W7 is unbelievably slow at times. Others have this problem? Solutions?

[zippypong]

No exaggeration... click to open trash & it may take 7-10 seconds. Click to close a program & it may take 5-7 seconds. Using Windows Explorer, click on a directory & it may take 30-60 seconds before the files are displayed. Sometimes the response is quick like XP was but more often it's slow.
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A possibly related phenomenon is the very frequent "graying out" of a window and a dialogue box saying "Program is unresponsive" when the program is busy calculating or printing.
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For the record I'm using Excel, Word, Access and Quickbooks primarily for my small business.
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Thanksin advance for any helpful insights provided.

 

[ajmich]

How much RAM do you have? Are you noticing a lot of hard drive activity (thrashing, constantly accessing)? If so, check the Task Manager as there may be a "background" app that is hogging resources. On the Processes tab, click the CPU column to sort with the larger numbers at top. Normally, System Idle Process is at or near 99%... see what may be running directly below that. If you recognize the program and it's something you do not need, open the program and locate it's settings to see if you can STOP it from loading when Windows starts.

 

[Layback Bear]

zippypong welcome to the Forum.
Please go to in your post (My System Specs) and fill in completely your system specs. It will help us help you.

 

[indianacarnie]

As Layback Bear said, some system spec.'s would go a long way in helping to solve your problem.

No, what you're describing isn't normal. I tend to agree with ajmich about RAM based on the very limited information you've provided.

We have some very useful tutorials here at Sevenforums, written by some very knowledgeable people, here's one that may help. (Just click on the link (blue) ) : http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/11728-optimize-windows-7-a.html

Additionally, you could/should run a malware scan with Malwarebytes and an Anti-virus program if you haven't already.

Again, some system spec.'s would do wonders to help us help you. Welcome to the forums by the way!

 

[lehnerus2000]

Hardware Checked?

It could also be hardware related.

You might need to check that your:

• RAM is properly seated in its sockets.
• HDD/SSD cables are properly connected

If you are going to play around with your PC's internal components, remember to turn the power off and to take anti-static precautions.

Don't forget to check your Power Supply connections too.

 

[gregrocker]

Work through these Troubleshooting Steps for Windows 7.

Win7 should never hang or bog with a perfect install on adequate hardware. Check your specs against the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor then test your hardware, compare your install to the steps given here for a Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7 as you may need a better install.

 

[zippypong]

My system info

zippypong welcome to the Forum.
Please go to in your post (My System Specs) and fill in completely your system specs. It will help us help you.

Hi,
Thanks for the responses. I added quite a bit of system details and was surprised to find I only had 3.0GB of RAM. By today's standards that's a bit skimpy. Maybe that's a good place to start.

 

[SIW2]

It shouldn't be the problem.

This machine has 2gb. Works well with win7 x64.

 

[ajmich]

Agree with SIW2, as my sister's 2gb system runs Win7 just fine. Have you checked the Task Manager. And as indianacarnie pointed out, would be wise to scan for malware/viruses.

 

[nilank]

No exaggeration... click to open trash & it may take 7-10 seconds. Click to close a program & it may take 5-7 seconds. Using Windows Explorer, click on a directory & it may take 30-60 seconds before the files are displayed. Sometimes the response is quick like XP was but more often it's slow.
-+-
A possibly related phenomenon is the very frequent "graying out" of a window and a dialogue box saying "Program is unresponsive" when the program is busy calculating or printing.
-+-
For the record I'm using Excel, Word, Access and Quickbooks primarily for my small business.
-+-
Thanksin advance for any helpful insights provided.

What anti virus do you use? All these seem to be the result of an anti virus.

"Click to close a program & it may take 5-7 seconds." -> Maybe the AV is scanning the memory and the program's exes and dlls while you open/close it. That does take time on low end machines. I'm quite experienced.

"Using Windows Explorer, click on a directory & it may take 30-60 seconds before the files are displayed." -> This usually happens when your AV scans each and every file when you browse into a folder. Icons won't appear until they are scanned. This feature of the AV is called real-time protection.

Also, enabling folder thumbnails in Windows 7 file explorer can cause slow downs coz Windows scans the entire folder contents before it can generate an appropriate thumbnail for it. This takes time usually for large folders.

Also, if you GPU is weak, the file explorer will seem to be quite laggy in Windows 7. This problem can be solved by downloading this tool (see here first) and installing it. Run the tool and tick the third option ONLY and see the change. Browsing through explorer will be a LOT smoother. The effect can only be seen on ultra low end machines like I have.

Hope this helps.

 

[indianacarnie]

Not quite sure I would download anything else just yet zippypong. Theres plenty of other options to try/check out first. In particular malware/anti-virus scans and the troubleshooting steps Gregrocker linked to.