[dvd7e]

Hi,

 

My computer seems to be running very slow. It typically takes many minutes (10-15?) to fully boot up and actually become usable. (The actual boot up to my desktop is reasonably fast, but then it takes a while for everything to "settle out".) Even long after startup, doing simple things...like right now I have two tabs open in Chrome and that's it, no other programs open...and I'm at 40% CPU usage and 68% Physical Memory utilization. Sometimes (not too often, but often enough to be annoying) something super basic like opening up Windows Explorer will freeze my computer for like 20-30 seconds. Why is it so slow? What can I do to make it faster? It's been like this for several years now, so I don't think it's a simple reboot-and-hope-for-the-best kind of thing.

 

I've disabled the majority of startup programs via msconfig. I used to run MalawareBytes, CCleaner, Defrag and virus scans a lot, haven't recently, but like I said, it's been slow for a long time and when I was doing those things regularly, it was still just as slow.

 

I don't really do any gaming or anything, I pretty much just use my computer to surf the internet and stream movies. One thing I've always noticed is that when I look at the Task Manager, there are always like a dozen chrome.exe processes running, even though I may only have two or three tabs open. 

 

Computer Info:

I built it myself in ~2010. (Didn't really know what I was doing, but did it partly to learn)

Windows 7, 64 Bit, Service Pack 1

CPU: Intel i5-750 Quad Core, 2.68 GHz

RAM: 4 GB

 

Thank you!

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Hello dvd7e,

 

The speed and quality of the HDD and RAM can make a difference as can having 8 instead of 4GB of RAM.

 

Download then run Speccy (free) and post the resultant url for us, details here,  this will provide us with information about your computer hardware + any software that you have installed that may explain the present issue/s. 

[phillpower2]

Hello dvd7e,

 

The speed and quality of the HDD and RAM can make a difference as can having 8 instead of 4GB of RAM.

 

Download then run Speccy (free) and post the resultant url for us, details here,  this will provide us with information about your computer hardware + any software that you have installed that may explain the present issue/s. 

[dimitris]

.

Edited by dimitris, 02 September 2016 - 02:22 AM.

[phillpower2]

Dimitris

 

Please do not post inside another members thread when you are looking for assistance for yourself, your question/s or computer problem/s may appear similar but in fact be nothing alike, may cause confusion to the ongoing thread, will send unwelcome notifications to peoples inbox and ultimately lead to your request for help going unanswered, start your own thread on the appropriate forum and someone will assist you there asap, thank you for your understanding. 

[phillpower2]

Not heard back from you dvd7e, do you still require assistance or is the issue now resolved, an update would be appreciated.

[dvd7e]

Thanks for checking in. Sorry, I was out of town for the long Labor Day weekend, so haven't really had a chance to do anything. I didn't forget though, I'm planning on running that program tonight (or soon), and then I'll post the results.

[phillpower2]

No worries and thanks for getting back to us 

 

One thing I've always noticed is that when I look at the Task Manager, there are always like a dozen chrome.exe processes running, even though I may only have two or three tabs open. 

 

 

Forgot to address this in my reply #2, what you are seeing is normal, text or Google comic book explanations available here

[dvd7e]

Thanks for your patience, I was finally able to download speccy and run it. Here's the link:

 

http://speccy.pirifo...jOvJJxq0VPzeuwe

[phillpower2]

Looking at your Speccy report tells us that there are a few things going on, I will come to them one at a time below but would first like to bring something to your attention, from your OP;

 

I've disabled the majority of startup programs via msconfig. I used to run MalawareBytes, CCleaner, Defrag and virus scans a lot,

 

 

Run regular MBAM and virus checks as a priority but definitely not defrags, the average user only needs to defrag a HDD once every 3/4 months depending on the amount of file swapping that has been done, power users that do a lot of file swapping once every 1/2 months but again it depends on how much the computer has been used under heavy load, if you overdo defragging a HDD you actually create the very problem that you think you are preventing, data can become jumbled + you are subjecting the HDD to unnecessary wear and tear that will shorten the life span of the HDD.

