Computer guru needed

[Ratbag]

G'day again Nigel

A couple of things.

Download "Classic Shell", which will re-instate 'normal' Windows menus in both the OS and in most programs. It's free and available here:

http://sourceforge.net/projects/classicshell/

UltraDefrag is free and available here (DON'T use the Beta version ... ):

http://ultradefrag.sourceforge.net/en/index.html

Go into Control Panel and set the virtual memory file to the same minimum and maximum size. If you have 4 GB of RAM, set it to 4096 MB in each case; if 8 GB RAM, set it to 8192 GB in each case. Before doing this, it may be necessary to switch off the paging file altogether. Restart the computer with "no" paging file (Windows will create a temporary one ... ). Run the defragger and then do a full optimise. Reboot the computer. Reset the paging file size as above. Reboot the computer. Windows is flaming good at fragmenting its own paging file, and should never be allowed to manage it. If it is (the default setting ... ), it will slow the computer down dramatically.

While you are there, disable all the twee GUI stuff by selecting "Optimise for best performance". You will notice that making this selection unticks every single box in the dialog box ... .
This also makes the computer usable ... .

It astounds me that Microsoft haven't worked out how to set up the OS defaults properly after 20+ years ...
A Windows 8.1 PC I was configuring a month or so ago still has all the wrong default settings ...

[gronk]

Go into Control Panel and set the virtual memory file to the same minimum and maximum size. If you have 4 GB of RAM, set it to 4096 MB in each case; if 8 GB RAM, set it to 8192 GB in each case. Before doing this, it may be necessary to switch off the paging file altogether. Restart the computer with "no" paging file (Windows will create a temporary one ... ). Run the defragger and then do a full optimise. Reboot the computer. Reset the paging file size as above. Reboot the computer. Windows is flaming good at fragmenting its own paging file, and should never be allowed to manage it. If it is (the default setting ... ), it will slow the computer down dramatically.

While you are there, disable all the twee GUI stuff by selecting "Optimise for best performance". You will notice that making this selection unticks every single box in the dialog box ... .
This also makes the computer usable ... .

I need to do some work on mine as well, but these instructions mean nothing to a computer virgin !! 

In control panel, where do you find virtual memory file ??

Same as where do you find the paging file....or how do you do a full optimise...and disabling the twee GUI ??

[Ratbag]

Gidday Gronk

Ha ha, can I be a student at 55 yrs old ??   

We have full versions of Adobe CS Premium CS5 and CS6 at student prices (10% of RRP) because my SWMBO is a student. She's currently doing a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, and she's a lot older than 55 y.o. (as am I ... ). Very useful ... .

My brother has CS6 because a close relative is a teacher, and she had no use for it at all, but qualified to purchase it ... .

[Ratbag]

G'day again Gronk

I need to do some work on mine as well, but these instructions mean nothing to a computer virgin !! 

In control panel, where do you find virtual memory file ??

Same as where do you find the paging file....or how do you do a full optimise...and disabling the twee GUI ??

I'm sorry, but I am far too tired tonight to talk a complete neophyte through it right now ...

Currently it looks as if I have some serious work to do tomorrow, but do keep reminding me ... .

Anyone can do these things, it just takes more complete instructions for some than for others  .

[gronk]

Anyone can do these things, it just takes more complete instructions for some than for others  .

Yeh mate, I know how to get into control panel, just don't know my way around enough to find the different settings ??...there's approx 30 different folders.....??

The open office idea was great thanks......I only need it to do resumes ...yeh, got to look for a job soon !!

[JD-120]

hey gronk

youtube is full of nifty videos on how to do stuff

heres how to configure the pagefile

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWCVhk5gTps

[Ratbag]

Gidday Justin

Thanks for that link. Saves me a lot of work ...

The U-Tube video is correct right up until he says "the maximum size should be twice the minimum size". This is wrong, as it allows Windows to fragment pagefile.sys into thousands of free extents (fragments). This slows the computer down to a snail's pace ...

Defragment the hard disk before changing the virtual memory file (this file is called pagefile.sys). Preferably follow the procedure I outlined above, combining it with the detailed explanation of how to get there in the U-Tube video. On the way past (just before you get to the virtual memory file size setting dialog), tick the box that says "enable best performance" - this deletes all the twee crap out of the user interface. Every bit of this takes processing power away from what you bought the computer to do!

Set the minimum and maximum to the same size.  As a rule of thumb, I start by setting these figures to the same size as the physical RAM in the PC - i.e. 2 GB RAM, set the virtual memory size at 2048 MB (2 GB); 4 GB, set to 4096 MB; 8 GB, set to 8192 MB, etc.
That way the pagefile.sys file can never become fragmented. Every version of Windows since NT4.0 has had the capability to expand the Pagefile as necessary. The HUGE difference is that when the computer is re-booted, this temporary extension to the paging file is deleted (it will be as fragmented as all get out), and the paging file will once again be completely unfragmented.

