Probably the most stable and useful one is CCleaner which is freeware. Other then that, they tend to be almost fictional. Beware spyware that claims to be registry repair software, which is rampant. I have used one other program called registryfix. But honestly, I can't say it has ever done much of anything . The bottom-line is most problems that people attribute to the Windows registry are usually caused by other things [security software conflicts, memory hogging programs - especially security software -, etc.]. CCleaner is a nice way to do some spring cleaning, but other then that don't waste your time trying to find some magical registry repair software. Instead, focus on the individual issues you're expecting it to resolve.
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General discussion
CPU keeps going to 100%--any suggestions to remedy?
Hi, I'm running Windows XP Pro SP2 and I have developed a
problem where by the CPU keeps going to 100% and either
freezes the PC or slows it down to virtually standstill. I
have searched on the net and found that quite a few people
have this problem. I tried some of the fixes suggested, but
they didn't work. I have to reboot the PC and then it?s fine
for awhile. What could possibly be causing this problem? Is
this a problem with the operating system or is it a hardware
problem? I hope you can help with this problem. Cheers!
--Submitted by Anthony K.
Answer voted most helpful by the CNET Community newsletter readers:
CPU Usage Stuck at 100%
There are many things that can cause a computer to show 100% when you display the CPU usage. Spyware, viruses, bad drivers or damaged programs can all lead to this type of problem. In some cases, it can be a known issue with your specific model computer, so you should first check the website for your computer to see if you see anything there regarding this issue. If not, then there are several ways to approach this problem.
1. BACKUP Your Data ? Sorry but I can never say this enough. You should never work on a computer without first backing up any critical data.
2. As mentioned above, check your manufacturer?s website for any known problems with your specific computer model.
3. System Restore ? If the problem just started within the last few days, there is always a fair chance that running a Windows System Restore and setting your computer back a few days may solve your problem. But if you have had the problem for awhile OR you have installed a bunch of programs or updates recently then this may not work at all. System Restore can be found by going to START > ALL PROGRAMS > ACCESSORIES > SYSTEM TOOLS > SYSTEM RESTORE. Note: I would not recommend going back more than a week or so.
4. Virus and Spyware ? I can only assume that you already did this but a computer that is infected with viruses and/or spyware can exhibit this type of behavior. So make sure that your computer is totally clean by running full virus and Spyware scans. You may even want to double check by running one of the many free online virus scans.
5. Identify the Process - See if you can identify a specific process that is using the most CPU percentage. Use Ctrl+Alt+Del to open task manager and click on the processes tab. Scroll down through the list for any process that has the highest CPU percentage. You can try to end that process and see if that helps and then Google the name of the process to help figure out what it is. You may luck out and find the exact program to uninstall or update to fix the problem. But, in most cases it will turn out to be one of the many generic windows processes and may not really give you any real clue as to the exact problem.
6. Disconnect Peripherals ? Shut down your computer and unplug all external devices such as Printers, Scanners and Backup Drives. Leave only your Mouse, Keyboard and Internet Connection plugged in and reboot your computer to see if the problem is still there. If the problem goes away, plug things back in, one at a time until you have isolated the problem device.
7. Shut Down Startup Items ? Use msconfig to Shut down all startup programs and reboot the computer to see if the problem goes away. If it does then go back and methodically turn back ON individual startup items until the problem returns. Once you isolate the offending program, you can Google the name of the file to find out which program it is related to. To use MSCONFIG click on START and then RUN and type msconfig in the run box and then click on OK. Click on the STARTUP tab and you will be presented with a list of items that are going to run automatically every time the computer starts. You can select or deselect any items the you want to start when your computer boots. Now click on OK and reboot your computer. You can go back anytime and run msconfig to turn back on any items that you choose until you find which one is causing your problem.
8. Update all drivers for your computer ? Go to the website for your computer and download and install the latest drivers for your computer. Start with Chipset, Video, and Sound drivers first, followed by network, modem and others.
9. Update Bios ? In some cases the Bios may need updating, but I would stay away from this unless you really know what you are doing, because you can permanently damage your computer if you mess up during this process.
