System Idle Process

[Gaffer Gill]

I am running WinXP on a desktop and it has become very sluggish and slow to
respond to keyboard and mouse events. Task Manager shows System Idle Process
is using 90-98% of the CPU. Could this be source of the sluggish response?
If so, what can I do to improve this situation? If System Idle Process is
not the problem, what else should I be looking for?

Thanks in advance for any clues,

Gill

 

[Noel Paton]

System Idle Process is exactly what its name implies - the amount of time
that the system is idle (it is the difference between the available clock
cycles and the ones in use - NOT a real process!)

Look for malware first - the driver problems


--
Noel Paton (MVP 2002-2006)
(CrashFixPC)

Nil Carborundum Illegitemi
http://www.crashfixpc.co.uk

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

I am running WinXP on a desktop and it has become very sluggish and slow to
respond to keyboard and mouse events. Task Manager shows System Idle Process
is using 90-98% of the CPU. Could this be source of the sluggish response?

No. If 90-98% of the computer is idle, then only 2-10% is in use.

"System Idle Process" is not any problem at all. That's just the name
for what the system is doing when it's not doing anything. It's there
to make the total add up to 100%.

Look elsewhere for your problem.

If so, what can I do to improve this situation? If System Idle Process is
not the problem, what else should I be looking for?

The most common reasons for such problems is almost certainly one or
more of the following:

1. The hardware configuration is inadequate for Windows XP (for
example, insufficient RAM).

2. Malware infection. This is the most common cause of such problems
these days. What anti-virus and spyware and you running? Are they kept
up to date?

3. Some of the programs that are starting automatically, and running
in the background, may be hurting performance severely.

 

[Unknown]

Have you run disk cleanup and defrag lately? Especially disk cleanup.

 

[Gaffer Gill]

Thank you, one and all. I am running AVG8 so I will look and see what is
loading in the back ground.

I appriciate your replies.

 

[Noel Paton]

AVG8 will NOT tell you what is running in the background - you need to check
that for yourself, initially by using Task Manager and MSCONFIG, and then by
using any of a number of free tools that are available.....
amongst which I have found most useful:-
Silent Runners www.silentrunners.org
HiJackThis
http://www.download.com/Trend-Micro-HijackThis/3000-8022_4-10227353.html (a
little outdated, but still very effective
Malwarebytes Antimalware http://www.malwarebytes.org/mbam.php
Please note that these tools will also flag programs that ARE legitimate -
as well as the cr*dware that you may have installed, and you should
investigate teh results of the scans in conjunction with one of the
specialist sites - http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/
orhttp://www.aumha.org/a/quickfix.htm are two that I (and/or my clients)
have used successfully in the past

--
Noel Paton (MVP 2002-2006)
(CrashFixPC)

Nil Carborundum Illegitemi
http://www.crashfixpc.co.uk

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Thank you, one and all. I am running AVG8 so I will look and see what is
loading in the back ground.

I appriciate your replies.

You are welcome. However please note that AVG is an anti-virus
program, and not an anti-spyware program. If that's all you run, you
are very greatly under-protected, so it's extremely likely that you
are infected with malware, and that's the reason for your performance
problem.

So two points:

1. I recommend that you go to MVP Malke's Malware Removal site at
http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/page2.html#Removing_Malware and
follow the instructions there.

2. The best anti-spyware program is MalwareBytes Anti-Malware. But no
single anti-spyware program is anywhere near perfect, and good
protection is achieved only by running at least two or three. I would
also add SuperAntiSpyware, and perhaps others, to what you run.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

I am running WinXP on a desktop and it has become very sluggish and slow to
respond to keyboard and mouse events. Task Manager shows System Idle Process
is using 90-98% of the CPU. Could this be source of the sluggish response?
If so, what can I do to improve this situation? If System Idle Process is
not the problem, what else should I be looking for?

Thanks in advance for any clues,

Gill

Break out a dictionary and look up the word "idle," sometime. ;-}
The "System Idle Process" metric is the amount/percentage of time that
your CPU has *nothing* to do. A reading of 98-99% is generally
considered a good thing, and readings above 90% are normal. Think of
it like a car's engine idling in your driveway before you place the
car in gear.


--

Bruce Chambers

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