Author Topic: Windows XP problem with system resources (Read 51381 times)

bbfi · « **on:** October 16, 2003, 02:16:42 AM »

I am having a problem that I wonder if anyone else has had or is having. The info for my system is -
WinXP Home (5.1.2600) SP1
IE Shell 6.0.2800.1106
Pentium 4 - 1.5 GHz - 512MB RAM
True Launch Bar 2.2.0.7
MyIE2 0.8.2070 Browser
Spamihilator 0.9.7.2
avast! 4.1 home edition
Agnitum Outpost Firewall 1.01817

After my computer runs for 5 hours or more, I start to have system resource problems (yes, I have Windows XP which is suppose to be free from this problem). First, text begins to disappear on the screen, then icons, then error messages pop up such as low on system resources. :'(

I have searched the web, various forums, Microsoft's site, etc. and have tried just about every so call cure for this problem. I have even learned that the problem of running out of system resources has not been done away with, just that it is managed better with Windows XP.

I tried various configurations mentioned at http://www.blkviper.com/WinXP/servicecfg.htm by shutting down and disabling many of Microsoft's services which I do not need. This included System Restore (which is buggy and many restore points eventually disappear, even new ones) and Themes (now using Windows Classic Style).

I have also done a complete reinstall of Windows XP and installed all of the updates and patches available from Microsoft. I also updated my video card to an ATI Radeon 7000 with 64 mb ddr dram.

I did not have this problem when I first got the computer. Does anyone think that it could be all of Microsoft's updates and patches? Or does anyone have any other ideas? It's a pain that I have to restart the computer after 5 to 7 hours. Any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks.

techie101 · « **Reply #1 on:** October 16, 2003, 06:37:55 AM »

bbfi,

Wow....It is apparent that you are suffering from a memory leakage problem. This can occur for many different reasons.

Many programs do not release memory resources when you exit them, leaving the memory marked as in use when it's actually free. Programs are supposed to release all memory resources upon exiting. But many don't. This memory loss is called "leakage," and it is cumulative: Run a program with a leak ten times and you'll lose ten times as much memory.

1. You could have old or conflicting Windows device drivers. An example would be you might actually have two entirely different video drivers on your system and Windows could actually be alternately using both of them.
To prevent this problem, First boot the computer in Safe Mode by pressing and holding the F8 key during startup, after the DOS memory check has completed.
While in Safe Mode select Start/Settings/Control Panel/System/Devices. Click on all the devices and see if the various drivers have any yellow or red exclamation marks (which indicates a driver conflict) and also determine if there are any duplicate drivers that can be eliminated.
You may have to delete and reload a driver to correct these problems. Duplicate drivers can and should be deleted.

2. Check your setting of Virtual Memory management. (Right click on My Computer/Properties/Performance/Virtual Memory tab)
Make sure that "Let Windows manage my virtual memory settings" is checked.

3. At this point, we need to figure out what program or operation is causing it.
The only way I know of to accomplish this is to disable all non-essential programs in the startup list so that Windows does not load them.
Firewall and Avast process should be kept in the startup list as well as Systray.
Monitor your system usage to see if there is any degradation. If not, then put back 2 programs at a time and repeat the procedure until you isolate the program/s that are causing the leak.
Then we can work on those to see if there is a patch or fix we can get ahold of to plug the leak up.

4. Refer to this article...it may help:
http://www.altacan.com/sitepages/product_pages/Tips_inter/resource/resource.htm
Go down to the section entitled: "Memory Leakage and Restarting Windows"

5. You can also try a post at www. protonic.com
They provide free technical assistance on just about anything.

Sorry I cannot give you any more specific advice, but many factors can cause memory leakage. I'm kind of shootin in the dark here.

Good luck.
techie101

bbfi · « **Reply #2 on:** October 16, 2003, 05:28:06 PM »

techie101,

Thanks for advice.

1) I checked the drivers as you mentioned. No problems there.

2) My system has "Let Windows manage my virtual memory settings" checked.

3) I have stopped all unessential programs from loading at startup, except avast, Outpost Firewall, Restore It (a replacement for System Restore. My memory problem started way before I installed Restore It), and Spamihilator (spam checker that I installed after my memory problem started).

Now I'll just have to wait and see and gradually add programs.

Walker · « **Reply #3 on:** October 16, 2003, 10:26:53 PM »

Hi bbfi,

This is not my knowledge, it can be acredited to one of the official Avast team (Vlk) from another thread.

Anyway, I was having problems with drivers/crashes and Vlk advised me that Outpost firewall can cause problems. I took the advice and removed Outpost and it cured the problem I had at the time.

Just a suggestion.
Walker

techie101 · « **Reply #4 on:** October 17, 2003, 12:56:00 AM »

bb,

OK...let's see what happens without all the startup programs running.

Now that Walker mentions it, I did try Outpost awhile back and it didn't work well so I went over to Sygate for my WinXP and Zone Alarm for my W98. They seem to like each other and AVAST!

