Alienware M17X Nightmare

Hi everyone

My M17X is running like crap. I have tried everything I can think of, and everything my more computer-savvy friends can think of, and I'm at my wit's end.

Main issue: high CPU usage, high memory usage, and all around not-very-fun experience. Running a game (Rift, on absolutely minimal, as in, could've done it better on a computer 10 years ago minimal) is absurdly out of the question. As a matter of fact, while I'm typing this forum message, at 82% CPU usage mind you, (and with Google Chrome's one tab being the only significant task running), there is a depressingly large amount of lag between me hitting keys and the letters being typed. It's that bad.



Here's what I've done so far:

- Formatted the hard drive and reinstalled Windows 7 Home Premium from a USB flash drive ISO.
- Cleaned the CPU fan of dust and debris (of which there was very little anyway) with compressed air.
- Ran MalwareBytes (after updating its database of course) and a couple of utilities from Norton 360 (trial edition)
- Installed updated drivers for everything I can think to install drivers for.
- Installed all Windows Updates.
- Defragged.

There were other things I did, but they were before I resorted to formatting.

I can post a list of specs if it will help. (I have speccy, if that's worth anything.)

I must be missing something monumentally important, because from where I'm sitting, this should be running blazingly fast.

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated. If someone can figure this out, I would be unbelievably grateful. I will be checking back very frequently to see if anyone has requested any information from me and I will provide it as promptly as possible.

Lastly, if there is a post with information that will be pertinent to this issue, please direct me that way. I've been through about a metric ton of forum posts, including but not limited to this website, and have been unable to resolve the issue.



Thank you greatly in advance,

puninteresting

 

Hmm, it does seem like as you say you've tried almost everything you could do that might help. Have you checked task manager, Processes tab and prioritised by cpu usage to see if you can figure out what is using so much processor power (and prioritise by memory to check that too) ?

Also - from your screen shot, which version of the m17x do you have? I'm curious as to why there's only 4 cores showing unless it's an older one that doesn't support hyper threading that I don't know about.

 

this happened suddenly?
what were you doing when the problem came.
had similar problem earlier with a packard bell. changed cpu, then it was fine again

have you tried and start in safe mode, running cpu likewise there?
you can flash the bios to an earlier version

 

Chrome's using a bunch, but I'm at a loss as to why, with one tab open and no extensions or anything running.



I think it's the R4, but I've totally forgotten at this point and I don't remember how to check. It's definitely either the R3 or R4, and it's a Quadcore. Here, this may help.

No, I guess I wouldn't say suddenly. It started acting all funky a while back (honestly, it was probably malware, I'm ashamed to admit). I bought an ASUS laptop (which was leagues above this damn thing, and I have been using that for a while. That ASUS's charger input stopped working so I'm trying to get this one back up and running to avoid having to fix the ASUS.

I have tried safe mode, but forgive me, I'm not sure what the rest of your question means. Running CPU likewise?

 

Chrome does use a bunch as each tab is a separate process but it's odd that your cpu usage attachment shows very little but your first screen obviously shows a huge amount via the performance tab.

Now I see why it's only got 4 cores showing and not '8 cpus' (4 being due to hyper threading) - it's an older m17x (Im assuming the R1) from a time when the cpus of that generation (the core 2) did not feature hyper threading (from what I recall).

Your cpu usage is a mystery if nothing shows high usage in Processes sorted by cpu usage but it does in Performance tab.

How long have you had this btw? Was it second hand or brand new when you got it? you've reinstalled windows but do you know if your system has a recovery partition still? If it does, then it may be worth trying that - that would put it back to factory install (even though it will be old).

Failing that, check this guide to see if there's anything you may have missed or in terms of order. I can't vouch for the guide per se as I've always used the recovery partition but maybe something there may help.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...er-install-order-guide-alienware-systems.html

 

I bought it in May of 2010, brand new, online from bestbuy.com. It did have a separate partition (I believe it was labeled "backup"), but I removed the partition when I formatted. Man, I hope that hasn't come back to bite me in the .

I'll go through that guide now. (Loading it in a new tab while typing this message dropped me to abysmally low speeds.)

I'll just toss these out there: A friend mentioned the possibility that the CPU itself could be "loose" and that opening the bottom of the laptop and pressing it gently down to make sure all the pins are connected securely could be beneficial. I am reluctant to do this. Perhaps you have some greater insight here? The other thing I've been told but haven't tried is running memtest to see if the memory itself is, I don't know, corrupted? This is a bit beyond my skill level as a gaming trouble-shooter.

Ok, I'm going to sift through that guide now. And hey, thanks very much for everything so far. It really is appreciated.

 

likevise ? Google translate
does cpu do the same in safe mode?

 

Click show processes for all users and check again. It might be a system process or one that doesn't run as you.

Sent from my SGH-I777 using Tapatalk

 

I doubt very much a loose cpu would cause that. If there was a loose cpu - I'd more expect it to simply not boot or worse than some process hogging a lot of processor power.

There are guides out there that show disassembly but I do seriously doubt that is the issue. It's worth checking shinji's post about clicking the 'all users' button. It's so right there in your face so to speak but I always miss that and I did this time too. If you find something that way that uses a lot - thank shinji.

 

what is the temperature of the CPU.
put on new thermal paste?

 

I just tried to boot in safe mode and was unable to do so. I'm not sure why, but I got stuck on a black screen of death with an infinitely revolving "working" cursor.

