Memory/CPU usage of explorer.exe

[Shadow]

I have an external hard drive connected to my desktop computer (Compaq
Presario running Windows XP Home edition). Lately, when I try to open the
drive in Windows explorer, my computer has been freezing up. I am unable to
open files stored on the external drive, or use other programs until I close
the drive with Task Manager. T.M. says the drive is not responding, CPU
usage shoots up to 100% and stays there, and memory usage for explorer.exe
often reaches 40,000-45,000KB. I have run two separate virus/malware removal
programs trying to find something that might be hijacking the CPU/memory
usage, but both have come up clean. The drive's manufacturer has no
solutions other than "something's in there". Does anyone know what could be
causing this issue and how I can resolve it?

 

[John]

I have an external hard drive connected to my desktop computer (Compaq
Presario running Windows XP Home edition). Lately, when I try to open the
drive in Windows explorer, my computer has been freezing up. I am unable to
open files stored on the external drive, or use other programs until I close
the drive with Task Manager. T.M. says the drive is not responding, CPU
usage shoots up to 100% and stays there, and memory usage for explorer.exe
often reaches 40,000-45,000KB. I have run two separate virus/malware removal
programs trying to find something that might be hijacking the CPU/memory
usage, but both have come up clean. The drive's manufacturer has no
solutions other than "something's in there". Does anyone know what could be
causing this issue and how I can resolve it?

Hi Shadow,

Did you run the virus/malware scans in Safe Mode? If not, restart the computer and keep
tapping the F8 key to get to the Windows Advanced Startup Options screen. Use the arrow keys
to choose Safe Mode and press enter. Log on as an administrator and run the virus and
spyware scans, on the desktop computer and, if possible, on the external hard drive.

What anti-virus and anti-malware scanners are you using?

How much space on the external hard drive is used?

Also what type of files are you storing on the external hard drive and what was the type of
most recently added file?

Explorer.exe uses 21,000KB of VM and 6,000KB of memory on my computer with XP Home Edition
SP2. Which brings me to another question, what service pack are you using?

-- John

 

[Shadow]

Hi Shadow,

Did you run the virus/malware scans in Safe Mode? If not, restart the computer and keep
tapping the F8 key to get to the Windows Advanced Startup Options screen. Use the arrow keys
to choose Safe Mode and press enter. Log on as an administrator and run the virus and
spyware scans, on the desktop computer and, if possible, on the external hard drive.

What anti-virus and anti-malware scanners are you using?

How much space on the external hard drive is used?

Also what type of files are you storing on the external hard drive and what was the type of
most recently added file?

Explorer.exe uses 21,000KB of VM and 6,000KB of memory on my computer with XP Home Edition
SP2. Which brings me to another question, what service pack are you using?

-- John

John,

I ran both virus scanners (Spybot Search & Destroy and System Suite 7)
Professional in Safe Mode, including the external drive, and they both came
up clean. The problem persists. The external drive has a 500 GB capacity of
which about 78 GB is currently in use. The types of files on the drive
includes .pdf, .jpeg, .bmp, mp3, .avi, .wmv, .rm, .cbr, .zip, and several
types of word processor files. Except for most of the mp3's, the files are
mostly either business or personal files. There are no programs or
application files on the drive.

The problem has been happening intermittenly for about three weeks, so I'm
not sure which files may the source of the problem. The problem seems to
exist in the entire drive and is not confined to any particular folder
within. Some of the files were downloaded from FTP sites or websites.

My computer has Service Pack 2 installed.

 

[John]

John,

I ran both virus scanners (Spybot Search & Destroy and System Suite 7)
Professional in Safe Mode, including the external drive, and they both came
up clean. The problem persists. The external drive has a 500 GB capacity of
which about 78 GB is currently in use. The types of files on the drive
includes .pdf, .jpeg, .bmp, mp3, .avi, .wmv, .rm, .cbr, .zip, and several
types of word processor files. Except for most of the mp3's, the files are
mostly either business or personal files. There are no programs or
application files on the drive.

The problem has been happening intermittenly for about three weeks, so I'm
not sure which files may the source of the problem. The problem seems to
exist in the entire drive and is not confined to any particular folder
within. Some of the files were downloaded from FTP sites or websites.

My computer has Service Pack 2 installed.

OK. In Safe Mode, open up Windows Explorer and open the drive there. Does it work in Safe Mode?

 

[Shadow]

OK. In Safe Mode, open up Windows Explorer and open the drive there. Does it work in Safe Mode?

John,

The drive works without issue in Safe Mode. Explorer.exe memory usage
hovers around 18,000-20,000KB when I am navigating through the external
drive, no freezing or slow-down is evident.

Shadow