WTF??????

[pontifex]

How do you work on a PC to try to fix it if startup programs are still loading an hour and 15 minutes after you boot the thing?

i've got this laptop that someone asked me to look at and it is unbelievably slow.

is there a way to kill all unneeded processes at once?

I can't even click on anything. this has to be the absolute slowest pc i have ever worked on.

 

[philbrown23]

disable them

 

[PieIsAwesome]

Nuke it and start over.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Boot into safe mode and edit the start folder.

 

[mpilchfamily]

Agree hit F8 after POST and boot into safe mode. That will prevent the programs from loading. Then you can go threw the system and delete the unwated applications or at leaste disable the ones that are not needed.

 

[mechBgon]

If there's a possiblity that it's infected, you might also burn the .ISO of F-Secure's Rescue CD, boot the system from the Rescue CD, and let it run a scan. If the system has a network connection while you're doing this, then the Rescue CD will also go get updated antivirus definitions before it scans.

The download link for the F-Secure CD is on this page: http://www.f-secure.com/linux-...escue-cd-300-released/ They have very good detection rates for all sorts of malware, so it should be worth your time to try it.

And also see how much RAM it has. Maybe you can add another module for a reasonable price, if it's just starving for RAM.

 

[pontifex]

Originally posted by: MagnusTheBrewer
Boot into safe mode and edit the start folder.

it's still super slow in safe mode.

 

[pontifex]

Originally posted by: mechBgon
If there's a possiblity that it's infected, you might also burn the .ISO of F-Secure's Rescue CD, boot the system from the Rescue CD, and let it run a scan. If the system has a network connection while you're doing this, then the Rescue CD will also go get updated antivirus definitions before it scans.

The download link for the F-Secure CD is on this page: http://www.f-secure.com/linux-...escue-cd-300-released/ They have very good detection rates for all sorts of malware, so it should be worth your time to try it.

And also see how much RAM it has. Maybe you can add another module for a reasonable price, if it's just starving for RAM.

It has 1 GB of ram. Running Vista Home Basic. I was actually suprised about that. I was expecting 512 MB.

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: pontifex

Originally posted by: MagnusTheBrewer
Boot into safe mode and edit the start folder.

it's still super slow in safe mode.

I wonder if the HDD controller has switched to PIO mode. That's a surefire way to bring any system to a crawl. Go to Start, right-click Computer and choose Properties, then hit Device Manager, expand IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers, and make sure all the channels have a checkmark on "Enable DMA" in their Advanced Properties tabs.

 

[pontifex]

Originally posted by: mechBgon

Originally posted by: pontifex

Originally posted by: MagnusTheBrewer
Boot into safe mode and edit the start folder.

it's still super slow in safe mode.

I wonder if the HDD controller has switched to PIO mode. That's a surefire way to bring any system to a crawl. Go to Start, right-click Computer and choose Properties, then hit Device Manager, expand IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers, and make sure all the channels have a checkmark on "Enable DMA" in their Advanced Properties tabs.

i'll try it, if it lets me even get that far. at one point last night it quit refreshing the clock, but task manager kept refeshing...

 

[SJP0tato]

Originally posted by: pontifex

Originally posted by: MagnusTheBrewer
Boot into safe mode and edit the start folder.

it's still super slow in safe mode.

If it's that bad, take out the HDD. Put it into a working computer. Scan it with antivirus/spyware cleaning tools.

Then put the HDD back. Start up in safe mode and go about fixing things. Re-scanning for virus/spyware again isn't a bad idea either.