TaskMgr hangs, alternatives?

I'm having an issue where windows task mgr will not display. I'll start it and it will display the icon on the taskbar but cannot be seen, and right clicking the taskmgr icon does nothing. When logging off (xp home ed) or shutting down windows will display that it's having a hard time getting taskmgr to close... eventually though it will.

A reboot seems to fix this until it happens again.

For starters then wondering if there is an alternative to taskmgr that I can install on my computer to use at these times. If I can see what processes are running and end ones that are hung, maybe can get somewhere.

Marty

 

Hello Marty,

Two things come to mind:

One is a tasklist text file - canned response to another question:

Open a cmd box: start > run > type cmd > ok and type:
tasklist /svc > c:\tasklist.txt

Will show you, among other things, exactly what is running in each instance of svchost so you can start to pin down which process is taking up all that CPU resource. It will create a .txt file tasklist.txt on the HD ( which you can look at and paste: just double click on it and it wll open.)

EDIT: Forgot to mention how to relate the Task Manager entries and the tasklist.txt entries: they are tied together thru the PID number. Make sure that in TM the PID is showing. If not, click on view > Select Columns.

tasklist.exe is only on XP-pro, so if running Home you'll need to download it along with the instuctions from here:

http://www.computerhope.com/download/winxp.htm


Another little program called UpTimer:

You can pick what's displayed.

http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/downloads.html

Regards - Charles

 

Ok, some more feedbackneeded.

Uptimer doesn't work right now when taskmgr isn't working. Tasklist works, but w/o taskmgr available to me is there a way to kill running processes that I see in tasklist?

Marty

 

Hi Marty,

Process Explorer: http://www.sysinternals.com/ntw2k/freeware/procexp.shtml

One of the options:

Regards - Charles

 

You may want to try t figure out why your taskmanger isn't co-operating:
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_t.htm

This site has several topics and methods for why this may be a problem and suggestions plus fixes. You will have to scroll through the "T list" to find the topic "Task Manager ". I also noticed a few other references in the "T list" that you may find helpful. Since you have described yourself with a Experience Level of "experienced ", I'm going to leave the chosing of the repair method to you. If you pin this down please remember to come back and share the fix.

If it isn't a policy, file, or viral problem perhaps it is a "user faux pas ":
What happens when you right click systray and select Taskmanager?
While taskmanager is opened, do you have a little green cpu usuage box in the systray? Looks like a small green box. If so what happens if you double click it?

Have you looked very carefully on your desktop? Collapsed the taskbar and looked behind it? Looked very carefully in the corners of your screen? It is possible to have moved or sized or shrunk this pane so it, (using any combination of view preferences, manually resizing and positioning) so it may be there but you just aren't seeing enough of it to recognize it for what it is.

 

>You may want to try t figure out why your taskmanger isn't co-operating:
>http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_t.htm

I'll check it out.

>If you pin this down please remember to come back and share the fix.

Will do. I've been running AVG Free 70 and I think this happens when clicking on a web link sent in emails from Eudora. This normally opens a new tab on Firefox for me, or starts that browser up and opens the link. When that stops working and Eudora hangs seems to be the time that taskmsg quits functioning for me as well.

So I've (temporarily) uninstalled AVG to see if that keeps this other problem from happening.

>What happens when you right click systray and select Taskmanager?

Nothing.

>While taskmanager is opened, do you have a little green cpu usuage box in >the systray? Looks like a small green box. If so what happens if you double >click it?

Yes, the box is in the systray, and nothing happens when double clicking or right clicking or single clicking. Subsequent ctrl-alt-del's open additional taskmgr lil green boxes in the systray with the same symptoms.

>Have you looked very carefully on your desktop? Collapsed the taskbar and >looked behind it?

My taskbar is hidden when not focused on, and my desktop is like Montana, wide open space. Also alt-tab'g doesn't show taskmgr as an available running task. And when I do log off (admin's acct) or reboot windows displays end process box(es) for taskmgr, as many as I've started it struggles to shut down. Seems like it's being hung up somewhere in its initialization procedure.


Marty

 

Hi Marty,

How is process explorer working?

Regards - Charles

 

Ahhhh,

So Taskmanager behaves as expected on normal usage. It is only after having an app hang (specifically Eudora) that taskmanager will not respond or fully open?

This would indicate that it is not a taskmanager problem but the Eudora Hang and any non responding processes that may be caused along with it's hang, that may hogging cpu focus. Then perhaps you were on the right track seeking out another task kill applet, although one has to wonder if these will be effective if everything is put on hold because of the initial hang. You are on the right track by trying to figure out and fix the Eudora fussiness, which apparently is the root of the problem.

This makes me wonder though, I have had any number of processes hang that cause all other controls or command/demands to stall but Taskmanager has always zipped open when asked to. Of course I have made several tweaks (to numerous to remember, both through regular options and direct registry additions) that may be optimizing this response. I know I've altered my "time to kill" settings, my program "Focus settings ", have folders set to open in "separate processes ", Have the "performance settings ">advanced tab>for memory usage "process scheduling and memory usage(both) set to "programs ". These may not be a contributing factor but I thought I'd throw them in anyway.

NOTE: Mail.....TaskMsg(is this a typo? I think so but I have to make sure.)....hangs....on-line virus scan recommended! While AVG may or may not be a good Virus Program, it is free and you may be getting what you pay for. That coupled with so many Trojans and adware/malware critters that no one program can be expected to catch 100% of the time. On-Line virus scanning can be "A Good Thing ".

-----------
To Charles,
My apologies for shifting the focus from the "taskmanager alternative" quest. I was just wondering why XP's default was "hiding out" so to speak. If, as I am assuming now, Taskmanager functions normally, except, after this Eudora hang. Taskmanager should not be worried about if it functions with no problems otherwise.

 

Hi Anne,

My apologies for shifting the focus from the "taskmanager alternative" quest.

No need, you're tackling the bigger question.

Regards - Charles

 

I just installed and ran Process Explorer. You mean the one by sysinternals, right? Looks like a handy thing to try if this happens again.

But maybe the issue is really some kind of interaction between AVG, Eudora, and Firefox. I've uninstalled AVG and haven't had this yet, still early though. Maybe will run AVG or something every so often but keep it from being ever running as I'd been doing.

Marty

 

Very bad idea. Very.