Multiple Issues with my Laptop...

I'm not sure if these are related, but my laptop is having multiple issues at the moment. Once again, THANK YOU (in advance) of all your help in resolving this! I can work around issues 2-4, but the internet speed thing is perhaps the biggest issue right now since my job requires high-use of the internet (I just noted the others since I thought there was a chance they were possibly related).

1. I recently upgraded my internet service to 4G. While it may be old news to some, I live in the sticks so this is blazing fast to me. I have a wireless router with one desktop (hard-wired) and three laptops. The speed on the desktop and two of the laptops increased substantially (around 10Mbps), but one laptop (the one I use for work and is used most often) did not increase at all…and if anything, decreased (ranges between 1.5 Mbps and 3Mbps). Range to the router is not an issue, since I tried the other laptops from the same place. I also hard-wired it to the wireless router (Linksys) and it was fast (9+Mbps)…so I don't know what to think…please help!!

2. My CD/DVD Drive does not work most of the time…it will make noise like it is trying to work, but often it will not read the disk or I cannot create any CD or DVDs.

3. Every now and again, I will get a message that virtual memory is low…and that it is increasing the file size (or something like that). It never used to happen, but seems to happen about once a week over the past month or two.

4. It seems like my laptop will not see certain USB ports on occasion. An example is that I have to plug/unplug my external hard drive multiple times before my laptop "sees" it. I usually just keep it disconnected until I need it then go through the whole process before I can use it.

5. Another issue I have on occasion is that IE will not allow me to go to certain webpages. An example is that I can go to www.cbssports.com…but when I click on the "scores" link, the page closes, then "recovered", then a "website restore error" and nothing. There's a handful of pages this happens to, but this is the only one I can think of off the top of my head.

Again, I don't know if any of these are related and don't know if there is a virus/malware on my laptop. The CD/DVD, virtual memory, USB thing, and website restore has been ongoing, while the internet speed is new.

My work/business revolves around the internet, so this is perhaps the biggest issue and quite aggravating! Thank you, in advance, please let me know what I can do!


My original post was in the "Networking Forum", but wasn't answered after 3 days….so I re-posted in the Virus/Malware Forum. Fortunately, no infections/threats were found, but it was recommended that I try this forum. Below is a link to my original post with various logfiles:

http://forums.whatthetech.com/index.php?sh…mp;#entry775162

1/ Sounds like this is a hardware\config issue, the fact speed is fine when using a cable suggests, the issue is with the Wi-Fi specifically, it could be the adaptor is faulty, or it is not configured right, but if the laptop has been dropped\knocked it could be the adaptor is dislodged or damaged, but the big question here currently is did you connect via Wi-Fi previously without issue ? 2/ Sounds like a simple case of a dirty lens, especially if heavily used, you could try using a lens cleaner, they are in the form of a CD and have brushes on, often available in supermarkets, and comes with a liquid, you can try that a few times, but in my experience by the time you need this it is too dirty to clean this way, and usually ends up in requiring a new drive, good news is they are usually simple to replace, and if you find one media works (eg DVD not CD) you need to remember there are 2 lenses, one for each media type. 3/ What is the size of the system, eg hard drive, amount of ram, and how full is the hard drive, I can guide to making a change, but need to know the current situation first. 4/ Often a problem with laptops is the USB and power ports, as there is very little space between connected devices (in the port) and the ground under it, it can be possible that undue pressure is put on the solder joint connecting the port to the board, if used on a soft surface (say a bed) it could add pressure, or pressure could happen if picking up the laptop with devices attached, but in short it's years of use\wear and tear that is "probably" the cause here, if this is the case then it needs to go to a workshop and have the joints checked out\repaired, there may be causes I am unaware of that offer a cheaper way to test first, but this is the cause in cases I know of. 5/ This may be a couple of things, maybe the safe sites list has been altered in some way, or some specific process has caused this action, if you know how reset the security in the internet security tab of the internet options, if you don't know how to do this let me know what OS your using and I will guide you, in fact let me know what OS your using anyway, I need to know that to guide for the memory issue, but also what protection are you using ? I ask as this can block you as well if it's included as a risk in it's updates. Good news is IMHO these are all independent issues, and not associated with infections or each other, except may the Wi-Fi with motherboard ports issues, but it's only a remote possibility, if the laptop goes to a workshop mention about the Wi-Fi and they can check it while sorting out the ports, it could be a simple resoldering job for these faults, but there is no way to be certain, it's a leap of faith if all else is proven to be fine, but let me know these answers and we can go from there.

