running processes

[Guest]

how many processes should be running in my task manager for it to run right
and what are the ones i have to have to run my pc. my pc is all clogged up
with junk and i think i have to many processes running. can anyone help ?

 

[Rock]

how many processes should be running in my task manager for it to run
right
and what are the ones i have to have to run my pc. my pc is all clogged up
with junk and i think i have to many processes running. can anyone help ?

There is no specific number of processes. Certain MS ones are essential but
nothing else is, though some are highly desirable such as processes
associated with an Anti-Virus program. It's not the number of things
running but what they are.

What do you mean by "junk"? Care to be more specific? One person's junk is
another's treasured possession.

Do you regularly scan for malware in safe mode using a current AV program
with up to date definitions and with a combination of non viral anti-malware
apps? Do you use a firewall and practice safe hex? First thing to do is
make sure the system is clean of malware.

Malware Removal
http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/page2.html#Removing_Malware

THE PARASITE FIGHT
Finding, Removing & Protecting Yourself From Scumware
http://aumha.org/a/parasite.htm

Richard Harper’s Guide to Cleaning Pests
http://rgharper.mvps.org/cleanit.htm

After the system is clean if you're still having problems here is a link
with tips on dealing with a slow computer:
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/slowcom.htm

Here are some links to sites to research what the processes are that are
running as shown by task manager.

www.google.com
http://www.answersthatwork.com/Tasklist_pages/tasklist.htm
http://castlecops.com/StartupList.html
http://www.pacs-portal.co.uk/startup_index.htm
http://www.theeldergeek.com/services_guide.htm

Once you know what all the processes are you can make an informed decision
on what you want to be running. To eliminate something from running at
startup up first step should be to check in the options for the program you
don't want to start and see if there is a setting to tell it not to run at
startup. The next step is to remove any entries you don't want from the two
startup folders:

C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Start Menu\Programs\Startup
C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\Startup

For anything else uncheck their entries in the startup tab of msconfig:
Start | Run | Msconfig | Ok

Another option is to remove the reference to them from one of these keys in
the registry:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce

Make sure you have a backup of the registry using a program like ERUNT
before making any changes to the registry.

ERUNT
http://www.larshederer.homepage.t-online.de/erunt/
http://www.larshederer.homepage.t-online.de/erunt/erunt.txt

Installing and Using ERUNT
http://www.silentrunners.org/sr_eruntuse.html
http://www.winxptutor.com/regback.htm

Direct download
http://www.aumha.org/downloads/erunt.zip
http://www.aumha.org/downloads/erunt-setup.exe

 

[Guest]

thanks for alllll that info. im kinda computer unsmart. i do all the scans
with AVG, SPYBOT and ADAWARE BUT I KEEP GETTING TROJANS AND VIRUSES. COMPUTER
FREEZE UP AND CRASH AND ANYTHING ELSE YOU CAN THINK OF. i guess im not
catching everything. any help is welcome, if it is even possible to help me.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

how many processes should be running in my task manager for it to run
right and what are the ones i have to have to run my pc. my pc is all
clogged up with junk and i think i have to many processes running.
can anyone help ?

There is no number that "should be" running, and there is no number that is
too many. There may be an issue with "which" ones are running, but never how
many.

Number in the range of 5-60 processes are by no no means uncommon, and by
itself, not a problem.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

There is no number that "should be" running, and there is no number
that is too many. There may be an issue with "which" ones are
running, but never how many.

Number in the range of 5-60

Sorry, typo. That was supposed to be 50-60.

 

[Rock]

thanks for alllll that info. im kinda computer unsmart. i do all the scans
with AVG, SPYBOT and ADAWARE BUT I KEEP GETTING TROJANS AND VIRUSES.
COMPUTER
FREEZE UP AND CRASH AND ANYTHING ELSE YOU CAN THINK OF. i guess im not
catching everything. any help is welcome, if it is even possible to help
me.

Run through the malware removal step in the first link I gave (repeated
below):

Malware Removal
http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/page2.html#Removing_Malware

If you don't feel computer savvy enough to do this ( and there's no shame
with that) then get someone to help you or take your computer to a competent
computer repair tech who is experienced in malware removal, not the Geek
squad at Best Buy.

After it's clean look at these links for how to protect your computer from
getting infected again.

http://www.cert.org/tech_tips/before_you_plug_in.html#III

http://www.claymania.com/safe-hex.html

Protect Your PC
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/protect/