Well, here it is 7 years later and I am having (almost word for word) the same issues. While I still have not found a remedy to this problem, I would like to point out something Petey7 mentioned in the reply; in today's "Microsoft" universe, having Windows Update turned off isn't such a scary proposition after all. Just like datsevenkid, I went through three agonizing installs of Windows 7. Naturally, because of the considerable time since the release of 7 and my particular install date, I was faced with over 190 updates that Microsoft deemed necessary. The easiest way to accomplish this is to have updates turned on and automatic - and I did. I knew it would take awhile to complete, so off I went to do more important tasks; you know, like just kill time. I was not about to sit and watch this long process unfold. I came back to it about 4 hours later, but it seemed to still be at it (not exact on this, but I want to say 109 of 193 completed...) so I decided another hour and a half would probably do it, and I went back to the TV.
Upon returning, the numbers hadn't changed. It was dead. I know this, because I went to bed after that, only to wake up to the same numbers. Long story short, I went the "reset" route. Although my only option at the time, I knew it would (possibly) introduce more problems. After much drilling-down with online troubleshooting and research (on an old iPod4) I eventually was met with a BSOD: PAGED_FILE_IN_NON_PAGED_AREA. Got that to go away, but now "Bad Patch" replaced it. Okay, so my point of this - very long post, is that Microsoft simply cannot be trusted to know what your computer does, or does not need! Moreover, they could care less if you suddenly come home, some Tuesday and find your computer won't boot! You've done what they say (or, rather, recommended) and yet, there you are. Who knows how much down-time, until it's back up and running? I'll tell you who doesn't know: Microsoft.
Now, I'm not saying updates should be ignored. No, no, no! (Well, afaic - it's appalling to think they would release a product, that's going to require literally hundreds of security updates, in just a few short years!) I will try and find the link to the update solution, that worked for me and edit this post to include it. It's from a Microsoft Tech Net forum. Updates are a way of life, for anyone who uses their software and/or OS's; so, really, most of the world. It boils down to that very thing - Microsoft knows that they are the only game in town, so they absolutely are not interested in pleasing their customer base with a product that works right out of the box. Sure, there are a lot of kooks out there, who live only to make Microsoft users miserable. I get that. But with the resources they already have, along with the right people... I know. Stockholders typically don't want to concern themselves with the end-user. Yes. In a perfect world... Again, this is just my opinion. Anyway, once I was able to manually download and install all of the 193 updates I needed, things began to look up. Thing was, I was on my third "Delete OS Partition->Format->Re-install" marathon. If I was to get through this and (theoretically) eliminate the update(s) that were responsible, well I would have to do them one-at-a-time! Microsoft has gone out of their way, however, to make this as unpleasant as humanly possible; not to mention, time consuming.
So, I no longer have Windows (or Microsoft) Updates set to automatically download and install. In fact, I have them turned off completely. When I check for updates, I then turn back on Windows Updates; only I select the "I'll do this myself, thank you" option. Then I disable it, once I'm done. It's a pain, I know, but I'm all caught up - update wise, albeit months after I set out to transition from Vista to 7! The caveat here is to be vigilant, where Updates are concerned. You will need to check for them manually, on Tuesdays, and decide from there. If there is more than one - and there usually is - then do them one at a time; so as to isolate the update that would cause a catastrophic problem on your machine. Oh, and of course, this all becomes moot if you have no malware protection in place - some sort of internet security, complemented with Malwarebytes, is a good idea. Pete7's suggestion is also not bad. Microsoft has done a pretty good job, with Security Essentials. It's FREE - go figure! It's up to you.
Finally, as to the rundll32.exe thing; I tried the GamesExplorer method, but it did nothing to stop this mega-frustrating problem. Although, once I read between the lines as to what GE does, and why - I'm glad to be rid of it! On my machine, it runs amuck in games (although, not nearly as often sans GE) programs and even when sitting idle. As a matter of fact, while I was typing this reply, it struck. I couldn't type or do anything, except move my mouse cursor, and that was extremely laggy! I've used Sysinternals' ProcessMonitor program, to try and pinpoint the app that is setting this off, with no luck. Each time, though, I've seen THOUSANDS of rundll32.exe opening up dll's. Both my RAM and CPU are maxed, as well as the Pagefile.sys; so my system is brought to its knees. When it is back to normal, what would usually be about 26% RAM usage, now drops to around 13 or 14%. Odd. I'm still trying to find a way to be rid of this, once and for all. Maybe there is no cure, I don't know.
I think that's about it. Petey7, I meant no disrespect, as you were on the right track with this. Thanks, to all, for this great community, and for reading this far!
Sean.
Quote