[Nuke209]

Wierd, very wierd
My dads computer (512mb AMD 1600+ 20GBHD, blah blah, it's fast enough for xp) has been very slow lately, even after a fresh format

Worked great until last week

Windows will boot, you'll see the bar loading, bout 4 bars, then after that, black screen, but hd loads every other few seconds, then about a minute or 2 after that, the mouse cursor shows but black screen, about 3-4 minutes after that, welcome screen, then about 5 minutes after welcome screen, it'll boot normally
Programs dont load slow or nothing, everything runs great but booting...is the problem

HELP

[PangingJr]

try running chkdsk, and then run defrag on all volumes.

if the system Virtual Memeory settings is set to use the System managed option, then try changing to Custom size settings.

try troubleshooting using the Msconfig, type Msconfig in Strat/Run...

try disabling all startup items and reboot the PC,
see if this helps speeding up the boot process.

if that does not helps, then, try move the dot from Normal Startup to Diagnostic Startup, and reboot the PC. and see if this helps. note-- This method temporarily disables Microsoft services (for example, Networking, Plug and Play, Event Logging, and Error Reporting) and permanently deletes all restore points for the System Restore utility. Do not do this if you want to retain your restore points for System Restore or need to use a Microsoft service to test a problem. Before you begin a troubleshooting session, you can use the System Configuration utility to initiate a System Restore operation. To do this, click the General tab, and then click Launch System Restore. You can then create a restore point that you can use to restore your computer to a previous state.

[Nuke209]

Defragging made it like, two minute faster, lol

Virtual Memory, didn't try yet...but will in a bit

Any more tips?

[e v o]

why not try dh tunexp. There are definately a few options that will help you speed up your boot time. If you dont understand, go to help > documentation, itll tell what everything does.

Also check msconfig, check the startup items, uncheck the ones you dont want. Also go to the services tab and select the hid all microsoft items. Uncheck the services you dont want. There tends to be antivirus services, and others, be careful what u disable.

Make sure you're spyware free and virus free

Get spywareblaster, ad-aware se 1.05, and spybot. All free. I've heard giant spyware is good. I also use spysweeper but its not free. The MS antispyware has problems and i dont recommend it.

Virus. AVG is free. it's very good.

Others are Bitdefender, Norton, Kapersky,

[Tipstaff]

Everybody that has posted have made some great suggestions, but I think I should ask the obvious one: did you remember to install the chipset drivers? I'm not sure about what laptop you have, but I would check the manufacturers website for updated drivers. Also, when you did a fresh install, did you delete the partition first, then reinstalled, or did XP delete the Windows directory only, and then installed? It's best to completely redo the hard drive, and that means deleting the partition itself, then letting Windows install as normal (which will recreate the partition). It could be that there are errors in the partition or the drive itself (as Ctrl mentioned), or there are remanents of the old OS and it's apps still hanging around.

Last more suggetion: double check the boot order in your bios. Now that you have reinstalled the OS it's a good idea to change the boot order back to IDE first, the CD/DVD-Rom, and eliminate any other listings such as booting to a network, or booting to a USB device.

-Tip

[Nuke209]

done done done, spyware free for sure, after fresh install still does that, no net or nothing
tried just booting XP with a few services
did install chipset driver

the drive is split, another part of the partition, but used as storage
Boot order is just IDE HD

[PangingJr]

Windows XP Boot Activity Summary

1. Disk time is the time to enumerate all the devices in the non-page able device path. This is everything from the CPU to the boot disk drive. Typical disk time in Windows XP is 2 seconds.

2. Driver time is the time to initialize devices.

3. Prefetching time is the time spent reading pages in from disk used later as devices initialize, and Winlogon, services, the shell, and other applications start during boot.

4. Registry+Page file is time spent to read the registry and initialize the page file.

5. Video is the time spent as the display mode is set for the final resolution and refresh rate. Video driver and Video BIOS affect this time.

