Re: Slow computer

From: Jeff (jeff_at_falsepart.com)
Date: 10/19/04 

Date: Tue, 19 Oct 2004 16:46:33 -0400

Thank you very much. Very helpful indeed. 

-- 
Jeff Williams
Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
jeff@phony.com
Shenan Stanley wrote:
> Jeff wrote:
>> 4.  Clean up the programs running at start up.  Dump anything not
>> absolutely needed to run the system.
>>
>> That is where a lot of us are not sure what services, startup
>> programs are needed and what are not. Advice?
>
> Jeff,
>
> The last section of this text has links to pages that describe the
> normal services and startups on a system.  Also, GOOGLE can be useful
> in finiding a program or service name and a description to go with
> it.  Yes - it takes effort, but it is the same effort the person you
> will pay $75/hour would do/has done in the past.
>
> *WARNING* This is a LONG spill, all in plain text and simplified so
> that even non-techs should be able to understand it.  Hopefully this
> will
> assist some people in not only repairing their systems, but in making
> them faster and more stable tools for them to use.  It contains advice
> on many things, many considered "common knowledge" to 'IT' people
> everywhere.  It is split into major sections, hopefully this will make
> it easier to navigate. *WARNING*
>
> Suggestions on what you can do to secure/clean your PC.  Every attempt
> has been made to be general and an assumption of a "Windows" operating
> system is made here as well - although in some ways, this could be
> adapted to any OS.
>
>
> GENERAL UPKEEP AND CLEANUP
> --------------------------
>
> You should periodically defragment your hard drives as well as check
> them for errors.  Only defragment after you have cleaned up your
> machine of outside parasites and never defragment as a solution to a
> quirkiness in your system.  It may help speed up your system, but it
> should be clean before you do this one.
>
>  How to Defragment your hard drives
>  http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=314848
>
>  How to scan your disks for errors
>  http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=315265
>
>  How to use Disk Cleanup
>  http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=310312
>
> You should also empty your Internet Explorer Temporary Internet
> Files and make sure the maximum size for this is small enough not to
> cause trouble in the future.  Empty your Temporary Internet Files and
> shrink the size it stores to a size between 10MB and 360MB..
>
> - Open ONE copy of Internet Explorer.
> - Select TOOLS -> Internet Options.
> - Under the General tab in the "Temporary Internet Files" section, do
>   the following:
>  - Click on "Delete Cookies" (click OK)
>  - Click on "Settings" and change the "Amount of disk space to use:"
>    to something between 10MB and 360MB. (Betting it is MUCH larger
>    right now.)
>  - Click OK.
>  - Click on "Delete Files" and select to "Delete all offline contents"
>    (the checkbox) and click OK. (If you had a LOT, this could take
>    2-10 minutes or more.)
> - Once it is done, click OK, close Internet Explorer, re-open Internet
>   Explorer.
>
> Uninstall any software you no longer use or cannot remember installing
> (ask if it is a multi-user PC) - but only if you are sure you do not
> need it and/or you have the installation media around to reinstall if
> you need to. http://snipurl.com/8v6b may help you accomplish this.
>
> If things are running a bit slow or you have an older system
> (1.5GHz or less and 256MB RAM or less) then you may want to look into
> tweaking the performance a bit by turning off some of the memory
> using Windows XP "prettifications".  The fastest method is:
>
> Control Panel --> System --> Advanced tab --> Performance section,
> Settings button.  Then choose "adjust for best performance" and you
> now have a Windows 2000/98 look which turned off many of the annoying
> "prettifications" in one swift action. You can play with the last
> three checkboxes to get more of an XP look without many of the
> other annoyances.  You could also grab and install/mess with one
> (or more) of the Microsoft Powertoys - TweakUI in particular:
>
> http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/powertoys/xppowertoys.mspx
>
> You should also verify that your System Restore feature is enabled and
> working properly.  Unfortunately, if seems to have issues on occasion,
> ones that can easily be avoided by turning off/on the system restore
> and make a manual restoration point as one of your periodic
> maintenance tasks. This is particularly important right before
> installing something major (or even minor if you are unsure what it
> might do to your system.) (This, of course, will erase any previous
> restore point you have.)
>
>  Turn off System Restore.
>  http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=310405
>
>  Reboot.
>
>  Turn on System Restore.
>  http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=310405
>
>  Make a Manual Restoration Point.
