Used MSCONFIG, but still a lot of processes

[TabAce]

I used MSCONFIG to deactivate of all the programs that I didn't need, but
when I opened Task Manager after the reboot I still had 55 programs running
in the background. What do I do to permanently reduce the number of programs
I have running in the background (right now, these processes take up 311MB of
my RAM)?

 

[JS]

If you want to dig deeper:
Try Autoruns from the MS Windows SysInternals site:
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/sysinternals/ProcessesAndThreads/Autoruns.mspx

AutoRuns will show/list all apps/etc. that load/run when you first boot
(Boot Execute tab),
when you logon (Logon tab) and other programs that load (grouped by labeled
tabs) for easy viewing.

It also provides the ability to selectively allows you to stop (use with
care) any program that you don't want to load. You can undo any changes you
have made.

Note: To get additional details on an item in the list you may need to
highlight the item (right click) and use the 'Search Online' option to get
the details, especially useful for the more obscure items in the list. If
the default search engine does not provide many hits then try Google!

JS

 

[Andrew E.]

Actually Msconfig is the wrong utility for that,go to run,type:services.msc
In msc,double click on the service,select disable-auto-or manual
start.Also,one
really should open task mgr for details as to what is running,the processes
that are,will be a direct desend as to what you installed on the pc,maybe
add/
remove programs will be an option..

 

[Jim]

I used MSCONFIG to deactivate of all the programs that I didn't need, but
when I opened Task Manager after the reboot I still had 55 programs
running
in the background. What do I do to permanently reduce the number of
programs
I have running in the background (right now, these processes take up 311MB
of
my RAM)?

55 isn't all that many. This laptop has 75 which could run if needed.
311 MB isn't that much, besides did you buy the ram to look at and admire or
to use?

However, of that 55 only one ever runs at once. The cpu can only do one
thing at a time (unless it has more than one core).

Jim

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

I used MSCONFIG to deactivate of all the programs that I didn't need, but
when I opened Task Manager after the reboot I still had 55 programs running

You mean "processes"?

in the background. What do I do to permanently reduce the number of programs
I have running in the background (right now, these processes take up 311MB of
my RAM)?

Although 55 processes may sound like a lot, it's actually a fairly
common number. Many people have more, without experiencing any
problems. Besides, despite what many people tell you, you should be
concerned, not with how *many* of these processes you run, but
*which*. Most of these have little or no effect on performance.

Are you having performance problems? Unless you are, leave these
processes alone and don't mess with them. Most of them need to be
there, and removing them will cause problems.

Even if you *are* having performance problems, it's highly unlikely
that these processes are the cause.

Note, by the way, that these process, like other programs, take up
memory, but not necessarily RAM. Except when something is actively
being used, it's in the page file rather than RAM, and doesn't impact
your performance at all.

 

[philo]

55 isn't all that many. This laptop has 75 which could run if needed.
311 MB isn't that much, besides did you buy the ram to look at and admire or
to use?

However, of that 55 only one ever runs at once. The cpu can only do one
thing at a time (unless it has more than one core).

Jim

Although taking items out of startup in msconfig is fairly safe...
stopping processes can be dangerous...and not likely to give you much of a
performance boost

 

[Sam Hobbs]

I am in a similar situation. I am very interested in knowing what is causing
so much thrashing (paging; virtual storage swapping) when my system boots. I
assume you are also having problems with your system using virtual storage
too much. How much main memory do you have? I think that 311 MB is about the
minimum commit charge for my system too.

Unless you have a performance monitor of some type that can do the hard work
for you it is unlikely you can make any further improvement. Of the 55
processes, how many are in the "Applications" tab of the Task Manager?

 

[Gerry]

You should be able to gather more information from Task Manager. With
the Processes tab open select View, Select, Columns and check the boxes
before Peak Memory Usage and Virtual Memory size. What are the figures
for the 6 processes using the largest amounts?

What are your anti-virus and anti-spyware arrangements?

--



Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[Sam Hobbs]

Among the most indicative counters would be those indicating
swapping/thrashing. The performance monitor shows pages/second but that is
system-wide. The Peak Memory Usage and Virtual Memory size are not so
important; it is entirely possible for a process to use a large amount of
memory that is accessed infrequently and therefore the virtual storage only
uses hard drive space in the pagefile.

I am showing the Page Faults Delta that I think is the most indicative. I
have not watched it as much as I probably should. I don't know enough about
performance to be sure how indicative the Task Manager's Page Faults Delta
is. I know that virtual storage is more complicated than most people are
aware of and that page faults are not always a performace hit; a page fault
can occur for pages that are marked for being paged out but when they linger
in memory they can be reclaimed or something like that and when that happens
the page fault is not a problem.

So when the performance monitor is showing thousands of pages per second, it
would be most relevant to determine what process is doing the most swapping.
If the Task Manager's Page Faults Delta shows that then I should watch it
more.

 

[Sam Hobbs]

You should be able to gather more information from Task Manager. With
the Processes tab open select View, Select, Columns and check the boxes
before Peak Memory Usage and Virtual Memory size. What are the figures
for the 6 processes using the largest amounts?

What are your anti-virus and anti-spyware arrangements?

The "Task Manager reports memory usage using accounting methods that you
probably are not expecting". Microsoft's memory performance expert says "we
rarely use Task Manager to gauge system performance and memory usage". Those
quotes are from:

The Memory Shell Game
http://blogs.msdn.com/ntdebugging/archive/2007/10/10/the-memory-shell-game.aspx

 

[Gerry]

Sam

I ask questions to to help others not to receive quotes which have no
bearing on why I have asked the question. Please address your
philosphical remarks to those who you think mght be interested.


--



Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[Sam Hobbs]

My reply is a correction to what you said and I quoted the proof. Obviously
you won't admit it but the proof is there for everyone else.