Explorer excessive CPU usage

[chronostorm]

Hi everyone, I'm new to this place, so please excuse my noobness
(I hope this is in the right place)


Anyways, my problem is this.
Whenever I open up a folder that has video files in explorer, it ends up that explorer occupies 99 percent of my CPU capacity according to the task manager, and my computer slows to a crawl until I close explorer and start it up again. This happens almost every single time I open a folder with videos.

I'm not sure what specs to give to you on this, but my CPU is an Athlon 64 3000+, i have 1024 mb ram, a 6800 nu AGP, and am running Windows XP Service Pack 2.

If you could help, Thx very much!
If you need any more information about my computer to help me, please tell me what you need to know.

Thanks!

 

[Jam3s-Zer0]

This bug was fixed in SP2, so if you havn't got it, I suggest you get it.

If you want to fix it without SP2, try this:

Well windows seem to have a REALLY big problem when it comes to reading AVI files. It seems that when you click on an AVI file in explorer, it'll try to read the entire AVI file to determine the width,height, etc. of the AVI file (this is displayed in the Properties window). Now the problem with Windows is that if you have a broken/not fully downloaded AVI file that doesnt contain this info, Windows will scan the entire AVI file trying to figure out all these properties which in the process will probably cause 100% CPU usage and heavy memory usage.

To solve this problem all you have to do is the following:

1. Open up regedit
2. Goto HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.avi\shellex\PropertyHandler
3. Delete the "Default" value which should be "{87D62D94-71B3-4b9a-9489-5FE6850DC73E}"

Voila! Please not that this will no longer provide you with the windows properties displaying the AVI file information such as width, height, bitrate etc. But its a small price to pay for saving you resources.

NOTE: Please use caution when using regedit. Improper usage may cause windows to behave imcorrectly. Also, I cannot be held resposible. Backup your registry first.



More info here from Microsoft: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/822430

 

[chronostorm]

well, I have SP2 already, but I get the problem :[
would it be worth it to try anyways?


Thanks alot for your knowledge tho.

Does anyone else have any other methods of doing this?

Thanks

 

[Jam3s-Zer0]

Yes, check for that registry entry, if its there delete it but if not, find and delete:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{87D62D94-71B3-4b9a-9489-5FE6850DC73E}\InProcServer32

This should solve your problem.

 

[crickmail.cet57]

Hi there,

I'm assuming your computer has only recently started consuming 99% of your CPU, therefore can probably disregard the issue as diagnosed by James_Zero.

High CPU usage is a very common side-effect of some sort of malware infection, therefore a scanning of your computer with a decent AV/AS scanner, and then if this doesn't work - perhaps a visit to the HiJackThis forum will be required.

Personally I always recommend downloading the Free Trial of Prevx1. I've been using this for about a year now and regularly use it as my first form of attack and usually halts the need to resort to other scans or HiJackThis logs. They offer a free trial, which not only will scan your computer, but remove all infections free of charge during this period.

http://www.prevx.com

 

[baronvongogo]

high CPU usage can be caused by other things than just spyware. Iv used prevx its more preventative than removal like winpatrol. I would try what Jam3s-Zer0 said.

If that still doesnt solve it run warez monsters guide found in my sig.

 

[crickmail.cet57]

high CPU usage can be caused by other things than just spyware. Iv used prevx its more preventative than removal like winpatrol. I would try what Jam3s-Zer0 said.

I've actually been a member of the Prevx1 Beta program for the last year and can confirm it has improved in leaps and bounds over that time.

It is now actually one of the best malware removal programs which I regularly use to remove stubborn malware (Virus Burst, AntiVermins, Pest Trap, etc, etc) from infected machines.

Unfortunately it still seems to suffer from this stigma of being a HIPS, when in fact it is something completely different now which I would recommend you try out again when you next come across a badly infected machine. Highly impressive I assure you...

 

[baronvongogo]

ok it has been a year or 2 since I have last used it.

 

[crickmail.cet57]

ok it has been a year or 2 since I have last used it.

That's ok!

I really think they would probably get more people using it if they changed the name - people immediately think back to Prevx Home / Pro which weren't that great...

 

[Jam3s-Zer0]

Hi there,

I'm assuming your computer has only recently started consuming 99% of your CPU, therefore can probably disregard the issue as diagnosed by James_Zero.

No, since if you actually read the post it says that only happens when he goes into a folder that has video files in it. That problem is a very well known issue with XP especially with broken .avi files.