explorer.exe using 97-100% cpu

i recently spent hours getting rid of the .zlob trojan, spywarequake, spyfalcon and other smitfraud malware that was all over my computer. i followed tons of instructions and finally got rid of it all. my computer seems to be all fine except when i try to open any large files like movies. as soon as i start to browse my movie folder or music folder my CPU maxes to 99-100% usage and i have to restart explorer.exe via task manager. when i reset it my cpu idles at 0-5% usage. when i try to play movies it will freeze for about thirty seconds then slowly start to play the video. there is plenty of room on my 250gig harddrive and i have 1.5 gigs of corsair ram with an athlon 3700+. browsing my large files was NEVER a problem before i had all of this malware. ive ran every type of anti-spyware and anti-virus, and windows update since, and i've found nothing at all, i followed the steps in the READ FIRST and im completely stumped. i tried using every tweaking accessory on tune up utilities 2006, and no change i would obviously rather not reinstall windows. could my windows installation have been damaged in the malware removal process? could explorer.exe have been replaced or messed with? could my harddrive be scarred? any answers or suggestions would be greatly appreciated! thanks!

also, i have attatched a hijack this log if it helps

 

Have you tried running System File Checker (SFC) ? You will need the original MS XP CD in your CD/DVD drive.

Go to Start---> Run.
Type in SFC /scannow and <enter>
Note the space after SFC.

SFC will check for missing / corrupted vital Windows files. Hope this may be of assistance. Bazza

Another thought.
Copy Explorer.exe from another PC.
Rename your old one as Explorer-RS.exe.
Paste the new Explorer into Windows folder.
Reboot and see what happens.
Keep us informed. Baz

PS: almost forgot, welcome to MG

 

well, i tried the SFC scan and apparently nothing happened. i had a friend send me their explorer.exe and i did what you recommended and it still maxes my CPU when i browse big files! i have 57 gigs of 214 left on my C partition (my personal files) and 10 of 19 left on my D partition (windows and program files) would a wipe of my windows partition followed by a full reinstall of windows work for sure? or does anyone have any other suggestions?

 

Sorry, they didn't work. I'll leave further advice to others. Bazza

===

 

somehow the problem passed.. i realy dont know how, but it did. sorry i dont know what it was for others, but my problem is over. thanks for the time and suggestions!

 

use registory mechanic of pc tools it help u alot to recover this type of problem. in my case it works

 

I've had the same problem and it goes then comes back again, so this may not be the end of it. Two suggestions, in case it does come back:

1) Turn off indexing by opening control panel, click add/remove problems, click add/remove components, scroll to Indexing Services' and uncheck it.
2) Click Start, then Run and enter 'services.msc. Scroll down to find indexing service and right click and select properties, in the new panel find startup type and select disabled.

Another handy tip: if explorer is so CPU intensive stop it and restart by: starting windows task manager (click control-alt-delete), select the process tab and click on explorer.exe in the image column and press delete. The bar at the bottom of your windows will disappear, sometimes it restart automatically, if not stay in windows task manager and click file, new task(run) and enter c:\windows\explorer and press OK. This may sound complicated, but I;ve used it dozens of times to save re-booting.

The problem may also be related to specific folders, especailly folders that contain many files and especially zipped files which explorer handles (searches) slowly.

 

brother i m also facing same kind of problem when i run the registory mecanic software it remove many unwanted file & my exlorer working properly
u also try this software

 

Thank for the tip, it seems to work

 

Glad it worked for you. I'd recommend the book "Windows XP Annoyances for Geeks" to anyone of a geeky nature. I puchased my copy 9 month's ago. It's now really dogeared and not a day passes that I don't use it. It is heavily underlined and I evem made up my own Excel based index of the most relevant stuff (to me) and have pasted it to the inside front cover. USD$35, CAN $51, Cost me AUD$65, best XP investment I have made. Bazza