Computer very slow at startup

  • Thread starter Thread starter Guest
  • Start date Start date
G

Guest

Hi,

My computer takes a long time to the stage where I can start to use it. I
mean like 8 minutes or more, could it have to do with the programs that are
started when the computer strarts if so how can I find the folder. I am using
windows XP home edition I have a 40GB hard drive I only have used 6 gigs of
it. I have 256MB of RAM. This problem is new it never took this long.

Thank You
 
"new office 2003 user" <[email protected]>
wrote in message
Hi,

My computer takes a long time to the stage where I can start to use
it. I mean like 8 minutes or more, could it have to do with the
programs that are started when the computer strarts if so how can I
find the folder. I am using windows XP home edition I have a 40GB
hard drive I only have used 6 gigs of it. I have 256MB of RAM. This
problem is new it never took this long.

Thank You
Click to expand...

Start by opening each of the programs in the Notification area and see if
they have a way to turn off the option to always start at startup.

--
Frank Saunders, MS-MVP, IE/OE
Please respond in Newsgroup. Do not send email
http://www.fjsmjs.com
Protect your PC
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/
 
Hi,

None of the icon on the Notification tray have the option that you
mentioned, what would you suggest next?

Thank You
 
new said:
Hi,

None of the icon on the Notification tray have the option that you
mentioned, what would you suggest next?

Thank You
Click to expand...

Here are some links to help you troubleshoot:

http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/slowcom.htm
http://aumha.org/a/health.htm - Take Out the Trash (section 4)

Is your computer completely free of viruses and malware?
http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/page2.html#Removing_Malware

Check to make sure your drive is using DMA mode and not PIO:
http://www.michna.com/kb/WxDMA.htm

Other than that, we don't have enough information from you to give you
focused troubleshooting. Do some of the things suggested at the above
links and then if you need help, come back with results of your tests.

Malke
 
Hi,

I have tried several antivirus and spyware programs and they all state that
my computer is not infected. I know that there is a folder that has all the
programs that start when you start the computer, but I don't know how to
retrieve it. Maybe if they are in this folder I can take them out someway.

Thank You
 
"new office 2003 user" <[email protected]>
wrote in message
Hi,

I have tried several antivirus and spyware programs and they all
state that my computer is not infected. I know that there is a folder
that has all the programs that start when you start the computer, but
I don't know how to retrieve it. Maybe if they are in this folder I
can take them out someway.

Thank You
Click to expand...

There is not just one place. There is a Startup folder for you and another
for All Users. There are also some Registry keys.

Try Start | Run | msconfig | Startup tab

--
Frank Saunders, MS-MVP, IE/OE
Please respond in Newsgroup. Do not send email
http://www.fjsmjs.com
Protect your PC
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/
 
new office 2003 user said:
Hi,

My computer takes a long time to the stage where I can start to use it. I
mean like 8 minutes or more, could it have to do with the programs that are
started when the computer strarts if so how can I find the folder. I am using
windows XP home edition I have a 40GB hard drive I only have used 6 gigs of
it. I have 256MB of RAM. This problem is new it never took this long.
Click to expand...

Try booting in save mode and see if that's much faster. It probably will be
but report back if not.
 
new said:
Hi,

My computer takes a long time to the stage where I can start to use
it. I mean like 8 minutes or more, could it have to do with the
programs that are started when the computer strarts
Click to expand...


Yes, certainly. It's very likely.

if so how can I
find the folder.
Click to expand...


It's not a single folder. On each program you don't want to start
automatically, check its Options to see if it has the choice not to start.
Many can easily and best be stopped that way. If that doesn't work, run
MSCONFIG from the Start | Run line, and on the Startup tab, uncheck the
programs you don't want to start automatically.

However, if I were you, I wouldn't do this just for the purpose of running
the minimum number of programs. Despite what many people tell you, you
should be concerned, not with how *many* of these programs you run, but
*which*. Some of them can hurt performance severely, but others have no
effect on performance.

Don't just stop programs from running willy-nilly. What you should do is
determine what each program is, what its value is to you, and what the cost
in performance is of its running all the time. You can get more information
about these with at http://castlecops.com/StartupList.html. If you can't
find it there, try google searches and ask about specifics here.

Once you have that information, you can make an intelligent informed
decision about what you want to keep and what you want to get rid of.

I am using windows XP home edition I have a 40GB
hard drive I only have used 6 gigs of it. I have 256MB of RAM. This
problem is new it never took this long.
Click to expand...


If the problem is due to programs startiung automatically, it may well be
that some of those programs have recently been installed.

However, my personal view is that the attention many people pay to how long
it takes to boot is unwarranted. Assuming that the computer's speed is
otherwise satisfactory, it may not be worth worrying about. Most people
start their computers once a day or even less frequently. In the overall
scheme of things, even a few minutes to start up isn't very important.
Personally I power on my computer when I get up in the morning, then go get
my coffee. When I come back, it's done booting. I don't know how long it
took to boot and I don't care.
 
Thanks for replying to my question. I am willing to try your respond, but I
need to know how do you boot in safe mode.

Thank You
 
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