[SOLVED] AvastSvc.exe is using as much as 2GB of system RAM. Why?

[Azrael Drake Phoenix]

In the past few days I've noticed higher than normal RAM usage on my system.  Checking with Sysinternals Process Explorer I have found that the only program running with higher than normal or higher than previous memory usage is AvastSvc.exe which is now using up to 2GB of the system RAM.

In the past, AvastSvc used very little RAM.

There hasn't been a program update for Avast Free since early April, and this problem did not start until this past week.  I can't see any reason why it would have started using so much memory all of a sudden.  My usual tools to free up memory when there appears to be an issue (restarting Windows, and if that fails running a full system shutdown and leaving the system off for at least 5 minutes, then restarting) made no difference.  Even a after starting up after a full system shutdown and before launching any other programs except those few that I have set up for autostart, AvastSvc.exe is still using a huge amount of memory compared to what it should be.

Does anyone have any idea what might be causing this, or any way to fix it (yes, I will uninstall and reinstall Avast if I have to, but I'm hoping for a different solution and some explanation for why this behavior started)?

Thanks,
Drake

[rocksteady]

I cant suggest a reason why avast is using 2GB RAM, but that appears excessive and abnormal.
You have already hinted at doing a uninstall and re-install, but I would suggest you first try doing a Repair which you will see if you attempt to uninstall Avast via Control Panel/Programs and Features.
 

[Be Secure]

Do Repair Avast:
1. Avast GUI -> Settings -> Troubleshooting
2. Click on 'REPAIR APP'.
3. Follow instructions.
4. Reboot.

If Repair doesn't fix the problem, try the following:
If your Avast settings are not the default settings and you want them restored after the Clean Install, follow this before removing Avast.
https://goo.gl/TXjM7h
Clean Install of Avast:
https://goo.gl/4Ptzkf
OR

If not fix the issue.
Try this:https://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=93544.msg1493589#msg1493589
Reply #386
and reboot pc.

[igor]

So, when you restart the machine, does AvastSvc uses that amount of memory since the moment it's started, or does it appear later?
What operating system do you use?

Would you be willing to do some tests (such as enabling some debugging options - which might turn the memory usage even higher, temporarily, and then creating and uploading a full dump of the whole process)? It's kinda tricky to find where the memory is used (and I'm not aware of any known issue for AvastSvc at the moment), so there's no simple answer / solution... we'd have to find the cause first.
Thanks.

[Azrael Drake Phoenix]

Hi everyone,

Sorry for the late response (I was working all weekend).

I very much appreciate the suggestions to use Repair (I didn't even know that it existed).  Doing Repair Avast worked great and everything is working correctly again.  AvastSvc.exe is now using less than 500MB at peak usage and far less than that during normal operation (right where I'm used to it being).  This suggests there was some sort of file corruption causing the issue in the first place.

So thanks!

[rocksteady]

@Azrael Drake Phoenix,
Thanks for the feedback letting us know Repair worked for you.

[Be Secure]

Thanks for the feedback.