Solved Computer slow...hardware...what are my options?

[vitaminn]

Hello, I have a clean (recent new install of windows with few programs) on a Lenova desktop.

The computer is just slow if I put too much of a load on it...which I tend to do.

It seems the CPU is high and RAM is near its limits often.

Question is: would be best to simply buy a computer that is able to handle more, OR, is it relatively feasible and cost beneficial to upgrade the hardware of this computer to perform at a higher level?

I would like the computer to handle two, maybe 3 monitors...at present, it handles 1.

I understand what drives up CPU usage, but what is it that a computer needs to handle more? Is that RAM? or the processor orrrr?

Thanks in advance. P.S. I'm not a gamer if that makes a difference? //

 

[gregrocker]

Establish a Clean Boot, test the hardware, check the logs for repeat errors to resolve, utilize the other System Resources to solve problems found using the Troubleshooting Steps for Windows 7.

Once the freeloaders are all turned off at Startup, logs and hardware cleared, then the Resource monitor readings become meaningful and are also traceable using that step in tutorial.

I see you have only 2gb RAM on an Athlon x2 processor. I have a PC running these same specs that runs Win7 fast, but I would never install 64 bit Win7 on less than 4gb RAM.

So I would strongly consider starting over and this time follow the steps compiled in Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7 to get and keep a perfect install based on tens of thousands of them we've helped with here.

 

[bitoolean]

Yes, of course it makes a difference whether you are planning to play video games or not. Those usually need much better performance from pretty much all of the components of a computer. The screenshots you provided are how my PC looks when I stress it the hardest, and I have a weaker CPU than you do. So there must be something wrong with your system. I don't use an antivirus though, so that might be one explanation. But there's no way to tell if you don't offer any more information.

One thing I can see from the start is that Windows is 64-bit, which doesn't make any sense with 2GB of RAM. Are you planning to get more RAM or why choose a 64-bit? That's only necessary if you absolutely need to use 64-bit software or you have at least 4 GB of RAM. A 64-bit Windows system usually eats slightly more resources than a 32-bit, and won't provide any performance boost on a low-RAM computer.

I'd be able to tell you what the problem is if you provided me with a list of the most resource-consuming processes. You can find those in the "Processes" tab of Task Manager. We only need to know the ones that use the most CPU and RAM (which you can find out by sorting them - just click the headers of the respective columns), but if you provide me with the full list of processes I can also see if you're running two active antivirus software at the same time for example (which would be very bad for system stability and performance).

One common thing I notice with recently acquired computers (especially manufacturer ones such as DELL, or HP notebooks for example) is that they come bloated with manufacturer software supposedly meant to help make the system better, but actually a burden performance-wise. Those are applications that accompany device driver software for example and most people don't even know what they are and never get to use them anyway. Backup utilies, driver updaters... and in the wrong hands (people who don't know well what they're doing) they're even a threat.

 

[vitaminn]

Yes, of course it makes a difference whether you are planning to play video games or not. Those usually need much better performance from pretty much all of the components of a computer. The screenshots you provided are how my PC looks when I stress it the hardest, and I have a weaker CPU than you do. So there must be something wrong with your system. I don't use an antivirus though, so that might be one explanation. But there's no way to tell if you don't offer any more information.

One thing I can see from the start is that Windows is 64-bit, which doesn't make any sense with 2GB of RAM. Are you planning to get more RAM or why choose a 64-bit? That's only necessary if you absolutely need to use 64-bit software or you have at least 4 GB of RAM. A 64-bit Windows system usually eats slightly more resources than a 32-bit, and won't provide any performance boost on a low-RAM computer.

I'd be able to tell you what the problem is if you provided me with a list of the most resource-consuming processes. You can find those in the "Processes" tab of Task Manager. We only need to know the ones that use the most CPU and RAM (which you can find out by sorting them - just click the headers of the respective columns), but if you provide me with the full list of processes I can also see if you're running two active antivirus software at the same time for example (which would be very bad for system stability and performance).

One common thing I notice with recently acquired computers (especially manufacturer ones such as DELL, or HP notebooks for example) is that they come bloated with manufacturer software supposedly meant to help make the system better, but actually a burden performance-wise. Those are applications that accompany device driver software for example and most people don't even know what they are and never get to use them anyway. Backup utilies, driver updaters... and in the wrong hands (people who don't know well what they're doing) they're even a threat.

Thanks for the thorough response.

I use 64 bit because that's what came on the machine. It looks like I need s'more ram... easy fix.

I also don't run any antivirus software and when I put a fresh install of windows 7 on the machine, it killed all the excess bloatware.

