Resolved High Memory Usage

I noticed a slight sluggish performance with my desktop computer. I see just sitting, the hard drive light is really working.

I see in Task Manager I'm using all of my 8GB's of RAM.

Scanned for viruses (eset online, MS Security Essentials, Mailwarebytes) all have turned up nothing.

I'm not sure what to do.

Here is a screen shot of my Resource Monitor.

 

The Resource Monitor listing is in descending order, so the one at the very top is the one using the most memory.

Take a look at this explanation of SearchIndexer.exe

What Is SearchIndexer.exe?

It is a Windows system process that normally runs when the computer is idle, and is not likely to be the reason for your computer running slowly during regular work.

The article gives instructions for modifying the search process.

(Quote) How Can I Make SearchIndexer Use Less RAM or CPU?

"Your best option is to cut down on the amount of data that you’re indexing—there’s usually no reason to index every single file on your drive. You’ll need to open up the Indexing Options through the Control Panel or Start Menu search box to make the changes. "

"The first thing you should notice is the Pause button on this window, which can pause indexing for up to 15 minutes—useful if you’re trying to do something and Windows Search happens to be in overdrive mode, though it really shouldn’t since it only runs while your PC is idle. "

The second item on the list is NisSrv.exe which is the Norton Internet Security service. If NIS is checking each file before allowing a process to proceed that will certainly slow things down.

The third item on the list is wmpnetwk.exe which is the Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service. When this service is running it uses a lot of system resources and slows performance. This is the service responsible for sharing media files across the network with devices using Universal Plug and Play. Not necessary to run at startup. If you don't use WMP to share media files, you can disable this service, otherwise keep it at manual. It is set by default to run every time you start the computer.

 

I don't have Norton, never did at all. No sign of it anywhere (except what you pointed out).

Maybe this is a big clue.

Chris.

 

Haven't used my desktop yet today, but what about Revo uninstaller? Do I have to use Norton tool?
I'll post back when I can get to my desktop. I will be amazed to see Norton there.

Chris.

 

No Norton or Symantec.

Chris.

 

Chris, if you are not familiar with Autoruns, it is a free diagnostic tool developed by Mark Russinovich and Bryce Cogswell and offered through Microsoft TechNet.

It runs as a standalone utility and does not install as part of your system or make changes to the registry. Mark Russinovich is a Technical Fellow in the Cloud and Enterprise Division at Microsoft with a B.S. in computer engineering from Carnegie Mellon University, an M.S. in computer engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a Ph.D. in computer engineering from Carnegie Mellon.

Autoruns is an excellent tool for finding out what is really happening.

The Norton Removal Tool is a run-once tool that does not install or make registry changes. Obviously, no one knows better than Norton how to find and remove all traces of their product. Malware can name itself NisSrv.exe to look innocent, so it's important to be certain whether this process is or is not from Norton.

 

Hi antik,

what do you think about using Reg-edit and have a look in the Registry if there are any bits and pieces floating around.
I had to use it once to eliminate AVG it was uninstalled I also used the AVG un-installer, but there was still a number of entries in the Registry, only after deleting every entry of AVG in the Registry was my comp clear of it.

Only my thoughts
hawk22

 

Hi hawk22 - You have the experience and confidence to do that. Registry entries can be obscure, and we only know what the OP chooses to tell us. Not the same as having the machine sitting there in front of you. Have to always remind myself "primum non nocere" - first do no harm. Evan's approach is safe, logical and constructive.

 

I did the Norton removable anyway, no fix. I will go to my desktop computer and try the autoruns.

I used to use reg edits for years until my computer got hosed. Since then, plus with Leo's advice, I try and stay away from them. I don't think a few hundred or even a few thousand lines will mater to much in Windows 7.

I'm back, here is my screen shot.

Thank you,
Chris.

 

P.S.
My hard drive (SSD) light is almost full on all the time. CPU useage is 40% - 50% with all 8GB of RAM used up.

 

In Task Manager, which processes are showing constant cpu activity?

 

Always thought firefox was the most until I checked, "Show Processes from all users. "

WDFME.exe SYSTEM 7,100,616K WD File Management Engine.

Chris.

 

Stopped WD in Startup, now it went down to 5.5GB.

Chris.

 

That process is associated with Western Digital Smartware for their external drives. Do you have a WD external drive connected?

What happens if you kill that process?

 

OK, I "did" have an external drive, but I unhooked it a few days a go to eliminate it.

I killed it, went down to 1.6GB. In a few minutes it jumped back up, so I uninstalled it.
Seems to of fixed it.

At first, it may seem like it was backing up and using all the RAM, but it doesn't take a weeks to back up. Plus, I had it unhooked for a few days, so it isn't backing up anything.

I would like to have the software for this, any ideas of what I can do to install it and not have it take up all the resources?
Thank you,
Chris.

 

Western Digital Smartware is all back-up utilities and accessories. It's not needed for using the drive.

In Control Panel, Add/Remove programs, do you have Smartware installed? Do you use it?

 

There have been problems in the past with Smartware and WD supposedly fixed it in a newer version. If you want to use it, I would download the latest version directly from WD.

This appears to be where to get it:

WD Smartware Update