 

Now to Speccy, there is a lot of info here so please take your time going through it, important info I have highlighted in red;

 

CPU

Intel Core i5 750 @ 2.67GHz: 65 °C This is way too hot for a computer that is not under load and you are not far off the CPUs thermal shutdown trigger of 72.7°C at which point the computer will shut down, the CPU voltage is shown to be 1.216V which is fine so that is not the cause of the high temperature, a clogged HS and cooling fan and/or a below par CPU cooling fan could be the cause, the high temperature will most certainly affect performance.

 

Motherboard

ASUSTeK Computer INC. P7P55D (LGA1156): 69 °C The Southbridge is also too hot for a computer not under load.

 

Antivirus

Antivirus: Enabled

Company Name: AVAST Software

 

Stopped: Avira AntiVir Guard

Stopped: Avira AntiVir Scheduler

 

You also have Avira AV showing in Speccy, while it may be shown to be stopped it could still be causing problems such as conflicting with Avast on start up and hogging system resources afterwards;

 

 

Run the Avira removal tool to get rid of all traces of any previous installation files that may have been left behind, Avira removal details here

 

Are you aware that you also have Avast SafeZone running, if yes that is fine but if not please see the article here

 

Warning the following is rather a long list but needs must to emphasise the scope of scheduled updates that will impact computer performance;

 

Scheduler

9/8/2016 8:54 PM;: GoogleUpdateTaskMachineUA

9/8/2016 8:55 PM;: GoogleUpdateTaskUserS-1-5-21-502889593-3295034328-484458065-1000UA

9/8/2016 9:04 PM;: Adobe Flash Player Updater

9/9/2016 12:10 PM;: SafeZone scheduled Autoupdate 1468685315

9/9/2016 7:00 PM;: SyncBack My Documents

9/9/2016 7:54 PM;: GoogleUpdateTaskMachineCore

9/9/2016 7:55 PM;: GoogleUpdateTaskUserS-1-5-21-502889593-3295034328-484458065-1000Core

9/10/2016 1:00 PM;: SyncBack Program Files (x86)

9/10/2016 4:57 PM;: RealUpgradeScheduledTaskS-1-5-21-502889593-3295034328-484458065-1000