10. Problematic Programs ? There are many programs that have been known to cause this type of problem. For example some earlier versions of Kodak Easy Share software had this problem. Norton and some other antivirus software can become corrupt and cause this issue as well as software and drivers associated with many All-In-One printers. You should suspect any program that calls home for updates as well as file sharing programs like kazza and limewire. Other VOIP software such as Skype can also be a problem. I would suggest uninstalling any programs that you do not need at this moment to help isolate the problem. NOTE: Do not uninstall anything you want that you do have a way to reinstall such as having the original CD?s or downloads.
11. Full Recovery or Reinstallation ? If all else fails then you may have to resort to a full system Recovery or a reinstallation of Windows. This would be a last resort, but can rejuvenate a computer to like new condition and for some problems, may even be less time consuming.
Good Luck and Please keep us posted as to what you find.
Dana
Wayland Computer
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-10149_102-0.html?forumID=7&threadID=284007&messageID=2705924#2705924
Submitted by waytron
If you have any additional suggestions or experience of your own to share with Anthony, please click the reply link and post away. Please be detailed as possible in your answers. Thank you!
Discussion is locked
301 - 330 of 339 Posts
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Thanks for recommending this. I have always been afraid to touch the registry, but this is really safe, user friendly too and my computer is running smoothly.
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Agree CCleaner is best as attested to 100% rave reviews on download.com. Hard to believe there isn't at least one user who has gotten bit with a registry cleaner, but it far surpasses the lame reg cleanup done by the builders of the registry in Windows live Safety scan. Next progression is the outstanding Auslogics Registry Defrag, as good as their disc defragger and way better than MS defrags. When you see how the turbo charge your machine, download their SpeedBooster for a looksee (15 day free trial, after which tweaks remain whether you buy it or not). I am suddenly a tweaker, and on to Tweaks VI free advanced tools.
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Here's where you should be going.
Right here on CNET they havae courses.
(Courses Home)
http://classes.cnet.com
(PC Trouble Shooting) Scroll to "Online Courses"
http://help.cnet.com/pc-troubleshooting-learning/
(Speed up Windows)
http://speed-up-windows-pc.classes.cnet.com/
You're safe with CCLEANER, Which you should have anyway, as it cleans out Temp files and loads of other things better than Internet Explorers Delete Cache and Delete Temp etc etc. and Windows Live one care, which scans reg.
Yep Registry changes are defintely something to be aware/leary of.
ALOT of reg cleaners/fixers regfix,regcleaner, regcleaner5 etc either do alot of harm/bad by using/installing adware, or virii.
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I installed Xp pro. Consistantly my processosr (AMD Athalon 64 x2 6000+) is being used between 40-50% of its capacity. I do not understand what is causing this since it is a clean install. It seems to run fine until I install the drivers for my graphics card(Nvidia Geforce 8800 GTS) then the processor spikes up to 40-50% and never comes down. I have installed all the updates from windows and nvidia, so my system should be up to date. Please help me, I am so frustrated. Oh, it was doing the same thing with vista ultimate x64 edition.
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I forgot to mention in my post that the system idle process is hovering at 99. I don't get it.
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Registry cleaning will not, in most cases, solve the problem of the CPU being totally used up by some process. You have to determine what process is running that is at the root of this evil. You can use the Task Master Program in WinXP. When it opens click on the tab "process" and you'll be surprised as to how many processees are running. By looking at the colum under CPU you'll discern which is the culprit-simply highlight and delete it. For the more sohisticvated download a free program "System Explorer 1.3.0.762". Ity gives a much better view of what your CPU is doing.-Its free.
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Just downloaded this from cnet. Thanks-much better than
process explorer or task manager.
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Just an FYI, ZoneAlarm caused this problem on my computer due to a boot order issue. If you are using it or another firewall, check out which programs are using the CPU as per instructions from NoxTheOx and see if uninstalling, then reinstalling the firewall/bad program solves the problem. Good luck.