>  http://snipurl.com/68nx
>
> Also, you should look into backing up your valuable files and folders.
> http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=308422
>
> And keep your original installation media (CDs, disks) safe with their
> CD keys and such.  Make backups of these installation media sets as
> well and always use strong passwords.  Good passwords are those that
> meet these general rules (mileage may vary):
>
>  Passwords should contain at least six characters, and the character
>  string should contain at least three of these four character types:
>     - uppercase letters
>     - lowercase letters
>     - numerals
>     - nonalphanumeric characters (e.g., *, %, &, !)
>
>  Passwords should not contain your name/logon name.
>
>
> UPDATES and PATCHES
> -------------------
>
> ** Side Note: *IF* you are about to install Service Pack 2 (SP2) for
>    Windows XP, I suggest you clean up your system first.  Uninstall
>    any applications you do not use.  Update any that you do.
>    Download the latest drivers for your hardware devices.  Defragment
>    and run a full CHKDSK on your hard drives.  Scan your system and
>    clean it of any Spyware/Adware/Malware and for Viruses and
>    Trojans.  Below you will find advice and links to applications
>    that will help you do all of this.  If this advice helps you,
>    please - pass it on.  Print it, email it, forward it to anyone you
>    think it might help.  A little knowledge might help prevent lots
> of trouble.
>
> This one is the most obvious.  There is no perfect product and any
> company worth their salt will try to meet/exceed the needs of their
> customers and fix any problems they find along the way.  I am not
> going to say Microsoft is the best company in the world about this
> but they do have an option available for you to use to keep your
> machine updated and patched from
> the problems and vulnerabilities (as well as product improvements in
> some cases) - and it's free to you.
>
>  Windows Update
>  http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/
>
> Go there and scan your machine for updates.  Always get the critical
> ones as you see them.  Write down the KB###### or Q###### you see when
> selecting the updates and if you have trouble over the next few days,
> go into your control panel (Add/Remove Programs), match up the latest
> numbers you downloaded recently (since you started noticing an issue)
> and uninstall them.  If there was more than one (usually is), install
> them back one by one - with a few hours of use in between, to see if
> the problem returns.  Yes - the process is not perfect (updating) and
> can cause trouble like I mentioned - but as you can see, the solution
> isn't that bad - and is MUCH better than the alternatives.
>
> Windows is not the only product you likely have on your PC.  The
> manufacturers of the other products usually have updates as well.  New
> versions of almost everything come out all the time - some are free,
> some are pay - some you can only download if you are registered - but
> it is best to check.  Just go to their web pages and look under their
> support and download sections.  For example, for Microsoft Office
> update, you should visit:
>
>  Microsoft Office Updates
>  http://office.microsoft.com/
>  (and select "downloads")
>
> You also have hardware on your machine that requires drivers to
> interface with the operating system.  You have a video card that
> allows you to see on your screen, a sound card that allows you to
> hear your PCs sound output and so on.  Visit those manufacturer web
> sites for the latest downloadable drivers for your hardware/operating
> system.  Always (IMO) get the manufacturers hardware driver over any
> Microsoft offers.  On the Windows Update site I mentioned earlier, I
> suggest NOT getting their hardware drivers - no matter how tempting.
> First - how do you know what hardware you have in your computer?
> Invoice or if it is up and working now - take inventory:
>
>  Belarc Advisor
>  http://belarc.com/free_download.html
>
> Once you know what you have, what next?  Go get the latest driver for
> your hardware/OS from the manufacturer's web page.  For example,
> let's say you have an NVidia chipset video card or ATI video card,
> perhaps a Creative Labs sound card or C-Media chipset sound card...
>
>  NVidia Video Card Drivers
>  http://www.nvidia.com/content/drivers/drivers.asp
>
>  ATI Video Card Drivers
>  http://www.atitech.com/support/driver.html
>
>  Creative Labs Sound Device
>  http://us.creative.com/support/downloads/
>
>  C-Media Sound Device
>  http://www.cmedia.com.tw/e_download_01.htm
>
> As for Service Pack 2 (SP2) for Windows XP, Microsoft has made this
> particular patch available in a number of ways.  First, there is the
> Windows Update web page above.  Then there is a direct download site
> and finally, you can order the FREE CD from Microsoft.
