Windows performance issues

[vincent]

I'm experiencing the following issues. I'm a fairly expeirenced user and have
searched online and found many "resolutions" with none or little results. I'd
appreciate if someone here can offer some real help than the usual "remove
unwanted program + startup entries + virus scan + defrag". I run adware
cleaner and virus cleaner regularly and I'm 99% sure that's not the reason.

1) Bloated windows directory. I remember a fresh install is about 1G. Now it
has become 4G in about 1 years use. Yes, I've deleted c:\windows\temp, IE
cache, and other temp files. It's quite anonying not knowing what takes up
all that space.

2) Power up extremely slow. After logging in and seeing windows desktop, it
still takes over 1~2 minute for things to "settle down". Windows explorer is
reponsive, but if I want to start a program, say IE, it'll take over 1 minute
to start. Even ctrl+alt+del takes 1 minute to bring up task manager. I've
used many startup program cleaner such as msconfig and know I only have very
minimum start up programs. What is taking up so long? My PC is very fast and
when windows was freshly install I certainly don't have this issue.

3) Random slowness. Windows would suddenly slows down to a halt and windows
explorer will froze, usually when using outlook, msn messenger, IE, etc, but
not everytime. Yet when this happens, task manger shows 99% CPU idle. This is
really anonying. How can everything be so sluggish and it shows 0% usage? I
have over 4G of memory and it shows lots of free memory when this happens.

 

[db]

windows has released
many updates.

so, 4 gigs is about
right.

what you may be
experiencing is

shortage of disk space,

shortage of virtual memory,

and

shortage of physical
memory / ram space. ram

---------

firstly, see if your computer
works better in the safemodes

while in safe mode go ahead
and setup to boot in normal
mode.

you should do a complete
clean boot to ensure you
are not loading a problem
regardless of how trivial the
startup may seem to be for
you.

click on start>run>msconfig.

under start up tab disable
all that are listed. jot them
down on paper too.

under services tab hide
non microsoft services and
disable what remains. jot
them down too.

find the prefetch folder
under the windows folder
and delete all of them
except the one with the
extension of the .ini