Hi ShawBuck,

Sorry to read about your frustrating difficulties with the work laptop.

The up-side is… if 8210guy is able to follow through with you, you are in good hands.
If not, others of our techs will most likely chime in.

@ 8210guy…

I was able to cherry-pick some information from the post in Malware Removal.

The machine appears to be:

Toshiba – (though ironically it has a Dell system scanner installed)
XP Pro SP3
2gb RAM – about 70% available memory free
3.85gb set for PageFile on C:\ – 88% paging file free
HD is NTFS and about 110 GB with 46 GB Free Space (41%)
HD does not appeat to be Partitioned and saves My Documents to C:\Documents and Settings\Steve\Desktop

Browsers are:
IE 8.0 (restrictions present) <– might want to see how IE runs "without add-ons"
FF 8.0
Adobe Acrobat BHO toolbar exists
Google toolbar exists


Security is: Microsoft Security Essentials (updated and enabled)

Seems to have Intell Wireless Pro Set

JAVA JRE is updated to 1.6.29 (should be updated to 1.6.31)

Has Bluetooth installed

Looks like Microsoft Office 2003 installed
I don't know what is MicroVision Development, Inc. – "SureThing Shared" — probably a fine file & photo sharing setup
Has eFax
Has both Canon and HP printer software installed
________________________________

As to the USB issue:

I do hope that ShawBuck uses "safely remove USB device" procedure (every time)

it would seem sensible to try using Ztruker's procedure for clearing the USB Controllers and Hubs –> http://forums.whatthetech.com/index.php?showtopic=97497

As to a "simple soldering" of broken USB port connections…
Well, you might be right… It could be "simple'. But local shops often charge as much as $100 US to open the case and perform soldering fixes.
Shop around and get a price before consenting to have the work performed.
____________________________________________________

You might benefit from getting a PCPitstop Overdrive Test to pick up on any issues.
Plus the Pit Test will show you "Installed Software" <– some of which may be involved in the internet browsing restrictions

Just my two-cents.
Saw your post and became interested in the good help you are already getting from 8210guy.
So I thought I'd add my thoughts.