Never, NEVER allow Windows to manage any part of its own swap file (= paging file, virtual memory file, pagefile.sys, etc). It is hopeless at doing it, to say the least.

[Jasman]

If I can jump in on the topic, I recently had to upgrade the OS on my 5.5yr old PC from good old XP and Windows 7 was installed by the local PC store. Now the internet is REALLY slow, but before I race back to them is there anything I can look at beforehand, bearing in mind that I too am a complete computer novice ie I use them but that's it. In theory the PC should be running well as the hard drive has had a complete wipe (& specs of hardware exceed those required to run Win7) and I have only restored about a quarter of the photos and music from my external drive that was previously on it. It worked perfectly well before, and as always the new tech is causing issues.
Any advice appreciated,
Nigel

Hey Nigel, no offence but a 5.5yr old PC probably isn't perfect for Windows7 and more than likely if feeling really slow because of graphic rendering issues.  You can really speed up rendering by turning off some of Windows fancy graphics features

Goto Control Panel/ System and Security/ System and click the Advanced system settings link. Select the Settings button under Performance and you can change everything from window animations to font smoothing. By default, Windows will choose the settings that it thinks are best for your computer but there is a radio button you can choose for "best performance". 

Once you've changed to "best performance" it's going to make windows look very plain but it should run pretty quickly.  If you don't like the plain look you can go back in and turn on some of the option by clicking the "custom" option and testing what works for you.

If you're not happy with the outcome swap back to the "let windows decide" option, no harm, no foul.

[nbd73]

Hey Nigel, no offence but a 5.5yr old PC probably isn't perfect for Windows7 and more than likely if feeling really slow because of graphic rendering issues.  You can really speed up rendering by turning off some of Windows fancy graphics features

Goto Control Panel/ System and Security/ System and click the Advanced system settings link. Select the Settings button under Performance and you can change everything from window animations to font smoothing. By default, Windows will choose the settings that it thinks are best for your computer but there is a radio button you can choose for "best performance". 

Once you've changed to "best performance" it's going to make windows look very plain but it should run pretty quickly.  If you don't like the plain look you can go back in and turn on some of the option by clicking the "custom" option and testing what works for you.

If you're not happy with the outcome swap back to the "let windows decide" option, no harm, no foul.

Thanks for the tips, already done this and now letting the defrag program do its optimise thing overnight as per Ratbag's advice (it does take aeons).
I realise the PC is getting on, but $160 for 7 was still a lot cheaper than a new system, albeit I had to also replace the power supply unit @ $90 also.  The PC shop asked for the specs and said it will work, maybe they forgot to say how well!! Its still better than the retarded OS it came with when new (no prizes for guessing). XP was a retrograde install which proved adequate until the support cut off. I still prefer 7 to 8.1 etc that I use at work.
Incidentally, and moving further afield, I assume I should ignore the driver update alerts that bob up every time I download a file like defrag? They look like they are trying to get me to buy something by wording the ads as though I desperately need updated drivers.

[Ratbag]

My laptop's 10 y.o.

Pentium mobile 1.5 GHz (single core ... ), 2 GB RAM, 320 GB HDD.

It loads PS6 PS5 in 17.5 seconds after being rebooted.

My workstation loads PS6 in around 23 seconds; and my wife's w/s loads PS5 in around 20 seconds. All those times are from start to when the menu system becomes active. Both w/s are Core2 Duo CPUs. Mine is clocking at 2.13 GHz with 4 GB RAM (DDR2), hers at 2.40 GHz with 2 GB RAM (DDR3 - much faster). Both w/s and the laptop are running XP Pro. It is my experience that Win7 Pro is as fast, or nearly as fast, on the same hardware as XP Pro, if one turns off all the frippery, and sets the PC up correctly.

I have come across a few PCs running i7 CPUs, 8 GB fast RAM, and SSD drives that take 26 seconds to load LR4 or PSE ...

One of my clients is running five PCs, 4 are Core2 Duo based. They are running Win7 Pro, and run it as fast as XP Pro. All except the laptop are running 32 bit OS.

Proper setup and proper maintenance is everything ... Just IMAO, of course.

From my Batphone

[substantially edited ... RB]

[Jasman]

Nigel, if you're running that Defrag app on an SSD drive and it's working that hard you're doing some permanent damage and I recommend you cancel it.  Yep, don't click on the driver update dialog, better still avoid the sites that throw these up.

