constant high physical memory usage

[zuth]

hello everybody
im having a really nasty problem here
a few days ago i started experiencing slowdowns and sluggishness on my PC
even when nothing too resource hungry running
then i experienced a few crashes, in situations where there wasnt an apparent reason
so i checked resource monitor and was horrified to find my memory usage around 90%
and constant, with no processes running except the ones that start with windows

dont know if it has anything to do with this, but shortly before this problem started i had trouble with booting my PC from my system HD after installing a new HD
i got help in this forum and solved my problem
here is the thread if it has any connection
http://www.sevenforums.com/installation-setup/164513-change-system-hard-drive.html
although the problem didnt start right away after this, i cant think of anything else that changed

i would appreciate any help coming before my PC explodes
here's a screenshot of my Resource monitor and my processes in task manager

 

[SmurofNeves]

Have you had a look at startup & background services.?

 

[zuth]

do you mean the 'services' tab in task manager?

 

[Hopalong X]

In your right Snip of Task Manager you will see in bottom left corner "Show processes from all users". Click it in Task Manager and post a Snip please.

You can post Services tab in TM also that might help.

Mike


Also 2GB of RAM is minimum to run Win 7 64bit. That is part of the reason usage is high.

There could be other high usage items also that may not be needed to run all the time.

 

[zuth]

here is screenshots of both processes (all users) and services tabs


edit - im aware 2GB is minimum, but iv managed with it just fine for a long time until now

 

[Hopalong X]

I do not see anything extreme or out of place in usage.

If you look at the Snip I posted of my ResMon I am also using almost 2000MB/ 2GB at an idle.

I have 8GB installed but that has no effect on idle usage. 64bit loves RAM.

Your Task Manager and ResMon all appear to be normal usage to me.

If possible I would consider adding more RAM in the future.
Up to 4GB total. This is often the limit if you are using a laptop.

Hope that answers some questions for you.
Others may also post with other suggestions also.

Mike

 

[zuth]

well, i cant be sure what was my memory usage before the slowdowns began
it might have been the same, but when i searched for reasons for the problem i couldnt find anything wrong aside from constant 90% memory usage, which seemed high to me
this slowdowns and crashes prevent me from using any software on my PC, opening TM while firefox is running almost crashed the system

so if anyone has an idea what is wrong here, id like to hear it

p.s - i believe reinstalling windows would solve this, but im in period where i would like to avoid it, and dont the have the time to start reinstalling all the stuff i need for my studies (im an animation student) and i need my PC running for at least a month before i can start taking care of it

 

[Pierre50]

Hello zuth,

I didn't see this info, so I will just ask - You have recently scanned your system in SAFE MODE and you are sure it's clean?

I prefer MalwareBytes for this... but what ever you use to scan be sure it's up to date, and run it in SAFE MODE.

Stealth Technology allows viruses to run and appear to be valid Windows files... SAFE MODE is the only way to be sure...

You didn't mention this, so I had to ask!

Let us know...

Patrick

 

[Hopalong X]

Try running Windows Disk Cleaner.
This will get rid of temp files which could slow things down. http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/818-disk-cleanup-open-use.html
Skip step 7 and 8.

It won't hurt and will help the system overall.

Pierre50 has a good point.
It won't hurt to eliminate malware as a problem.

Link for Malwarebytes if needed.
This button.
http://www.techspot.com/downloads/4716-malwarebytes-anti-malware.html

 

[zuth]

@Pierre50

hi did as you suggested, and it couldnt find any infections

@Hopalong X

did a cleanup too, cant hurt but i really believe the problem is much more serious than this

i really dont know whats wrong anymore

 

[SuperEmotastix]

If i were in your position zuth i'd prob be stumped too. I've seen machines run fine with 1GB of memory using Win7. but running ccleaner, defraggler, and a quick scan in malwarebytes in safe mode would be the first thing to try. What's your system hardware?, update you sytem specs under your profile, please? Some things you could try, go into msconfig and disable any startup program you don't need. From your processes tab i can see your using eset anti-virus, correct? Make sure it's not running any scans in the background as that could be spiking mem usage. Other than that, you could try running sfc /scannow in command prompt.

 

[cluberti]

@zuth, can you post another resmon screenshot, but this time sorted by "Working set"? I can see an svchost and ekrn.exe possibly as potential places to start looking into, but as to which (and if they're the only ones) is hard to say. You didn't sort the data by anything useful .

 

[Wishmaster]

Some of this may be due to programs starting and running with Windows.

Messengers etc ..

May want to look through Start up items, and disable things that are not needed. Then reboot.


With only 2GB of RAM, you would probably be better off with 32bit IMHO.