It can't hurt to uninstall Outpost temporarily.

Good luck
techie101

Walker · « **Reply #5 on:** October 17, 2003, 01:20:45 AM »

bbfi,

Just another thing that might jog Techie (would mean nothing to me, but will, no doubt to T 101 and others).

What is the FULL version number of Avast that your using?... there has been a couple of hickups lately.

I'm only really 'thinking aloud'

Walker

Dave50 · « **Reply #6 on:** October 17, 2003, 02:57:20 PM »

bbfi...

Just a couple of thoughts. If you're running a firewall program, make sure the Windows XP firewall is turned off. If you remove your firewall program, then engage the XP firewall.

And yes, Windows Updates do strange things to some computers. There's no pattern either. Some work with them, some don't. I had all sorts of troubles and got rid of them and my computer hasn't had a lick of trouble since. You might want to try it as an experiment.

Dave

bbfi · « **Reply #7 on:** October 17, 2003, 04:10:49 PM »

Great News!

My system has been running now for almost 15 hours with NO problems. I have attached a photo of Task Manager. This is after 15 hours and with 28 IE6 windows open, MyIE2 with 183 tabs opened, 12 Dopus windows opened, Copernic Agent Basic opened, and all the other programs seen in the Task Manager photo. I found the culprit that was causing the system resource problem.

The Bad News!

Since I was still having problems after disabling all unessential programs from starting at startup, I decided to first try changing my antivirus checker. I turned off Avast 4.1 and installed AVG 6 free version. The PROBLEM is gone. No more disappearing text, buttons, etc. I am disappointed in my findings though because I really like Avast 4.1. It is a great virus checker, but with my computer setup, it appears that it robs me of memory and causes the crashes after running for 5 to 8 hours.

Also, throughout this frustrating time I have had, I have learned a lot.

1) Windows XP still has a system resource problem although well hid from the public. While searching the web, I have read many instances of this. I have also experienced it first hand. More than once, the error message of running low of system resources has popped up. What Windows XP does is that it manages it much better and overall, it is a far better OS than its predecessors.

2) I have found out first hand from the forums I have posted to, that there are a lot of helpful people out there in Cyberspace willing to offer their time and knowledge to help those out there with problems. I'd like to say THANK YOU to all of you for making me feel welcome to their forums and leading me in the right direction with a problem which could make your hair turn gray.

techie101 · « **Reply #8 on:** October 17, 2003, 04:51:15 PM »

Quote from: bbfi on October 17, 2003, 04:10:49 PM

Great News!

2) I have found out first hand from the forums I have posted to, that there are a lot of helpful people out there in Cyberspace willing to offer their time and knowledge to help those out there with problems. I'd like to say THANK YOU to all of you for making me feel welcome to their forums and leading me in the right direction with a problem which could make your hair turn gray.

BBfi,

As it turned out, Avast was only the trigger but not the cause. Too bad. We offer our help freely and when we hear comments like yours, it makes this all worthwhile. Sorry we could not do more.

Best Wishes,
techie101 et al.

bbfi · « **Reply #9 on:** October 17, 2003, 11:32:22 PM »

techie101,

Thanks for the comments.

My computer is still up and running almost 23 hours. Like I said before, Avast is a great virus checker and I miss using it with its automatic updates, great email checking, and vocal warnings. I guess certain configurations, software, and hardware cause some programs to act strange and out of the ordinary at times, even though for 99.9% of the users, the software works fine. $:-\$

I will continue to browse this forum. Perhaps in a future upgrade or if I get a different computer, things will work out and I'll be able to come back to Avast.

Lisandro · « **Reply #10 on:** October 18, 2003, 04:30:27 AM »

Quote from: bbfi on October 17, 2003, 04:10:49 PM

Since I was still having problems after disabling all unessential programs from starting at startup, I decided to first try changing my antivirus checker. I turned off Avast 4.1 and installed AVG 6 free version. The PROBLEM is gone. No more disappearing text, buttons, etc. I am disappointed in my findings though because I really like Avast 4.1. It is a great virus checker, but with my computer setup, it appears that it robs me of memory and causes the crashes after running for 5 to 8 hours.

To turn off an av and install another is not a good procedure (I my point of view). If you want avast! again, try to do a complete uninstall of both antivirus and try to install just avast!. If avast! ask a question about the existence of another antivirus previous installed, please, let us know this message. Maybe you have a conflit between the antivirus (or the previous installations of them).
I have a XP without any trouble with avast! and ZoneAlarm...

Quote from: bbfi on October 17, 2003, 04:10:49 PM

I tried various configurations mentioned at http://www.blkviper.com/WinXP/servicecfg.htm by shutting down and disabling many of Microsoft's services which I do not need.

