SVChost.exe problem

Windows XP SP2.

One of the SVChost.exe processes, upon booting the system, takes up a considerable ammount of my system resources. 100% to be exact. I'll run through what happens...

Windows loads fine, AIM automatically pops up along with my Linksys Wireless Network monitor. If I try to use AIM at this point, the program will stop responding. To circumvent this problem, I ctrl+alt+del and end the program through Task Manager. It'll stop responding anyway, but then I can close it and I'll get the dialogue box if I want to send the error report to microsoft. While I have Task Manager up, I watch my processes and within about a minute, one of my svchost.exe processes shoots up to 99-100% CPU usage and anywhere between 60,000k to 90,000k Mem Usage.

At this point trying to run anything is useless, it just won't load anything and understandably so because there is no resources to do so. If I wait long enough the load seems to go away and function returns as normal although I have seen it come back hours later. I ran 3 malware scanners as per another forum, 1 did find a trojan named TROJ_AGENT.OVH but removing that did not fix my problem.

I'm not sure if this is unrelated or not but I'll post it anyway just in case. Whenever I restart or shut down my PC, my Linksys Wireless Monitor crashes stating "WMP54G.exe application error". I don't know the exact code but it tries to execute 3 different instructions at 3 different memory spaces and it says "The memory could not be "read"" Is this referring to my RAM or my HD? Both are new. I ran a Memtest and it made it to 100% coverage without a single error. The HD was purchased in February. 320GB 2 partitions at 127GB and 170GB if it makes a difference.

If you require any additional information please post and I'd be happy to post it ASAP. Thank you for your help.

 

You can set Aim to not load at startup, next time you have it running uncheck the box that says to start it when Windows starts. I have hacked that one out through the registry a few times. I never understood the need for it at startup. The only thing that loads at start up on this machine (Start, Run, msconfig, Startup) is the firewall. I use a wireless router and it is the last thing to go into the notification area of the taskbar. You could try bootvis to speed startup, but it didn't help my wireless connection, and you will need to do a little homework before using it. As for the trojan try:
http://www.trendsecure.com/portal/en-US/free_security_tools/housecall_free_scan.php
and:
http://www.pandasoftware.com/products/ActiveScan.htm
You'll need to download their activex and definitions to run the scans. Trend Micro has instructions on how to disable, remove most scumware. I haven't tried Panda ActiveScan yet but imagine it has a lot in common with housecall. You may need to turn off system restore to get rid of that vermin Trojan. Some products also give false positives, so do a little research (Google) before you remove something. Try the suggestions in these threads, or as many as possible, all will be for naught if there is still a fox in the henhouse.rolleyes

http://forums.majorgeeks.com/showthread.php?t=35407

http://forums.majorgeeks.com/showthread.php?t=44525

 

As Bugballou said above, a trojan/worm/virus may be the problem. MANY viruses show up as svchost.exe to appear as tho' they may be legit processes. A visit to Major Geeks malware removal forum isn't a bad idea: read the stickies, and follow the directions step-by-step. If you run into problems, post and one of the malware experts will help you out.....

hd2k

 

I forgot to mention this earlier but ending the svchost.exe that is the problem causes other problems on my computer such as no sound at all (Games or files run in Windows Media Player)

 

Ok, I ran all the anti-malware stuff I was supposed to and it did find some things but nothing appeared to be too serious. The problem is still here though. I'll post the logs you requested along with a picture of my process explorer as it might help me better explain what it is I'm complaining about...

 

post 2 of 3. More logs being attached.

 

post 3 of 3. My Process Explorer picture. I selected the svchost.exe in question. You can see in the CPU column where it's taking up 100% and I have it highlighted so you can see all the services it's running by itself. To me alot of if looks like unneccessary garbage but I don't know how to shut it off.

Also, Denbigh at post #9 of http://forums.majorgeeks.com/showthread.php?t=125026 might be on to something.

I have 20 or more complete CD's ripped to my C: and iTuneshelper running in the background as one of my many processes. If this it likely the problem, how can I fix it other than uninstalling the software? Thanks for your help folks.