Hardware interrupts in Windows XP (Linux, Ubuntu, email, sound card)

[Radek]

So, ran into this issue a few weeks ago... it goes like this:
Windows Update
Reboot
Computer extremely sluggish

I investigated it a bit, and found that process explorer showed more than task manager, and saw that 50% of my processor was being used by hardware interrupts.

and after a few days spent wasting time with Microsoft support, I finally started disabling things in device manager.

Hit the sound card, boom! Problem disappeared. Found updated drivers, and boom! No more problem.

However.. this morning, my computer had rebooted from windows update (thats really annoying btw), and same issue. Whatever I did to the sound card didn't fix the issue, tried system restore, issue stuck around. Thinking it was possible that it was actually hardware, I installed and booted into Ubuntu 8.10... works solidly.

So, thoughts? I've tried sound card, I've tried rolling back the update, I've tried system restore... and I'm just frustrated right now. Any thoughts on narrowing down the issue?

[mawipafl]

I ran into similar issues in the past, though none as extensive as yours, because of Windows Updates. That's why I disabled Windows Updates. I booted from Safe Mode and chose Last Known Good Configuration - although it may not work for you, it did for me.

[Radek]

Safe mode might not have the issue, but its not going to fix anything. I believe the last known good configuration is the settings last booted into Windows with, which... if system restore isn't fixing the problem then that won't help either.

Thanks for the thought though

[mawipafl]

Originally Posted by Radek

Safe mode might not have the issue, but its not going to fix anything. I believe the last known good configuration is the settings last booted into Windows with, which... if system restore isn't fixing the problem then that won't help either.

Just thinking different thoughts ... is there some sort of log somewhere that records mods and updates to your computer? I'm really not tunnel-visioned, but because AOL is in the forefront of my computer woes lately, I did find a log that the stuff the program is doing behind my back. Through the info in the log I was able to tweak some .ini files.

My point is that perhaps, if there's a log, you can backtrack and see which update created the problem and perhaps go from there.

Having duh moments, so maybe this thought of mine is silly.

[Radek]

System Restore logs major changes, and allows you to revert to right before those changes. It didn't help.

I have an idea of which update caused the problem... the issue is, removing it doesn't fix anything.

Hence I've switched to Linux for the moment.

[Radek]

Definitely keep the ideas coming, because right now I'm at either a) format or b) go through the list and update drivers individually

[aquila]

Originally Posted by mawipafl

Just thinking different thoughts ... is there some sort of log somewhere that records mods and updates to your computer? I'm really not tunnel-visioned, but because AOL is in the forefront of my computer woes lately, I did find a log that the stuff the program is doing behind my back. Through the info in the log I was able to tweak some .ini files.

My point is that perhaps, if there's a log, you can backtrack and see which update created the problem and perhaps go from there.

Having duh moments, so maybe this thought of mine is silly.

Do you mind if I ask....do you have broadband internet? If so, why bother using the AOL software? If all you need to do is access your email, just go to the AOL webmail site. My past experience with AOL software was that it consistently screwed up my system...slowed it down, always wanted to update itself outside my control when I logged off, etc. I finally said "Enough!" and ditched it, then simply relied on Firefox or IE instead. After completely uninstalling AOL and other miscellaneous files/programs that were installed along with it, then deleting the registry keys, my computer acted SO much nicer. I don't need all the bells and whistles that come with the AOL software. Just a thought....

[mawipafl]

Originally Posted by aquila

Do you mind if I ask....do you have broadband internet? If so, why bother using the AOL software? If all you need to do is access your email, just go to the AOL webmail site. My past experience with AOL software was that it consistently screwed up my system...slowed it down, always wanted to update itself outside my control when I logged off, etc. I finally said "Enough!" and ditched it, then simply relied on Firefox or IE instead. After completely uninstalling AOL and other miscellaneous files/programs that were installed along with it, then deleting the registry keys, my computer acted SO much nicer. I don't need all the bells and whistles that come with the AOL software. Just a thought....

Brief thread hijack ... yes aquila I do have broadband and in fact used aol.com yesterday to access my mail (when my aol software shut down again for unknown reasons) - I prefer not to do it that way because I don't find the aol.com mail system intuitive and it requires a bazillion more steps just to write a silly email.

Radek - for me it would be my last choice to reformat, and the task to update individual drivers seems to be a pain in the you know what. Isn't there something on a recovery disk that allows a repair to Windows? Something in the back of my mind reminds me that in days of yore I used that - but it might have been with Win95 and perhaps that sort of thing isn't available for XP.

[mensaguy]

Radek: Have you perhaps installed any of the optional updates from Microsoft? I've seen a number of instances where updating hardware drivers from Windows Updates caused problems. After I realized what was going on, I have fixed a few by rolling back drivers. This is just what my experience has been.

[Brian.Pearson]

Do you, by any chance, have a floppy controller enabled?

Yeah, I know it's a longshot.