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Hard Drive Problem??????

J

joesmithy

n00b
Joined
Jul 8, 2011
Messages
12
Hi everyone,

Over probably the last year (my computer was built 2 years ago, in July 2009), my computer has slowly become slower and slower siginificantly. Most people would say this is normal, but now when I play games such as even Counter Strike or Team Fortress 2 it becomes quite choppy and stuttery (my fps counter shows the fps spiking from like 30-200+). Even when browsing Google Chrome, or just clicking on the Start Menu seems to take 1-2 milliseconds longer.

I should mention that when I first bought parts and built the computer, I had a problem where my computer didn't always boot. Sometimes I have to hold the power button for 5 seconds to turn it off and repeat for 4 times to get it booting. This is why I think the problem most likely stems from the harddrive,

I regularly clean my computer with CClenaer and defrag it with Defraggler, yet this problem still ensues. Can anyone offer some assistance, it would be much appreciated, thanks!

My Specs are:

AMD Phenom II X3 720 BE Processor
Stock CPU fan
4 GB DDR2 RAM
ATI Radeon 4850 HD
650 Watts Corsair Power Supply
Windows 7 64 Bit
 
Reformat and reinstall the OS?
What anti-virus are you using?
What OS are you using?
What mobo do you have?
What hard drive do you have?
 
Thanks for the quick reply!

I actually don't use any anti-virus, so maybe there is a virus but I don't think there is a good chance of that since I haven't downloaded anything much in the past 6 months (at least not from any untrusted sources)

I use Windows 7, Asus M4A73-E Motherboard, and a Western Digital 320 GB Hard Drive (I'm pretty sure it's 5400rpm)
 
joesmithy said:
I actually don't use any anti-virus, so maybe there is a virus but I don't think there is a good chance of that since I haven't downloaded anything much in the past 6 months (at least not from any untrusted sources)
Click to expand...
Yeah, viruses can still hit a PC even if you're not downloading anything. To rule out a possible viruii issue or malware issue, please install the following programs (if you haven't already), update them, then and run scans from them:
- Microsoft Security Essentials
- Malwarebytes
- Spybot Search & Destroy
- Super AntiSpyware

Report back after you've run and scanned from all four programs.
joesmithy said:
Western Digital 320 GB Hard Drive (I'm pretty sure it's 5400rpm)
Click to expand...

If it is, then the slow performance isn't surprising. But let's see what happens after you do the above.
 
can you run a drive diagnostic?
seagate and wd have free ones.
do you have a spare hard drive you canimage it to?
 
Hey thanks for the answers guys,

I will run the security tests and also the drive diagnostics. 1 question thought, which one is the actual website for Spybot Search and Destroy? I seem to be finding many fake ones. Thanks again
 
Microsoft Security Essentials detected no threats

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware detected no threats:


Database version: 7053

Windows 6.1.7601 Service Pack 1
Internet Explorer 8.0.7601.17514

09/07/2011 3:31:19 AM
mbam-log-2011-07-09 (03-31-18).txt

Scan type: Full scan (C:\|G:\|)
Objects scanned: 423919
Time elapsed: 5 hour(s), 22 minute(s), 28 second(s)

Memory Processes Infected: 0
Memory Modules Infected: 0
Registry Keys Infected: 0
Registry Values Infected: 0
Registry Data Items Infected: 0
Folders Infected: 0
Files Infected: 0

Memory Processes Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Memory Modules Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Registry Keys Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Registry Values Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Registry Data Items Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Folders Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Files Infected:
(No malicious items detected)


Spybot also no threats

Superantispyware detected 59 tracking cookies but those were all adware, so I don't think virus is the issue here


BTW I also finished running the hard drive diagnostic and it passed (I used the WD diagnostic)
 
Ok, did you update your drivers?
Do you have a backup of your data?

The next step IMO would be to reformat and reinstall the OS.
 
Hmmm what do you mean update my drivers? I think my video card, DirectX and all that is up to date.

I have backed up my data, so should I just format and reinstall Windows 7?
 
Oh sorry if I wasn't clear. I was just wondering about what he meant by the updating driver part but its all good now I reformatted and I will report to you guys after testing it out
 
Ok so heres the update I reformatted like Danny said and it seems like there was no improvement overall in games (still stuttery like hell, especially when the bomb explodes in CSS). However, I think getting rid of the old clutter has improved the general performance.
 
Then the stuterring problem might be HDD related or driver related. Considering that you have a 5400RPM drive, I'd say you're long overdue for a HDD upgrade like this even if the HDD wasn't the sole cause:
$65 - Samsung Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
 
ya, get a new drive and retry. assuming little changes, are you seeing any other problems with your video card?
 
Be sure to clear out all .tmp files. Had a problem while back where they would overload the mem.
 
I just found out that my hard drive is 7200 RPM, since the model is WDC WD3200AAKS-00L9A0 ATA Device, but there is definitely a chance that it is still defective.
 
joesmithy said:
I just found out that my hard drive is 7200 RPM, since the model is WDC WD3200AAKS-00L9A0 ATA Device, but there is definitely a chance that it is still defective.
Click to expand...

you can go to the WD site, run your serial number and see if HDD is still under warranty. They were real good about replacing mine quickly. Just wish I had it backed up before it croaked.
 
Apologies for bringing this thread back up, but after a week's use of the computer after it was reformatted, things seem to be just as bad as before.

Firstly, if the real issue was my hard drive, I don't think it has to do with the fact that it is too slow as I confirmed that it was 7200 RPM. I ran drive diagnostics (The WD one) and the test said the drive was fine (BTW my drive is Caviar Blue).

Danny, I listened to your advice and updated all my drivers, but I am uncertain if I missed any. I updated DirectX, my AMD Radeon drivers, sound drivers. Are there any other ones?

I'm starting to think this is mobo related.
 
Motherboard drivers.

See if you can try another motherboard
 
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