These actions - disabling Windows Services - is quite an advanced task. Avast! requires at least RPC service... You can cause more conflits doing so. Be smart! Good luck. If you need more help, tell us

Lisandro · « **Reply #11 on:** November 08, 2003, 09:12:01 PM »

Quote from: bbfi on October 16, 2003, 02:16:42 AM

I am having a problem that I wonder if anyone else has had or is having. The info for my system is -
WinXP Home (5.1.2600) SP1
IE Shell 6.0.2800.1106
Pentium 4 - 1.5 GHz - 512MB RAM
True Launch Bar 2.2.0.7
MyIE2 0.8.2070 Browser
Spamihilator 0.9.7.2
avast! 4.1 home edition
Agnitum Outpost Firewall 1.01817

To configure Spamihilator and avast! to be used in the same computer, please, see this related forum.

bbfi · « **Reply #12 on:** November 09, 2003, 01:12:06 AM »

Technical,

Thanks for trying to give me ideas for running Avast on my system. I have changed a few programs since my initial problem with system resources triggered by Avast. As you can see I now use Zone Alarm Firewall 3.7.211, SpamPal 1.52, and AVG 6.0 Free.

I went back to SpamPal because it is better than Spamihilator (SpamPal catches about 99% spam and keeps on improving and marks less than .5% good emails as spam). Spamihilator is also good but marked too many good emails as spam and its spam catching was only about 90% even with much training.

I decided to try Zone Alarm Firewall 3.7.211 to see how it is now. Zone Alarm Firewall was the first I ever tried when I had Win 98 but changed due to its high system resource problem which appears to be gone now. Also, I tried it because you mentioned that it was the one you used with Avast. I still had the system resource problem with Avast after changing to Zone Alarm Firewall. And I did everything possible to make Avast work with my system including a complete reinstall of Win XP from a blank harddrive. However, no good, the problem still happened after 4 to 6 hours of running.

Since changing over to AVG 6 free, there have been no problems at all. My computer can run all day and night with no signs of flaking out as it did before. I have runned many programs all at once and the computer remains stable.

This is one of the times when a program just won't work with a system because of the configuration, programs, and hardware installed. I sure do miss Avast but it doesn't work on my computer which is frustrating to say the least. AVG 6 is decent and a good free alternative but it doesn't have all of the bells and whistles that Avast does and Avast catches and notifies of viruses in emails much better than AVG. :'(

But, I have not given up yet. I try to view the Avast forum daily and whenever a major update is mentioned in the future, I'll give it a try again and maybe one day, it'll work on my computer.

Lisandro · « **Reply #13 on:** November 09, 2003, 03:26:52 PM »

Quote from: bbfi on October 17, 2003, 11:32:22 PM

techie101,

Thanks for the comments.

My computer is still up and running almost 23 hours. Like I said before, Avast is a great virus checker and I miss using it with its automatic updates, great email checking, and vocal warnings. I guess certain configurations, software, and hardware cause some programs to act strange and out of the ordinary at times, even though for 99.9% of the users, the software works fine. $:-\$

I will continue to browse this forum. Perhaps in a future upgrade or if I get a different computer, things will work out and I'll be able to come back to Avast.

What happened... Your system was ok with avast... :'(

Culpeper always recommend SpamPal instead of Spamihilator... I give a try but I have no conclusive thoughts about SpamPal in comparison with Spamihilator (which I'm using now). I used AVG 6.0 Free for a long time but, for me, it does not reach the 'desired' features for my system, avast is much better for me.

Your first troubles (text begins to disappear on the screen, then icons, then error messages pop up such as low on system resources...) seem related to hardware. I have some troubles with the video drivers (NVIDIA TNT2) and just after 2 updates I get rid from them.

Please, ask for help by IM to Vlk or Igor. I'm sure avast! team could help your trouble but I'm surprised that they did not answer this forum yet!

bbfi · « **Reply #14 on:** November 10, 2003, 07:38:57 PM »

Hi Technical,

Quote

What happened... Your system was ok with avast...

Actually, my system was never okay with Avast. I just didn't notice the problem until I kept my computer on for more than 4 hours which I have started to do in the past 2 months. $:-\$

Quote

Culpeper always recommend SpamPal instead of Spamihilator... I give a try but I have no conclusive thoughts about SpamPal in comparison with Spamihilator (which I'm using now).

SpamPal and Spamihilator are both very good programs. I have used both, but I find SpamPal to be more reliable.

Quote

Your first troubles (text begins to disappear on the screen, then icons, then error messages pop up such as low on system resources...) seem related to hardware. I have some troubles with the video drivers (NVIDIA TNT2) and just after 2 updates I get rid from them.

I also thought that my NVidia card might be the problem. Updated all the drivers with no change. Then, I switched to ATI Radeon 7000 series. The problem still remained.

Quote

Please, ask for help by IM to Vlk or Igor. I'm sure avast! team could help your trouble but I'm surprised that they did not answer this forum yet!

Well, at least I heard from you, techie101, Dave50, and Walker.