cpu usage high? freezes (mouse), scratchy sound?

Try opening up Task Manager and sort the CPU column so that highest CPU usage is at the top. Is there a specific process that keeps jumping to the top of the list ?

If the problem happens infrequently you could try using Perfmon to gather data in the background and display it in a graph (let me know if you want help)

- Click on Start button and type PERFMON
- Click on the + button to add new counter to be monitored
- Select Process from the 'Performance object' drop down box
- Click on the 'All instances' radio button
- Click on the Add button
- Click on the Clsoe button
- Hit 'Ctrl + h' on your keyboard (to highlight current selection in white)

You will now have a rather messy graph showing all the processes on your PC and how much CPU they are taking up.

Use the up and down arrow keys to cycle through the different processes in the list.

Under normal conditions the Idle and _Total counters should take up most of your CPU but watch out for any other spikes in your graph. That indicates another process taking CPU. If it occurs on a regular basis then post the name of the instance here.

Read this for more info ....

Good Luck

Hitting 'Ctrl + h' should make the current selection turn white.

By using the up and down arrows keep scrollling until the line you are interested in turns white. Look at the bottom window of performance monitor to see which process is highlighted.

For Memory Pages/s counter you need to select the Memory process counter.....

Performance object = Memory
Counter = Pages/sec

I use the explain button to get a better understanding what a counter is for.

Which one ? ... the Pages/sec

Pages/sec shows you how often your computer has to dump stuff in memory to disk to make room. Too much paging can indicate a lack of sufficient memory or something is gobbling up memory and not releasing it.

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What are the specs of your machine ?