Hard disk always active and computer is very slow

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  1. Gil
    Posts : 109
    Windows 7 x64
       New #1

    Hard disk always active and computer is very slow


    Hi all.
    I'm running Win7 Ultimate 64bit.
    This is my rig:
    CPU: Intel E8500 @ 3.45GHz (OC)
    RAM: OCZ Titanium 2x2GB @ 1152MHz FSB432x8.0
    MB: Gigabyte EX38-DS4 (BIOS F3)
    GPU: ATI Palit 4870 1GB Dual Edition

    I have WD HDD 500GB Sata2 and WD HDD 160GB Sata1 for my videos and music only.
    The main HDD has two partitions C (100GB) and E (400GB).

    I believe my computer is quite good and fast. At least it used to be. From some reason in the past month the HDD is grinding like a maniac and it makes everything slow. After each restart I have to wait at least 5 minutes for it to relax so I can launch applications.

    I haven't installed anything dubious and I regularly check for viruses with NOD32 and spywares with SpyBot and also use windows defender and firewall. I also use Ccleaner for registry and cache files cleanup.

    At system startup I'm running these applications:
    1. Windows Sidebar
    2. RocketDock
    3. Stikynotes
    4. Realtek ravcpl64.exe (sound thingy)
    5. ESET NOD32

    Disabling these apps didn't solve nor improve anything. My computer is powerful enough to handle these apps quickly.

    These are the non-windows services that are running on startup:



    And this is a screenshot of my HDD activity after startup:



    Not long ago I could launch several apps simultaneously and they'd show up very quickly (firefox, office outlook, MSN messenger, Skype, Photoshop CS4).
    I used to wait 10 seconds for Photoshop CS4 64bit to fully open with all the additional plugins, now I have to wait about 30 seconds!

    Please don't tell me to reinstall Windows. But I'm open for other suggestions

    Anymore info that can shed some light?

    Thanks

    Gil
      My Computer
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  3. not so gray matter
    Posts : 1,506
    W7 Ult. x64 | OS X
       New #2

    It sounds like you've got hardware issues...

    Download this cd/dvd iso and boot from it: Ultimate Boot CD - Overview

    Once you've booted from it, use the hardware diagonistic utilities to diagnose problems.
      My Computer
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  4. Gil
    Posts : 109
    Windows 7 x64
    Thread Starter
       New #3

    notsograymatter said:
    It sounds like you've got hardware issues...

    Download this cd/dvd iso and boot from it: Ultimate Boot CD - Overview

    Once you've booted from it, use the hardware diagonistic utilities to diagnose problems.
    Can you please provide me with a link for an ISO file? I have no idea how to create a boot CD from EXE files like the website provides. The other links of ISO files lead me to a forum and I didn't see where to download from.
    Thanks.
      My Computer
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  6. CommonTater
    Posts : 1,170
    XP Pro SP3 X86 / Win7 Pro X86
       New #4

    Gil said:
    Not long ago I could launch several apps simultaneously and they'd show up very quickly (firefox, office outlook, MSN messenger, Skype, Photoshop CS4).
    I used to wait 10 seconds for Photoshop CS4 64bit to fully open with all the additional plugins, now I have to wait about 30 seconds!

    Please don't tell me to reinstall Windows. But I'm open for other suggestions

    Anymore info that can shed some light?

    Thanks

    Gil
    When's the last time you defragmented your disk?

    Defraggler - File and Disk Defragmentation - Free Download

    Also what antivirus are you using? Some of them (Norton in particular) can lag a system almost to death.
      My Computer
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  7. not so gray matter
    Posts : 1,506
    W7 Ult. x64 | OS X
       New #5

    First go to this page and choose one of the ISO links to download from (NOT .exe or .zip) If you can't find one, use this link: ISO Image

    Now that you have the ISO image, download an ISO burner like IMGBurn

    Insert a blank CD, Open IMGBurn, Choose Write, Choose the ISO, Burn at a slow speed.
      My Computer
    Quote Quote

  8. Ztruker
    Posts : 6,285
    Windows 10 Pro X64
       New #6

    They are all there, ZIP, EXE and ISO. Click on Download UBCD on the left then scroll down and select the one you want to download.
      My Computer
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  10. squall leonhart
    Posts : 343
    Windows 7
       New #7

    just an idea... but make sure UDMA is enabled in device manager. PIO Compatibility can explain all the symptoms.
      My Computer
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  11. Gil
    Posts : 109
    Windows 7 x64
    Thread Starter
       New #8

    CommonTater said:
    Gil said:
    Not long ago I could launch several apps simultaneously and they'd show up very quickly (firefox, office outlook, MSN messenger, Skype, Photoshop CS4).
    I used to wait 10 seconds for Photoshop CS4 64bit to fully open with all the additional plugins, now I have to wait about 30 seconds!

    Please don't tell me to reinstall Windows. But I'm open for other suggestions

    Anymore info that can shed some light?

    Thanks

    Gil
    When's the last time you defragmented your disk?

    Defraggler - File and Disk Defragmentation - Free Download

    Also what antivirus are you using? Some of them (Norton in particular) can lag a system almost to death.
    I use defrag every two weeks. Last time was two day ago. I wrote that I'm using NOD32 as anti-virus software.
      My Computer
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  12. Gil
    Posts : 109
    Windows 7 x64
    Thread Starter
       New #9

    squall leonhart said:
    just an idea... but make sure UDMA is enabled in device manager. PIO Compatibility can explain all the symptoms.
    Where do I find UDMA? Can you please elaborate?

    notsograymatter I'm downloading now. Thanks. I hope I'll have time to run the test this evening.
      My Computer
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  13. squall leonhart
    Posts : 343
    Windows 7
       New #10

    This depends on the SATA/IDE controller in use, can you post what is listed under IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers?
      My Computer
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