8 to 10 minutes to start windows XP

[Phil Stubbs]

 
Hope you have got an idea on this one, my PC take about 8 to 10 minutes to start up after i have put the password etc in.
I am running Avast 8.4, Spybot search and destroy and my firewall is Zone Alarm, when the PC decides it has had enough time starting it is OK on the running speed, well I think it is, everything works, its just the starting of the blooming thing!!!!!
If I try to do something like open email before the PC has decided, everything slows down and sometimes I get the none responsive programme alert come up!
I have kept up to date with all updates of Spybot and Avast and run a weekly full scan which never shows anything other than the odd cookie.
Would appreciate any advice to alleviate this situation.
Many thanks.
Sparks.
 

[ardvark]

Hi...

As a preliminary guess, I would say you either have way too much running in memory (because there is not enough system memory overall) or something is scanning or doing a job during those 8 to 10 minutes.

What are your system specs? Also, to rule out malware, run a scan here using Internet Explorer...

http://www.ewido.net/en/onlinescan/

You may need to accept an ActiveX control to use the service. Delete anything it finds, particularly any entries highlighted with a red circle. Please post a log if you get any results other than tracking cookies.

Additionally, here is a program to view in more detail what you have running in memory. It might help you in determining what's going on...

http://www.download.com/Process-Explorer/3000-2094_4-10223605.html?hhTest=1

Best Regards...

[info]

CCleaner might help get rid of some of the junk you may have accumulated over the years.  As mentioned above, too many processes may be starting up for the amount of memory that you have.

[Lisandro]

In XP/Vista, is there any useful information into Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Events, specially 'Errors'?

Some hardware failure could be responsible to long time to boot...

[wyrmrider]

xp- darn
I thought you must have Windows 2000
how much memory?
something timing out?

which version of spybot?
Top left of spybot  MODE>ADVANCED>TOOLS>RESIDENT
if checked turn off one at a time  t-timer  sd-helper  which version of spybot?

all great ideas report everything you do so there is a trail
hack hack
try DrWeb Cure it

post that EWIDO log  here
update avast and the next time you have some time before you have to use the computer run a boot time scan (rt click on the ball)

[Geoffo]

Did this long startup commence after an avast prog update? Avast is known to be incompatible with some other software.

[Phil Stubbs]

 
Thanks for all the replies.
I tried to download ewido, but it said I had not got ActiveX enabled so I was not able to run it.
Is there somewhere safe to get ActiveX from to install so I can try what you suggested?
Also I am running Spybot version 1.5.2.20, I tried the MODE>ADVANCED>TOOLS>RESIDENT but could not get past the advanced, it asked me 'do I want to go to advanced settings?', when I said 'yes' and clicked to go, nothing happened!!
I do run CCleaner and do that every week at least to clear all the rubbish.
Also did the Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Events, specially 'Errors'?, but not sure what to look for to be honest, sorry!
Also did the 'download.com/process-explorer/300-2094. Got a lot of info on that also, but again not sure what especially I should look for.
Went to look for DrWeb Cure it, found it, but a little worried about its security, its a Russian company, are they a bit dodgy or am I being too cautious?
Again thanks for you patience and help.
Sparks

[ardvark]

Hi....

It would help tremendously if we could get your system specs, including the amount of memory your system has.

Also, the Ewido website should ask you if you want to install the ActiveX control. If you're running Windows XP or Vista, a yellow bar should pop down from the top of the browser notifying you of this.

Best Regards...

[hlecter]

Sparks;

If you want to use Ewido from this site with Active X:  http://www.ewido.net/en/onlinescan/
you have to use IE 6 or 7 and enable Active X in the browser.

If you want to use another browser that is possible too, see the page for info on that.


HL

[wyrmrider]

Dr Web Cure It is fine
just try any of the on line AV scanners
Kaspersky, Bitdefeneder, panda, Fprotect
with all quarantine do not remove/delete

we gotta start somewhere
EWIDO
Malware Bytes Anti Malware
whatever

kaspersky and ewido may want IE, also others that use active x

system specs!

[Phil Stubbs]

 
Thanks again all.
Right, I did the Dr Web and everything came up clean even on the most intense scan.
One of the reasons I cannot get EWIDO is I am not running IE6 or IE7, I have a problem with that so I use Mozilla Firefox, so I guess that that must not have ActiveX on it.
Some info on the type of system spec, I hope this is right,
AMD Sempron(tm) Processor
2600+
1.60GHz, 224MB of Ram
Physical Address Extension
Local Disk (C:) Capacity 76.3GB
Used space 18.1GB
Free space 58.1GB
Hope this helps.
Sparks.

[ardvark]

224MB of Ram

Hi...

There's your problem, I'm quite sure.

I'm assuming you're running Windows XP. Even though it is said XP will run on even as little as 64 MB's, for today's applications, my advice would be a minimum of 512 MB's, preferably 1 GB. Windows XP by itself takes up a lot of that 224 MB's.

I don't know if this in itself is responsible for the 8 to 10 minutes but it does explain at least some of the lag. We would be able to tell you more if you download and run Process Explorer (the link given in my first post) and post a log.

Best Regards...

[Phil Stubbs]

 
I'm getting hopeful here!
Thanks again, here below, hopefully, is the log from Process Explorer.

