# [SOLVED] brstswnd.exe confusion/problems [moved from Virus/Trojan/Spyware Help]



## 232john

Can anyone guide me on resolving an issue centered on "brstswnd.exe"? I have recently installed a driver for a Brother printer. Printer is working fine, but I've begun getting error messages, on boot-ups, of the need for "brstswnd.exe" to close, even if I've not been using my printer. Do I want to send an error report? I don't want to send an error report, I'm certain, but I keep getting this message every time I boot-up. I find, on the internet, some discussion that this may be malware. I don't know if I want to remove the program from my hard drive or not, whether this will solve the problem or not. Would removing this make it impossible to run my printer? What can I do to resolve this problem? Any suggestion is appreciated!


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## tetonbob

*Re: brstswnd.exe confusion/problems [moved from Virus/Trojan/Spyware Help]*

Hi -

I don't think there's any reason to believe this is malware, if it's in the location indicated here:

http://www.systemlookup.com/lists.p...me&client=malwaresearch-ff&search=BrstsWnd.ex



> Related to Brother. A Brother utility which can be used for a variety of different tasks. In most instances, it is used to monitor the status of your Brother printer. Note: Located in \%Program Files%\Brownie\


I've moved this to the Printer Support section, where you'll be more likely to receive the best guidance for your issue.


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## Greenfield

*Re: brstswnd.exe confusion/problems [moved from Virus/Trojan/Spyware Help]*

I also had the same brstswnd.exe error on Win XP boot up after installing the Brother software for my HL-2170w printer. Brother had me download a new driver and re-install 
the software but that did not resolve the problem. I noticed that the error would occur while the Brother software attempted to install the status monitor into the sys tray. When I unchecked “load status monitor at start up” the error went away. You can still run the status monitor manually


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## 232john

*Re: brstswnd.exe confusion/problems [moved from Virus/Trojan/Spyware Help]*

Greenfield, 

Thanks for contributing to this thread, for responding to my original question. Just before you posted, I talked with Brother and did exactly what they told you to do. Remove the old driver, download and install the new driver. For me, this solved the problem immediately. I'm not sure why you had to take the additional step of unchecking the "load-status monitor". :4-dontkno Anyway, we both seem to have solved the problem. Thanks for your input. By the way, should this thread be flagged with a "solved" label now, since we've basically reached a solution? I'm not certain how this is handled, but want to help "clean house" if I can.

John


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## tetonbob

Hi 232john -

To mark a topic as Solved, the original poster can use the function on the Thread Tools drop down menu.

I've marked this as solved, thanks to you both for your replies.


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## cooky09

*Re: brstswnd.exe confusion/problems [moved from Virus/Trojan/Spyware Help]*



Greenfield said:


> I also had the same brstswnd.exe error on Win XP boot up after installing the Brother software for my HL-2170w printer. Brother had me download a new driver and re-install
> the software but that did not resolve the problem. I noticed that the error would occur while the Brother software attempted to install the status monitor into the sys tray. When I unchecked “load status monitor at start up” the error went away. You can still run the status monitor manually


i see that this topic is closed so i hope my post gets thru...
i too just installed Brother HL 2140 laser printer and keep getting this brstswnd error message. i thought it was from another software i had installed which i have since uninstalled.

i am not connected to the internet where the printer is installed so i cannot download a new driver. but i would not know which one to download anyway. 

if chose to go that route....would it be possible to download this new driver and copy/paste it to the correct location on my HD? 

I searched my system and found the file in C:\windows\prefetch

where do i go to uncheck 'load status monitor at startup'
if i do that i should be okay.


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## GreystoneGuru

05/11/11:
I have seen the same startup error with BrstsWnd, intermittently, since I installed a Brother HL-2170W printer on my XP Pro over a year ago. I've installed a new driver at least once, probably the latest, dated in late 2010, and continued to see the error.
Today I located a shortcut, BrotherStatusWindow, in "Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\Startup". I removed it from same, and on reboot found that (1) the error no longer was presented and (2) the status monitor still appears on my toolbar. This appears to be because BrstsWnd is listed in "MSCONFIG | Startup" I chose to uncheck it there as well since I find little use for the status icon on the tool bar. My guess is that there's a timing problem in bootup that results intermittently in a failure to launch the APP. :4-dontkno
HTH


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