Well, my friend, that definitely seemed to show some significant differences:



Not sure what those processes do, although they do seem necessary. Any ideas?

I just checked out the "show all users" thing and posted a reply to his comment. That definitely seems to have potential in figuring out this issue. A solid 250MB were being eaten up by processes that weren't shown to me until I clicked "all users". Although I don't know why I, as the administrator, don't constitute all of the users of my own computer...

The temperature seems to be holding steady around 50 degrees celsius (122 fahrenheit). Is this too hot?

 

idle or load

 

Judging from the year you purchased this, and the CPU you have, I'm going to guess this is an M17x R1. It should have either the 1200p or 900p screen, with the NVIDIA 260M 1GB Graphics. Is that correct? Anyway, the CPU you have is pretty weak. It's less powerful than some Intel Core i3 processors. If I had to guess, I would say that your CPU is dying (assuming you have eliminated all other possibilities, including a virus).

What are your exact system specifications? Have you downloaded any software lately that may have caused this? Any updates or drivers you installed can also cause abnormal CPU usage. Definitely reinstall Windows 7 using the disc - do not restore the system with a backup. Make sure you have access to the Network driver before wiping the system, you'll need it for other drivers and applications.

 

Just to throw into the mix, I had exactly the same on my Latitude running XP. Everything was dragging badly and I couldn't see why. Tried a bunch of stuff then came to the conclusion I might have a root-kit virus (yes, there was chance ). I did find some registry entries that were locked and unchangeable so I just booted from a win CD, formatted the drive and upgraded to win7 at the same time. All sweet. Since you say you clean installed windows this does not sound like a likely fix but more FYI.

Of course it could have just been a corrupted registry, it was impossible to restore it to an earlier one.

Click (sort) on the CPU column and see the top hitter there, might help...

 

Idle. Gets up to about 62 degrees Celsius, maximum (load).

I have eliminated the possibility of a virus. I suppose the CPU dying must at this point be a viable possibility.

I haven't downloaded any software. In fact, when I did the fresh install of Windows 7 from the ISO on a flash drive, it ran like this from the get-go. That is, before (and after) installing the drivers for all the hardware.

 

How about installing HWinfo and get a better system check in one go than what you use?

This will keep the max values etc.
You can also do some CPU benching and then compare your cores. Max and avg load.
Could tell you if your CPU is ok.

If you got your computer in 2010 someone did not exactly give you a brad new GPU.
Here is some info about your CPU btw.

 

CPU is ok...
TrustedInstaller (Windows Update) is eating up your processor time:
- disable Windows Update
- reboot
- check again

This is a fres install specific problem, because there are 500+ updates that our dumb OS tries to download and install simultaneously -.- .... bravo M$ !!!!

 

Disabled Windows update and rebooted. There is a slight difference in CPU usage (in a good way), but it's still disproportionate to the numbers it should be showing relative to what processes and services are using.

Downloading HWInfo.

I bought this laptop brand new from bestbuy.com in 2010. Surely they didn't give me a refurbished laptop or something?

I have to leave for a bit, but I will get the information from this HWInfo and post it ASAP.

Here, had an extra second to get this.

 

I was thinking about the sensor status picture

It would look like something on the right of my screenshot made earlier.

 

Here, in task manager click on Resource Monitor, and sort the processes by CPU, that should tell us where the issue is.


This may sound a stupid question, but did you make sure you are not in the Stealth mode?

 

that was what i thought we were gonna see in HWinfo since it has max speed and not just current speed.

 

Here it is. Also, reading the information, I realized that I never mentioned that the battery in this laptop doesn't work, so I'm always on AC power. I'm not sure if it would affect anything negatively, but I figure I should definitely mention it.

Not in stealth mode. Man, would that have been the facepalm of the decade.

Here's the resource monitor with the processes sorted by CPU. And of course, as is par for the course, the CPU usage dropped down to near 0% when I did the screenshot. It's like the laptop is screwing with me.

Do you have any suggestions for software to bench my CPU? (Also I don't know what that means, unless it just means testing its abilities, which is my guess.)

 

You could try T-Stop. (like the one i used on the screendump where the HWinfo was)
But since your HWinfo shows about the full expected speed for the CPU, its not as if it doesn't run full speed.

Odd problem.

 

Yep. I don't know what else to do.

 

Not sure if anyone out there has any other possible solutions, but after some digging, I'm trying this. After running the DPC Latency Checker, it does indeed appear that it could be the problem. I'm working through it now and will update later, if only so I can save someone some time in the future.

Here is a screenshot of the DPC latency checker running on my machine. It looks bad to my untrained eyes.

 

Great link, hope it gets to tbe bottom of the issue. If you check it with latencymon you get to see which process is the top hitter. I'm betting on something starting with NV****

Anything above 1000 is considered unacceptable and you would be aiming for a number lower than 500 for good performance (although one of the NV drivers did give me around 800 and the machine was running just fine - only the occasional sound glitch during game loads (too much going on for the interrupt table to cope with!).

Good Luck!

 

I tried following that guide, but I couldn't find the graph that it said should be there (DPC CPU Usage). Since I don't really know what any of it meant, I couldn't navigate my way to the information I needed. I'm in class now but I'll be back home in a few hours and will upload screenshots.

Thanks!

 

Good luck . Here is the one I used: Resplendence Software - LatencyMon: suitability checker for real-time audio and other tasks and mention above....