Troubleshoot Dell Laptop running extremely slow

[MChambers]

Hi all, I have a Dell Inspiron I3 - 4500U CPU @ 1.70GHz - 400GB ram - 64 bit OS running Window 10 Home..

It takes my computer so long to start and then very long to do anything after that. Opening Firefox, Chrome, emails.. everything takes forever..
I am running Norton through my internet service provider, I have run CCleaner, Spybot... I have 374GB free on my harddrive...

This is driving me crazy..

Please help!!!

 

[brambedkar59]

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Free space is more than enough.

So many startup items (I usually have one or two)!! Start disabling them one by one (what you don't need). Googling their name will help in finding if it should be disabled. I can suggest a few like 'Realtek hd audio manager', 'hd audio background process', 'waves Maxxaudio service application, 'itunes helper', 'canon quick menu', 'starter module'.
After disabling restart to see the difference. If anything breaks due to this simply enable them in there and reboot.

 

[Daljeet]

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First of all disable startup app. Right click on it and click on disable and i see your laptop last bios time is "11.1" and mine is "5" (I already mentioned i have same spec laptop). Update your drivers and scan for virus if your lap is infected( try Zemana or Malwarebytes). And check out your laptop power settings it's on which power plan.

 

[ispx]

mcafee webadvisor oh god

Oh God what? Should I remove that?

i guess it will be a while before you can figure out what the mysterious man with the hat & dark glasses actually means

 

[ispx]

proably 40-50% of MWT members in here, prefers other Security solutions than Mak _ A _ Phee

of what i know, people stick with mcafee only because it came pre-installed for free with their new computer.

 

[mekelek]

i guess it will be a while before you can figure out what the mysterious man with the hat & dark glasses actually means

To be flat out honest about this, whithout the slightest scare of being flamed:
It would be My Honest humble Guess that proably 40-50% of MWT members in here,
prefers other Security solutions than Mak _ A _ Phee.

i got my first temp ban here for making fun of Mcafee

OP, yes, get rid of anything that says Mcafee in the name.

 

[MChambers]

You mean 4 GB RAM and 400 GB hard drive space ?

How much RAM does the system have ? If RAM is 2 or less GB, then that right there could be a source of issues since Win10 doesn't play well on systems with low RAM - despite Microsoft saying it does.

You are correct.. 4GB RAM

 

[509322]

You are correct.. 4GB RAM

I suggest you learn how to do a clean install of Windows. It will delete the current Windows image that was shipped with the PC and all of its bloatware. Don't do it unless you are comfortable doing so. A clean install also deletes drivers, driver related software and utilities that were installed by the original PC manufacturer.

If you are not comfortable then either do a refresh or reset the PC. Resetting the PC will return it to its original state as shipped by the mfr, but it will also delete your personal files and any other software that you have installed.

 

[brambedkar59]

I suggest you learn how to do a clean install of Windows. It will delete the current Windows image that was shipped with the PC and all of its bloatware. Don't do it unless you are comfortable doing so. A clean install also deletes drivers, driver related software and utilities that were installed by the original PC manufacturer.

If you are not comfortable then either do a refresh or reset the PC. Resetting the PC will return it to its original state as shipped by the mfr, but it will also delete your personal files and any other software that you have installed.

I am not sure how resetting pc is gonna help in this case (as all the bloatware will be back again).
With that much startup items running in the background of Windows, running on an Ultra low power i3 system, lags/cpu spikes are pretty much guaranteed.

 

[MChambers]

I have removed McAfee and Microsoft OneDrive(was using a ton of CPU) and it seems to be moving a lot faster than it was...

 

[509322]

I am not sure how resetting pc is gonna help in this case (as all the bloatware will be back again).
With that much startup items running in the background of Windows, running on an Ultra low power i3 system, lags/cpu spikes are pretty much guaranteed.

The issue isn't bloatware. The BIOS startup for Dell is almost always 10+ seconds by design.

It is better to return to a clean, original image state.

 

[509322]

I have removed McAfee and Microsoft OneDrive(was using a ton of CPU) and it seems to be moving a lot faster than it was...

Were you running both McAfee and Norton concurrently ?

 

[MChambers]

I am almost convinced I will be able to make it sparkle like never before,
but it may take time. I have the patience and passion.

Patience AND passion.... NICE!! That is definitely needed in the computer world....

 

[MChambers]

I

Were you running both McAfee and Norton concurrently ?

Guess I was... Didn't realize McAfee was installed... I use Norton through my ISP...
Wow! One would think as an IT professional I would know what is going on with my personal computer??!!

 

[509322]

I

Guess I was... Didn't realize McAfee was installed... I use Norton through my ISP...
Wow! One would think as an IT professional I would know what is going on with my personal computer??!!

"Stuff happens..."

 

[MChambers]

@MChambers
Have You heard about or used Process Explorer before?
Process Explorer
https://download.sysinternals.com/files/ProcessExplorer.zip

No, I haven't.. What is it?

 

[brambedkar59]

The issue isn't bloatware. The BIOS startup for Dell is almost always 10+ seconds by design.

Uhhm, I beg to differ. By disabling all unnecessary startup items your system startup times and responsiveness is improved dramatically, especially for systems with Ultra Low powered CPUs and less than or equal to 4GB of ram.
Below is a screenshot from my Dell Laptop which is not a gaming laptop at all!

I am not arguing about benefits of resetting the PC which is helpful in certain cases. But wouldn't it be logical to try disabling some startup items first before going all nuke.

 

[MChambers]

It is a similar program to the Windows Task Manager,
but With deeper diagnostic features, if One wishes.
It can also be used in a smiple and straightforward manner also, no problem.
I personally prefer to use this over Win Task Manager, and it is freeware.

OK.. So I installed and ran.. This is what I see....

 

[Vasudev]

@MChambers: Since your laptop is older, try microcode update to fix CPU bugs. My older Lenovo using Pentium benefited from the update.
Just unpack it using 7-zip or WinRAR and run install.bat file as admin. Reboot it and your system must be a little snappier. The microcode will fix some erratas on Haswell ULVs and HQ/MQ's.
Here's the link: [URL="http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/skylake-kaby-lake-hyper-threading-bug.806317/page-11#post-10564912"]Skylake / Kaby Lake Hyper-threading bug[/URL]

 

[Vasudev]

OK.. So I installed and ran.. This is what I see....

Uninstall Bonjour service. Open services.msc, set these services to Manual instead of disabling them. Apple Mobile Device service, Bonjour Service ( If you're afraid of uninstalling and breaking your iPhone), Hard Disk Sentinel service, Team Viewer Service, Connected Telemetry and User Experience services and etc etc.

 

[Vasudev]

Wow impressive indeed, I have never heard of matters like this before,
Skylake / Kaby Lake Hyper-threading bug']and I did not know One could "patch" a CPU this way.
Skylake / Kaby Lake Hyper-threading bug[/URL]']Golden! Thank You! [/URL]

This is not permanent, when you reinstall Windows the microcode.dat file is erased from System32 folder. So, this is a workaround when Dell refused the update the BIOS to fix Skylake HT bug and I took matter into my own hands by following @Dufus post about VMware CPU uCode patcher from NBR.
This is a quick fix, after microcode update my CPU is really snappy.