Why does Win7 lie about it's boot-up time?

[johne53]

Since I moved from XP to Windows 7 I've been pleasantly surprised at how quickly my desktop appears after I boot up. But I've started to realise that by the time the desktop appears, Windows hasn't yet finished booting. It can be several minutes later before the machine is actually usable. For example, one program I use regularly is ZTree, which logs all the files on my hard drive. Normally, this process takes about 8 seconds for my C: drive. However, if I launch ZTree immediately after boot-up, the same process takes around 3 minutes!! According to Task Manager, there doesn't seem to be much else going on during those first 3 minutes. Hardly any CPU is being consumed (if TM is telling the truth).

Internet Explorer is another one. Normally it launches in less than a second. But if I launch it immediately after booting up it can take 15 seconds to appear on screen - and even then, it isn't fully working. The menu items (Favourites menu etc) can be disabled for a further 2 minutes or more!

I know I'm not the only person with this problem because lots of my work colleagues have noticed it too. By comparison, my Apple Mac takes slightly longer to boot - but once the desktop appears, it's ready to use.

Is there any way to speed up the boot process for Windows 7?

 

[pparks1]

SSD drive. Once my desktop comes up, my box is 100% totally usable. There might be stuff still coming up in the background, but the SSD churns right through it.

 

[johne53]

Hmmm... that's not a bad idea but a bit expensive. Might put it on Santa's Xmas list tho'

 

[Corazon]

This isn't normal for Windows...do you have antivirus software set to run a full scan on each reboot? Best to examine your startup entries with msconfig and see if there's anything that pops out/that you can temporarily disable to see if it's the culprit.

 

[johne53]

This isn't normal for Windows...

To be honest Corazon, I think you'll find it is. It's just that you rarely notice the problem unless you launch a processor-hungry app immediately after boot-up. Applications like 'Word' etc don't tend to show it up. You won't even notice it in IE unless you have the menu bar turned on (it's off by default). In fact, I can remember this issue being in Windows XP though it wasn't nearly as bad (mind you of course, that's because XP's desktop didn't appear until much later in the boot cycle). I think what's happened is that Microsoft has been taking a lot of stick over Apple's (generally faster) boot times so it's re-hashed things to make the desktop appear sooner - before the OS has really finished booting.

To answer your questions though.... my only antivirus is Microsoft Security Essentials which I must admit is easily the least intrusive AV I've ever used. Oh - and I followed your advice with msconfig and turned off everything that checks for updates during startup. That definitely did improve things a little so thanks for the advice. It wasn't much but every little helps!

 

[logicearth]

Is it possible your application is putting itself in "the box" or whatever you want to call it.
Starting up inside the box - The Old New Thing - Site Home - MSDN Blogs

 

[maxseven]

ZTree must be dependent on some process that isn't completed starting yet. johne53 you might enjoy a freeware program called Startup Delayer which shows the exact load sequence and times for everything that goes on once logon is accomplished. I've used it in the past to find slow startup programs, and in your case you might be able to see what ZTree isn't liking...

r2 Studios - Startup Delayer

When launched, look at Running Tasks tab and the Start Time column far right.

 

[johne53]

maxseven - thanks. I'll take a look at that.

logicearth - that article was really interesting. The slow apps aren't in fact in my startup group but as maxseven said, maybe they depend on something which is. Sounds like a very plausible explanation.