The Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool checks Windows XP, Windows 2000, and Windows Server 2003 computers for and helps remove infections by specific, prevalent malicious software—including Blaster, Sasser, and Mydoom. When the detection and removal process is complete, the tool displays a report describing the outcome, including which, if any, malicious software was detected and removed. The tool creates a log file named mrt.log in the %WINDIR%debug folder.
This tool is not a replacement for an anti-virus product. To help protect your computer, you should use an anti-virus product.
Microsoft will release an updated version of this tool on the second Tuesday of each month. New versions will be made available through this web page, Windows Update, and the Malicious Software Removal Tool Web site on Microsoft.com.
The user must be an administrator to run this tool. This tool will not run on any version of Windows 98, Windows ME, or Windows NT 4.0.
Note that this download is now a multi-lingual tool. For all supported languages, the same tool will show the correct language depending on the language of the operating system.