Best Regards,

Doug

Thank you both for responding to my questions/issues….and thank you Doug for forwarding the specifiics about my computer, I'm not sure I would have known what to do. However, I noticed a few inconsistencies: 1. you said I have a Toshiba - it is actually a Dell Latitude D830. It's a few years old and probably due to be replaced, but I need it to get me through another 6 months at least. 2. you mentioned Microsoft Office 2003 installed - this was originally installed when I purchased the laptop, but have since upgraded to Office 2007. 3. you mentioned Adobe Acrobat and Google toolbar exists - maybe at one time, but I thought I deleted them…maybe just disabled though. 4. I have no idea what MicroVision Development is either…I can't find where it's at. 5. USB - to be honest, I had no idea there was a "safely remove USB device" procedure. Dang…it's probably the problem then…I just normally just take it out when I need to. Please let me know what this procedure is… Okay…now in regards to 8210GUY's response: 1. I think I have 2 wireless adapters: Intel PRO/Set Wireless and the Window Wireless adapter. I've switched over to each (although I didn't reboot, if that makes a difference)…and the speed issue is the same. I take very good care of the laptop, so I doubt the dropped/kicked issue is valid…but who knows if something became dislodged. Yes, I previously and currently connect via Wi-Fi without an issue…the only issue now is the speed did not increase when I upgraded my internet service….I should be at or near 10Mbps, but am lucky to get to 3Mbps. The speed previous to the upgrade was at 3Mbps as well, so there was no improvement whatsoever. Hopefully it is just the configuration, but I don't know how to change that, or what to change. 2. I will go out and get a lens cleaner today and see if that works…is there a separate lens cleaner I need to purchase for CD and DVD, or will one work on both? 3. Hopefully Doug answered your questions on this (with my edits above)… 4. I probably will leave this issue alone for now and will try to work around it the next few months. Like I said, I'm due to get a new laptop in the next 6-12 months and will address this issue at a later time and take it in to a local computer place to get looked at. It hasn't been crippling yet…just annoying and frustrating. But after reading Doug's response, I probably shouldn't be plugging in and unplugging the hard drive without the proper "safely remove USB device" procedure, right? 5. I'm not sure if the internet security options tab is the issue or not. I downloaded FireFox to see if I could get to the sites I wanted, but the same thing happens. Also, the site's seem totally harmless, too. The 2 that I can think of off the top of my head are both sports-related ….and come to think of it both are part of cbssports.com. I use Microsoft Security Essentials as my protection. Please advise what to change or look for to perhaps fix this issue. Well, I don't know if it's good news or bad news that they are all independent issues….I was hoping for one quick change and everthing will work normally LOL (I knew it wouldn't happen, but one can hope!) But as I mentioned before, the biggest issue that I was hoping to resolve is the internet speed problem. Again, thank you so much for helping me, please let me know what I should do next….

Thanks Doug, and you are quite correct as usual, especially about shopping around if going to a workshop, IMHO word of mouth is worth it's weight in gold, but in theory the shop may use a hot air method (can't recall exact term off the top of my head), that just heats up to melt the solder, then shuts down to let the solder set again, in the process this theoretically should sort out any dry joints etc, but I dare say there are many varied results with these, but always shop around, although remember, if a price is too good to be true then it probably is, research before accepting.

1/ As to having 2 Wi-Fi hook up's you do not, it is the single connection, but it has a choice over what controls it, the Proset is the makers software, the other as the name infers is m$ control, you can choose between them depending on preference, but you can only use 1 at a time, and for the most part it's user preference, just use what works best for you.

My surest way to check the speed\settings is to uninstall the device, others may be able to specifically guide changing specific values etc, but my rule of thumb is if in doubt, clear it out lol, by uninstalling it removes any settings for it, then once it reinstalls it "should" hopefully of used default settings that should get this working properly (assuming it's not a hardware limitation), I suggest downloading the latest driver for this BEFORE starting, save it to the desktop for ease of finding, and create a system restore point before starting.

Go Here for the driver, if you know the tag enter that, or tell it to auto detect, then download the appropraite driver for your system\OS.
Remeber during this action your only connection to the net possible on this system will be via Ethernet cable, and make sure you know the router code to connect back once reinstalled again or you wont be able to connect to it.

To create a system restore point click on Start - All Programs - Accessories - System Tools - System Restore, then select create a restore point and name it something obvious so you know which point it is should you need it.
To uninstall click on Start - Control Panel - System (double click to launch)
On the window that appears click on the Hardware Tab at the top, then click on Device Manager button on the page, this will list ALL installed devices, they are alphabetically listed, go down to Network Adaptors, expand this by clicking the + symbol next to it, you will see all network devices listed, right click on the wireless entrie(s) and select Uninstall, if it asks to reboot to complete accept that, BUT, only if there are no more wireless entries left showing, when it reboots it will auto detect the device and reinstall, allow this to complete, OR, cancel and use the install file saved to the desktop, once done just connect and fingers crossed it will show an improvement.

2/ Yes, you only need the single cleaner, it does both lenses, quick thought though, and does your drive have a tray that opens or a slot ?
I ask as I doubt such a cleaner would fit a slot due to the brushes, it comes in the form of a CD with brushes on the play side.

