Computer Freezing

Hi,

I had problems with my computer freezing. Got some help in the hijackthis forum. Then my computer was freezing only about once a day - but now it has started freezing over and over again - sometimes even at start up.

Here is the link I was given when I was referred here:

If you chose to post at the Windows Help Section please post a link back to this thread so the tech helper can review what we have covered.
http://forums.whatthetech.com/CMF_free_spi…tc_t102502.html

I did move from dial-up to highspeed last week.

My computer is running okay in safe mode.

Any help would be most appreciated.

Thanks!

Hi, and sorry to hear that your computer is still misbehaving….. you have done a lot of work over in the malware removal forum and whilst you still have some problems at least you know the machine is not infected. There is a very interesting clue you provided in your last post…….if the problems seem to go away when you are running in safe mode then that is a significant fact and often means that something that is being loaded at startup is likely to be the culprit. In explanation, safe mode loads only the minimum set of stuff necessary to get your machine working, (thats why, for example, the screen will often look poor in comparison to its look in normal mode (only a basic VGA driver ( for the video) is loaded in safe mode, rather than the plush super dooper one that is loaded in ordinary mode. Before we make some recommendations I must give some warnings, if you run in safe mode then you will not have the advantage of your anti virus or possibly your third party firewall protecting you, so do not allow your machine to be connected to the Internet (pull out the plug) whilst running in safe mode and use it only for diagnostic purposes/ repair……. its not wise to attempt to download your emails or go onto the Internet whilst running in safe mode (with network support) Now onto some actions that may help: In normal mode: 1 Click on Start 2 Click on Run 3 in the white box type the following 4 msconfig 5 click on Ok 6 Click on Startup…(in the tabs at the top of the box) 7 you will see a list of all your startup items, probably 20 or 30 of them or so (all with a tick/checkmark in the box at the left) 8 it's possible that one or more of the entries are the culprits……so now comes the tedious job of finding out which one or ones is the troublemaker…. by zeroing in on them…… you can remove the tick from the first one of the boxes, then restart your computer (accept the warnings given) and if on restart and a bit of use of the computer the problem has gone away then you have been lucky in finding the culprit first time!…..However it's unlikely that you will get a "bulls eye" first time and that's where it gets tedious; as restarting your machine after each one takes a lot of time….. 9 In the workshop we first list all the items, then disable (by removing the tick/checkmark from the left hand box of the first 50% of all the items (marking on our list which ones we have unticked) then we restart and test the machine, if the problem is fixed then we know that the problem in in the first 50% of the items we unticked . That may be say 16 items, we now need to narrow things down a bit so we can tick/checkmark say 8 of the items, (noting the exact ones on our list that we are reinstating) and repeat the startup and testing process again……..Repeat as required….. The objective is to identify the one or two items that are the troublemakers….. remove the tick from their left hand box ……but leave all the other "good items" complete with ticks. Do let us know how you get on with this, but please do try and be methodical and list exactly what you are doing as its possible to easily get in a muddle! We will have some further recommendations for you when you have done all this Regards paws

~ for any of the tech team that want's to see the HJT thread, try this link :
http://forums.whatthetech.com/Computer_Fre…Up_t102467.html

I have been working on that, but it doesn’t seem to be entirely solving the problem. It is hard to tell because sometimes the computer works pretty well for quite some time before it freezes up. Other times it freezes up pretty quickly. I typed in a whole long reply last night – and it froze up before I could send it. Argh! I had ten items in the Start Up I unchecked: Reader_sl Belkin Wireless Tea Timer (Tea Timer did not show up in the Start Up Menu of SpyBot when I was working in the Hijackthis forum. Then it was showing up. Now it is not showing up again – even unchecked.) Had trouble with being stuck in the Windows shutting down mode. I also tried unplugging the computer for awhile and plugging it back in. Still had problems – though it went quite awhile before freezing. Then I unchecked: jusched HPWuSchd2 hpcmpmgr ctfoman It wouldn’t let me uncheck ashDisp. It said I didn’t have administrator privileges. Next I unchecked: Windows Desktop And ctfoman also reappeared. Had 2 then – one checked and one unchecked. I also updated Windows Media Player because my computer always seems to start screaming and freeze up if I ever use that. Next I unchecked: point32 The computer froze up on reboot. I also still had the 2 ctfomans. But if I uncheck the second one, it still keeps giving me two (one checked and one unchecked) I uninstalled and reinstalled Avast. Now I have the little blue ball with the I on it in the taskbar, as well as the ball with the A in it – though neither one of them is spinning. I unchecked: ashDisp but it looks like it rechecked itself. I also deleted a Word file from my computer. When my computer started freezing – it was always when I was working on one specific Word doc. So I found that doc and deleted it and emptied the recycle bin. I had also had a lot of trouble doing copy and paste in Word. It would take forever to paste sometimes. But that seemed to be better after the work in the Hijackthis forum. I had tried updated Office 2000 before – from the Microsoft Website, but it told me that it couldn’t find the expected version on my computer. This morning, I did the Word Detect and Repair errors. Now Microsoft Office is also on the Startup. So at this point, on the Startup I have: Checked: ashDisp ctfoman Microsoft Office Unchecked: Reader_sl ctfoman Belkin Wireless hpcmpmgr HPWuSchd2 point32 Tea Timer jusched Windows Desktop Thanks for your help - because I don't know what I am doing very much. Free