then reboot and begin
examining the possible
deficiencies / shortages
mentioned above.
--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
- Systems Analyst
- Database Developer
- Accountancy
- Veteran of the Armed Forces
- Microsoft Partner
- @hotmail.com
~~~~~~~~~~"share the nirvana" - dbZen

 

[Kelly]

Start/Search:

*.tmp
*

Other files you could delete are files with these extensions:

..dmp - Dump file. When Windows (or an application) experiences a crash, a
memory dump is performed. If you don't use these files (for trouble
shooting), delete them, you can save quite a bit of space!

..bak - Backup file; when a new (data) file is created, some programs will
rename the old version with a .bak extension. Be careful when removing these
files.

..cnt - Help-related file; ever notice those tables of contents when you
launch certain Help files? If you don't need a table to help you navigate
through a Help file, delete these. They will not come back.

..fts - Help-related file; when you perform a search with a Help file, this
is created to make all future searches be performed quicker. E.G., not worth
having around unless you use Help files on a daily basis. They are
re-created if you do a search in a Help file, so these should be regularly
scanned for and deleted.

..gid - Help-related file; when you run a Help file, it creates a GID to make
future accesses to that particular help file a tad quicker. They're a
complete waste of space. You'll have to delete these on a regular basis, as
they are recreated with every Help file execution.

..old - Old file; see .bak.

..~mp - Temporary file; see .tmp.

..$$$ - Old file; see .bak (usually, not always)

..000 - Old file; see .bak

To be on the safe side, delete your files to the Recycle Bin, and leave them
there for a week or two. If you don't run into any problems, you can empty
the Recycle Bin.

If Windows or any program complains about a missing file, just select your
Recycle Bin, find the file and right-click on it. From the context menu
choose Restore. This will restore the file to its original location.

Unexplained computer behavior may be caused by deceptive software
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;827315

Added info for later:

Troubleshooting, Removing and/or Cleaning Add or Remove Programs
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_a.htm#addremove

Clear Disabled Items from Msconfig Startup (Line 148)
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

A small utility I created that clears certain History Lists

Clear Recent File Lists - Includes Search and Run Menu (Line 41)
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

Removes your Internet history in Internet Explorer. Clears the address list
drop-down, cached files, history and cookies. In Windows it clears the TEMP
folder and Recycle Bin, the run history, recent documents, and find files
history. It also deletes locked files ("index.dat" and files that are in
use by applications).

Clean out Usage Tracks in Windows
http://www.12ghosts.com/ghosts/wash.htm

Clear Search History under Search (Line 24)
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

Clear Recent File Lists - Clears Search History
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/ClearRecent.Exe


--

All the Best,
Kelly (MS-MVP/DTS&XP)

Taskbar Repair Tool Plus!
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/taskbarplus!.htm

 

[Jon]

When this soft of thing happens, I usually re-install Windows. I used to spend a lot of time finding
solutions for these sorts of problems on other people's PCs, but I've found it's easier to just
re-install.

It's not a simple thing however - you have to back up your data first , including some hidden things
(emails, browser bookmarks, etc) and after re-installing you may need to locate and install some
drivers, and update Windows. Then you have to re-install your programmes.

When all is well, before adding back my data, I usually make a "disk image" so that if I ever need
to re-install again, it's much simpler.


I'm experiencing the following issues. I'm a fairly expeirenced user and have
searched online and found many "resolutions" with none or little results. I'd
appreciate if someone here can offer some real help than the usual "remove
unwanted program + startup entries + virus scan + defrag". I run adware
cleaner and virus cleaner regularly and I'm 99% sure that's not the reason.

1) Bloated windows directory. I remember a fresh install is about 1G. Now it
has become 4G in about 1 years use. Yes, I've deleted c:\windows\temp, IE
cache, and other temp files. It's quite anonying not knowing what takes up
all that space.

2) Power up extremely slow. After logging in and seeing windows desktop, it
still takes over 1~2 minute for things to "settle down". Windows explorer is
reponsive, but if I want to start a program, say IE, it'll take over 1 minute
to start. Even ctrl+alt+del takes 1 minute to bring up task manager. I've
used many startup program cleaner such as msconfig and know I only have very
minimum start up programs. What is taking up so long? My PC is very fast and
when windows was freshly install I certainly don't have this issue.

3) Random slowness. Windows would suddenly slows down to a halt and windows
explorer will froze, usually when using outlook, msn messenger, IE, etc, but
not everytime. Yet when this happens, task manger shows 99% CPU idle. This is
really anonying. How can everything be so sluggish and it shows 0% usage? I
have over 4G of memory and it shows lots of free memory when this happens.

 

[Jose]

I'm experiencing the following issues. I'm a fairly expeirenced user and have
searched online and found many "resolutions" with none or little results.I'd
appreciate if someone here can offer some real help than the usual "remove
unwanted program + startup entries + virus scan + defrag". I run adware
cleaner and virus cleaner regularly and I'm 99% sure that's not the reason.

1) Bloated windows directory. I remember a fresh install is about 1G. Nowit
has become 4G in about 1 years use. Yes, I've deleted c:\windows\temp, IE
cache, and other temp files. It's quite anonying not knowing what takes up
all that space.

2) Power up extremely slow. After logging in and seeing windows desktop, it
still takes over 1~2 minute for things to "settle down". Windows exploreris
