Member Avatar for Batera83

Hi guys! I'm new to the forum and I was reading some threads and seems like a very useful community here. I am a graduate student and recently my computer has been very "laggy" and when I go to Windows Task Manager I see that CPU Usage is fluctuating from 10-100%. I really am not sure how to diagnose the problem.

I have scanned for viruses through Norton Antivirus and the hard drive appears to be clean. I have tried "defragging" the computer and this does not help either. I am a relative novice so please help me fix my problem as it is becoming very annoying to use my computer. Thanks for your ears and hope someone can help out.

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by johhny-marshal

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Short, practical troubleshooting to add on top of the thread — focused on figuring out what exactly is driving the CPU spikes and safe next steps.

First, identify the process and PID when the spike happens. Note the PID in Task Manager, then map that PID to the hosted services (svchost often hosts many services). From an elevated prompt run:

tasklist /svc

or use Sysinternals Process Explorer for an easy GUI that shows which service(s) run inside each svchost instance. That tells whether the spike is from Windows Update/BITS, a networking service, or something else. (learn.microsoft.com)

If the busy service is Windows Update / BITS, don’t immediately kill random services — Windows Update can legitimately use CPU for long periods. If it’s stuck, stop the update services and reset the update cache (this is safe if done from an admin command prompt):

net stop bits
net stop wuauserv
ren C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old
net start bits
net start wuauserv

For a deeper look at startup items (msconfig only shows some), use Sysinternals Autoruns to find services, scheduled tasks, and other auto-start locations didn’t cover. (learn.microsoft.com)

If the PID isn’t a normal Windows service or you suspect infection, run second-opinion scans (Malwarebytes + Microsoft Safety Scanner) and check network activity with:

netsh winsock reset
netstat -ano

A Winsock reset can fix network-related loops (as reported), but it only helps network-layer corruption; follow with full malware scans and, if needed, an offline rescue disk. Also confirm any svchost.exe you examine lives in the Windows system folder (not a random location) before treating it as benign. (malwarebytes.com)

Notes & cautions: don’t terminate svchost instances blindly (many critical services run there), avoid uninstalling AV while troubleshooting, and if the machine is very low on RAM (older posts mentioned Norton), consider observing memory use and testing with real-time protection temporarily disabled while scanning. If these steps don’t isolate the cause, collect the PID + a couple of snapshots (Task Manager or Process Explorer) and proceed from there.

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Member Avatar for TT4Titans

When you go to task mamger how many processes is running?

also go to start run type Msconfig click the startup tab and disable anything you don't need running at start up.

The only startup items you absolutely need are:

  • ScanRegistry
  • TaskMonitor
  • SystemTray
  • LoadPowerProfile
  • Your antivirus program (trust me, you won't have a hard time figuring out which one is your antivirus program. It is pretty obvious.)

Since you need these startup items to be running all the time in order for your computer to work properly, make sure there is always a check mark next to all of these startup items.
If you don't see one or two these items in your list of startup items, that's cool. For example, some people may not have a LoadPowerProfile while others may have two. The big thing to remember is that you don't want to uncheck any of these files if you have them.
The rest of the startup items, however, are completely optional. Whether you leave these optional startup items on or turn them off is completely up to you. A good rule of thumb is to disable only those programs that you recognize and don't need to have running all the time. When in doubt, leave it on.

If your really not sure go here and you can search and find out.

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php

also do you have a virus protector?

if so is it updated?

if not,Why not?LOL you really need one and keep it updated.

get these and update and run it.

http://www.adaware-antispyware.com/

http://spywarebot.com/?hop=advanced99&p=3&gid=1072645447&oid=&aid=

get this also

http://www.ccleaner.com/

Member Avatar for Batera83

This seems to have not solved the problem. I removed several processes from starup (msconfig). However My CPU Usage is still flucuating a lot. I have updated my virus scans and used ccleaner as well. I did notice one time that svchost.exe was using all of the CPU Usage, however it dropped down to 0. What do i do?!?!?!

Member Avatar for jbennet

are you running any p2p like bittorrent, kazaa, limewire?

Member Avatar for Batera83

No, I am not using any of those programs.

Member Avatar for jbennet

what are the CPU and RAM specs of the PC

if you have less than 512mb ram norton is known to make your PC extremely laggy

Member Avatar for samithegreat

hey ppl ,,i have the exact same problem ,,need a solution 2

Member Avatar for samithegreat

hey ,,i have the exact same problem ,,need a solution 2 ,,if urs os ok ,,what did u do to stop the fluctuation

Member Avatar for Dk31

I have the same problem, I try couples spy-wares and anti-virus program, But still idn't solve the problem. I reinstalled the window XP, it works for a while then 1 or 2 days later. The CPU flutuate again from 2%-34%. Please help me.

Member Avatar for samithegreat

i want to help u but , but nothin is workin for me too, even reinstalling didn't help ,,

I have the same problem, I try couples spy-wares and anti-virus program, But still idn't solve the problem. I reinstalled the window XP, it works for a while then 1 or 2 days later. The CPU flutuate again from 2%-34%. Please help me.

Member Avatar for johhny-marshal

According to the problem you are facing, it seems like your system is infected by malware and viruses. Because generally the CPU Usage does not reach uptoi that level. So you need to Scan your computer by a full version of antivirus programs and don't ever go for the free version of antivirusues as they slows down your computer and asks for updates very frequently. Updating antivirus invites viruses to download in your computer along with the update files. Full vewrsion antivirus program won't ask for updates at all. And maintains your computer's speed and performance.

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