pcmservice.exe

I have a new Inspiron E1705 with a Duo core processor. It was very slow and when I look at task manager it shows that PCMService.exe is consuming up to 60% of the cpu every couple of seconds and then drops back to 0. I have been on the phone with Dell support without success. I have done virus and spy searches and all looks clean. When I use task manager to end the PCMService program the computer performance returns to normal. Is this a known problem that I can repair. I am not sure what PCMService is doing and what I am impacting by shutting it down. Help welcome

 

Any time you want information on a certain process, bring up Google and search for it. There are a few good websites that list processes and explain what they do. That process is part of the Dell Media Experience.

http://www.liutilities.com/products/wintaskspro/processlibrary/pcmservice/

If you don't use the media experience button, then you can disable this process. Personally, I've never used it from inside Windows. If I want to watch movies, listen to music, etc, I use different software. If I want to watch movies without Windows, I shut down the system and then boot up into the Media Direct system.

You should consider reformatting your computer, as Dell preloads a ton of bloatware on every system they manufacture. Check out SouthernGirl's install guide (it's a sticky post at the top of the board).

 

New DELL Inspiron 1520 cw Win XP
Had 1 to 2 sec delay from Keyboard to display caused by " PCMService.exe"
This is my finding:
Description: PCMService.exe is located in a subfolder of "C:\Program Files" - e.g. C:\Program Files\Dell\Media Experience\. Known file sizes on Windows XP are 290816 bytes (60% of all occurrence), 204800 bytes, 217088 bytes, 81920 bytes, 184320 bytes, 335970 bytes, 49152 bytes, 147456 bytes, 127118 bytes, 110744 bytes, 151552 bytes, 110740 bytes, 94208 bytes, 61440 bytes, 57344 bytes, 20992 bytes, 73728 bytes, 37583 bytes, 143360 bytes, 118926 bytes.
File PCMService.exe is not a Windows system file. The program is not visible. The program starts when Windows starts (see Registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run). Therefore the technical security rating is 52% dangerous, however also read the users reviews.
External information from Paul Collins:

Important: Some malware camouflage themselves as PCMService.exe, particularly if they are located in c:\windows or c:\windows\system32 folder. Thus check the PCMService.exe process on your pc whether it is pest. We recommend Security Task Manager for verifying your computer's security. It is one of the Top Download Picks of 2005 of The Washington Post and PC World.
Links: PCMService.exe, PCMService.exe

Regards

JM Aubin

 

Is the memory usage high for this process?

 

Make sure you have this installed....

http://support.us.dell.com/support/downloads/download.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=gen&releaseid=R157449&formatcnt=1&libid=0&fileid=210212

Gotta love how Dell's Support Line doesn't know about this...