3/ I don't have an xp system at hand currently, but with luck I will remember enough for you to follow:-
Click Start - Control Panel - System (double click to launch)
Click on the Advanced Tab at the top
Now click on Performance (button lower down the page)
I think this opens a new window, it does on my system anyway, but you need to click on the Advanced tab in that
Now you should see a mention of the virtual memory, next to that click on Settings
This will open a further window, this will display what your current size is set to, and how it's controlled, should it be set to let Windows decide, Check the option for Custom Size, this will enable editing the size windows next to that
The recommended settings are 1.5 x installed ram for the lower setting, and 3 x for the higher setting; in your case it will require the following;
1.5 x (2 x 1024) = 3072 for the lower setting and 3 x (2 x 1024) = 6144 for the higher amount
Click Set, then OK\exit your way out of all the windows open, with luck that will help with this issue.

4/ As always the choice is yours, we can only guess from the symptoms we are given, you are the one in control and may have a deeper insight as you use it all the time, but yes, one does have to weigh up if it is worth such an action to repair it.

5/ Now if Firefox is doing the same, then my instinct is some form of protection is behind this, a quick test is to disable the protection, not sure exactly with the m$ one, but you can usually find a pause or exit protection under the right click option of clicking on it's icon by the clock, the reason some protection makers block a page is not the page itself directly, but a link on the page that may be outside of the control of the site owner, so this is a quick way to check, hopefully it will show up, if it does then that’s the problem, to get round that we just add such sites to the safe sites list, but let’s see what this shows first, and remember to enable protection (right click enable or similar) straight after testing, if in doubt a simple reboot will load everything as normal again.

The safe remove recommended by Doug above is VERY important, and the more valuable the files the more important it is, worst case it will corrupt the data and you will lose it, so ALWAYS use safe remove for peace of mind, and if you ever get an instance where it will not release the drive, then shut down, once totally shut down you can safely remove the thumb drive, then boot again if you are not finished, not sure why this happens, but occasionally it will see something using the drive, and refuse to release until this is stopped, the confusing part is you may see nothing actually using it to stop it, so a shutdown is the only way I know to free it.

To do a safe remove is easy, when you insert a USB device you get the little check box icon come up, simply click that once (left click) and wait for dialogue to appear, then simply click on the device to remove, once successful it will display a it is safe to remove message, this should be used when removing any kind of media including memory cards, with luck I covered it all, hope this helps a bit.

Thank you again… 1. I uninstalled and re-installed the driver, and unfortunately did not improve my internet speed…what, if anything, should I do next? I did not re-boot (it didn't ask me to)…but will now and report back ONLY if it made a difference. EDIT: BINGO BANGO!!! IT WORKS!! I rebooted, and the latest test was 9.85Mbps and peaked over 11 Mbps!! Awesome!! Thank you!! 2. I will have to get the lens cleaner later…I stopped by the store today and they were "out" of the cleaner and didn't know when they would get more. I live out in the boonies, so I don't have many local options for electronics…I'll try somewhere else in the next couple of days… 3. I increased the virtual memory settings….for some reason, they were quite a bit lower…not sure why? 5. I disabled my protection (Microsoft Security Essentials), and the same thing happened and did the webpage restore, then blanked out to nothing…strange! 6. I had no idea about the "safe remove"…I asked my kids (both in high school) if they knew anything about it, and fortunately they did and do it the right way. I will do the "safe remove" from here on out. Another related question, do I need to do the same thing when I remove something else from the USB port…such as external hard drive, bluetooth, printer, or anything else?? So we're 1 for 3 on fixes - so the big question now is….am I S-O-L, or is there anything else I can do?? EDIT: okay, now we've improved to 2 for 3! Any ideas about the "webpage restore" thingy….or should I take that question to another forum? Thanks again for your help…

