processes

[Calvin Walley]

i just hit ctrl ,alt & delete and it shows 70 processes running in the background ..how do i tell which ones i need and which ones to shut down ??

[Wiz Feinberg]

i just hit ctrl ,alt & delete and it shows 70 processes running in the background ..how do i tell which ones i need and which ones to shut down ??

Calvin;
Knowing which processes are optional and which are not requires a bit of research on each item that is not listed as belonging to "System." System owned processes are not optional, unless they have been injected by malware. Windows Updates are run by System, but can be controlled via the Control Panel icon for Automatic Updates.

Some of the system processes are running as Services, some of which can be set to manual startup, instead of automatic. Network Services are required for your network connection to the LAN and or Internet, and are not usually optional.

Items owned by your logged in identity may be optional, such as application update checkers (Quicktime, RealPlayer, bla, bla), modem accessory drivers, mixer controls, quick launch background processes, schedulers for tasks that take place once a week, Windows messenger, etc. Turning off these services may stop an updater from looking for updates, but won't harm the OS itself.

Items owned by the Administrator are usually launched using the RunAs command, and only last until the process has completed it's function.

Use Google or Yahoo searches for the names of the processes in you typical startup list and you will get a better idea about which ones are optional.

[Jack Stoner]

On my Vista machine, it currently shows 80 processes and I keep a relatively "vanilla" system, e.g. only really needed startup programs or programs with a "quick start" in the Sys Tray (lower right). I only have two applications "open" at the present, Mailwasher Pro and I.E.7.

With XP this same machine usually had 50 to 55 processes running.

[Don Poland]

Calvin, this website will list the names of the processes and let you read what they are. This sometime helps to determine if they are "needed" or bloatware from installed programs or even Windoze itself. If they are "required" processes, it will usually not let you end that particular process, Hope this helps.

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

[Wiz Feinberg]

Ok, with MailWasher Pro, Firefox and Trillian open, I have 49 processes in Task Manager. I have XP Pro, SP-2, with all patches and updates, including all three .NET packages.

For reference, here is the ownership breakdown of my running processes:

Local Service = 2
Network Service = 3
System = 24
(My logged in identity) = 20

My CPU usage fluctuates, depending on if MailWasher is checking for mail, or Firefox is loading a heavy duty web page, but typically, the CPU floats between 4% to 20%. My RAM (1 Gb) usage is typically around 55% to 60% and the swap file sits at 348 Mb.

[Calvin Walley]

thanks fellas

it just seems like an awful lot of stuff to be running

[Wiz Feinberg]

thanks fellas

it just seems like an awful lot of stuff to be running

Everywhere I went, I was run-ning!

[Leroy Riggs]

Redundant, sorry.

[Calvin Walley]

Wiz

do you think i need to just leave this kinda stuff alone ???

[Wiz Feinberg]

Wiz

do you think i need to just leave this kinda stuff alone ???

That would be my advise.

[Calvin Walley]

enough said , thanks