>
>  Direct Download of Service Pack 2 (SP2) for Windows XP
>  http://snipurl.com/8bqy
>
>  Order the Free Windows XP SP2 CD
>  http://snipurl.com/8umo
>
> Microsoft also have a bunch of suggestions, some similar to these,
> on how to better protect your Windows system:
>
>  Protect your PC
>  http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/
>
>
> FIREWALL
> --------
>
> Let's say you are up-to-date on the OS (operating system) and you have
> Windows XP..  You should at least turn on the built in firewall.
> That will do a lot to "hide" you from the random bad things flying
> around the Internet.  Things like Sasser/Blaster enjoy just sitting
> out there in Cyberspace looking for an unprotected Windows Operating
> System and jumping on it, doing great damage in the process and then
> using that Unprotected OS to continue its dirty work of infecting
> others.  If you have the Windows XP FW turned on - default
> configuration - then they cannot see you!  Think of it as Internet
> Stealth Mode at this point.  It has other advantages, like actually
> locking the doors you didn't even (likely) know you had.  Doing this
> is simple, some helpful tips for the SP2 enabled firewall can be
> found here:
>
>  http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/columns/cableguy/cg0204.mspx
>
> If you read through that and look through the pages that are linked
> from it throughout - I think you should have a firm grasp on the
> basics of the Windows XP Firewall as it is today.  One thing to note
> RIGHT NOW - if you have AOL, you cannot use this nice firewall that
>  came with your system. Thank AOL, not Microsoft.  You HAVE to
> configure another one.. So we continue with our session on
> Firewalls...
>
> But let's say you DON'T have Windows XP - you have some other OS like
> Windows 95, 98, 98SE, ME, NT, 2000.  Well, you don't have the nifty
> built in firewall.  My suggestion - upgrade.  My next suggestion -
> look through your options.  There are lots of free and pay firewalls
> out there for home users. Yes - you will have to decide on your own
> which to get.  Yes, you will have to learn (oh no!) to use these
> firewalls and configure them so they don't interfere with what you
> want to do while continuing to provide the security you desire.  It's
> just like anything else you want to protect - you have to do
> something to protect it.  Here are some suggested applications.  A
> lot of people tout "ZoneAlarm" as being the best alternative to just
> using the Windows XP FW, but truthfully - any of these alternatives
> are much better than the Windows XP FW at what they do - because that
> is ALL they do.
>
>  ZoneAlarm (Free and up)
>  http://snipurl.com/6ohg
>
>  Kerio Personal Firewall (KPF) (Free and up)
>  http://www.kerio.com/kpf_download.html
>
>  Outpost Firewall from Agnitum (Free and up)
>  http://www.agnitum.com/download/
>
>  Sygate Personal Firewall (Free and up)
>  http://smb.sygate.com/buy/download_buy.htm
>
>  Symantec's Norton Personal Firewall (~$25 and up)
>  http://www.symantec.com/sabu/nis/npf/
>
>  BlackICE PC Protection ($39.95 and up)
>  http://blackice.iss.net/
>
>  Tiny Personal Firewall (~$49.00 and up)
>  http://www.tinysoftware.com/
>
> That list is not complete, but they are good firewall options, every
> one of them.  Visit the web pages, read up, ask around if you like -
> make a decision and go with some firewall, any firewall.  Also,
> maintain it. Sometimes new holes are discovered in even the best of
> these products and patches are released from the company to remedy
> this problem.  However, if you don't get the patches (check the
> manufacturer web page on occasion), then you may never know you have
> the problem and/or are being used through this weakness.  Also, don't
> stack these things.  Running more than one firewall will not make you
> safer - it would likely (in fact) negate some protection you gleamed
> from one or the other firewalls you run.
>
>
> ANTIVIRUS SOFTWARE
> ------------------
>
> That's not all.  That's one facet of a secure PC, but firewalls don't
> do everything.  I saw one person posting on a newsgroup that "they had
> never had a virus and they never run any anti-virus software."  Yep -
> I used to believe that way too - viruses were something everyone else
> seemed to get, were they just careless?  And for the average joe-user
> who is careful, uses their one to three family computers carefully,
> never opening unknown email attachments, always visiting the same
> family safe web sites, never installing anything that did not come
> with their computer - maybe, just maybe they will never witness a
> virus.  I, however, am a Network Systems Administrator.  I see that
> AntiVirus software is an absolute necessity given how most people see
> their computer as a toy/tool and not something
> they should have to maintain and upkeep.  After all, they were
> invented to make life easier, right - not add another task to your
> day.  You
> can be as careful as you want - will the next person be as careful?