Process   PID   CPU   Description   Company Name
System Idle Process   0   98.46      
 Interrupts   n/a      Hardware Interrupts   
 DPCs   n/a      Deferred Procedure Calls   
 System   4         
  smss.exe   488      Windows NT Session Manager   Microsoft Corporation
   csrss.exe   544      Client Server Runtime Process   Microsoft Corporation
   winlogon.exe   568      Windows NT Logon Application   Microsoft Corporation
    services.exe   616   1.54   Services and Controller app   Microsoft Corporation
     svchost.exe   780      Generic Host Process for Win32 Services   Microsoft Corporation
     svchost.exe   840      Generic Host Process for Win32 Services   Microsoft Corporation
     svchost.exe   908      Generic Host Process for Win32 Services   Microsoft Corporation
     svchost.exe   1008      Generic Host Process for Win32 Services   Microsoft Corporation
     svchost.exe   1092      Generic Host Process for Win32 Services   Microsoft Corporation
     vsmon.exe   1152      TrueVector Service   Zone Labs, LLC
     aswUpdSv.exe   1336      avast! Antivirus updating service   ALWIL Software
     ashServ.exe   1400      avast! antivirus service   ALWIL Software
     spoolsv.exe   1696      Spooler SubSystem App   Microsoft Corporation
     CTSVCCDA.EXE   1996      Creative Service for CDROM Access   Creative Technology Ltd
     SAgent2.exe   2020      EPSON Printer Status Agent   SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
     svchost.exe   200      Generic Host Process for Win32 Services   Microsoft Corporation
     MsPMSPSv.exe   284      WMDM PMSP Service   Microsoft Corporation
     ashMaiSv.exe   1048      avast! e-Mail Scanner Service   ALWIL Software
     alg.exe   2536      Application Layer Gateway Service   Microsoft Corporation
     ashWebSv.exe   2888      avast! Web Scanner   ALWIL Software
    lsass.exe   628      LSA Shell (Export Version)   Microsoft Corporation
explorer.exe   1984      Windows Explorer   Microsoft Corporation
 ezSP_Px.exe   2192      ezSP_Px MFC Application   Easy Systems Japan Ltd.
 ashDisp.exe   2256      avast! service GUI component   ALWIL Software
 qttask.exe   2272         Apple Computer, Inc.
 zlclient.exe   2352      ZoneAlarm Client   Zone Labs, LLC
 SOUNDMAN.EXE   2424      Realtek Sound Manager   Realtek Semiconductor Corp.
 ctfmon.exe   2464      CTF Loader   Microsoft Corporation
 TeaTimer.exe   2484      System settings protector   Safer Networking Limited
 WINWORD.EXE   3616      Microsoft Office Word   Microsoft Corporation
 procexp.exe   2828      Sysinternals Process Explorer   Sysinternals - www.sysinternals.com
firefox.exe   2588      Firefox   Mozilla Corporation

Many thanks for your patience, its been a real blessing.
Sparks

[ardvark]

Hi Sparks...

Ok, that's better

I don't know if all of these are set to be loaded into memory upon bootup but here's what you can turn disable (from being loaded into memory first thing) by clicking on "Start"---->"Run," they type in "msconfig," click on the "Startup" tab and disable the following:

qttask.exe
   
As an option and if you don't need these services immedietely available, you can also disable...

SAgent2.exe   2020      EPSON Printer Status Agent   SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION

CTSVCCDA.EXE   1996      Creative Service for CDROM Access   Creative Technology Ltd

SOUNDMAN.EXE   2424      Realtek Sound Manager   Realtek Semiconductor Corp.

ezSP_Px.exe   2192      ezSP_Px MFC Application   Easy Systems Japan Ltd.

Just so that you are aware, if you choose to accept these suggestions, you will lose functionality from the toolbar (and possibly toolbar icons) that these services would normally provide but should still be accessible from the start menu. If you discover you need them and/or they're not available from the start menu, just go back (using msconfig) and reenable the ones you want.

I also don't know if this will solve your particular problem as I believe the lack of RAM (memory) is responsible for what you are experiencing.

If you are interested in purchasing more RAM would like to provide us with your computer's "make and model," I think we could help you in determining what kind you need and (options in) where to buy it.

Best Regards...

[Tarq57]

Here's a useful site for helping to determine what can often be safely disabled from startup. http://www.answersthatwork.com/Tasklist_pages/tasklist.htm
It looks like Winword can also be disabled, unless you need it running. (If you use Ms outlook, and use HTML for emails, it uses word, so you would need to change the email settings to text only.)
It seems to me your choices involve adding more RAM (I totally agree with Aardvark. 224 was enough when XP first appeared, program updates/upgrades over the years have resulted in that being inadequate. Todays programs use more resource), or "leaning'' down the computer... tweaking it so that the RAM you have is available for essential tasks.
That second is do-able, but will result in some loss of functionality. It is also likely to result in an excellent learning process, as you find out what can (and shouldn't) be disabled. Eventually the frustration of it will trigger you to get a new PC, or at least more RAM.
(Been there, done that.)
A site for XP tweaks that can reclaim a bit of performance: http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/supertweaks.htm
Do this at your own risk. They work, but if you do it, I'd suggest keeping a diary text file somewhere of what you did and when, so as to make troubleshooting easier down the line.
[edit] PS, one more thing: tried a defrag, recently? This can help a bit, if it hasn't been done for a while.