9/11/2016 6:00 PM;: SyncBack Downloads

9/12/2016 6:00 PM;: SyncBack Dload2

9/13/2016 6:00 PM;: SyncBack Mozilla

9/14/2016 6:00 PM;: SyncBack My Music

386ca130

3bac358c

3ec79f38

409dc6f0

40deed00

433f8b18

4455af30

485f95c8

494ffc58

4ba363d0

4f478690

4fb4e248

52a2612c

54b8a578

5856f984

60209a60

62539b64

6421c2b4

6509641c

662a3500

6b19e2c

6c1727a0

6d21c314

6d2fd674

711fc804

7450dea4

7c41bce4

83b8be30

8af4ca54

8d10f600

8eb7b62c

8f63ab80

900e62ac

90b71ef4

9312b060

9a0ab7e4

9ae6e6b8

9b73dab0

9c51c42c

9d0955d0

9e9aaf44

a1b4dbb0

a320bef0

a4eebbdc

a78bfb0

a989fd74

acc54e10

adeaf2d0

103231f4

Auto Reminder

b0725e00

b1544684

b36402c0

b43ea714

b5c8f29c

b65d93fc

ba04d56c

bbdf7788

be547328

be576810

c2ddc3b4

c310320

c62f5be4

c6daefec

c703818

c87132ac

d6957a9c

dc35c470

dce25948

de916ff8

Defraggler Volume C Task

Disk Check

e22954f4

e4566c58

e6e40d08

ec034ce4

eed49a10

f34906d8

f36cb714

f4b764e0

f8c63898

f8dfa9d0

fb314db0

fdab2354

fe1a1758

ff937e24

140823c8

142906dc

19c0ce9c

1e871a4

MalwareBytes Update and Scan

PC Health Reminder

Quick Defrag C during Idle

RealUpgradeLogonTaskS-1-5-21-502889593-3295034328-484458065-1000

20a987c8

Run CCleaner

2111f950

Spybot - Search & Destroy - Scheduled Task

Spybot - Search & Destroy Updater - Scheduled Task

241858ec

2553f490

2aa426a0

30c0ec58

365a6c6c

381ed084

SyncBack ZapShares

 

Apart from Windows** and your AV protection nothing should be allowed to update or auto run without your permission, this is far safer as it reduces the risk of malware infection, PUPs and bad drivers etc being installed.

 

** Windows Update

AutoUpdate: Not configured;

 

Kind of ironic that such an important feature is disabled   I prefer the Install updates automatically (recommended) choice but would advise a minimum of the Download updates but let me choose whether to install them option.

 

Physical Memory

Memory Usage: 73 %

Total Physical: 3.99 GB

Available Physical: 1.04 GB

Total Virtual: 7.98 GB

Available Virtual: 4.20 GB

 

Something is hogging your RAM and this will definitely be slowing down your computer, please carry out the suggested steps above, restart the computer, see how the computer behaves, after Windows has booted give it a couple of minutes then check Task Manager to see what is shown to be using the most RAM, make a note and let us know when you next reply.

 

Voltage

CPU CORE: 1.216 V

MEMORY CONTROLLER: 1.728 V

+3.3V: 3.440 V

+5V: 5.160 V

+12V: 11.988 V

VIN6: 0.576 V

 

With the exception of the memory controller all voltages are shown to be ok, please post the brand and model name or number of your PSU when you next reply.

 

The following is just an advisory for the future;

 

Partition 0

Partition ID: Disk #0, Partition #0

Disk Letter: C:

File System: NTFS

Volume Serial Number: D078DB02

Size: 931 GB

Used Space: 636 GB (68%)

Free Space: 295 GB (32%)

 

To avoid Windows becoming corrupt, do not allow the free storage space to go below 25%.

 

Partition 0

Partition ID: Disk #1, Partition #0

Disk Letter: F:

File System: NTFS

Volume Serial Number: 6669F0AD

Size: 931 GB

Used Space: 786 GB (84%)

Free Space: 145 GB (16%)

 

To avoid data corruption do not let the free storage space go below 10%.

 

 

[dvd7e]

CPU

Intel Core i5 750 @ 2.67GHz: 65 °C This is way too hot for a computer that is not under load and you are not far off the CPUs thermal shutdown trigger of 72.7°C at which point the computer will shut down, the CPU voltage is shown to be 1.216V which is fine so that is not the cause of the high temperature, a clogged HS and cooling fan and/or a below par CPU cooling fan could be the cause, the high temperature will most certainly affect performance.

 

Motherboard

ASUSTeK Computer INC. P7P55D (LGA1156): 69 °C The Southbridge is also too hot for a computer not under load.

 

I'll have to look into this, not sure why it's so hot. My case is a Thermal Element T http://www.thermaltake.com/products-model.aspx?id=C_00001438  which is a pretty spacious case, and my hard-drives are separated by an empty bay slot in between. I have a 120 mm fan in the front for intake, and a 200 mm fan at the top of the case for hot air exhaust. I think I can install a fan on the side of the case but haven't done that. The front of the case looks like it has a good amount of dust/link in it, haven't cleaned that out in a while, so I guess I should probably do that.

