100% CPU Usage.

[orangecat]

I have an HP Compaq 8510w that frequently runs at 100% CPU usage for no reason. I've tried Search and Destroy, Spyware Doc, Ad-Aware, IObit Security, Hijack This Registry Analyzer, USB Drive AntiVirus. I tried wiping the hard drive and doing a low level format at the DOS level. I've tried shutting down and removing the battery for awhile then restart. Nothing gets rid of it. I tried a CPU diagnostic and found no errors. The virus programs usually find nothing to report, sometimes IObit will find registery errors in my desktop.ini file, but that's about all. The computer gets shut off daily for hours. I never know when an attack of it will come. I can start up in the morning and have 100% usage, shut down for an hour and it's fine next start up, but the reverse is just as likely to happen. My next option if no answer can be found here will be to take it in to an HP authorized service center.

[Charles001]

100% CPU usage is more than likely a software/OS problem than hardware, calling service center might not help. I would suggest first findout what is taking up the cpu time? First check out task manager and see if something standout (ALT+Ctrl+Del) and select Task Manager. Or you can download ProcessExplorer from Microsoft : http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb896653.aspx which gives you more info. Then you can decide if some unnecessary process/service that takes up cpu cycle can be removed/stopped. You can also use msconfig to exam/change start up programs, etc.

[orangecat]

Oh believe me, that's been tried and tried and tried-- I've been at this for about 6-weeks.

It all seems to be Windows stuff, HP stuff and Anitvirus stuff.

What happens is that normal windows processes like the Task Manager itself might take up 30-40% CPU, the windows user profile process, csrss.exe will be taking 20%, etc. One time I noticed the CPU usage start to diminish to around 60% with some dramatic spikes every few seconds, then I opened a game of the basic windows Solitaire and the CPU jumped to 100% and then pretty much stayed there, both processors going crazy. Sometimes one processor will calm down to 20% while the other churns out at 100% It makes my computer run like a snail on ludes. What's funny is that there's no overheating going on during all this and the CPU fan doesn't even fire up!

[crazyknarf]

check your virtual memory and to make sure it is running 1 and 1/2 times the total memory of your system. 

If that does not work.  I use a program called "Free Ram XP Pro"   To clean up the virtual ram and extras. 

Works great.   Get it here:  Free Ram XP Pro .  

To check to see if your cpu status I use Vista Rain bar.   get it here: Vista Rain Bar . 

turn off auto start on programs that are not requried to start the computer.   IM.  for example.   Go to the program's set up and unclick  Run on Windows start up"  or something to that effect.  

check to see if "Backweb" is download an automatic update. 

Sometimes it does it in the back ground without you knowning it. 

[orangecat]

OK, I'm trying Free Ram-- see if that helps. Computer has been behaving today everything normal. I will get back, next time it acts up with the results. Once it went for 3 days without a problem, immediately followed by 3 days of tortured lameness.

Thanks for the suggestion.

[orangecat]

So the snail on ludes effect has returned and Free Ram XP doesn't appear to help or hinder anything. The status bar remains unchanged whether the computer is running well or at 100% CPU. Right now it's saying "RAM: 70% and Load: 15%" and the CPU usage is spiking between 60% and 100%.

Right now my virus scan is taking the biggest share of CPU at 35% and is taking about 1/2 an hour to check each file it's scaning, under normal computer conditions, it takes about 90 secs. to check every file. Explorer.exe is taking the next biggest chunk at 16%, next is my touchpad at 7%, "System" is at 4% and "FreeRam XP" is taking 3%. System Idle at 24%. Everything else is at zero cpu use.

I'm writing this in Wordpad, see what happens when I start Firefox to post.

Starting Firefox used between 43% to 15% CPU, once it got to google home page it went to 3%. When I clicked on my bookmark for this page, it shot up to 57%, but now it's settled to 1%.

I don't know what to add to this. I guess I could include my registery list from Hijack This, but that too is showing only Windows, virus apps and HP stuff.

[orangecat]

I've also turned off every startup thing I don't want including all the HP stuff and Nvidia control panel. Now I just have SynTPEnh (touchpad), smax4pnp (sound card), jusched (java), NvCpl, FreeRam, that's it. Doesn't seem to help. CPU is going crazy, jumping between 70% and 100%. Maybe I should turn off java, but the CPU was going nuts even before I installed java after the format/clean install process.

[orangecat]

I forgot one more thing. I don't have "backweb" or any of its components, never had that.

[warriorbrasil]

so also is the battery?

[urbster1]

I have an HP dv6t Pavilion that is doing the exact same thing, completely randomly. Even after System Restore and full reformat/reinstall it's still happening. It must be either a driver problem or hardware? The most confusing thing is that Task Manager (even Process Explorer, a 3rd party alternative) shows CPU usage extremely high, but it cannot be that process is taking up all the CPU. Very strange, very VERY frustrating.