Start up time normal? New T61

I just got my T61 and love the build quality. I have the 2.2ghz processor, Vista Ultimate and 2gb ram as well as Intel 1gb turbo, and 100gb HDD 7200rpm. Is it normal it to take 1:30 to 2 Min after entering your password to log on before everything loads and the battery icon does? Also why with the Lenovo T61 the hard drive light always seems to be active?
Also didn’t install anything other then office and my Norton enterprise which is a stripped version of what came with the Lenovo.
Thanks

 

I'm not a Lenovo owner, but that sounds way to long to fire up. Probably, if your machine is anything like my eMachines desktop, it came loaded with bloatware and either needs a lot of cleaning or a fresh install. Have you done either?

 

When I receive my T61p I'm going to do a clean install of Windows XP.

From the factory they load all these programs in there that you dont need thus slowing down your system dramatically.

 

That doesn't seem normal. I reformatted my laptop so I can't remember how long mine was originally. However I think the startup time became shorter the more I used the laptop...
Tim

 

do a clean install....check out stallen's guide...that will up your start time to less than 45s

 

The first few boot ups will be slow, even after a clean install. Vista seems like it is doing whatever it needs to get set up on the system.

It is a good idea to do a clean install. But if you don't have the time then you should uninstall some of the Thinkvantage software along with the other bloat. Running CCleaner after uninstalling is a good idea too, it'll clean up crap in the registry.

 

It depends on a lot of variables. How long you have used Vista for, automatic boot defragmentation, the number of services and processes.

The Power Manger battery gauge (icon) also seem to have a delay in startup. Hence on my X61 after I boot into Vista it will take up to 30 seconds before the battery gauge appears. This seems to have something to do with NOD32 (AntiVirus) scanning files in memory prior to the battery gauge showing.

The reason for the constant hard drive activity is most likely due to Vista functions such as:

- Superfetch which loads frequently used applications and files into memory for quicker retrieval/load times.
- Indexing which indexes certain directories on your hard drive for faster retrieval when you search for files.
- System restore which takes snapshot backups to be able to recover to an earlier state.

All of this is usually done in the background and you can work while these functions are active.

 

If you just got it, the startup time is going to be massive with all the extraneous software loading up with it. It definitely pays to disable almost everything in the msconfig's Startup section.

If you did/do a clean install, it may indeed be a bit slow to boot for a while, especially if you load it up with some basic utilities like an antivirus, etc. Judging by my previous Vista experience, startup time improves once things settle in.

 

I have a new t61p with 200 gb of disk (7200 rpm) and 4 gigs of memory, 2.6 ghz processor with almost full bloatware. Time to login on both hibernate and cold boot is 45 seconds.

Defragment your disk and see if that helps.

 

ok thanks for the ideas and information

 

I disabled alot of the start up items mainly all the Roxio, Adobe, and TSS and some audio stuff. I left the battery, security stuff, Norton Stuff and Active protection diskkeeper to still start up. Now it only takes 45 seconds after swiping the finger, so i am really happy.

BTW intel turbo is a waste of money i see now difference in speed maybe even slower when compared to my HP laptop same specs just different video card.

 

Like the other posters here the clean install guide by Stallen is highly recommended. The guide is very well written, makes the whole process simple if the directions are followed. The biggest work is downloading the drivers.

After that look at some vista tweaks, there's a good one compiled by fellow NBR Flamenko and some of those tweaks deal with startup times: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=166532

 

It will take a long time starting up the first time. I remembered it felt like more than 2 minutes on the HP I had

 

After a clean install, my new T61 boots in about 12-15 seconds. Do a clean install.

-UG

 

12 -15 seconds Wow. do u have 2.6 ghz bc I only have the 2.4ghz with 2gb ram.

 

In his sig, he says he has a 2.4ghz , but with 4GB Ram, and 7,200 rpm HD, I really don't doubt load time is that fast.

 

I kind of do....that is fast...but not quad core fast....my quad core desktop still takes around 25-30s to boot up

 

I think people are once again speaking different languages here when it comes to boot time.

I suggest you inform people of what you mean by boot time (i.e. Power on - enter Windows) or that you use Event Viewer and get Vista's own boot time measurement.

Otherwise there is no way of making a proper comparison. This is why I started a thread about definition of boot times a while ago.

 

"BTW intel turbo is a waste of money i see now difference in speed maybe even slower when compared to my HP laptop same specs just different video card."

HP has rejected turbo as something that improves the performance of their machines.

 

Speaking of Intel Turbo someone did some testing on this. The conclusion is somewhat inconclusive in their words :

Interesting regardless. In time tho the tech will improve to the point it'll make it a must have in every notebook. But by then SSD drives will be cheap at least we hope so

 

I wouldn't be too sure that it's NOD32 causing the delay. On my T61P the battery gauge takes like 30 seconds like you say, however, I have not yet installed any virus checker. Also, it only has this long delay when I'm on wireless. When I'm connected to a wired network the battery gauge comes up immediately. Strange no?

 

I am not sure either, but the delay is not there without NOD32 and it is far from as significant with two other Antivirus applications I've tested. My wireless connection is not on either.

 

I count boot time from the second you press the power button to the second your desktop appears. of course subtracting the time it takes to swipe a finger or type in password if you have a login prompt

 

something to do with the wireless, I noticed that to, as well as Dream Scene and the battery

 

If using Event Viewer my best time is about 38 seconds. Though, sometimes it will take up to 50 seconds. I have 70 processes + Antivirus and Antispyware running.

 

where do you go in event viewer to find this info? Too many options in there.. thanks

 

In the left menu:

Applications and Services Logs > Microsoft > Windows > Diagnostics-Performance > Operational.

When you are there, look for an "Event 100" for boot times and "Event 200" for shutdown times.

Also see attached screenshot.

Turns out my best boot time is 30 seconds (30054 ms) and most boots actually hover around 32 to 40 seconds.