CPU running 100%

[wdc]

My desktop (with XP and Firefox Yahoo edition) frequently stalls. And when I go to Task Manager/Processes I see that my CPU is running at 100%. The major user is “Winword.exe” at 75-88%. So far as I know I never activated Winword.

a. What might have caused all that CPU consumption?
b. Is it safe (despite the MS warning) to right-click and delete WinWord.exe?
c. Is there some fix I should be making to avoid these situations?

Thanks. ...wdc

[Broni]

Download Process Explorer: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/s.../bb896653.aspx
Unzip ProcessExplorer.zip, and double click on procexp.exe to run the program.
Click on View > Select Colunms.
In addition to already pre-selected options, make sure, the Command Line is selected, and press OK.
Go File>Save As, and save the report as Procexp.txt.
Attach the file to your next reply.

[wdc]

Broni: Per your advice, attached is my procexp.txt. I'll be glad to get your analysis. ... wdcAttachment 11375

[Broni]

I can't see "winword" running and System Idle Process (CPU NOT used) is listed at 84.62% so I don't see any high CPU usage.

[SpywareDr]

Procexp.txt
...
cltmng.exe 14,768 K 21,836 K 3736 Search Protect by Conduit Conduit "C:\Documents and Settings\AKS\Application Data\SearchProtect\bin\cltmng.exe"

Personally, I would Remove Conduit Toolbar and search.conduit.com (Uninstall Guide)

[wdc]

Broni: I can’t explain why the Winword app (that I previously saw as the CPU-devouring app) is no longer there.

Never-the-less the responsiveness of my system has gotten worse and worse. Today I clicked PRINT to print a certain PDF document; I got the single page printout but only after waiting a full 5 minutes!)

Moving from one URL to another sometimes works smoothly but other times is almost impossible, When I check FileManager (when things are very slow) I see, once again, that CP usage is 100% ... even though I see no process consuming anything more than 5%. !!

FWIW ... I think the problem is not with Comcast (my ISP) or Firefox or with my router because the performance of my iPod is fine. Also, I have checked for viruses and i am clean.

Of course, I welcome suggestions.

Doc: I tried removing Conduit software per your reference. But after clicking Start/CP/ Add and Remove I scanned the list of programs but could not find anything with “Conduit.”

I am trying to follow the Remove instructions in the attachment you cited but I find that quite difficult. I will try again.

Thanks for your help.

[Broni]

You may have some hardware issue.

Run hard drive diagnostics: http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/foru...ost__p__160520
Make sure, you select tool, which is appropriate for the brand of your hard drive.
Depending on the program, it'll create bootable floppy, or bootable CD.
If downloaded file is of .iso type, use ImgBurn: http://www.imgburn.com/ to burn .iso file to a CD (select "Write image file to disc" option), and make the CD bootable.
For Toshiba hard drives, see here: http://storage.toshiba.com/storage-s...ies#diagnostic

Note : If you do not know how to set your computer to boot from CD follow the steps here

==============================

A. If you have more than one RAM module installed, try starting computer with one RAM stick at a time.

NOTE Keep in mind, the manual check listed above is always superior to the software check, listed below. DO NOT proceed with memtest, if you can go with option A

B. If you have only one RAM stick installed...
...run memtest...

1. Download - Pre-Compiled Bootable ISO (.zip)
2. Unzip downloaded memtest86+-....iso.zip file.
3. Inside, you'll find memtest86+-....iso file.
4. Download, and install ImgBurn: http://www.imgburn.com/
5. Insert blank CD into your CD drive.
6. Open ImgBurn, and click on Write image file to disc
7. Click on Browse for a file... icon:



8. Locate memtest86+-....iso file, and click Open button.
9. Click on ImgBurn green arrow to start burning bootable memtest86 CD:



10. Once the CD is created, boot from it, and memtest will automatically start to run.

The running program will look something like this depending on the size and number of ram modules installed:




It's recommended to run 5-6 passes. Each pass contains very same 8 tests.

This will show the progress of the test. It can take a while. Be patient, or leave it running overnight.



The following image is the test results area:



The most important item here is the “errors” line. If you see ANY errors, even one, most likely, you have bad RAM.

[SpywareDr]

Doc: I tried removing Conduit software per your reference. But after clicking Start/CP/ Add and Remove I scanned the list of programs but could not find anything with “Conduit.”

I am trying to follow the Remove instructions in the attachment you cited but I find that quite difficult. I will try again.

Thanks for your help.

You're welcome. Here's another page with more Methods to Remove Conduit.