> Will someone send you unknowingly the email that erases all the
> pictures of your child/childhood?  Possibly - why take the chance?
> ALWAYS RUN ANTIVIRUS SOFTWARE and KEEP IT UP TO DATE!  Antivirus
> software comes in so many flavors, it's like walking into a Jelly
> Belly store - which one tastes like what?!  Well, here are a few
> choices for you.  Some of these are free (isn't that nice?) and some
> are not.  Is one better than the other - MAYBE.
>
>  Symantec (Norton) AntiVirus (~$11 and up)
>  http://www.symantec.com/nav/nav_9xnt/
>
>  Kaspersky Anti-Virus (~$49.95 and up)
>  http://www.kaspersky.com/products.html
>
>  Panda Antivirus Titanium (~$39.95 and up)
>  http://www.pandasoftware.com/
>  (Free Online Scanner: http://www.pandasoftware.com/activescan/)
>
>  AVG 6.0 Anti-Virus System (Free and up)
>  http://www.grisoft.com/
>
>  McAfee VirusScan (~$11 and up)
>  http://www.mcafee.com/
>
>  AntiVir (Free and up)
>  http://www.free-av.com/
>
>  avast! 4 (Free and up)
>  http://www.avast.com/
>
>  Trend Micro (~$49.95 and up)
>  http://www.trendmicro.com/en/home/us/personal.htm
>  (Free Online Scanner:
>   http://housecall.trendmicro.com/housecall/start_corp.asp)
>
>  RAV AntiVirus Online Virus Scan (Free!)
>  http://www.ravantivirus.com/scan/
>
> Did I mention you have to not only install this software, but also
> keep it updated?  You do.  Some of them (most) have automatic
> services to help you do this - I mean, it's not your job to keep up
> with the half-dozen or more new threats that come out daily, is it?
> Be sure to keep whichever one you choose up to date!
>
>
> SPYWARE/ADWARE/POPUPS/HIJACKS
> -----------------------------
>
> So you must be thinking that the above two things got your back now -
> you are covered, safe and secure in your little fox hole.  Wrong!
> There are more bad guys out there.  There are annoyances out there
> you can get without trying.  Your normal web surfing, maybe a wrong
> click on a web page, maybe just a momentary lack of judgment by
> installing some software packages without doing the research..  And
> all of a sudden your screen starts filling up with advertisements or
> your Internet seems much slower or your home page won't stay what you
> set it and goes someplace unfamiliar to you.  This is spyware.  There
> are a whole SLEW of software packages out there to get rid of this
> crud and help prevent reinfection.  Some of the products already
> mentioned might even have branched out into this arena.  However,
> there are a few applications that seem to be the best at what they
> do, which is eradicating and immunizing your system from this crap.
> Strangely, the best products I have found in this category ARE
> generally free.  That is a trend I like.  I make donations to some of
> them, they deserve it!
>
> Two side-notes:  Never think one of these can do the whole job.
> Try the first 5 before coming back and saying "That did not work!"
> Also, you can always visit:
>  http://mvps.org/winhelp2002/unwanted.htm
> For more updated information.
>
>  Spybot Search and Destroy (Free!)
>  http://www.safer-networking.net/en/download/index.html
>
>  Lavasoft AdAware (Free and up)
>  http://www.lavasoft.de/support/download/
>
>  CWShredder (Free!)
>  ** No longer updated as of July 29, 2004 - however, still a great
>     product and should still be ran **
>  http://www.softbasket.com/download/s_8114.shtml
>
>  Hijack This! (Free)
>  http://mjc1.com/mirror/hjt/
>  ( Tutorial: http://hjt.wizardsofwebsites.com/ )
>
>  SpywareBlaster (Free!)
>  http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/sbdownload.html
>
>  IE-SPYAD (Free!)
>  https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/ehowes/www/resource.htm
>
>  ToolbarCop (Free!)
>  http://www.mvps.org/sramesh2k/toolbarcop.htm
>
>  Bazooka Adware and Spyware Scanner (Free!)
>  http://www.kephyr.com/spywarescanner/
>
>  Browser Security Tests
>  http://www.jasons-toolbox.com/BrowserSecurity/
>
>  Popup Tester
>  http://www.popuptest.com/
>
>  The Cleaner  (49.95 and up)
>  http://www.moosoft.com/
>
> That will clean up your machine of the spyware, given that you
> download and install several of them, update them regularly and scan
> with them when you update.  Some (like SpywareBlaster and SpyBot
> Search and Destroy and IESPYAD)
> have/are immunization utilities that will help you prevent your PC
> from being
> infected.  Use these features!