1/ Great news, I was hoping it was a simple setting that would be reset doing this, glad to hear this worked as it was your most important one to fix out of it all. 2/ TBH I doubt it will work anyway (as I said at the start), but they are inexpensive, and are a good idea to run on a regular basis on working drives to minimise the risk of them getting to this stage, so don't go out of your way or pay silly money for one, may be worth looking online to see if they are cheap enough to get one that way. 4/ Assuming they have never been touched before it would of been the OS that set the limits, but the method above can be used on any system, and is the recommended standard. 5/ Lets try re-setting the security settings, do the following:- Click on Star - Control Panel - Internet Options (double click to launch) Click on the Security Tab at the top, then click on Reset Defaults, ideally you will have the option to reset ALL zones, then see if that helps. 6/ You should use this for ANY type of writable media removal, external hard drives, memory cards, mobile phones, basically anything that has data that comes up as another hard drive under the My Computer when inserted, any hardware I just pull when finished, so printer, bluetooth etc are fine to pull, even external optical drives are fine, as the media on the drive is burnt not writable, so can't be corrupted the way writable media can, hope that clear it up a bit for you. Lets see if this helps.

Hi Shawbucks,

Good for you!! And thanks for posting back with your results.

As to the CBSSports.com issue…

CBS sites are "highly monetized".
By that I mean that CBS takes full advantage of advertising opportunities to generate revenue for their company.
The "rationale" is that they need to generate money in order to continue to support their own infra-structure, pay their own staff, pay their contracts and stringer writer/interviewers/contributors, so they can continue to bring you the exciting content (such as interviews, game reviews, special reports, and Scores)

At this point, there is no benefit in discussing whether or not they should be using so much advertisement, or whether or not they are earning reasonable or excess profit. It is what it is.

However, many readers believe in "free content". And many developers have created and offer ad-blocking utilites in what they think is a reasonable effort to protect you the reader from unreasonable commercial intrusion and to "protect your privacy".

The CBS site(s) also exercise their own choices about whether or not they will allow their commercial advertisers to be blocked, and if so, how and what ad-blocking they accept. If they don't accept a particular ad-blocking utility, they may cause their site content to "fail". By that I mean that if a browser/reader is blocking the advertisements, the CBS site may choose to block the browser/reader from gaining access to the site's interesting content information.

Some TV rebroadcast-over-the-internet sites such as the TNT Broadcasting system, require that the viewer/reader/browser have an active paid subscription to one of their associates (such as Dish Network, Comcast, DirectTV, Charter, etc.). No subscription – No access to full episode viewing!

CBS "requires" that readers/viewers/browsers accept a certain number and types of advertisements from their site, in exchange for your ability to fully view all of their content. Here's their "policy": http://cbsiprivacy.custhelp.com/app/answer…tail/a_id/1272/

There are various ad-blockers that are offered as add-ons for IE and Firefox. Some of them may block advertisement and cookie tracking in a way that is not acceptable to CBS. A user such as yourself, may be blocked from viewing all or just specific content as a result.

What are these "unacceptable" ad-blockers?
1. Broad-spectrum URL blockers such as SpywareBlaster and Spybot Search & Destroy - Immunize
(these are not specific to a particular browser like IE or Firefox, but create "Restricted Site" lists which prevent the browser from gaining or accepting access from particular URLs deemed to be problematic) Usually, this is a good thing which protects to user from accidentally stumbling into illegal, illicit, or highly risky addresses on the internet. But they also block some advertising URLs that may be used by CBS and others.

2. Custom Hosts Files – such as MVPS Hosts and others which block any browser on the users computer from accessing URLs that are deemed unsafe or overly intrusive.

3. Add-ons that are specific to the browser (IE add-ons, Firefoxe add-ons, ActiveX blockers) Some sites, and maybe CBS Sports require that the viewer/reader/browser accept the sites ActiveX java scripting which allows use of advertising cookies and similar. If your browser blocks or does not accept the ActiveX script, you may be blocked from using/viewing all or a portion of the site's content.

4. URLs that are blocked by the local network Router. (You probably don't have to consider this, unless you have specifically set your router to block various content.)

So what can you do?

If you have utilities similar to SpywareBlaster or SB Search & Destroy-Immunize, you may benefit by removing specific advertiser URLs from those blocked lists.

Same with Hosts Files.