The biggest hog of CPU is my security camera software that runs constantly. What does a computer need to handle more "processes"? Is that RAM?

Below is a snapshot of processes running:

 

[gregrocker]

Sorry if you'd rather deal only with the guy with 4 posts, just say so.

Such a security system that runs constantly should probably have its own Server.

You can also try running a browser with less demand and which doesn't spend a lot of resources spying on you like Chrome does. Any installed Google program is a spyware nest building ad profiles that track your every move and paste ads based on what you write in emails. I install no Google and stay signed out of their sites like Youtube.

Firefox which is open source is much lower resource and doesn't allow spying, even confines Google to a secure Search box. Internet Explorer is less pernicious.

I'd stll want to see how 32 bit runs on there up to 4gb RAM which may be all that your mobo can support. Many Athlon x2 can only support 2gb in which case 32 bit would be essential.

Otherwise I'd go over the install closely with the Troubleshooting Steps for Windows 7 that are almost always revealing.

 

[vitaminn]

Sorry if you'd rather deal only with the guy with 4 posts, just say so.

Such a security system that runs constantly should probably have its own Server.

You can also try running a browser with less demand and which doesn't spend a lot of resources spying on you like Chrome does. Any installed Google program is a spyware nest building ad profiles that track your every move and paste ads based on what you write in emails. I install no Google and stay signed out of their sites like Youtube.

Firefox which is open source is much lower resource and doesn't allow spying, even confines Google to a secure Search box. Internet Explorer is less pernicious.

I'd stll want to see how 32 bit runs on there up to 4gb RAM which may be all that your mobo can support. Many Athlon x2 can only support 2gb in which case 32 bit would be essential.

Otherwise I'd go over the install closely with the Troubleshooting Steps for Windows 7 that are almost always revealing.

"Sorry if you'd rather deal only with the guy with 4 posts?" Really Greg? I don't mean to pi$$ on your parade but that attitude kinda blows. And I have no question as to your knowledge in this area, but so far, you're speaking at collegiate level to a novice...

The security software maybe should indeed be put on its own server. But, if I would rather it not, is it possible to get this computer's hardware up to snuff? Or is that something thats not "fixable".

I use Google for business and trust them as much as I do the builders of Firefox. Sounds like you have it out for Google's browser. I use both Chrome and Firefox but Chrome almost exclusively.

Quickly changing from 64 to 32 bit system maybe a breeze to you but, to most its not. I'll consider your suggestion only if that's my last resort in keeping this computer...thanks.

"mobo" ?

 

[gregrocker]

Sorry it just seemed rude that you ignored my post without so much as acknowledging it and were so gracious to the guy who repeated one step I had already mentioned and is covered in my tutorial. However he was zeroing in on the right area as we saw.

Feel free to ask back any questions to clarify anything needed if you are confused.

mobo=motherboard

You can learn how much RAM your mobo can take by running Crucial System Scanner software to find out what type of memory is in your computer.

They also have competitive prices but you can search to compare by the Crucial part number and by highlighting the exact specs to rightclick to Search with Google (if Chrome can do that ) choose Shopping at the top, order by price and verify the specs are exact. Ask back with links if you are unsure.

The only hesitation is that its both your RAM and CPU that are peaking at the same time, so if you upgrade RAM much then the CPU will max out before the RAM does. I would still want to add a gig to see, or 2 gigs if it's economical and supports it.

It would be best to see if you can tame the Security software some. And I would still try 32 bit which has always given better performance on lower RAM PC's.

 

[bitoolean]

gregrocker I just made an account on this website. I'm not an expert, I'm just trying to lend a hand. The fact that I'm the new guy on this website doesn't affect the quality of my arguments... or are you just trying to make me look bad? I'm joking, you're obviously experienced but you gotta appreciate some competition. It's not bad for anyone But that was a kick under the belt hehe!

Talking about optimization, I use an optimized build of Firefox, it's called Pale Moon, but it's a resource hog due to the numerous extensions (add-ons) I've installed... Online benchmarks disprove that theory that one browser is a lot heavier than another on the machine, and that's especially true now that Firefox packs in its installer an auto-background-updater just like Chrome.

I also disagree that "many Athlon X2 only support 2 GB of RAM". Really? Have you looked into motherboards online? I had such a PC and it supported a lot more. Maybe you meant that many micro-ATX motherboards only support 2 RAM DIMMs, which would be an entirely different thing. I'm really curious where you get that information from.

