CPU constant 50% usage?

[dmvrtisjr]

For the last day and a half my comp has been at a constant 50% usage rate (at least) and the hard drive is constantly being accessed even while in idle not doing anything. I've run virus scans and spyware scans and both turned out clean. I've also eliminated processes one by one, and it still does the same. Because of this the sound is also real choppy while playing music. Anybody know anything about this kinda behavior?

 

[Vigilante]

Well first off, did you open Task Manager and look at the CPU column? If you click the column header a couple times, it will sort the list of processes by most cpu usage. Then you can see which process is using the most.

Next click the Performance tab. In the "Physical Memory" box at the bottom, what is the value of "Total"? And in the Commit Charge" box, what is the value of "Total"?

Next you might want to post a Hijackthis log as an attachment.

Let us know what you find.

 

[dmvrtisjr]

I tried

Thanks for the response. I had already tried looking at the CPU and Memory fields. The CPU column said that none of the programs were using more than 5 percent of the CPU power.

 

[Liquidlen]

Take a look at your page file settings, then post them.
But do a full backup of you system and data. Sometimes a failing HDD will thrash about and make alot/different noise.

 

[Vigilante]

Reset the swap file, as mentioned.
You could turn off Auto updates in case it is trying to install something big like SP2 int he background or something
You could turn off system restore as it might be recording stuff willy nilly
You could check your scheduled tasks in case something got put in there to run like every 5 seconds.

You can also try disabling some drivers temporarily, as corrupt drivers can chew resources and you won't see any process in the CPU column.

Clean your startups and make sure you don't have any unneeded aps running.
And post the HJT log if you get a chance.

 

[Mictlantecuhtli]

Thanks for the response. I had already tried looking at the CPU and Memory fields. The CPU column said that none of the programs were using more than 5 percent of the CPU power.

I have a feeling that if you check the CPU usage with Process Explorer, you'll see different results, because (one of) your hardware devices might be having IRQ problems.

 

[TimMc]

I had this problem and found a cure

Along with others, I found that updating the LAN/NIC driver for my integrated network chip on the motherboard fixed the problem. It could be worth trying. Tim Mc

 

[gmuser2006]

I have a feeling that if you check the CPU usage with Process Explorer, you'll see different results, because (one of) your hardware devices might be having IRQ problems.

I had a similiar problem with a PC. When I looked in Task Manager it showed nothing taking up the Proc usage. So I downloaded Process Explorer and it showed the Hardware Interrupts was taking 50% of the Proc. I was able to go from there and determined that the HDD was failing.

I would definitely download Process Explorer and see what it is telling you.