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Author Topic: XP Insane slowdowns - Any ideas?  (Read 6089 times)

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Offline NoFastMem

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Re: XP Insane slowdowns - Any ideas?
« Reply #59 from previous page: August 09, 2008, 04:36:47 PM »
Quote

Hodgkinson wrote:
Any tips of the trade for keeping XP going? (Eg, apart from AVscanning/Defrag/Scandisk)


To be honest, the detriment to your performance over time from the AV scanner will always dwarf that of the potential viruses out there. Especially if you have on-access scanning enabled. I don't run AV, I just browse safely (in Firefox) and don't download stupid stuff. Never had a virus.

Make sure you're formatted in NTFS and you really shouldn't have to run Scandisk. You'll see that all it performs is a basic validity check. DOS-based scanners will do a more low-level job, but of course you're basically looking for a hardware fault there, not really fixing the issues with Windows.


Your best bet is to start with a squeaky clean build:

Fresh install from original Windows media, or a slipstreamed SP3 disc.

Windows Update.

Download and extract the most recent drivers for your machine/mobo and components & store them somewhere for later reference/use.

Install your drivers using the device manager, rather than running the .exes.

Install the software, browser plugins, etc, that you need and update.

Install & Run CCleaner. (CCleaner is great, you have to look in the options and check that it will allow you to delete temp files newer than two weeks...)

Use regedit to check HKLM\Software\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run for any background process that come with some drivers/software. (This is handy for working installations too.)

Disable pointless services.

Use Ghost to image your drive. No need to defrag before this as Ghost handles that - it should also remove your pagefile, so that'll start back at a healthy size again.

Then you've got a base image to go back to should it really foul up again.

One last tip, don't run as an Administrator if you can help it. If you have programs that absolutely require administrator access (ie. can't be fixed with permissions, etc) try workarounds like runas, so that you're logged in as an admin as little as possible.
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Offline HodgkinsonTopic starter

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Re: XP Insane slowdowns - Any ideas?
« Reply #60 on: August 10, 2008, 12:06:41 AM »
Again, many thanks for all the tips, folks.

Just been and checked the system/application logs and it would seem that a DLL required by AntiVir has been axed recently from the system (I’m assuming by CCleaner...). A reinstall of AntiVir's fixed the problem.

Agreed, a full clean system re-install is often the most effective way to go, but with University in only a short time a full rebuild is a bit further than I'd like to go at present - A slightly slow PC is better than a box that only serves to hold the table down to the floor :lol:

Never used device manager to install drivers before (Unless the drivers don't come with an .exe) Why is it preferable to use device manager?
I always thought it was better to use the .exe's as some of the more *major* devices tend to install various other bits of code to go with the hardware (Cameras and scanners in particular).

I’m probably more concerned than I should be, but I use the AV scanner predominantly to reduce the risk of file-deleting viruses, as opposed to those that slow the system down. (Granted, the on-access scanner does tend to slow things down a bit, but if I know I need processing power I can just go and turn it off temporally…).

As a matter of fact I've got a 6.3GB HDD bolted, unconnected, in the bottom of the tower with an original Ghost image of the system on it. Mind you, some of the drivers installed might be a wee bit unapplicable for the current hardware (Few, errm, actually many hardware changes here and there)

I guess avoiding the Admin login is a safety measure?

Unrelated question: What is the internal speaker of a system capable of? Usually all it does in it's life is the POST beep, but somehow AntiVir manages to use it to provide a multi-tone audible warning of a detection through it (And that’s in XP!).
A old version of the game "The Incredible Machine" (DOS Version, I think) always refused to make use of the sound card in my old Win98 PC and played the music via the case speaker; and every so often it actually (Somehow) played it at a decent quality for a matter of seconds, before suddenly reverting to bloops and bleeps for the music tones.

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Offline NoFastMem

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Re: XP Insane slowdowns - Any ideas?
« Reply #61 on: August 10, 2008, 10:06:31 AM »
Quote

Hodgkinson wrote:
Never used device manager to install drivers before (Unless the drivers don't come with an .exe) Why is it preferable to use device manager?
I always thought it was better to use the .exe's as some of the more *major* devices tend to install various other bits of code to go with the hardware (Cameras and scanners in particular).


Ummmmm... Not really. That's more or less the reason I'd say not to use the exes. :-)

I guess it depends if you really want all that extra stuff running. It's usually totally unnecessary, for instance the Realtek driver for AC97 audio on our PCs installs three extra startup processes, one of which sends usage data out over the net. Not nice! And yet it functions fine without them.

Scanners still work fine through WIA/TWAIN without background processes running. Same for webcams and the like, too... The functionality is there, in the driver. 'Though for fancier webcams it's more a matter of preference, if you want control for zoom/pan functions, etc. readily accessible.

Quote

I’m probably more concerned than I should be, but I use the AV scanner predominantly to reduce the risk of file-deleting viruses, as opposed to those that slow the system down. (Granted, the on-access scanner does tend to slow things down a bit, but if I know I need processing power I can just go and turn it off temporally…).

As a matter of fact I've got a 6.3GB HDD bolted, unconnected, in the bottom of the tower with an original Ghost image of the system on it. Mind you, some of the drivers installed might be a wee bit unapplicable for the current hardware (Few, errm, actually many hardware changes here and there)


If you're feeling really frisky, have a look at Sysprep. :-)

Quote

I guess avoiding the Admin login is a safety measure?


Yeah, definitely. You're much less likely to overwrite and {bleep} up random stuff on your PC in the normal course of operation that way. :-D

Quote

Unrelated question: What is the internal speaker of a system capable of? Usually all it does in it's life is the POST beep, but somehow AntiVir manages to use it to provide a multi-tone audible warning of a detection through it (And that’s in XP!).
A old version of the game "The Incredible Machine" (DOS Version, I think) always refused to make use of the sound card in my old Win98 PC and played the music via the case speaker; and every so often it actually (Somehow) played it at a decent quality for a matter of seconds, before suddenly reverting to bloops and bleeps for the music tones.


Depends if it's hooked up to the sound card or not (and for DOS stuff, whether it'll blag its way as a SoundBlaster compatible.) Some systems have a small speaker enclosure that will play beeps plus whatever comes through the onboard sound. I was pretty sure that the basic beep was monophonic but this made me wonder:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y37DMf6QVC4

Seems like he has multiple channels going, which could be pretty effective if you arpeggiate, old-school style. You'd never get a sample played without going through the soundcard though.
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Offline darksun9210

Re: XP Insane slowdowns - Any ideas?
« Reply #62 on: August 12, 2008, 12:18:13 PM »
oh i dunno. i wrote a basic wav player in pascal when i was 14. that used the internal speaker...
read each sample, grab its volumetric value and time, play sound from volume/time variables, repeat for next sample until end of file.

was a little bit ... "fuzzy" though.. :-D this was on an RM Nimbus 12Mhz 286...

multiple channels... i wonder... shouldn't be two hard....

A500 Vampire2/minimegachip/lazarus/indyECS
A600 Vampire2/604n/subway/IndyECS
A1200 PiStorm32+Pi4/subway/IndyAGA
A1200 PiStorm32+Pi4/subway/IndyAGA
A1200 PiStorm32+Pi4/subway/IndyAGA
A3k C=040/CV64-3D/Xsurf100+RRoadUSB/Zoram256/acard scsi-ide-CF/IndyECS,
A4k CSMk3-060/CV64-3D/Xsurf100+RRoadUSB/Bigram256/IndyAGA, mediator+pci cards
CD32 TF360/IndyAGA
Plus an SGI O2 & consoles.