As to browser specific utility "add-ons" you can try to figure out what they are blocking that is unacceptable to CBS, or you can "disable" the add-on through your Browser, to see if that makes a difference.

With IE, you can start testing by running IE without any add-ons
Start - All Programs - Accessories - System Tools - Internet Explorer (no add-ons)

In Firefox,
Start > All Programs > Mozilla Firefox > Mozilla Firefox (Safe Mode)


I can't begin to guess what browser-specific add-on or toolbar feature may be the culprit that may be preventing you from accessing CBS Scores.
But it may be there.

If you have allowed various toolbars to install, (google toolbar, Yahoo toolbar, Adobe Toolbar, Ask Toolbar, etc.) you may benefit from uninstalling the toolbar.

As for me… I don't allow toolbars on my machines.
They may be great and useful to some people, but for me, browser toolbars take up too much space on the screen, offer suggestions I'm not interested in, and may be performing "protective" or specifically targeted functions behind the scenes without informing me. I don't like that and therefore don't allow browser toolbars.

Note: The various utilities cited above are good for their intended purpose, and suggestions to disable or remove them doesn't mean that I think they are bad. For instance, SpywareBlaster, Spybot, and MVPS Hosts File, are great in my opinion.
However, they may be blocking an advertiser that CBS requires that you accept as a pre-condition to viewing their sites Score content.

Just more of my "two-cents".

Best Regards

Well, good news!! I did the "reset defaults" then rebooted, and I can now access the one page I was having issues with. Even though I can't remember the other sites, hopefully I have no issues in the future! 2. I will try the lens cleaner, just to see if it works. Seems like we're on a roll, so why not?!? It has a "tray" that slides out, so I'm sure it will fit in with no problem. If it doesn't work, then maybe I'll get an external cd/dvd drive to use until I can get it fixed/replaced. My kids both have notebooks w/o a cd/dvd drive, so then I can just give it to them. 4. I don't remember changing the VM limits, but perhaps I have. The "recommendations" noted on the computer where identical to what you recommended, but the were just set much lower. Anyways, problem solved…hopefully. 5. Worked! 6. Thanks for the advice!! Definitely will start doing this for now on! Thank you Doug for your very thorough and insightful explanation of the potential problem I'm having with accessing certain sites. It perhaps could have been an issue with Spyware Blaster or Spybot…I think in the past I had one of them (or something similar) on my system for a short period of time. Maybe the restrictions stayed after it was deleted? I don't know?!? I also don't try to allow the toolbars on my laptop…sometimes they are clever and get attached to a download, but then I delete as soon as I notice it. But overall, we were very successful in getting things resolved (for the most part)…the other issues appear to be an issue with the age of my laptop (cd/dvd drive and USB issues) that may need an expert to personally inspect to fix. I can't thank you enough for helping! I know you do this as a volunteer and out of the goodness of your heart (God bless you!!), so please let me know how I can donate ….it may not be alot, but I would like to show my appreciation… Thanks again!!

Thanks for your kind words, ShawBucks

You are correct that we are all volunteers.

Such volunteers as 8210guy who has helped you so successfully here, deserve the highest of praise and appreciation.

If you wish to made an optional donation to support the existence of WhatTheTech Forums, you can use the link in my signature.

Best Regards

Doug

2/ Definitely can't hurt to try, and it is a useful tool to have and use on working systems to keep them at peak performance, so it wont be a wasted purchase, even if it can't help this system, but use as part of a maintenance routine, the gap between running depends on how much the optical drive is used (monthly or so for average usage is what I would choose), and more if disks are really dirty, it's not a bad idea to clean such disks BEFORE running them should you have any, often you can get the cleaner as part of a kit that does the lenses as well as the disks as well, so may be worth considering when looking for one to buy, should be cheaper than buying separately by getting them as part of a kit. I'm really glad we had so much success with your problems, it's good when the basic solutions work, otherwise it can get quite in-depth trying to figure out what else may be going on, but hopefully you can now achieve your goal of nursing this system along until you can replace it later on, but great news all round I think.

Thank you again!! Great site and service! Donation sent…