Can anyone tell me what processes need to be kept on in the background that show up when you hit ctrl alt dlt?

Question

I have 53 running and am sure that they don't all have to be open all the time. Sometimes my computer runs so slow and I wonder if all of those processes need to be on all the time. I am just not sure what to close because when I tried to close one of them a message came up saying closing a process can cause undesired results including loss of data and system instability. The process will not be given the chance to save its state or data before it is terminated. Are you sure you want to terminate the process? Can anyone help me?

Answer 1

Ok, here is the deal.

About 30-40 of those processes need to be running, depending on what kind of programs you have installed.

What you need to do before you do anything else is run Spyware/Adware removal programs.

Adaware:
http://www.download.com/3000-2144-10045910.html

Spybot:
http://www.download.com/3000-2144-10122137.html

Install them both and update the definitions using their automated update utility.

Then run them one at a time, I usually start with Adaware.

Once you have removed all the infections(Adaware might freeze for a bit while it is removing files, this is normal... just be patient) then you are going to want to update your antivirus software and run a full scan.

Once all that is done, and you have removed the detected spyware, adware and viruses; we can actually start working on identifying those processes.

You should be down to around 35 processes. Now it is just a matter of googling each process to make sure it is legitimate.

Programs like:
Explorer.exe
rundll32.exe
svchost.exe
spoolsv.exe
lsass.exe
winlogon.exe

Are all normal processes. There are a few more but I got tired of typing them.

Google the ones that you are not familiar with, that will tell you what they are associated with and whether or not they are needed.


Ideally, after the scans, your computer should be running a heck of a lot faster than it was before. If that is satisfactory, down worry about googling the other processes, as your system will be clean.

Answer 2

These files are associated with whatever programs you have running. To reduce them, I suggest you go to Start, Settings, Taskbar and Start Menu.

Remove any unwanted or unnecessary programs -- programs you do not need on a daily basis. Anything associated with them will be closed down. Those remaining are necessary to keep the system going and anything running in the background - example - wallpaper, screensaver, antivirus program ... I would not touch anything I am not sure of.

This will help increase speed. If you are using wallpaper and screensavers, they run constantly in the background and use part of your memory. I have mine set to blank and/or none.

Other things you can do to increase speed are: Disk Cleanup, Scandisk, and defrag. These should be done every two weeks anyway. They take less time each subsequent run. They are found in Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools.

Answer 3

download "Codestuff Starter". It gives you information on all the processes and you can easily disable them and reenable them if necessary.

Just go to the processes tab, right click a process and look up it's information under "properties" or "google." If you find you don't need that process, go to the startup tab and disable it. It's real easy and safer than deleting stuff from your registry.

Answer 4

there are some programs that say system on the middle column and others that say the user's name. I usually close the ones that have the user's name(you) they are usually for example:

ituneshelper.exe --- Itunes
ipodservice.exe ---Ipod
pwrisovm.exe. --- power iso

programs that you installed but that you don't use frequently
you have to know which belong to what program.

hope this helps a little

Answer 5

http://www.processlibrary.com/directory/
http://exelib.com/

Good luck!