 

Run the Avira removal tool to get rid of all traces of any previous installation files that may have been left behind, Avira removal details here

 

 

Done

 

 

Are you aware that you also have Avast SafeZone running, if yes that is fine but if not please see the article here

 

 

I was not aware. I followed the link and removed SafeZone and some other Avast components

 

 

** Windows Update

AutoUpdate: Not configured;

 

Kind of ironic that such an important feature is disabled   I prefer the Install updates automatically (recommended) choice but would advise a minimum of the Download updates but let me choose whether to install them option.

 

 

Not sure I followed this one. How do I enable the auto updates?

 

Physical Memory

Memory Usage: 73 %

Total Physical: 3.99 GB

Available Physical: 1.04 GB

Total Virtual: 7.98 GB

Available Virtual: 4.20 GB

 

Something is hogging your RAM and this will definitely be slowing down your computer, please carry out the suggested steps above, restart the computer, see how the computer behaves, after Windows has booted give it a couple of minutes then check Task Manager to see what is shown to be using the most RAM, make a note and let us know when you next reply.

 

Before I opened up any programs, the CPU was at ~25% and Memory at ~49%. Largest processes were:

Svchost.exe   194,000 K

Scvhost.exe    138,000 K

Samsung Link Service 71,000 K

Wmpnetwk   40,000 K

 

Then I opened up a few chrome tabs, and it settled out around CPU ~30-50%, Memory ~60%. There were 11 chrome.exe processes (for 3 open tabs). The largest one was 209,000 K, the rest were 50,000 - 100,000 K

 

 

With the exception of the memory controller all voltages are shown to be ok, please post the brand and model name or number of your PSU when you next reply.

 

My PSU is: Seasonic ATX12V/EPS12V 750 Power Supply (SSR-750RT)

[phillpower2]

According to the case specs there should be a Rear (exhaust) : 120 x 120 x 25 mm Turbo fan (1400rpm,17dBA) cooling fan, is that correct, can you also let us know if the temps drop after the clean out.

 

MS guide to enabling Windows 7 automatic updates here 

 

Svchost.exe will always show high usage as it involves multiple services that are running on a computer, typically it should always be top of the resource use list.

 

Do you use Samsung Link or the Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service.

 

Good quality and adequately powered PSU, we should still check the output of this after your next update, I don`t wish to over burden you with things to do all at once.

[phillpower2]

Not heard back from you dvd7e, do you still require assistance or is the issue now resolved, an update would be appreciated.

[dvd7e]

I apologize again, for some reason the notification emails that you replied to this post went to my Spam folder so I didn't see them for a few days. I'll be more proactive in checking my spam folder and the forum directly.

 

 

According to the case specs there should be a Rear (exhaust) : 120 x 120 x 25 mm Turbo fan (1400rpm,17dBA) cooling fan, is that correct, can you also let us know if the temps drop after the clean out.

 

That is correct, although I am just now noticing that the rear exhaust fan is not spinning. That fan is one that I'm pretty sure came with the case, and I think it worked previously. I connected it to a different molex connector that was connected to a working fan (so I know that connector is good) but the fan still didn't run. I'll have to look into this. Maybe the fan just died. I guess I should replace it. I think I'm going to have to take out the cpu fan though in order to take out and install a new fan. Are there any special precautions/instructions for doing that?

 

Here's another speccy run. It looks like the CPU temps are still high, around 60 deg.

http://speccy.pirifo...WlrPograQLPna5C

 

 

So right now with that fan not working, it's just 1x120 mm intake in the front and 1x200 mm exhaust at the top (not including CPU and VGA and PSU fans). I want to install some more fans, so hopefully once I get everything fixed and installed, I'll have 2x120 mm intake on the front, 1x120 mm intake on the side, 1x200 mm exhaust at the top, and 1x120 mm exhaust on the back panel. 

 

I also recall that when I got my CPU (intel i5-750 @2.67 GHz), some reviews said the factory default fan wasn't very good, so I replaced it with a better CPU fan, this one....Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus...

http://www.newegg.co...00267-_-Product

 

 

MS guide to enabling Windows 7 automatic updates here 

 

 

This shouldn't affect performance right, it's just a side issue? Do you recommend that I enable automatic updates?