[johnyd]

Hey Nigel, no offence but a 5.5yr old PC probably isn't perfect for Windows7 and more than likely if feeling really slow because of graphic rendering issues.  You can really speed up rendering by turning off some of Windows fancy graphics features

My i7 920 came out in 2009.  It is getting long in the tooth now, but it still beats a lot of new processors.  The Core 2 series shouldn't have any trouble with Win 7 or even 8.1.  Of course that isn't a low end 5 year old, and integrated GPU as well as older processor is going to be a struggle.

[Jasman]

My i7 920 came out in 2009.  It is getting long in the tooth now, but it still beats a lot of new processors.  The Core 2 series shouldn't have any trouble with Win 7 or even 8.1.  Of course that isn't a low end 5 year old, and integrated GPU as well as older processor is going to be a struggle.

Yeah, I was thinking that the average pc of the day was something like a core 2 with 2GB of ram but I could be wrong - I know this will run it but aero does make'm feel sluggish.

[johnyd]

Yeah, I was thinking that the average pc of the day was something like a core 2 with 2GB of ram but I could be wrong - I know this will run it but aero does make'm feel sluggish.

No more so than Vista was, urgh.   2GB is problematic, but anything with a Core2 and 4GB+ isn't really sluggish with it.

It is faster with it off, but isn't bad.  My old laptop is Core 2 and 4GB runs it easy with most of the pretties on.

Dad is using it.  I have a shiny i7 4500u based one

[Ratbag]

Gidday Nigel

Thanks for the tips, already done this and now letting the defrag program do its optimise thing overnight as per Ratbag's advice (it does take aeons).
I realise the PC is getting on, but $160 for 7 was still a lot cheaper than a new system, albeit I had to also replace the power supply unit @ $90 also.  The PC shop asked for the specs and said it will work, maybe they forgot to say how well!! Its still better than the retarded OS it came with when new (no prizes for guessing). XP was a retrograde install which proved adequate until the support cut off. I still prefer 7 to 8.1 etc that I use at work.

Let me know how it works out please, mate.

Incidentally, and moving further afield, I assume I should ignore the driver update alerts that bob up every time I download a file like defrag? They look like they are trying to get me to buy something by wording the ads as though I desperately need updated drivers.

Your assumption is completely and utterly correct. Some of those things are so full of pox-ware that they can completely trash your computer!

And Vista was a complete and utter dog of an OS. I have one client running Vista Enterprise, and it's a hopeless task trying to keep it running properly. Garbage memory management (why "fix" something that wasn't broken?), just for starters ...

[nbd73]

Ok Ratbag, been mucking around with the internet etc and so far there is a noticeable speed improvement 
Checked the virtual memory settings and they were at double the RAM ie set at 8192MB when my ram is 4GB, so changed them as per your instructions. 
Seems to be all good.

Now another question: I have recently bought a new modem/router combo (TP Link) and it intermittently drops out and needs re-starting.  Any suggestions why this should be so?  When I was with Telstra using their modem and a separate Belkin router it happened regularly, about every 3 days, then when I switched to iinet using their modem with the Belkin it was perfect.  Now I have switched to Telechoice and bought the TP-Link as its not locked to any comm's company and I'm having problems again.

Thanks for the help so far ratbag, just wish I could repay the favour.

[Ratbag]

Gidday Nigel

Ok Ratbag, been mucking around with the internet etc and so far there is a noticeable speed improvement 
Checked the virtual memory settings and they were at double the RAM ie set at 8192MB when my ram is 4GB, so changed them as per your instructions. 
Seems to be all good.

Very good to hear, mate.

Don't run OPTIMISE very much. Once every 3-6 months is fine. If you aren't making major changes to your computer often, then 6-9 months.

I run DEFRAG on all our computers about once a week. Sometimes more often if a major update; upload a swag of images; that sort of thing.

It is specially important to DEFRAG your SYSTEM partition (or HDD) regularly. At least weekly. This takes almost no time if done regularly.

Now another question: I have recently bought a new modem/router combo (TP Link) and it intermittently drops out and needs re-starting.  Any suggestions why this should be so?  When I was with Telstra using their modem and a separate Belkin router it happened regularly, about every 3 days, then when I switched to iinet using their modem with the Belkin it was perfect.  Now I have switched to Telechoice and bought the TP-Link as its not locked to any comm's company and I'm having problems again.

Basically, I use Telstra. Not that I haven't had some monumental problems with some services from time to time, but at least they try to make good (They have refunded us well over $2,500 in the last 5 years due to these problems). Their services also work pretty much everywhere it's possible for them to work.

We have Cable v3 here (Ultimate Cable; Cable Extreme; whatever ... ), and get a measured download speed of 113 Mbps, upload (throttled) of 2.54 Mbps.

