CPU running at 1/10th its capacity..

[Aoki]

Hope this is the right forum to post this..

I'm trying to fix a Dell Inspiron B130 laptop with a Pentium M processor. The min/maxCPU speeds are 600 mhz/1.7 ghz. However, when I run CPU-Z, it says that the core clock is running a bit over 170 mhz... which is the fsb on the processor, I believe. At any rate, I'm not quite sure what to do. The processor settings in the BIOS look fine, though they can't be played with since it's a Dell. The owner of the laptop says that it used to run fast and that it has recently slowed down. Are there any apps to force the CPU to a higher clock speed or something..? Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Aoki]

I think it does have speedstep.. I asked elsewhere and was told that "Most likely a 170 Mhz bus speed with a 10x multiplier = 1.7 Ghz" and that it's probably fine. Does that sound about right?

It's just that the PC takes very long to do things and the video is very choppy, akin to when video drivers haven't been installed (though they have). For example, the laptop owner installed some software off a CD and it alledgedly took 6 hours to install.. Hell, I ran a quick registry clean with RegscrubXP and it took like 15 minutes.

I'll look into speedstep, though. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[Aoki]

Alright, thanks for the suggestions, I'll try them tonight.

 

[killmess]

Recently I've got a speed problem with my desktop PC, after a lot of test, a friend told me to test the ram with memtest(google it), I booted my PC with a diskette with memtest on it, did all tests (i takes hours), and I realize a had a problem with a ram module, i take it away and now it works with less ram (256 insted of 768), but faster and more stable. Try it.

 

[DrNeil]

You could have a look at the power management settings as well... Set everything to maximum performance and see if that helps...

 

[Mobius]

Most likely there is absolutely nothing wrong with the PC at all.

I predict an "ID Ten T error". This is frequently found on PCs which have ID10Ts as owners. They don't manage their PCs and every time some sack of shit software gets installed, it adds yet anotjher process to the boot-up sequence. Over a period of time, (particularly in laptops) you end up with about 18 Bajillion programs starting at boot time.

Do this: download http://4sure.co.nz/downloads/Startup.exe

Run it (it's the best 88KB program ever written) and get rid of every single startup item except for thing slike A/V, and touch-pad drivers .

Hey presto - welcome to your "new and fast PC!"

Best way to make it even faster: stick another Gig'o Ram in it.

 

[Aoki]

The owner isn't computer savvy, but I've already used msconfig to stop useless processes. I tested the hard drive, which was 'fine' and reinstalled video drivers which didn't help. I also found it odd that her laptop thinks she has two display devices.. You try to switch between the two, but see no difference. It's the same display adaptor, too. I'm currently testing her memory and told her to run Spybot after that finishes. I still haven't played too much in the power settings, which I'll do next time I see her. Thanks again for the feedback, and I'd appreciate any further ideas from you guys!

EDIT: Also, the laptop also has a gb of RAM, so that shouldn't be a problem.

 

[K8MAN]

Dont worry about it thats the whole reason behind centrino's power advantage. Mine hits 200MHZ when it's idle all the time. Its all normal.

 

[SidVicious]

Put that CPU under a full load using Prime95 Torture Test then look at CPU-Z again, the CPU should throttle back to full speed.

Alternatively, you can use Intel's TAT (Thermal Analysis Tool) to monitor throttling and submit the CPU to a stress test.

BTW this throttling is normal, laptops are designed to slow the CPU down when no demanding task is being performed in order to save juice...