svchost.exe is taking most of my CPU usage

[Karin]

My computer is extremely slow & sometimes freezes. Our IT department looked
at my machine & said they've never seen svchost.exe use so much resources. I
was told to just end the process. I have to do this several times a week & I
don't understand why it can't be fixed. Also, when i do end the process my
audio no longer works & I end up having to reboot if I need it. We do have
Microsoft update running on our machines & I don't have the option to turn it
off. Any suggestions?

 

[JS]

Next time this happens, find the specific sub-process or application that's
taking all
the CPU resources and slowing down your PC.

To do this try Process Explorer:
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/sysinternals/SystemInformation/ProcessExplorer.mspx

Once you have Process Explorer installed and running:
In the taskbar select View and check 'Show Process Tree' and 'Show Lower
Pane' options.
Then expand the process named 'Explorer' (click on the + sign)
In the column on the left named 'CPU', look for any high CPU usage.
Next click on the CPU column to sort the processes by %CPU usage (Highest to
Lowest).
Then click on the process that's using most or all the CPU % to highlight
it,
Now that it's highlighted, right click and from the options listed select:
Search Online
This should display what out there on the web about that process.
You can also double click on any process to open up a more detailed
'Properties' window.

Note: some entries like Explorer, System/Services, Svchost may need to be
expanded to show the detail,
(sub processes), in this case click on the + located to the left of the
entry.

JS

 

[Patrick Keenan]

My computer is extremely slow & sometimes freezes. Our IT department
looked
at my machine & said they've never seen svchost.exe use so much resources.
I
was told to just end the process.

It would help enormously if you knew what the process actually was.

Service Host just provides the means for processes to run. You need to
identify the process that's using svchost.exe.

I have to do this several times a week & I
don't understand why it can't be fixed.

It can't be fixed because you don't understand that svchost is running
*something else*, and that you don't know what that process actually is.

Unless you understand the identity and nature of the problem, it's very
difficult to fix it.

Your IT group *should* understand this.

Also, when i do end the process my
audio no longer works

That's a clue in itself.

& I end up having to reboot if I need it. We do have
Microsoft update running on our machines & I don't have the option to turn
it
off. Any suggestions?

Microsoft Update can be a curse, an incredible resource hog, but it usually
afflicts machines for only the first hour when they're turned on. You can
minimize its system penalty by going to the Windows Update site yourself and
getting the updates it's looking for, but when it begins its process of
examining the system and what's available, there's little you can do, except
for maybe unplugging the network cable.

As suggested, get Process Explorer, let it run and leave it running, and
learn what it's showing you. This is an extremely helpful and easy to use
utility. It does use a few CPU cycles itself, but not that many.

When the system starts to bog down, bring it to the front (this can take
time depending on system state), put the mouse pointer over the svchost.exe
entry that's chewing on the processor, and note the process names involved.
You may also be able to expand it the display to get the real CPU
allocation.

This will give you very large clues as to the real identity of the
misbehaving process, and you'll have it fixed in no time.

HTH
-pk