Seeing as you are the senior forum user here, maybe you should have noticed that he's using a 64-bit OS on a 2 GB RAM machine, or maybe you think there's nothing wrong with that. Well, maybe not wrong, just plain... wrong...

I'm sorry if I seem up against you, I really am not. And I only look at this as a "competition" in the positive way.

Back to the subject, vitaminn: yes indeed it seems that what's upping your resource (RAM & CPU) usage is indeed the webcam security software (I'm not familiar with that process, so good thing you named it). Seeing as how much that software uses, I'd run it on a separate computer than the one I work on, unless that is it's main job of course (what I'm using it for). If you need to run it on the PC that you will be using, and since you were going to buy a better performing one anyway, I suggest you get one with several cores. The more, the better. So that the camera software runs on one core, and you do your jobs on other cores. Frequency is also important, but it comes second. RAM in these days is better to be at least 4 GB (that's a minimum), and will perform better anyway if it's at least two sticks of RAM working in tandem (dual channel). I'm not trying to discredit gregrocker and I'm not saying I'm an expert, and don't worry about the attitude, we are all humans...

 

[vitaminn]

Sorry it just seemed rude that you ignored my post without so much as acknowledging it and were so gracious to the guy who repeated one step I had already mentioned and is covered in my tutorial. However he was zeroing in on the right area as we saw.

Feel free to ask back any questions to clarify anything needed if you are confused.

mobo=motherboard

You can learn how much RAM your mobo can take by running Crucial System Scanner software to find out what type of memory is in your computer.

They also have competitive prices but you can search to compare by the Crucial part number and by highlighting the exact specs to rightclick to Search with Google (if Chrome can do that).

The only hesitation is that its both your RAM and CPU that are peaking at the same time, so if you upgrade RAM much then the CPU will max out before the RAM does. I would still want to add a gig to see, or 2 gigs if it's economical and supports it.

It would be best to see if you can tame the Security software some. And I would still try 32 bit which has always given better performance on lower RAM PC's.

No worries... and I appreciate your candid response. Thanks.

Ill spend some digesting what you suggest. I honestly thought that if a computer came as a 64 bit machine, it wasn't possible to change it to a 32 bit machine... newbie stuff I guess. :/

When I look at the event viewer, its def over my head. ha. Time to dig in or just cough up the $$ for something that can handle more.

Cheers.

 

[gregrocker]

Seeing as you are the senior forum user here, maybe you should have noticed that he's using a 64-bit OS on a 2 GB RAM machine, or maybe you think there's nothing wrong with that. Well, maybe not wrong, just plain... wrong...

Since I stressed repeatedly that 32 bit may perform better for him with 2gb RAM, I did notice it.

When in 2009 I upgraded my Athlon x2 2gb was its max. I don't know what they can handle now because I've not kept up with them. It doesn't matter because if he could upgrade to 8gb RAM able to use all of it @ 64bit then most would be wasted when the CPU pegged out as it's about ready to do now with 2gb.

You both have great attitudes so stick around to learn with us. Even the members here who are top experts in their field are still learning.

 

[margrave]

I've been in IT for 32 years ... and I have only 34 posts here in six months.

So how does the number of posts relate to a person's level of experience?

 

[bitoolean]

Since I stressed repeatedly that 32 bit may perform better for him with 2gb RAM, I did notice it.

When in 2009 I upgraded my Athlon x2 2gb was its max. I don't know what they can handle now because I've not kept up with them. It doesn't matter because if he could upgrade to 8gb RAM able to use all of it @ 64bit then most would be wasted when the CPU pegged out as it's about ready to do now with 2gb.

You both have great attitudes so stick around to learn with us. Even the members here who are top experts in their field are still learning.

Oh OK. I didn't really think there may have been 2GB-limited machines at the time the X2 came out. Maybe you're refering to the old AMD CPUs (the first dual-core ones, which were called Athlon 64 X2, which is not the same generation as vitaminn's CPU). I really was not looking to discredit you - that wouldn't make sense since you're obviously very knowledgeable, so I'm glad you understand too. Thanks for clarifying that I'm welcome here... I was starting to get worried. The website is great and provides a good opportunity for the community to gather. We are all here for the same purpose after all. Having said that, you did notice the fact that he's using 64-bit on 2GB RAM, but you noticed second to the now-double-the-four-posts guy haha .

I'm not sure I understand why you are looking in the event viewer - Windows has in-built performance counters and even a benchmark which tells you which component is lacking in terms of performance dragging it down for the rest of the components. But I thought the matter was settled when we concluded it would be best that such a complex software as a security camera one should run on a separate machine.

