Comodo + AntiVir slowing down system?

First, for reference, this is the original thread: http://forums.majorgeeks.com/showthread.php?t=165062

Summary: My computer had begun to generally perform more slowly than normal. I suspected malware, so I ran the usual suite of scans. There were a few "infected" files on the computer, but nothing serious, and nothing that seemed to have been running anyway (the "infected" files were mostly No-CD loaders for various games). In the end, it seems to have been Msmsgs.exe and NOT explorer.exe, so it's possible that I had some sort of issue with Windows Messenger. I used the provided tool to remove Windows Messenger, and my CPU time seemed to normalize. To replace my aging (and non-updated) Norton Internet Security 2005, I installed Comodo Firewall Pro 3 with Defense+ and Avira AntiVir 8. Afterwards, my computer slowed down again (or in my words, "vomited everywhere"). Help?

 

System Specs
OS: Windows XP Home SP2
CPU: Mobile Intel Pentium 4-M 1.70GHz
RAM: 1.00 GB
HD: C: (WINXP) 4.89GB/25.00GB ; D: (STUFF) 4.34GB/49.5GB

I regularly run Windows Update, Windows Defender scans every day, and my (outdated) antivirus ran full scans weekly. I've already cleared off unused programs in an effort to reclaim some hard drive space. I've already run CCleaner, I already run a VERY selective startup, and I've just run a defrag on my C drive. My system was fine two weeks ago.

Last week, I had to open up my laptop to do some physical repair - one of the hinges holding the laptop to the base had broken, so I had to order new parts and do the replacement myself. The replacement went along with few problems, the monitor works and I don't think that I broke anything, and that was on July 13, whereas the slowness on the computer did not start until at least July 16.

Having been here before, I went to the Malware forum on this site, ran the instructions, and waited for advice. Nothing significant turned up in the scans. I decided that this was a good opportunity to replace my firewall and antivirus, so I did some research and chose Comodo and AntiVir, respectively. Uninstalled Norton, installed the new software, ran a full antivirus scan, and cleaned some dormant baddies.

However, something just isn't right. My computer is still laggy as hell - Firefox, Windows Media Player, Media Player Classic, VLC, Windows Explorer, Outlook, Word - just about anything runs slower than I remember. AntiVir found five "infected" files, most of which were No-CD Loaders for games I don't play anymore, and I quarantined those. I thought that Comodo's Defense+ feature might be an issue, so I disabled it, but left the basic firewall running. That didn't change anything. I thought that AntiVir might be slowing processes by checking every single one as they tried to perform their intended functions. That also didn't change anything.

The only thing that I can think of now is my repair job two weeks ago. As part of the procedure, I had to physically unhook the display from the base of the laptop. When I was reconnecting it, I was warned not to press to hard on the connector so that I wouldn't break it, but I had to press hard enough to get it to snap back into place (complete with "snap" noise to indicate that it had, indeed, been seated properly into place). I worried at the time that I had not connected it correctly or firmly enough, so I redid the connection twice, but it didn't seem to want to set in any further, so I let it be. When the monitor powered up with the rest of the machine, I assumed that I had hooked it up correctly. However, how would a bad connection between the monitor and the motherboard force processes to go 100% in the CPU? I've been considering a partition format of my C (logical) drive and reinstalling and updating the OS. Unfortunately, I also have all of my important software installed on C (Microsoft Office, Java, anything Microsoft, and various other software), so I pale when I think about how long it will take.

Someone please halp! I would like to avoid going the format route if I can! I am desperately hoping that someone has a clue as to what could be wrong here. :cry

 

I did use the Norton Removal Tool. I do not suspect Norton to be the problem here, as the original slowdown occurred before I removed Norton. The more recent uber-slowdown shouldn't have anything to do with Norton either, considering that I have uninstalled and reinstalled before, and this never happened during those times.

 

Maybe run a 3rd party process explorer and find out what is really going on in the background. Also, I personally use AntiVir and I love it. However, I have disabled the scheduled daily scans as this can slow down the system. If the scan is stopped before it completes, it will start again the next time the PC is restarted, or when the clock hits the scheduled time so it may trying to run full scans maybe twice a day (or more depending on how often the PC is restarted). Anyway, Process Explorer is a popular (and free) tool for, you guessed it, exploring system processes. Check it out:
Process Explorer http://www.majorgeeks.com/Process_Explorer_d4566.html
Many other process management tools can be found here: http://www.majorgeeks.com/downloads40.html
You might think about running Dial-A-Fix too (check all the boxes in the Registration Center; download link below) and running the system file checker wouldn't hurt either:
Click Start, click Run, type cmd and press Enter. A window with a black background and white lettering will open, it will look like a DOS window. Before doing anything, insert your Windows install CD in your CD drive and click Exit or close the big blue window when it opens. In the DOS window, type sfc /purgecache and press Enter. Let it run; it shouldn't take more than a minute or two but occasionally takes up to 5 minutes. When it finishes, type sfc /scannow and press Enter. This can take some time, so be patient. If it pops up a message about needing to insert your XP disc (and it's already inserted) just click Retry. If this message pops up a lot and you have a 2nd CD drive, move the XP disc to the 2nd drive and click retry. When it finishes, type exit and press Enter. Reboot. Hopefully that helps. You can also run chkdsk C: /r to check and repair the hard drive file system. Either boot to your XP disc, enter the recovery console and type chkdsk C: /r and press Enter, or if in Windows, click Start, click Run, type cmd and press Enter. In the DOS window, type chkdsk C: /r and press Enter. You will get a message about not being able to run the scan because the drive is in use but will be offered the option of scheduling the task for the next reboot. Say yes to scheduling the scan, type exit and press Enter and then restart the PC. Running chkdsk can take some time so be patient and let it run. It may appear to lock up, it hasn't. You might see the percentage counter actually count backwards, don't worry, that happens fairly commonly and is nothing to worry about. When chkdsk has completed, use your PC for a bit and see if it's more responsive.