 

 

Do you use Samsung Link or the Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service.

 

No, I do not (or, at least, I don't think I use them)

 

 

Good quality and adequately powered PSU, we should still check the output of this after your next update, 

 

How do I check the output?

 

 

It looks like the CPU temps are still high.

 

[phillpower2]

No worries, such things happen often and that is why I always check back when a thread has been quiet for a while.

 

The rear exhaust fan not working will affect the CPU temps as the fans location is designed to draw the hot air away as it is expelled by the CPU cooling fan.

 

If you do have to remove the CPU cooling fan apart from making sure that the computer is disconnected from the mains and that you ground yourself before reaching inside the case all you need to remember is to reconnect the fans 4 pin power connector to the MB header, yours is a good design because there is no need to remove the heatsink when replacing the CPU cooling fan.

 

Enabling automatic updates will not affect performance but it will help keep your computer more secure, while we are on the subject of Windows updates, Speccy shows that Windows is out of date at the moment.

 

As per included in my reply #9

 

Apart from Windows** and your AV protection nothing should be allowed to update or auto run without your permission, this is far safer as it reduces the risk of malware infection, PUPs and bad drivers etc being installed.

 

** Windows Update

AutoUpdate: Not configured;

 

Kind of ironic that such an important feature is disabled   I prefer the Install updates automatically (recommended) choice but would advise a minimum of the Download updates but let me choose whether to install them option.

 

 

If you do not use Samsung Link or the Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service at all, uninstall Samsung Link and disable Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service "how to" below;

 

• Click on Start > type services.msc in the search field and press enter.
• In the "Services" window, look for the following entry:
• Windows Media Player Network Sharing Services
• Double click and set the "Startup type" as "Disabled"

• Click on OK to confirm.

Speccy shows that you still have many scheduled updates, please check them and let us know if there is anything included in the scheduled updates that you are not aware of what it is, Defraggler Volume C Task and Quick Defrag C during Idle should definitely be gotten rid of.

 

To check your temps and voltages (your +3.3V rail on the PSU is borderline at 3.440 V, 3.465 V is the maximum, any higher and you will get problems);

 

Please take expanded screenshots and only use the method below to attach them.

 

Download Speedfan and install it.  Once it's installed, run the program and post here the information it shows.  The information I want you to post is the stuff that is circled in the example picture I have attached.

If you are running on a vista machine, please go to where you installed the program and run the program as administrator.

 

 (this is a screenshot from a vista machine)

 

Download then run HWMonitor and post a screenshot so that we have a comparison to the Speedfan results, details from here

 

To capture and post a screenshot;

Click on the ALT key + PRT SCR key..its on the top row..right hand side..now click on start...all programs...accessories...paint....left click in the white area ...press CTRL + V...click on file...click on save...save it to your desktop...name it something related to the screen your capturing... BE SURE TO SAVE IT AS A .JPG ...otherwise it may be to big to upload... Click on the More Reply Options tab then after typing in any response you have... click on Choose File...desktop...find the screenshot..select it and click on Attach This File...on the lower left...after it says upload successful...click on add reply like you normally would.

 

Screenshot instructions are provided to assist those that may read this topic but are not yet aware of the “how to”.

 

 

 

 

 

[dvd7e]

Alright, I set up automatic Windows updates, and installed the latest updates.

 

I ordered a new fan and some 3-pin-to-Molex connector adapters online, so hopefully within the next few weeks I'll be able to replace the broken fan and install 2 new ones. On second thought, I don't think I have to remove the CPU or motherboard to replace the broken fan, I think it screws from the outside of the case

 

I disabled the Windows Media Player and Samsung from auto starting. And I deleted the Defrag from the auto scheduler.

 

Here's my SpeedFan screenshot (hopefully the image posts ok...)

 

Attached Thumbnails

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