Is System (PID 4) in Widows XP using CPU the sign of a virus?

[EmoHobo]

I don't remember if this is normal but I notice sometimes System (PID 4), just regular system, no extensions and no System Idle Process, when opening programs or watching youtube, I notice it will sometimes use from 3%-16% of my CPU, I don't remember it always doing this, trying to do research online lead to lots of people talking about Vundoo or failing hardware but they said it was using 100% when that happened.

I couldn't find anything with an up to date Avast and Malwarebytes, so I figured I'd come and ask on here.

[mikaelrask]

hey and welcome to the forum.

if you need to check for infections follow this guide.

http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=53253.0 then attach your logs.

a amlware expert will guide you from there.

[EmoHobo]

hey and welcome to the forum.

if you need to check for infections follow this guide.

http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=53253.0 then attach your logs.

a amlware expert will guide you from there.

I have done system scans and I can't find any infections, Did a full scan with both Malwarebytes and Avast.  I'm not observing any obtrusive behavior and it's not dialing out or anything strange.  Checking with friends they said they observed the same thing on their XP systems, so I'm thinking it was just me being over reactive, is there anyway I can get this topic locked or deleted?

[DavidR]

It isn't necessarily an indication of malware, what were you doing when this high CPU activity was noticed ?

Not sure what you mean by no System Idle Process, no entry or no free CPU (which is what the System Idle Process shows) ?

I rarely if ever get any CPU spikes on the System process, mainly as first you have to have a condition (system is at a crawl or very slow) to go looking at the task manager. I wouldn't be overly concerned about it unless it is a very regular occurrence.

Topics remain open, but after a short period of inactivity drop (off the radar) way down the chronological topic list.

[EmoHobo]

Oh, with no System Idle Process, I was just letting you know I was wasn't confusing the two, system idle process remains full, I just occasionally see System use a bit of CPU at times and it turns out that's normal.  I was just being overly paranoid.

[DavidR]

Yes there are times when it would use some CPU, but I wouldn't expect it to be using a lot and not for long periods. I would have a hard time finding it using any CPU % unless I sit with the Task Manager open (which I don't).

[EmoHobo]

Yes there are times when it would use some CPU, but I wouldn't expect it to be using a lot and not for long periods. I would have a hard time finding it using any CPU % unless I sit with the Task Manager open (which I don't).

It's never more then 3% unless I'm watching Youtube then it kind of varies and it never lasts for long, just enough for me to notice if I watch Task Manager as I always have it out of habit.

[DavidR]

Break the habit, don't go looking for trouble unless you experience problems.

I keep my nose out of the avast logs, windows event viewer, task manager, etc. unless I have a specific repetitive problem (not one off) that results in either errors displayed to the screen or things slow down for no apparent reason. Then and only then it is worth bothering or you spend more time monitoring than you do using and it doesn't contribute to worry.

[EmoHobo]

Break the habit, don't go looking for trouble unless you experience problems.

I keep my nose out of the avast logs, windows event viewer, task manager, etc. unless I have a specific repetitive problem (not one off) that results in either errors displayed to the screen or things slow down for no apparent reason. Then and only then it is worth bothering or you spend more time monitoring than you do using and it doesn't contribute to worry.

That's very good advice and I should really take it, all I do is worry myself.