Should my computer really slow down like this?

Azureth

Azureth

Supreme [H]ardness
Joined
Feb 29, 2008
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Whenever I do any process such as installing a patch/game or any process that's somewhat heavy I can't hardly do anything else. I know it has to divert lots of resources, but I remember on my older computer I could still open my web browser or start an MP3 even if another process is going on, yet my computer seems to come to a crawl whenever I do any task, is this normal? Specs in sig.
 
Azureth said:
Whenever I do any process such as installing a patch/game or any process that's somewhat heavy I can't hardly do anything else. I know it has to divert lots of resources, but I remember on my older computer I could still open my web browser or start an MP3 even if another process is going on, yet my computer seems to come to a crawl whenever I do any task, is this normal? Specs in sig.
Click to expand...

Hmm... Even my really crappy Dell Dimension 4550 will let me multitask while installing updates/patches/anything.. Multiple browser tabs.. Multiple messages.. Winamp.. And everything still runs smoothly, a bit slower maybe, but still very fast.

So I do not think it's normal for the system you have to be THAT slow while doing those things. I don't know what the first thing to check would be, but I dunno.. I would start with the simple things like checking for spyware and viruses... and also monitoring your temps and hardware during the moments you are installing patches or a game.
 
Well, I didn't install Vista, but my HD was brand new so I think it was clean install. And I don't know if it matters, but I downloaded a torrent (that was supposedly safe, at leas that's what the comments said) and when I tried to open the folder my spyware said "threat detected!" so I just deleted it, I never installed it. I ended up running AVG, Spybot, and SUPERAntiSpyware but it all turned up clean.
 
Another thing, being an E8400 I thought I could run older games such as BF2, SW:EaW, Company of Heroes, etc. at max settings but it ends up chugging quite a bit.
 
I'm on a 2.0ghz P4 right now and multitasking isn't a problem here.

Make sure your memory is ok, and check the page file settings (under Advanced System Settings somewhere). Check if you have AHCI enabled in the bios under hard drives somewhere... Basically see if your memory and hard drive(s) are working properly, because those would slow you down if you're installing something and trying to work with something else at the same time.

If all else fails, I'm guessing you should try reinstalling Vista.
 
Is this right? All I'm doing now is watching YouTube vids and browsing H, yet under "Performance" it says I have 49 Processes running, CPU usage goes from anywhere from 3-23%, and my Physical memory shows 47%, under "Memory" it says 967 MB.
 
Azureth said:
Is this right? All I'm doing now is watching YouTube vids and browsing H, yet under "Performance" it says I have 49 Processes running, CPU usage goes from anywhere from 3-23%, and my Physical memory shows 47%, under "Memory" it says 967 MB.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure about that.... I usually have 69+ processes running just when I turn on the computer.

Is it lagging at all right now, while you're watching the YouTube videos and browsing H?
 
Hmm...I may have fixed it, I had thought the person that installed Vista for me had gotten all the latest drivers, but apparently not. After updating my latest gfx card drivers things seem to be running quite a bit smoother.
 
you should try more ram too, if possible. What you have listed 2 GB for a dual core and vista is not alot. 1 gb per core.
 
Shmuckety said:
you should try more ram too, if possible. What you have listed 2 GB for a dual core and vista is not alot. 1 gb per core.
Click to expand...

What? He has 2 Gigs which should be plenty. Let us know if the driver update fixes everything.
 
2GB with Vista is "enough" but far from ideal. Still, the stuff he's describing isn't all that demanding. I'd recommend a clean install done yourself, so you know it's right.
 
That'd work just fine. I don't think it's primarily a RAM related problem you've got here, though. Think something else is going on if it's still doing it.
 
Alright, even though things are better I am still having some issues with everything slowing down. I checked my performance and it said while I was installing a game I was using 1.93 GB Memory, is that normal?
 
Dunno if that's normal. I don't use Vista. Even though I should considering the increasing number of friends and family coming to me for help with their new Vista PCs.:eek:

But I want to get this straight:
- Has the PC always has this slowness problem?
- Someone else built the PC and installed the OS for you, correct?

Hmm, personally, I'd reformat the PC just to see if it's an OS or hardware problem.
 
Woah this is weird. I uninstalled and reinstalled the game and it doesn't have the slowdown now wtf? Yes, it's always had this slowdown yet now it seems to do it randomly when I install things.
 
Have you installed the latest motherboard chipset drivers?
 
Go to start-> type in services.msc in the search box
look for "Superfetch"... disable it and restart. Let us know the results
 
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