exessive memory usage

[urbanspaceman1]

PS I followed Brink's Clean Start-Up earlier in the week. The trouble is, this issue only occurs occasionally and never re-occurs after a re-start.

 

[Layback Bear]

Notice my post #2.
I have very little checked.
I do (zero) auto updates. One never knows what they are adding and how often they check for updates.
I have Microsoft Services at the default settings. Windows 7 know when to use it services and how.
Programs I use as needed are not checked.
----------------------------------------------

Example:
If one has Office I would have it unchecked in Startup. When and or if I want to use Office, I just tick on the icon or program. When done I close Office.
---------------------------------------------

Your picture in post #20 looks normal for all the things that are loading on boot.
Removing some of the unnecessary things from Startup and NON-Microsoft Services will help.

Jack

 

[urbanspaceman1]

What I still don't understand is: taking AMD External Events Utility as an example, it was set to Manual in my Local Services list but was ticked (but stopped) in the Config Services list. How can two Services readouts show different things? As I said, because I had it set to manual, and because it was stopped, I had to assume it was inactive. However, am I reading you correctly when you say that it was not disabled in the Config list and consequently was loading, or sometimes loading, at Start-up?

 

[Layback Bear]

I don't know if it is running.
What I know is I do not changes things in Service. Your post #8.
I just uncheck them in msconfig/Services.
I'm not sure if those programs will work at all if they are disabled.
msconfig/services (unchecked) allows me to tick on 'said program' and use it as I please.

Do you have a backup or restore point before you changed all those Services?

Note: Your memory usage is not that unusual. Your used ram in 2520 mb, 30 % of 8 gb.
My system is using 13% of 16 gb of ram.

Jack

 

[urbanspaceman1]

I got a little script off Brink many years back that automatically generates a Restore Point on boot up.
None of the things I unchecked were needed... ever, as far as I am aware. easy enough to re-check them should a surprise occur.
Also, I was directed to a Black Viper - again, many years ago - who supplied a Services check-list for Safe, Tweaked or Bare-Bones configuration. I have used his Tweaked setting since then except for the odd occasion when I noticed something creep in that needed configuring. as I said, I thought I had Services firmly under control.
I have to say, W7 has been a pleasure to work with all these years but very often only because of this forum's help. I am always much obliged to you folks.
Let's see if my memory problem has gone; it must have done by now.
BTW. I still don't know where the Driver Update is in WU.
Am I definitely better-off using Download, Ask to install, rather than Notify?

 

[urbanspaceman1]

Trouble again.





I just booted up and found memory usage at 70%.
I took a screenshot of the Resource Monitor then did a restart and it was back to its normal 21% so I took another screenshot.
Maybe there are other references beyond Resource Monitor: I have a program called Process Hacker but it never shows anything different to Resource Monitor.
Can anyone see anything in these two screenshots that might account for 50% on my memory being used by something?
Alternatively, is there anything else I can use to search for it?

 

[ThrashZone]

Hi,
Interesting you have a large memory "Standby" and not a larger "Free" reading in post #20.
Use task manager and performance section to see how many processes are running
I currently show 55 pretty low.

 

[urbanspaceman1]

Latest reboot

"Interesting you have a large memory "Standby" and not a larger "Free" reading in post #20."

I don't understand the significance of that I'm afraid; but it does, on the surface, appear odd.
Here's what Performance looks like at present with a typical memory usage of 27% and a typical c.49 processes running.
I will check this again when it next boots with memory gobbled up.

 

[ThrashZone]

Hi,
49 processes isn't bad I was expecting 149
Recorder.exe has possibilities to use resources
Might be like photo shop in it's setting to use a default amount of ram.... ?

 

[urbanspaceman1]

recorder

It's a program called Ice Cream Screen Recorder and it's only running because I am using it to take screen-shots.
It's a great little facility that works very well with video too.
As I said earlier, I have my system well pared-down and under control (I thought) although I'm still mystified by the two 'Services' displays i.e. the one in Administrative Tools and the one in Config showing different settings. I've always used the former and ignored the latter, so I didn't realise there was a potential for some services to load automatically even though they were set to manual in the former Services. They are disabled now anyway so it isn't those that are to blame.

 

[urbanspaceman1]

Just to remove a suspicion, I booted without my modem this morning and as luck (bad luck?) would have it I found 50% of my memory in use instead of the regular 21 - 24%.
I took these screenshots because I can't see anything accounting for this extra memory usage (regular usage screenshot is my post # 26) and I am hoping someone else can.

 

[urbanspaceman1]

The problem continues, and if anything, it seems to be getting worse, but it appears to have lost everyone's attention. Does anyone know where I can look to see what is using a huge chunk of my memory? When my entire system - in standby - consumes just 23% average, anything that gobbles up another 23 +% should surely be visible on the Resources Monitor page, yet there is nothing there; so where can I look to find it? Any suggestions will be, as always, gratefully received.

 

[Layback Bear]

Looking at your other pictures your memory at times is normal and according to your written post your memory usages is high at times.

I'm thinking that this could be cause by a program that starts at boot.
You could use this tutorial by Brink to try and find which program.

Troubleshoot Application Conflicts by Performing a Clean Startup - Windows 7 Help Forums

You could also check and see if their are programs that checks for updates or scans on some sort of schedule.
Automatic anything uses memory.

Please Note:
Because of my health problems at this time, their will be times I can't get back to you as fast as I would like to.

Jack

 

[urbanspaceman1]

Hello Jack. Sorry to hear of health problems. There's no urgency with this, it's been around for a couple of weeks and, other than doing a re-start, which always fixes it, it is not a major inconvenience. Now I know about your impediment I'll simply wait till it's convenient for you to respond.
I did try Brink's Clean Boot routine last week but the trouble is, a re-start is always remedied anyway so it tells me nothing. Certainly when I did perform the clean boot it showed nothing because the memory hog was not active.
I've looked at everything auto-loading and apart from one new piece of software (Breakaway) everything else has prohibited automatic updates. I've disabled Breakaway as an auto-start, even though it is actually intended to auto-start (it's a sound compression/shaping software that helps me with my deafness) and I'll see if the problem still occurs; thank-you.
Is there not a way of looking at what is loaded into memory other than Resource Monitor?

 

[Layback Bear]

Their is a program that many members recommend but I don't remember which one it is.

Jack

 

[urbanspaceman1]

Maybe someone can help out here.

 

[LMiller7]

The problem is the Nonpaged kernel memory which at 2303 MB is many times a reasonable value. Typically it will be less than the Paged kernel memory which seems reasonable. Usually this is caused by a device driver, not likely a process. Sorry I cannot provide further help. I know this can be difficult to diagnose.

 

[urbanspaceman1]

Apparently I should be using poolmon to explore non paged memory but it seems that it was only made available for XP and earlier; is this right?
Equally important: does anyone know if it would do the job for me?

 

[urbanspaceman1]

Scrub that last statement: I miss-read the article. Poolmon is included in Windows Driver Kit.
God knows if I will be able to use it.
I see what you are talking about LMiller regarding non-paged memory: it is obviously where my problem resides.

 

[urbanspaceman1]

After a week of trial and error and many dead-ends, I discovered that the culprit is an audio processing program I installed right around the time my problem started. It had an auto-start tick, and once I disabled that, the problem disappeared; although I've waited a couple of days to be certain.
It compresses audio, so it is valuable to me, suffering as I do, with hearing issues. So now I start it when I need it; end of story.
Thank-you LMiller for pointing out the 'non-paged-memory' giveaway; and thank-you, as always, to all you folks who helped me out yet again - especially Jack the Layback Bear: I do hope you are mending.