reponsive, but if I want to start a program, say IE, it'll take over 1 minute
to start. Even ctrl+alt+del takes 1 minute to bring up task manager. I've
used many startup program cleaner such as msconfig and know I only have very
minimum start up programs. What is taking up so long? My PC is very fast and
when windows was freshly install I certainly don't have this issue.

3) Random slowness. Windows would suddenly slows down to a halt and windows
explorer will froze, usually when using outlook, msn messenger, IE, etc, but
not everytime. Yet when this happens, task manger shows 99% CPU idle. This is
really anonying. How can everything be so sluggish and it shows 0% usage?I
have over 4G of memory and it shows lots of free memory when this happens..

4GB? Lucky guy! Mine is 5.1GB since installation over 5 years ago.
Never done a reinstall on 3 computers here (always at work though -
those people...).

I don't think I have every just randomly looked for files to delete
(*whatever*). I just cleanup using built in clean up things for
temporary files. I don't look for things that should probably not be
there in the first place or are not there for some reason I can
explain.

It is not necessarily what you have installed on your computer, it is
what you have running (but you know that).

In MSCONFIG Services, I have 2 non MS services - my sound device and
my network card.

In MSCONFIG Startup, I have one thing - my sound device. I might not
even need that.

I know about things that don't show up in MSCONFIG. Look at the
startup information in msinfo32 for a shock and get busy.

In terms of performance, a fresh installation is only going to ever go
in one direction - down. It will never be as fast as it was no matter
what you do. A fresh install is not a fix. It just makes things
better for a while.

I also understand that (at least for me) there is no such thing as
"fast enough". It is never fast enough, except when I do something
wrong, then it is too fast.

The trick for me is to run lean and mean.

Use Google for: Windows XP Startup Tweak Guide

I applied the second hit: - clubcpu.com/documenten/xpboottweak.doc a
long time ago.

Example good idea: Don't even let my BIOS look for a floppy or CD on
boot - start with the HDD first. That's were the stupid OS is, so
don't waste my time looking elsewhere. Saved me a whole second.

I know I am as tuned up as I can be with the knowledge and
understanding I have. I have to wait a minute or two for things to
settle down after the appearance of the desktop and I don't like it,
but I accept the small delay because I honestly believe based on my
circumstances it can't be made faster.

It would be a little faster with a clean reinstall but would bog down
soon and I sure as heck don't want to install 5 years worth of relieve
60 seconds of my impatience.

I have a low tolerance for inefficiency!

It never hurts to have a second set of eyeballs though.

 

[vincent]

No, I have 40G of free space and I do defrag monthly.

 

[vincent]

Thanks for everyone's replies! Every time I asked around about windows
size/performance issues the blame is put on temp files, no free memory/disk
space, not doing defrag, adware, etc. But the reality is that I've check all
those. Windows can slow to a halt while showing 99% idle in task manger;
explorer can froze for up to a minute with no apparent reason, and windows
start up gets longer and longer even though startup list is down to a minimum
of needed drivers. And yes, windows hangs trying to shut down every 1 out of
8 or 9 times. I've gone on and came back and found windows still trying to
shutdown. Those are genuine issues in windows that need to be fixed. I know I
can't get around using Windows and M$ will get my money regardless of their
software quality. But I must say the user experience is very poor. With jumps
and leaps in hardware, I don't understand why windows experience hasn't
improved much.

 

[Unknown]

Have you run disk cleanup?

Thanks for everyone's replies! Every time I asked around about windows
size/performance issues the blame is put on temp files, no free
memory/disk
space, not doing defrag, adware, etc. But the reality is that I've check
all
those. Windows can slow to a halt while showing 99% idle in task manger;
explorer can froze for up to a minute with no apparent reason, and windows
start up gets longer and longer even though startup list is down to a
minimum
of needed drivers. And yes, windows hangs trying to shut down every 1 out
of
8 or 9 times. I've gone on and came back and found windows still trying to
shutdown. Those are genuine issues in windows that need to be fixed. I
know I
can't get around using Windows and M$ will get my money regardless of
their
software quality. But I must say the user experience is very poor. With
jumps
and leaps in hardware, I don't understand why windows experience hasn't
improved much.

 

[PA Bear [MS MVP]]

Help! My computer is slow!
http://miekiemoes.blogspot.com/2008/02/help-my-computer-is-slow.html

 

[Jose]

Thanks for everyone's replies! Every time I asked around about windows
size/performance issues the blame is put on temp files, no free memory/disk
space, not doing defrag, adware, etc. But the reality is that I've check all
those. Windows can slow to a halt while showing 99% idle in task manger;
explorer can froze for up to a minute with no apparent reason, and windows
start up gets longer and longer even though startup list is down to a minimum
of needed drivers. And yes, windows hangs trying to shut down every 1 outof
8 or 9 times. I've gone on and came back and found windows still trying to
shutdown. Those are genuine issues in windows that need to be fixed. I know I
can't get around using Windows and M$ will get my money regardless of their
software quality. But I must say the user experience is very poor. With jumps
and leaps in hardware, I don't understand why windows experience hasn't
improved much.

Here is another good (and long) guide for XP and Vista for things you
already know and some you might not:

http://www.tweakguides.com/TGTC.html

 

[db]

ok, so what
about your
ram and
virtual memory.

if these are low
then your pc will
be slow too.



--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
- Systems Analyst
- Database Developer
- Accountancy
- Veteran of the Armed Forces
- Microsoft Partner
- @hotmail.com
~~~~~~~~~~"share the nirvana" - dbZen