6. Logon+Services and Shell are the times to start Winlogon, services, the shell, and so on. This is mostly the operating system. However, value added components such as anti-virus software can effect this time.

it seems that the problem is at #6 (as clearly described on your initial post), and next would be #5, and might be from #4 and 3.

log on to Windows, reset all Windows service to default first (services can be tweaked after you can locate the caused of this problem),
then, go to \WINDOWS\Prefetch and delete ever files in there (don't delete the Prefetch folder) this may help if the NTOSBOOT-xxxxxxxx.pf is corrupted.
then, reset the system paging file as i mentioned above.
and reboot, see if this helps, or any better ?

then, try the Msconfig, and see if the #6 is actually the cause of this problem.

[The_Neon_Cowboy]

Originally Posted by Ctrl-Alt-Del

it seems that the problem is at #6 (as clearly described on your initial post), and next would be #5, and might be from #4 and 3.

log on to Windows, reset all Windows service to default first (services can be tweaked after you can locate the caused of this problem),
then, go to \WINDOWS\Prefetch and delete ever files in there (don't delete the Prefetch folder) this may help if the NTOSBOOT-xxxxxxxx.pf is corrupted.
then, reset the system paging file as i mentioned above.
and reboot, see if this helps, or any better ?

then, try the Msconfig, and see if the #6 is actually the cause of this problem.

#1 one is an easy way to do it:


#1
Goto start, then run type: CMD and hit enter a dos like box will open
Type:

DEL C:\windows\prefetch\*.*

hit enter, select yes

#2
another is to clear out the system file protection cache in the same dos like
console window type:

SFC /PURGECACHE

close the dos window when it's done working!....

#3
on your desktop click open my computer, select and right click your hard drive, properties, uncheck "allow indexing service...." , click apply... if when prompet select "ignore all"

close the window when it's done....

#4 clean up alot of old restore points
goto : Start Programs\Accessories\System Tools\Disk Cleanup

choose more options, under system restor choose cleanup,


#5 clear you IE cache


#6 defrag the hardrive, yes even if you've done recently so you need to do it again

#7 carefull on this one.....
goto start, run, type msconfig:

DO NOT EDIT ANYTHING THERE

click startup... look at the programs that are starting... it will also show if the program is starteing from a place in the registry and where or in the start up folder

remove any uneeded programs you absoultly sure that don't need to load on start up, by removeing it from you start up folder on the start menu, or by removeing the registry key for it useing regedit

Reboot and enjoy

[Nuke209]

well, thanks for the help

it's booting normal again (FOR NOW???)

and i tried most of neon's tips

I was wondering about #6, the winlogon and antivirus, I'mma say it's that one, how do I fix that one?

[PangingJr]

if the boot time is normal now, you don't have to do the Msconfig that i mentioned above for now. you may want to provide more info if you like to improve the boot time.

Factors Effecting Boot Time

The biggest influencers in achieving a fast boot time are to have enough RAM and a fast disk drive.
1. In order to prefetch, there needs to be sufficient RAM to prefetch into. 64 MB systems will suffer due to insufficient RAM reducing Windows XP’s prefetching benefits. 128 MB is a much better scenario. More than 128 MB helps performance overall but boot performance gains are minimal after 128 MB.

2. Although prefetching helps, the operating system image has to move from the disk to memory. The faster the bits come off the heads of the disk drive and into memory, the faster boot will be. Moving from a 5400 RPM disk to a 7200 RPM disk can save several seconds in boot time. Larger buffers on disk drives can also help.

Note: When comparing disk speeds, make sure to compare disks with the same number of platters for a direct comparison of spindle speed effects.

3. CPU performance has little effect in the first half of boot but does help in the Winlogon phase of boot if the CPU is faster. CPU is often at 100% utilization in this portion of boot.

4. Use the Bootvis.exe tool if your hand timings seem to be too long. Bootvis.exe will expose areas that warrant deeper investigation. Most commonly these are in device drivers.

5. Value added software can also slow boot. Bootvis.exe will show you the start of these processes, the CPU load, the disk I/O’s caused by them. Evaluate the software you bundle for good boot time.

Note: The Windows XP prefetcher stops monitoring boot 10secs after the start of the explorer process so the software you add to boot is likely to be loaded faster due to prefetching.

google for MS Bootvis 1.3.37.0, then setup the program if needed, and run Trace on next boot for 2-3 times, set the Trace Repetiitons to restart automatically after tracing. then run the Bootvis's Optimize System, and post the info or post pics like these two... then i'd look into it and see if any problem still existing...