A good friend was paying for ADSL2 with Optus and complained about his 2.5 Mbps download speed. They informed him that this was normal! Thieving mongrels, that's less than half the speed one gets with ADSL1!!. One of the advantages of being old(er ... ) is that one tends to either know people, or know who to talk to. He rang a friend in Sydney who works for Optus, and lo and behold, his ADSL speed miraculously increased to 13.5 Mbps download ...

As for your problem. Check the wall socket, the cable modem/ADSL modem phone line socket and try a different Ethernet cable.

A modem/router is just another (dedicated) computer. When you reboot it, turn the power off for a timed 20 seconds. It is probably a problem with your modem/router, but it can be a dodgy Ethernet cable or connection just as easily.

Some modem/routers have a very limited NAT table size (Network Address Translation). There is no way around a modem/router that is limited in this way other than to reboot it occasionally. The reboot clears the NAT, which is what would most likely be caused the flaky connection. The NAT table has to hold the IP addresses of things like DNS servers (Domain Name Server), and DHCP servers (Dynamic Host Protocol Protocol), as well as the IP addresses of any site you visit.

Our modem/router wireless acts up occasionally (about every 3-4 weeks). This has both our phones and my laptop connected to it. All the rest of the computers and other devices on our network are connected Gigabit Ethernet through three or so gigabit switches.

Thanks for the help so far ratbag, just wish I could repay the favour.

Mate, no worries. I am sure that you can repay someone else ... It's called a "Chinese obligation" - a debt that can never be repaid to the creditor ... I have heaps of them that I owe, so I'm repaying them by helping you ... And it's my pleasure to be able to do so, and actually make a positive difference ... .

[noel_w]

Telstra (Netgear rebranded as Telstra) cable modems are notorious for NAT problems. The main reason is the table is too small as Ratbag said, fills up and then either reboots or crashes and locks up.
I usually recommend using the Telstra modem in bridged mode and putting a good router behind it. There are settings in it to turn off NAT which makes it a modem only. The wireless in these are also particularly flaky as well.

[WilSurf]

Interesting topic as my desktop is still playing up after a full re-install of Windows 7.

Is there a maximum life span for an external hard drive? It seems that when I connect my 1TB WD it is slow to open or scans it before opening.

[gronk]

With the paging file....I have 8Gb of ram......but only 3.49Gb usable.....what do I set the paging file to ??

[Bird]

Interesting topic as my desktop is still playing up after a full re-install of Windows 7.

Is there a maximum life span for an external hard drive? It seems that when I connect my 1TB WD it is slow to open or scans it before opening.

What connection are you using???
USB 1 / 2 / 3 etc... ?

[WilSurf]

What connection are you using???
USB 1 / 2 / 3 etc... ?

It has USB 2.
Just checked my files, I bought it on 27/02/2009 so it is 5.5 years old. A 1TB WD for $185.00
Maybe it is time for a new one.

[Ratbag]

Interesting topic as my desktop is still playing up after a full re-install of Windows 7.

Is there a maximum life span for an external hard drive? It seems that when I connect my 1TB WD it is slow to open or scans it before opening.

When you say "scans it", I assume that you don't mean your antivirus program ... ?

The symptoms you are describing strongly suggest a bad bit. This needs to be locked out by the OS by adding the block of sectors that contains the bad bit are added to the Bad Block Table stored on the HDD. Each block contains 8 sectors of 512 bytes each, so is 4,096 byes in total (assuming that the drive is formatted with NTFS using the default cluster size of 4K bytes/cluster = "block" ). If the HDD is not formatted with NTFS, I strongly urge you to convert it to NTFS, UNLESS it is also used on a Apple computer. Apples can read NTFS disks, but cannot write to them ... IDE cannot perform hot sector re-mapping as SCSI drives can, therefore the need to run CHKDSK on the drive. This is worth doing about once a year, even if there are no apparent problems with a particular HDD.

Close all programs that might be accessing the external HDD, specially Windows Explorer ...

Perform a full disk check using CHKDSK.EXE ("Check disk for errors"). Make certain that the two optional boxes "Automatically fix file system errors" and "Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors" are ticked.

On a 1 TB drive, this will take quite a while.

After doing the CHKDSK, perform a defrag followed by a full optimise as described upthread.

[Ratbag]

With the paging file....I have 8Gb of ram......but only 3.49Gb usable.....what do I set the paging file to ??

Minimum 8 GB; Maximum 8 GB.

It may be necessary to follow the procedure outlined above to delete your existing paging file, reboot, defrag the drive, reboot, reinstate your new size paging file.

[WilSurf]

Thanks.
With scanning I mean that Windows Explorer opens, sees the drive, and then it takes a time to open. Then after I have scrolled through some folders, it Windows Explorer greys out and there appears a green running bar through the file directory on top.
I tried the check yesterday when the message came up.
It started but it failed after a while.