Windows takes forever to boot...

[Geekling]

It takes about 3-4 mins to boot. It randomly locks up when using different programs. Someone told me this could be the HD. Is this true? I haven't reformatted windows in awhile. Would a clean install fix this problem?

Any suggestions?

 

[Aznguy1872]

Most likely is the HD, what type of HD do you have?

 

[Taz480]

Just a random thought......
How many programs are running at start up? How many background programs?
Start>Run>msconfig>start up tab

 

[Geekling]

Honestly...I don't know. Its my uncles computer. I guess I could take a trip to his house and find out. I know he doesn't take care of his computer. One time I ran ad-aware and such ....there were more than i cared to remember.

 

[Mik3y]

Originally posted by: Aznguy1872
Most likely is the HD, what type of HD do you have?

It's most likely not the HD.

A fresh reformat will fix the problem, but it would be nice to know what the problem is in the first place. Have you tried scanning your system for spyware, adware, trojans, and other sorts of malware? These will surely bog down your system. Even if you do clean them out of your system, it will not entirely solve the problem. You may have some bad registry files too.

 

[Geekling]

He just recently bought windows xp again. I told him to go home and reformat. He's going to call me tomorrow.

 

[Taz480]

Originally posted by: Geekling
Honestly...I don't know. Its my uncles computer. I guess I could take a trip to his house and find out. I know he doesn't take care of his computer. One time I ran ad-aware and such ....there were more than i cared to remember.

Sounds like a thorough scan through would be the logical next step, especially before reformatting. **EDIT- That should be the last resort.

 

[Nocturnal]

It's probably spyware related. Since you've mentioned that you've scanned it and found spyware, I'd have to go out on a limb and say that it's probably due to that.