Good luck!! I hope this helps!!!

Dial-A-Fix http://www.majorgeeks.com/Dial-a-fix_d4899.html

In the commands above, where-ever you see a slash / there is a space before it. There is also a space between chkdsk and C:

[dlb]
:major

 

I'm attaching a system snapshot from Process Explorer. Firefox 3 had six tabs open, all of which were MajorGeeks pages, three from the forum and three download pages (the three that dlb linked me to). Obviously, something is not right here. I'm going to try running Dial-A-Fix and the rest of the suggestions after relocating to a lab where I can have access to a functional PC. If you have any new ideas or suggestions in the meantime, please feel free to post so that I can check it before running the Dial-A-Fix or System File Checker.

 

From your Thumbnail:

I don't use FF often enough to suggest a cure.
@Firefox users@
Please jump in. Bazza

 

Bazza,

Don't worry, Firefox is not the problem. Basically, whichever process I am actively using at the time (which one is foremost on the screen) is the one that rockets up in CPU usage. Right now it's rundll32.exe because I'm opening Add/Remove Programs to remove some ancient Lexmark software to stop it from booting services and applications on my machine. Earlier it was explorer.exe because I was foolishly trying to browse a folder to copy some files.

Being that I already removed Avira AntiVir to see if things would improve, I no longer suspect that software either. What's left is to remove Comodo Firewall to see if things improve from that, though I doubt it, and I need at least a firewall for the fleeting moments that I do connect the machine to Internet (I haven't been able to check e-mail for a week, and that is sort of unacceptable to those trying to get a hold of me, so I had to hook it up in spite of my security concerns).

Interestingly, when I powered on the laptop just now after moving to a computer lab, it was fine. It didn't lag when I logged in, and it was actually usable for 2-5 minutes - I browsed hard drive contents without delays between opening folders, and played a few video files correctly with no lag or audio desync. There was also a period of 120 seconds where Task Manager recorded my CPU at 0 or negligible usage.

Then suddenly, it started lagging in the middle of watching a video without warning. I had been testing videos in both Windows Media Player and Media Player Classic. I'm going to test a theory out: I believe that if I shut down the computer for a period of time, and then power it back on, it will perform fine for a short period of time before becoming bogged down. However, based on current observation, there are no processes running that I am not familiar with. Thus, I would suspect some sort of overheating problem. However, PC hardware is not something that I study closely, so I'm not sure how this would affect Task Manager or Process Explorer's reported CPU usages for various processes. Keep in mind that I have had to open my laptop for repair twice in the past month (monitor hinge broke, so I opened it, cleaned it out with compressed air, pulled out what I assumed were clumps of dust from my intake fan, and replaced the monitor hinge after disconnecting and reconnecting the monitor cable). This may or may not have anything to do with the present problems, but I feel it is worth mentioning.

Once again: halp! :cry

 

Probably not really relevant to you, but you might find it interesting.

What Really Slows Windows Down
By Oli on Friday, 22nd September 2006.
http://www.thepcspy.com/read/what_really_slows_windows_down/5

NB: this is from 2006.

Bazza

 

Indeed, I have actually read that article quite a few times. I often wonder how Norton Internet Security 2005 would have sized up against the rest of that list. Honestly, for an antivirus+firewall+antispam solution, it didn't seem all that bad.

 

Power on and video playback tests.
minutes:seconds.hundredths

#1 (MPC)
00:22.75 from power on to login screen
05:12.46 from login to slowdown
01:12.38 from Hibernate to powered off

#2 (MPC)
00:22.70 from power on to login screen
01:11.05 from login to slowdown
01:09.00 from Hibernate to powered off

~ 5 minutes powered off

#3 (VLC)
00:23.79 from power on to login screen
06:09.26 from login to slowdown
01:08.40 from Hibernate to powered off

~ 10 minutes powered off

#4 (WMP)
00:21.28 from power on to login screen
02:24.55 from login to slowdown
01:08.38 from Hibernate to powered off


As a side note, it's nice to see that my laptop's power on and power down times are pretty uniform, at least for powering in and out of hibernated states.

During #3, VLC was only using 0-2% CPU to play the video. At about 06:09, it shot up to 80-95% CPU usage and the video destabilized. Afterwards, at parts with little changes in the video, VLC could keep up pretty well with trying to play during this time. However, it struggled with high-motion or very detailed shots. It's interesting though that VLC managed better than either WMP or MPC. Perhaps this is a corrupted driver/codec issue (since VLC uses its own codecs/filters)? However, all other processes when used (such as browsing files/directories) also lagged, so I'm not sure how all of these symptoms would be connected.

It may be worth noting that the slowdown always seems to occur right when my laptop's fan starts running, which gives weight to my theory that this is an overheating problem. Is there any way that I can more correctly prove/disprove this theory? I'd like my laptop back. :cry

 

The original slowdown was nowhere near as severe as what seemed to occur after I had installed Comodo and AntiVir. Basic rule says that I should suspect the most recently installed software (or, more generally, the most recent changes). I was really hoping that this wasn't going to be a hardware problem. I'll check in the hardware forum and see if we can determine anything there.

Thanks!

 

Hi,
I found after I installed the Comodo Ver 3.0 my computer was slow so I went back to the older Comodo Version 2.4 and found did correct the "Slow" problem?
You could try the uninistall on Comodo Ver. 3.0 download and install the earlier Comodo 2.4