Help! my computer is whacked - now running dreadfully slow

and it's not spyware (I checked)

from WinCustomize Forums
My system (p4 2.8 w/512 ram running WinXP sp2) began running slower as the day went on. At first I thought it was the newest version of WinFX as I noted my menu shadows & taskbar shadows no longer worked. But now I'm not so sure it's not something more ...

When I run task manager (it takes 25 sec to show) I note that my CPU is running 100% - I shut down (via kill switch) and booted up into Safe mode. Everything works better but not right. Pages on the internet and in my Outlook move slowly as I scroll through them (I'm writing this using my laptop in another room)

Could my video card or hard drive be going to its grave?
Advice is greatly appreciated
11,262 views 20 replies
Reply #1 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Run task manager...it 'should' indicate which process/s are causing the slowdown of the cpu...
Reply #2 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Do what Jafo said...
Ashes of the Singularity II
Reply #3 from WinCustomize Forums Top
... your computer is showing classic signs of being taken over by adware.... run spybot search and destroy or ad-aware...
Reply #4 from WinCustomize Forums Top
your computer is showing classic signs of being taken over by adware


I agree. You could also get the free version of Ad Aware and give it a spin too.
http://www.lavasoft.com/
Reply #5 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Also try these steps :

A) Check taskmanager and see if a process "RunDll32.exe" Isnt running, most of the time its safe but when others programs "Like adware and spyware" take over it causes your computer to crass. (Dont delete it, will prevent Control Panel from opening)

B) Do BOOT Time Defragmentation or Offline Defragmentation as called in "PerfectDisk"

C) Make sure you havent accidentally disabled your HardWare Acceleration

D) "Or your harddrive is dying and struggling to breathe

Cant think of anything else right now
Reply #6 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I just waited 30 minutes for my old comp to start up... Had to go into safe mode. It reeeealy needed a defrag.
Reply #7 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Try following:

a.Run adware-spyware check via Spybot Search & Destroy or Ad-Aware.

b.Defrag your disk,via Norton Utilities or with Windows Defragmenter.

c.Check in Task Manager the ammount of memory each process uses and check each process if it is needed or not.

d.Perform a Disk Doctor test via Norton Utilities.

e.Check if any application you run in startup is incompatible with WinXP SP2,you might need some proggies to be updated.

f.Check that you didn't disable hardware acceleration.

g.Check for conflicting apps running simultaneously.

h.Check whether you have your disk full.I mean if say you got an 80GB disk full to 99% it's only natural to get slow performance.

i.Maybe your PC started ageing,so i think it's time for a full backup.Maybe if the problem persists try formating,but that only if it comes to the point of no return.

Hope i helped,i don't suggest following i.,but if you are experienced enough then maybe it's time.Personally i format mine once each two years.
Reply #8 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Right now my computer is so slow that I cant even get into my virus software. It took 6 minutes for Display to come up, and 2 for it to close.

Any way possible to get back?
I run fine in safe mode, as that is what I'm currently in. This site looks carppy at 640x480!!!!
Reply #9 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Looks like you got solid advice so far - one question: are you testing your computer's performance in the default Windows theme with no programs loaded?

If not, I would suggest doing so to isolate a possible hardware or OS issue vs. a software issue.
Reply #10 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I reinstalled Windows.
Reply #11 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Some good stuff here ...
Q: How do I check if my "hardware acceleration" thingy is on / off?

My hard-drive:
I just defragged 1.5 weeks ago and my hard drive has 90 gigs left out of 120 (space is ok!)I never reformatted; the system is 2.5 years old.

Conflicting software:
Hmm, tough call how do I check that?

Q: What is "perfect disk"?

Lastly, I did run "chkdsk" to search for errors but only ran this in read only mode. The program ran with no errors and closed down. Is this ok?

Thanks everyone!!
Reply #12 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Hardware acceleration for display hardware = "Right-click desktop > Properties > Settings tab > Advanced button > Troubleshoot tab".

By default, the slider is set to full acceleration. If you operate the slider, the text in the dialog will indicate what the current position does.

It is not clear to me what you have tried to do, and with what settings.

I would recommend setting Windows to the default XP theme, including all icons, and unloading all programs. If the performance of the OS functions (opening Windows Explorer, Booting computer) is still exhibiting problems, then I would recommend going here Link, and reading the full text on performing a "Clean Boot" in Windows XP (paying special attention to the warnings about disabling anything that will affect System Restore).

This is the traditional way to troubleshoot the OS and Program processes to isolate the issue - then using the process of elimination to find the cause.

This should allow you to narrow it down to one of the following: (1) Hardware issue, (2) OS isssue, or (3) Installed program issue.

You will have to gauge the performance of the OS and programs while troubleshooting, and if there is no significant improvement, then a hardware issue is the probable culprit.

BTW - this is just a suggestion if you are unable to determine the cause in another way.
Reply #13 from WinCustomize Forums Top
When I run task manager (it takes 25 sec to show) I note that my CPU is running 100%



You said that, what is causing your CPU to run at 100%? If you click on processes in Task Manager, scroll down and see which one is coming up with 99 (Just don't pay attention to System Idle if that is 99). Once you find out what is maxing it out, either post it here or do a google search on what it is. Plus you should be able to terminate it by highlighting it and do a end task.
Reply #14 from WinCustomize Forums Top
May have found my problem (thanks to some advice above )

I booted in safe mode and ran msconfig. I then toggled off unnecessary items in start up tab. I booted again to discover I had 1/3 the running processes as before but CPU was still taxing at 100%. So, by elimination I disabled the remaining few processes that weren't critical. It turns out the my Trend Micro antivirus program was hanging up the system. I'm not sure why the program became corrupt but it did. It was trying to load something or pull something from it's services connection - it's constantly monitoring (sorry for the non-techie explanation; it's the best I can do)

So, I now have my system back in order (minus the antivirus program as I determine what to do with it)

Thanks to everyone for their input. I hope my update helps someone ~ cheers!
Reply #15 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Did you pay for Trend Micro? If not you can try AVG Anti-Virus as a alternative
Reply #16 from WinCustomize Forums Top
This is interesting. My computer had the exact same problem last night. I had to do a complete re-install of XP.
Reply #17 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Did you pay for Trend Micro?


I use it and yes, it is great software, and yes, you pay for it.

This is interesting. My computer had the exact same problem last night. I had to do a complete re-install of XP.


I just ended up doing a reformat-- and I'm typing this in Linux right now, with 187 updates to install!
Reply #18 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Pays to slipstream.
http://www.pcstats.com/articleview.cfm?articleID=1626
Reply #19 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Not everyone can slipstream. At least I can't. My copy of XP refuses to let itself be copied to the hard drive. And yes there are no scratches or marks on the CD.

Be that as it may not everyone wants SP1 and/or SP2 on their machine.
Reply #20 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Conflicting software:
Hmm, tough call how do I check that?


There is no program to actually check this,only by experience,and usually different Messenger clients or Antiviruses have the tendency to do that. Follow the link to see more on AV Conflicts.

Link

Link

And yes maybe Trend Micro does confict with another active antivirus program you may have installed.Just try disabling it and see if your system recovers.

Hope this helps a bit.