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Google "Process Explorer", download and install. Then run it and you will be able to see exactly what is taking your cpu cycles. Processes are shown with the percent CPU usage next to it. then go and kill the process. Then check for updates for the problematic program or search on forums for additional info on it. You may want to make a google search on the process...
Cheers
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I had the same problem some months ago, cleanned the registry, checked again for viruses & spyware with no success. The process chewing all the CPU was one of the svchost apps (Task manager-processes, you will be amazed to see the number that are running in the background!). I eventually figured out that it was something to do with IE explorer & Windows update. I found a DOS "cmd" command on a website, ran it & have not had a single problem since. Dont bother with the svchost cleanners, they do not fix the problem
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Great start but where did you find command Dos to clean out the svchost extras?
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MAN O MAN,
IF you search here at the CNET forums for SVCHOST or anything simliar you will find ALOT on this subject.
From fixes and why 100% cpu occured, (mostly with the release of WSUS 3.0 in April, 07 I think it was.) and both Windows Update and Microsoft Update had the fixes( it took atleast 2 different items to fix).
beware of "svchost", it is a critical Windows program, that there
will be multiple instances of it, because of different programs that need it. Process Explorer and a little googling should help.
You will find out where the real ones are suppose to be and
others hide, and still others that use SCVHOST (which are malware) instead of SVCHOST.
You will end up taking a look at wiki and many other places.
http://forums.cnet.com/
1315 POSTS
http://forums.cnet.com/5238-7813-0.html?kw=svchost&messageType=1&tag=srchbr
if you search "just" here on cnet forums for 100% cpu you will find
44795 POSTS
http://forums.cnet.com/5238-7813-0.html?kw=100%25+cpu&select=All+CNET+Forums&forumID=&threadID=&messageType=1&tag=srchbr
I'll stop here you should get a few (thousand) hints from these 
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You can find it here on CNET DOWNLOADS.COM
http://www.download.com/Process-Explorer/3000-2094_4-10223605.html?tag=lst-1
Does a GREAT deal more than task manager.
DLL's and all linked files etc etc that are hanging.
Good product, and I believe that it will run from any folder you try it from and does NOT install like a regular program.
more like a portable device.
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that a rack of memory or memory slot went bad. I finally figured out that slot-1 of my 3 available slots had some problem. Poplulated slot 2 and 3 and the problem just went away.
I started by pulling all but one rack of memory at a time, everything ran more slowly but, wouldn't freeze. By rotating through the slots, I found the 2 good slots and now everything runs great.
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I am running on Windows XP SP2. I experienced the same thing, the HD keeps on running. This had been going on for some time. I tried reinstalling Windows but no luck. I also closed some of the running programs but the HD keep running. Two days ago the HDD gave way causing power supply to trip.
The HDD had to be replaced. Whilst reformatting the HD, prior to installation of windows XP, several times warning on virus infection popped out. So this could be the caused for the HD to running all the time and caused the HD to crash.
Nixx.
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Art, from Seattle. I too had the ongoing problem then just installed XP only with SP 2 and the only problem I've had is a notice from Bank of America saying that Mozilla Firefox allowed others to see my account. I have both Mozilla and Firefox available.
Something that Microsoft told me helps also. Got to Start>Run %temp% and delete as many icons as you can then go to Start>Run prefetch and higlight all and they will all delete.
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Can you boot from a different Operating system on a different hard drive?
If you can boot from a different hard drive with a different OS;
1) ... and your CPU still running at 100% - it's not the hard drive you were using or the software on that hard drive.
Check your motherboard connetions and CPU condition (is your fan working? etc.). Your problem is not your hard drive or Operating system or software.
2)... and your CPU is running NOT at 100% - it's your hard drive you were using, or some software on that hard drive that caused this problem.
At this point you can start reinstalling software and notice which software package that might change the demands on your CPU.
Hope this helps!
Cheers!