>
> Unfortunately, although that will lessen your popups on the
> Internet/while you are online, it won't eliminate them.  I have
> looked at a lot of options, seen a lot of them used in production
> with people who seem to attract popups like a plague, and I only have
> one suggestion that end up serving double duty (search engine and
> popup stopper in one):
>
>  The Google Toolbar (Free!)
>  http://toolbar.google.com/
>
> Yeah - it adds a bar to your Internet Explorer - but its a useful
> one.  You can search from there anytime with one of the best search
> engines on the planet (IMO.)  And the fact it stops most popups - wow
> - BONUS!  If you don't like that suggestion, then I am just going to
> say you go to www.google.com and search for other options.  Please
> notice that Windows XP SP2 does help stop popups as well.  Another
> option is to use an alternative Web browser.  I suggest "Mozilla
> Firefox", as it has some great features and is very easy to use:
>
>  Mozilla Firefox
>  http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/
>
> One more suggestion, although I will suggest this in a way later, is
> to disable your Windows Messenger service.  This service is not used
> frequently (if at all) by the normal home user and in cooperation
> with a good firewall, is generally unnecessary.  Microsoft has
> instructions on how to do this for Windows XP here:
>
>
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/using/howto/communicate/stopspam.asp
>
>
> SPAM EMAIL/JUNK MAIL
> --------------------
>
> This one can get annoying, just like the rest.  You get 50 emails in
> one sitting and 2 of them you wanted.  NICE! (Not.)  What can you do?
> Well, although there are services out there to help you, some email
> servers/services that actually do lower your spam with features built
> into their servers - I still like the methods that let you be the
> end-decision maker on what is spam and what isn't.  If these things
> worked perfectly, we wouldn't need people and then there would be no
> spam anyway - vicious circle, eh?  Anyway - I have two products to
> suggest to you, look at them and see if either of them suite your
> needs.  Again, if they don't, Google is free and available for your
> perusal.
>
>  SpamBayes (Free!)
>  http://spambayes.sourceforge.net/
>
>  Spamihilator (Free!)
>  http://www.spamihilator.com/
>
> As I said, those are not your only options, but are reliable ones I
> have seen function for hundreds+ people.
>
>
> DISABLE (Set to Manual) UNUSED SERVICE/STARTUP APPS
> ---------------------------------------------------
>
> I might get arguments on putting this one here, but it's my spill.
> There are lots of services on your PC that are probably turned on by
> default you don't use.  Why have them on?  Check out these web pages
> to see what all of the services you might find on your computer are
> and set them according to your personal needs.  Be CAREFUL what you
> set to manual, and take heed and write down as you change things!
> Also, don't expect a large performance increase or anything -
> especially on today's 2+ GHz machines, however - I look at each
> service you set to manual as one less service you have to worry about
> someone exploiting.  A year ago, I would have thought the Windows
> Messenger service to be pretty safe, now I recommend (with addition
> of a firewall) that most home users disable it!  Yeah - this is
> another one you have to work for, but your computer may speed up
> and/or be more secure because you took the time.  And if you document
> what you do as you do it, next time, it goes MUCH faster! (or if you
> have to go back and re-enable things..)
>
>  Task List Programs
>  http://www.answersthatwork.com/Tasklist_pages/tasklist.htm
>
>  Black Viper's Service List and Opinions (XP)
>  http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/servicecfg.htm
>
>  Processes in Windows NT/2000/XP
>  http://www.reger24.de/prozesse/
>
> There are also applications that AREN'T services that startup when
> you start up the computer/logon.  One of the better description on
> how to handle these I have found here:
>
>  Startups
>  http://www.pacs-portal.co.uk/startup_content.php
>
>
> That's it.  A small booklet on how to keep your computer secure,
> clean of scum and more user friendly.  I am SURE I missed something,
> almost as I am sure you won't read all of it (anyone for that
> matter.)  However, I also know that someone who followed all of the
> advice above would also have less problems with their PC, less
> problems with viruses, less problems with spam, fewer problems with
> spyware and better performance than someone who didn't.
>
> Hope it helps.
>
> --
> <- Shenan ->