Hi,
Its important that you only follow directions from one advisor at a time. If you "try other things" ( for example updating Media Player ; Uninstalling/reinstalling your anti virus products etc) it can tend to complicate the diagnosis process…however as always its your call… after all its your computer!
You might like to try the following steps: First disconnect from the Internet ( pull out the plug)

1 You will need to be logged on with an account that has administrator privilidges, so check to see, if on Right clicking, "Start" you can see in the drop-down menu "Open All Users and or Explore All Users you have Administrator Privilidges……if you can't see those items then post back. other wise continue with the next step.
2 Click start
3 Click Run
type in the white box
msconfig
press ENTER.
When msconfig opens, click the "Services" tab, click "Hide all Microsoft services." and then click "Disable All"
Now, click the "Startup" tab, click "Disable All" then click OK and restart your computer.
Accept any warnings.
Now use your computer and use it hard…the object is to see if the problem has been fixed by this…but please do not use your email or Internet during these procedures.
Note: The above procedure may disable anti-virus software or other security software so don't use your computer permanently in this state. Only use it for diagnostics to eliminate what is causing your problem. Before using the internet, put your computer back to a normal startup mode.(To put it back to a normal startup mode, open msconfig again, click the "General" tab and select "Normal." Click, OK, and restart your machine)

Report back and tell us if this action results in a removal of the "freezing " problem

4 the entries you mention for ctfoman, are unknown……could it be a typo?
Most machines have a service running called ctfmon.exe and this is generally Ok…..the spellings are similar, so this might be the answer, here's a link from Microsoft that gives full details and how you can disable it, if you want, however so as not to complicate the diagnosis please leave that particular fix until your machine is running "fast and sweet "again and without freezing.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/282599

There will be extra work we need to complete, but in the meantime let us know how you get on
Regards
paws

Ack! I am thinking the system was not clean. I did QUICK scans Malwarebytes in the other forum. I updated and did another one today. The Quick Scan came up clean Then I did a FULL scan. Then I ran another Qucik scan and FULL scan with Malwarebytes - and both of those came up clean. But the first time I tried to do the Full scan, my computer froze up (In Safe Mode). It worked okay the second time. Should I go back to the Hijackthis forum?

Hi Well spotted! Yes please go back to the malware removal forum and perhaps TomK will be able to cast his eagle eye over the logs and advise you on the best course of action. Don't be alarmed if your logs here in this subforum get contracted into an attachment……. I will be editing your post shortly to do this so as not to attract the search engines to the logs in this subforum (where we dont analyse them) hope all this makes sense! Regards paws

Sorry about that. I didn't know I would be getting the step by step help from one person in this forum. Frankly,I am glad I am. I apologize.
I just posted some more - but we probably crossed paths.
Free

Hi,
Its important that you only follow directions from one advisor at a time. If you "try other things" ( for example updating Media Player ; Uninstalling/reinstalling your anti virus products etc) it can tend to complicate the diagnosis process…however as always its your call… after all its your computer!

Regards
paws

Hi, No problem. Lets hope TomK or one of his colleagues will spot your logs in the HJT forum pretty quickly…..back door infections and the like are never nice, just to be on the safe side I have sent a pm to TomK asking him if he would be so kind as to keep an eye out for your logs…… We should now leave this topic in TomK's capable hands, but once he has declared your machine "free from infection" please post back here in this subforum if you are still having issues with it and we will do our best to help. Regards paws

Thanks.

Right now I am trying to find out how to get ahold of a staff member to reopen the thread.

Hi,
No problem.
Lets hope TomK or one of his colleagues will spot your logs in the HJT forum pretty quickly…..back door infections and the like are never nice, just to be on the safe side I have sent a pm to TomK asking him if he would be so kind as to keep an eye out for your logs……

We should now leave this topic in TomK's capable hands, but once he has declared your machine "free from infection" please post back here in this subforum if you are still having issues with it and we will do our best to help.
Regards
paws

Hi, I was just about to edit your logs and uplift them as attachemnts when I saw that you had beaten me to it…. Much obliged Regards paws PS I have pm'd TomK

Ok I understand,, As I seem to be the only staff member around at the moment, I have opened your topic over in malware removal so please go ahead and post your log there, Either OCD, or TomK will pick it up from there. Incidentally , my apologies go to OCD, I mistakenly thought that the thread belonged to TomK when it was OCD who was doing all the hard work…… Sorry OCD Regards paws