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I had the same problem and found that it was a Windows performance issue. It seems that Windows XP and IE have has become more of a resource hog due to all of the update patches. I can no longer open a virtually unlimited number of IE windows anymore with crashing. Try using Firefox instead of IE and see if that makes a difference. Make sure hard drive is below 50% full, defragged, search for all temp folders and empty them, use WinDirStat to locate and delete junk files, Antivir, Advanced WindowsCare.
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What kind of processor do you have. i know my friend had a celeron and he was having this problem as well, the only way he could fix it was to reinstall windows like every month.He bought some more memory and this fixed his problem, but if you have more than a gig of memory and your still having this problem its either a corrupted OS file, or your processor is really bad. Try backing up your files and reinstalling windows. If you still have the problem, you may need to buy a new processor depending on what you have now. What processor do you have anyway?
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After hearing more from the owner of the problem, It only ocurs when he prints. The problem is an error in the commands of the printer drivers. The driver takes priority and complete control of the memory over any application or device hanging up everything. A good programer could correct the problem. Since HP owns the bad driver they should fix it. If Hp support is not responsive a nice letter to the HP chief may get their attention over there in support. On the other hand a generic driver may work but it will not allow you to use all the features that the printer may offers.
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I didn't see another posts from this person must have missed it.
But Yep.
but might also be USB driver , or host controller.
or driver conflicts.
possibly one to many programs running, or usb devices hooked up at the same time.
Might even try disconnecting from the internet when you print. and see what happens, although you will need to save or copy the page you're viewing if you're trying to print a web page.
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I had the same problem.
I went into Task Manager, Processes and double clicked on the "Mem Usage". This brings to top your highest usage programs.
I deleted "svchost.exe" ( it was using 47,572 K" and just like that, CPU usage went down to 4%.
After rebooting the machine, the problem returned. Deleted the scvhost again and the CPU was happy.
I remembered doing an upgrade to Adobe before this started and sure enough, when I returned to a previous "Restore" point (Before the upgrade) the CPU was normal.
There is something in the Adobe upgrades (Photoshop, Acrobat) that causes this CPU usage problem. I uninstalled the programs, reinstalled them but not the updates and all is well again.
Hope my experience helps you.
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I used to have problem like that for long time ago fortunately "last good known configuration" in boot menu (press F8 while windows start)can help you may try this if won't solve your problem may be from different causes
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I had the identical problem when running an ATI All in Wonder installation disk. The driver and application software places itself in the C drive, so that you can reinstall again if necessary. The file ATIsetup.exe was the main problem, but the same thing also happened when I tried to run the TV application. The computer actually tried to perform other tasks, but took an incredible amount of time. It was as if I had a 10 Hz processer rather than a 3GHz processor. The only way I could take control without rebooting was to run the task manager and deactivate the ATIsetup which was always present. The new software from ATI cured all.
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hi i am baldeep i think that in which your pc heavy softwears is download this softwear is using your pc RAM
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Good morning!
First I am sorry for the translation, I am Brazilian.
I would say to you Anthony, to partition your HD and put the files that are of your choosing in partitioned, and the other would be the operating system. If you do not want to backup.
The other way to use the 100% of the CPU would be on the way properties of my computer, the Advanced tab and pass visual performance of your machine to adjust for better performance. Nor do the scanning of a good anti virus on your machine!
Good luck!
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I have had that problems with my HP laptop with an AMD Athlon 64 processor. After trying several remedies, what worked was to minimize the amount of active programs running in the background, having the vents cleaned as dirty vents cause the fan to become ineffective, and using a good notebook cooler (platform with built in fans upon which the notebook sits) finally worked. In my case, it was the CPU that was overheating when running too many applications simultaneously. These suggestions, along with running spyware and anti-virus have kept my laptop from locking up. I have been told that the AMD processors tend to run hot and keeping it cooled prevents the 100% CPU lock up. Hope this helps.
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"FreeRAM XP Pro" is a free utility from YourWare which may assist you.
I had a similar problem (in the last few weeks) with my Dual-core Media Center with XP/SP2. Core 1 would run to saturation and Core 0 would not -- verified with System Processor. After setting FreeRAM to run every 10 minutes, the problem seems to have stopped.
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