Words may be different sizes and out of place.
Anonymous

My mcafee detected %username%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\shell.exe as a backdoor... i deleted it... did i do the right thing?
Nelson

Net-Worm.Win32.Mytob.ar (Kaspersky), W32/Mytob-CA (Sophos)
Frank (further information)

Summary: Average user rating of shell.exe: based on 7 votes with 5 reviews.

2 users think shell.exe is essential for Windows or an installed application. 2 users think it's probably harmless. 1 user suspect danger. 2 users think shell.exe is dangerous and recommend removing it. 1 user doesn't grade shell.exe ("not sure about it").

Shell scanner

Security Task Manager shows all running Windows tasks including embedded hidden functions (e.g. keyboard or browser monitoring, autostart entry). A unique security risk rating indicates the likelihood of the process being potential spyware, malware, keylogger or a Trojan.

Spyware Doctor detects and removes sleeping spyware, adware, trojans, keyloggers, malware and tracking threats from your hard disk. Ideal supplement to Security Task Manager.

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