[BlackOxide]

Okey dokey, time to move onto RAM. Could you test the memory by following the instructions below please. Let me know if it finds any errors or not.



Using MemTest86+ to test your RAM for problems
Download the latest MemTest86+ disc image from here
Unzip the contents and there will be a file called mt420.iso within it

Burning the ISO image to CD

• Click here to download ImgBurn, a program which we will use to burn the .iso file onto a Blank CD
• Once downloaded, double click the ImgBurn installation file and follow the prompts to install it
• Open ImgBurn and click Write image file to disc
• Insert a blank CD into your drive
• Now click Browse for a file

• Navigate to the mt420.iso file and click Open
• Now click on the following button to start burning the image to disc
  
  
  
• Once the CD has been burnt, insert it back into the CD drive and shutdown your PC
• Restart the PC and MemTest should load up and automatically start testing your RAM
• If it doesn't automatically load, you will need to change the Boot Order in your BIOS, so that the PC looks at the CD Drive before booting into Windows. If you are unsure of how to do this, just let me know your Make and Model of PC/Laptop
• Leave MemTest running until it has done a minimum of 5 Passes.
• Just next to the Pass count, there is the Errors count. If the error count goes above 0 at any time, let me know, as this indicates that you have a strong possibility of faulty RAM
• Once it has completed 5 Passes, you may take the CD out of the drive and press Esc to reboot your PC.

Note - MemTest will carry on forever, so you will need to reboot the PC by yourself once you have completed the passes.

Please be patient when running MemTest as 5 passes can take anywhere from approx 20mins to several hours (depending on the amount of RAM installed)

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Let it run 5 passes and 0 errors were found.

[thamasta]

Let it run 5 passes and 0 errors were found.

[BlackOxide]

That near enough rules out HDD and RAM then. Lets now focus on software issues.

Are you still getting the High CPU Usage?

Could you do the following please...


1)
Clear the Java Cache

Please click here and follow the instructions to clear your Java cache.



2)
Autoruns - Startup Items

• Click here to download Autoruns and Save it to your Desktop
• Extract the contents of Autoruns.zip by Right clicking it and choose Extract All (or Extract here if using WinRar)
• Once the contents have been extracted you will see a folder called Autoruns
• Open the folder and Right Click on autoruns and click Run as Administrator to launch the program
• Let the program finish scanning your PC until it says Ready in the bottom left
• Click File then Save, then in the Save as type box select Text (.txt) then in the File Name box above, call it StartupItems.txt and save it to your Desktop
• Please attach the StartupItems.txt to your next reply

To attach a file...

• Click Add Reply as you would do normally
• Then within the 'Attachments' area, click Browse and select the file that you want to attach
• Click the Attach This File button
• Now click Add to Post on the right hand side, to insert the attachment into your post.

In your next reply
Let me know whether the High CPU Usage is still there
Attach the StartupItems.txt file

[thamasta]

I'm not getting 100% as often now, it usually hangs around 30-40 unless the laptop has been on for a few hours, then it's around 100.

[BlackOxide]

Hmmm, strange, can't see what's causing this at the moment. There's nothing that stands out much in your startup items either, looking at your Autoruns log. A machine with approx 3GB RAM should easily cope with whats starting up.

Could you create a new User Account on your PC and we'll see if the high CPU happens on this account, as I have seen it in the past whereby new accounts do not get the high CPU levels. To create a new account, go to Control Panel > User Accounts > Manage Another Account > Create a new account

Once you have created a new account, reboot the PC, then login to the new account. Then have a look at the CPU levels once it has had time to fully load, then let me know if it does the same as the other account.

[thamasta]

I set up the new user, restarted the computer and logged in. For 30 mins the CPU stayed at 100% with no culprit listed in task manager.

[BlackOxide]

That didn't do the trick then You can remove that user account if you wish..

Lets try the following, to see if it reveals any info on the processes...

Please do the following, when the CPU usage is at 100% if possible.


Running Processes Log

• Click here to download Process Explorer
• Once download, Extract the contents of the zip file (usually by Right Clicking ProcessExplorer.zip and choosing Extract)
• Once extracted you should see procexp.exe, Right click on this icon, then choose Run as administrator
• A window will appear on the screen showing all of the running processes
• Click View at the top, then Select Columns
• Put a tick in Image Path and Command Line (leave everything else as they are)
• Now click File, then Save As and save it as processlog.txt to a known location like your Downloads or Documents folder for example
• Please Attach this processlog.txt to your next reply.

[thamasta]

I think this has found the problem. WDFME.exe is using 40-50% and is not listed in task manager.

[BlackOxide]

Excellent, looks like we're making progress

I would uninstall WD Smartware (Control Panel > Programs and Features). Once it has been uninstalled, reboot the PC then see if the CPU usage is normal now. Let me know if this has worked or not.

[thamasta]

Yup, worked great. CPU usage is stable around 10-20% after the comptuer has finished loading

[BlackOxide]

Excellent, that's good to hear

Have you had any blue screens recently?

[thamasta]

Haven't had once since you started helping me, hopefully it stays that way.

Thanks for all your help BlackOxide, I really appreciate it.

[BlackOxide]

No problem at all, you're welcome

I'll leave this topic open for the next few days, so if you do have any blue screens, just let me know.

[thamasta]

I just went to play Runescape and got a BSOD again. Stop code was 0x000000124 i think.

Edited by thamasta, 10 August 2011 - 09:56 AM.

[BlackOxide]

Hmmm, I wonder if this is a Graphics issue. Do you know if you have the latest drivers for your Graphics Card?


Could you attach this file to your next post please - C:\windows\MEMORY.DMP

To attach a file...

• Click Add Reply as you would do normally
• Then within the 'Attachments' area, click Browse and select the file that you want to attach
• Click the Attach This File button
• Now click Add to Post on the right hand side, to insert the attachment into your post.