Slow/crashing programs, programs disappearing from start bar.

[Bails89]

Hi,

Every time I start up normally into Win7 everything is fine for a couple of minutes. I'll open a few programs, then after a few minutes of them running they'll hang and enter the 'not responding' mode. (firefox, steam, IE). If I don't already have task manager running the system will basically be unresponsive and the only thing I can do is reboot manually. If I have task manager running I can sometimes end a process or two but some will remain open & unresponsive. Any programs that are working (including task manager) disappear when I minimize them and no programs appear on the task bar, (though they can be retrieved with alt+tab).

McAfee also has 'real time scanning' permanently disabled.

This is all very strange as there was nothing wrong four days ago when I was away, and the symptoms occured within 2-3 minutes of booting up this evening. The system runs in safe mode.

Please let me know any information I can provide that will help.

Thanks

 

[Ironsounds]

Hello... Sounds like someone has been on Adult sites while you were gone? Sounds like it's time to Format your hardrive and do a Windows re-install? Acts like corrupted program/Files?
Do you have Auto updates turned on all your programs? after 4 days and the start of a new month... everyone wanted to auto update you all at once... causing file conflicts?

 

[jackson1420]

Sounds like a corrupted install or copy of the install

If the same symptons persist thru a re-install then it may be bad hardware possibly the HDD

It would be nice to get the HDD plugged into another system and test the drives S.M.A.R.T. data or download Crystal Disk Info and take a look at your drives health.. Free and liteweight program

 

[jackson1420]

If you can do a long format and not a short format that might help as well if you can spare the time

 

[Bails89]

About to install crystal disk, load of crap comes with it

 

[quilciri]

Download malwarebytes free and run a scan before you do anything else. Reinstalling windows is the nuclear option so many bench tech take rather than finding the actual issue.

 

[Bails89]

The drive my OS is installed on is a crucial M4 SSD, I have an HDD storage drive too.

 

[Bails89]

Download malwarebytes and run a scan.

Done, found nothing

 

[quilciri]

Done, found nothing

Ok, that wasn't listed above. To avoid repeating efforts any more, what are *all* the steps you have taken thus far?

 

[Bails89]

Ok, that wasn't listed above. To avoid repeating efforts any more, what are *all* the steps you have taken thus far?

That scan, spybot scan, cccleaner, updated my SSD firmware. I think that's it.

 

[Bails89]

Going to reboot into normal mode and look at a couple of fixes for the task bar problem.

 

[Bails89]

Oh, the system doesn't have anything wrong with it if it's just sitting on the screen after a fresh start-up and log-in, it's only once programs are started that it starts to freeze.

 

[jackson1420]

Try a system restore from safe mode and see how that works

 

[quilciri]

Next thing I would check is your RAM. Grab memtest86, make a bootable usb out of it (directions are either on the site or in a readme), and boot from that.

 

[jackson1420]

Oh, the system doesn't have anything wrong with it if it's just sitting on the screen after a fresh start-up and log-in, it's only once programs are started that it starts to freeze.

Still sounds like a corrupted install or possible hard drive issue. Try downloading Crystal Disk Mark and it will tell you the health of your connected drives.

 

[hedwar2011]

About to install crystal disk, load of crap comes with it

If it's working good in safe mode there is apparently something starting up when Windows does that is causing the issues.

It's time you take a look at everything running and starting up when your computer does.

I would recommend using Autoruns.

Not sure what all those things are? Go to HERE for help with identifying those pesky startup items.

If that still doesn't help I would then do as previously suggested and reinstall.

 

[jackson1420]

Next thing I would check is your RAM. Grab memtest86, make a bootable usb out of it (directions are either on the site or in a readme), and boot from that.

Good idea try that as well if you haven't ran MemTest yet

 

[Bails89]

Still sounds like a corrupted install or possible hard drive issue. Try downloading Crystal Disk Mark and it will tell you the health of your connected drives.

It says the health of my HDD storage drive is fine, it has no information for the drive with Windows on it, my SSD.

 

[jackson1420]

You can choose to not install that bloatware from Crystal Disk. Just don't accept the first license agreement

 

[jackson1420]

Try running Windows Recovery Mode? Or Checkdisk (reboot required)

 

[jackson1420]

And System restore and a Memtest?

 

[hedwar2011]

It says the health of my HDD storage drive is fine, it has no information for the drive with Windows on it, my SSD.

It won't be able to because it essentially is a Flash ROM. Think USB thumbdrive.

Is the system completely stable when you are running in Safe Mode (any variant)?

I re-read over some of the earlier postings and it still sticks out that something is causing it to become unresponsive and usually the best way to identify that is go through Startup and Services like I recommended or perform a clean boot, directions found HERE , and work from the ground up by enabling a few things and seeing if the issue continues.

If by some chance, the lockups still occur after doing the clean boot, then your issue is one of the OS files being corrupted or damaged and you will be better off reinstalling Windows in the long run.

 

[Bails89]

Okay, so I ran a memtest which came up fine. Taking a look at Autoruns right now. I am actually currently in normal windows and it is running fine, taskbar is normal and McAfee is normal... I really don't know what I did here.

 

[Bails89]

Big thanks for all you guys' help so far; the generosity of forum wizards never ceases to amaze.

This PC came with an overclock pre set up, it had a problem a few months ago where srtangely the default presets were changed from the default which was the CPUs factory clock of 2.8, and the OC clock of 4, to being default 2.0 and OC 2.8.

I set it myself to be around 3.6 and it has been fine, it had reset to 2.8 already while this problem was ongoing and after several restarts. I wonder whether a full reboot returned the CPU settings to a default setting and that has fixed it...

 

[jackson1420]

Leave it at the default setting and reset BIOS.

If it was overclocked them leave it normal for a bit