XP Pro very slow after rebuild

[Ed]

I just reformatted my daughter's 3-4 years old Dell laptop and
re-installed XP Pro. I updated all the critical update from
WindowsUpdate until there was no more critical ones. Now the machine is
extremely slow. Much slower than before rebuild. Now if I star IE 7 and
wait until cpu % in task manager go to 0% for IE, I can make IE cpu
usage go to 40-50% just by moving the cursor inside IE window. Every
simple task causes cpu % to go near 100%.

I think I have missed to install a driver for the laptop but I don't
know which.

Please help.

Thanks

 

[Shenan Stanley]

I just reformatted my daughter's 3-4 years old Dell laptop and
re-installed XP Pro. I updated all the critical update from
WindowsUpdate until there was no more critical ones. Now the
machine is extremely slow. Much slower than before rebuild. Now if
I star IE 7 and wait until cpu % in task manager go to 0% for IE, I
can make IE cpu usage go to 40-50% just by moving the cursor inside
IE window. Every simple task causes cpu % to go near 100%.

I think I have missed to install a driver for the laptop but I don't
know which.

You should go to the Dell Support site and download/install all the latest
drivers for the machine. When you are done, open Device Manager and ensure
you missed none.

What are the specifications of this laptop? memory, processor, etc...

Model?

 

[PA Bear]

1. Does this behavior persist if you start IE7 in No Add-ons mode? To start
IE7 in No Add-ons mode:

Right-click on the blue IE desktop icon and select Start without Add-ons; or

Start > (All) Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Internet Explorer (No
add-ons).

Troubleshooting and Internet Explorer’s (No Add-ons) Mode:
http://blogs.msdn.com/ie/archive/2006/07/25/678113.aspx

2. Does the problem persist if you Reset IE7 Settings (RIES)?
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/923737 <= Read before using!

3. If you uninstall (a) IE7 (which automatically returns you to IE6), (b)
all toolbars and (c) all third-party Windows Themes (including Window
Blinds) and do NOT reinstall IE7, does this behavior persist? If it does,
do NOT reinstall IE7.

Uninstalling IE7
http://www.ie-vista.com/kbase2.html

How to uninstall Internet Explorer 7:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/927177

IE7 (Un)Installation and Anti-Malware Applications:
http://blogs.msdn.com/ie/archive/2006/10/11/IE7-Installation-and-Anti_2D00_Malware-Applications.aspx

4. Required reading IMHO before reinstalling IE7:

Sandi's Installation Tips <= FOLLOW THESE TIPS TO THE LETTER!
http://www.ie-vista.com/known_issues.html#pre-install

[And I strongly recommend using
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/downloads/ie/getitnow.mspx as the
installation source, not Automatic/Windows Update.]

Make *certain* that you check in at Windows Update immediately after
reinstalling IE7 to install any critical updates offered. If Optional
Updates category offers Root Certificates update, I recommend installing it
to take full advantage of IE7's additional security.

 

[R. McCarty]

A frequently missed driver is the Intel Chipset driver. Also after
a fresh install your drive will be heavily fragmented. Usually it
will take a few days and several reboots for XP to create the
Layout.Ini file and defrag using an optimized pattern of your
boot files and frequently accessed programs. You can manually
do a defrag and that should help performance. You also should
check your Event Logs and see if any errors are being logged.

 

[Ed]

You should go to the Dell Support site and download/install all the latest
drivers for the machine. When you are done, open Device Manager and ensure
you missed none.

What are the specifications of this laptop? memory, processor, etc...

Model?

Thanks for the reply. I think I have downloaded all the driver except
the BIOS. The Dell site mark it as optional.

There should be a limited number of drivers that causes a mouse move to
use so much CPU power, right?

The machine is INSPIRON 1150, Celeron 2.6 GHz with 512 M memory. I did
not give the specs because the same machine was faster before re-build.
The reason for re-build was pop ups that we could not stop.

 

[Ed]

Thanks, Robert.

I tried IE with no add-on with the same problem. The problem is not only
with IE. I gave it as example and sorry if it caused confusion.
Everything is slow and, according to task manager, take a lot CPU power.

 

[Ed]

Thanks.

Chipset driver was installed too.

Nothing in any of the 4 logs but informational events.

I defragmented and rebooted and it did not help.

 

[Shenan Stanley]

Thanks for the reply. I think I have downloaded all the driver
except the BIOS. The Dell site mark it as optional.

There should be a limited number of drivers that causes a mouse
move to use so much CPU power, right?

The machine is INSPIRON 1150, Celeron 2.6 GHz with 512 M memory. I
did not give the specs because the same machine was faster before
re-build. The reason for re-build was pop ups that we could not
stop.

*with IE7?

A celeron is okay for most bits - but it's lack of significant L2 Cache does
limit it somewhat.

I would think something was missed in the rebuild - but without sitting in
front of it - I could guess all day. ;-)

 

[Daave]

Thanks for the reply. I think I have downloaded all the driver except
the BIOS. The Dell site mark it as optional.

There should be a limited number of drivers that causes a mouse move
to
use so much CPU power, right?

The machine is INSPIRON 1150, Celeron 2.6 GHz with 512 M memory. I did
not give the specs because the same machine was faster before
re-build.
The reason for re-build was pop ups that we could not stop.

There are much easier and quicker ways to eliminate popups!

Did you perform a clean install or a repair install? Or did you use
"Dell PC Restore"?

 

[Ed]

I tried to eliminate the pop ups for a couple of days but since my
daughter does not have any extra software I thought it was much easier
to format and install. It was a clean install.

 

[Gerry]

Ed

Open Disk Defragmenter and click on Analyse. Select View Report and
click on Save As and Save. Now find VolumeC.txt in your My Documents
Folder and post a copy.

Try Ctrl+Alt+Delete to select Task Manager and click the Performance
Tab. Under Commit Charge what is the Total, the Limit and the Peak?


--



Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[Daave]

I tried to eliminate the pop ups for a couple of days but since my
daughter does not have any extra software I thought it was much easier
to format and install. It was a clean install.

In the future, it would probably be better to just solve the problem
IMO. Just post here with details, and I'll bet you'll receive excellent
advice.

If you think you may have done anything wrong with regard to your clean
install, you may want to have a look at:

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html

I would double-check to see if you *do* have all the drivers. I would
make sure your hard drive's mode didn't change to PIO. I'd also have a
look at "How to Obtain the DellT InspironT 1150 Update for Microsoft®
Windows® XP Service Pack 2":

http://support.dell.com/support/top...282C8A&docid=E6688BCE820D1A4CE030030ABD621E5F

Finally, is the laptop also slow in Safe Mode?