 

[vitaminn]

So the Athlon X2 is the CPU. Is that upgradable? Or might I just as well get a new computer with more cores....among other things such as RAM.

Is there an easy way to know if my motherboard supports more that 2 gigs of ram? i.e. micro-ATX motherboards.

And lastly just to be clear... I am able to put 32bit OS on this computer? haha.. sorry for the ignorance.

 

[bitoolean]

vitaminn: You need to check the CPU's socket (do that with a program such as Speccy) on the motherboard, then look for CPUs online that are supported on that socket. You can also find out with Speccy (there other programs, just search google for "system information software") the model of your motherboard and find out more information about it online, such as how much RAM you can install on it. I'm sure it is more than 2 GB, even if the motherboard is a smaller form-factor (size) such as microATX. If the motherboard supports it, your CPU supports it as well surely, you just may find that you need more CPU performance than RAM, like graig said (he said you may find that CPU is a bottleneck performance-wise even if you upgrade RAM - he was right about everything else that he said, I have to stress that because it may seem we were not in agreement). 2GB of RAM may not be enough anymore for your current PC, so 4 GB would make the experience more decent, but it would still be slow, with that camera software running on it. Every other advice on upgrading (replacing the current computer in fact) to a better machine, I have already given you.

Yes, we advise you to replace the Windows with a 32bit one indeed if you have less than 4 GB of RAM. Consider that an optimization. The right way to run a 2 GB RAM system. But I don't think it will be a massive improvement. Just a better way. If it is too complex to install that camera software though, it is not an urgent task at all - it may not worth the trouble (all software on the PC will need to be reinstalled).

 

[vitaminn]

Lots of great info. Thank you both for the quick replies and information.

Time to surf and decide!

 

[gregrocker]

Is there an easy way to know if my motherboard supports more that 2 gigs of ram? i.e. micro-ATX motherboards.

And lastly just to be clear... I am able to put 32bit OS on this computer? haha.. sorry for the ignorance.

I gave you how to check RAM capacity and slot availability earlier, short of looking at the mobo specs which are often hard to find on OEM's like Lenovo. Crucial System Scanner software to find out what type of memory is in your computer

Use the 32 bit download and tool to burn to DVD or Flash stick from Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7. Iff you follow those steps you'll get and keep a perfect install.

 

[bitoolean]

No worries. Ask away anything you're not clear on. Anything I can answer, I'm glad to provide it.

I see that the Athlon II X2 255 CPU that you have uses AM3 socket. But if your CPU socket (on the motherboard) is AM3+, then you have upgrade options that you can find on newegg for example (that a link will take you to AM3+ CPUs). Otherwise, your upgrade options are limited (the older CPUs, for AM3 socket, are out of the market it seems and anyway wouldn't provide much of an upgrade). I still repeat, if you need to do your job and the camera software need to run separately, than it is best if they're on different computers.

EDIT: And, it wouldn't hurt to check greg's tutorials. I've checked them out and they seem pretty useful indeed. I mean, they'd probably save us all some time. Such as where to find the performance counters I was talking about, which would help you find culprits for system slow-downs.

 

[Mellon Head]

@ vitaminn,

If you're thinking of upgrading the CPU, you should know that some OEM machines, like your Lenovo, might have the system locked to a particular type of processor. This means that you can't use a different processor in it because the BIOS doesn't support it. Some brands are apparently notorious for this, though I've never confirmed it myself.

You might be able to upgrade just fine, but check it out thoroughly. I'd hate for you to waste your money on a processor that your computer can't support.

 

[vitaminn]

Is there an easy way to know if my motherboard supports more that 2 gigs of ram? i.e. micro-ATX motherboards.

And lastly just to be clear... I am able to put 32bit OS on this computer? haha.. sorry for the ignorance.

I gave you how to check RAM capacity and slot availability earlier, short of looking at the mobo specs which are often hard to find on OEM's like Lenovo. Crucial System Scanner software to find out what type of memory is in your computer

Use the 32 bit download and tool to burn to DVD or Flash stick from Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7. Iff you follow those steps you'll get and keep a perfect install.

Just used your suggested tool.. thanks for link.

 

[vitaminn]

@ vitaminn,

If you're thinking of upgrading the CPU, you should know that some OEM machines, like your Lenovo, might have the system locked to a particular type of processor. This means that you can't use a different processor in it because the BIOS doesn't support it. Some brands are apparently notorious for this, though I've never confirmed it myself.

You might be able to upgrade just fine, but check it out thoroughly. I'd hate for you to waste your money on a processor that your computer can't support.

Oh SNAP! Thanks for that info!