My new(ish) Windows 7 machine is soooooo slow

Xaquin

I built a new Windows machine for work and finally got the Professional 7 (64 bit) install disc today. I started her up after formatting an existing SATA 2 HD and it's running so slow. Everything is choppy and starting any given program takes from 3or 4 seconds to 3 or 4 minutes (unless it times out completely)

The MoBo, Processor, RAM, and Power Supply are all new. The Hard Drive isn't new, but it isn't exactly old either and it has been reformatted. The Graphics Card is an NVIDIA Quatro FX 3400/4400

I've updated the GC Drivers and they are current. All other Drivers came on the MoBo CD (Asus P8Z68 VLX). It has 8gb RAM and the Processor is an Intel Core i5 3.30 ghz with a 6mb cache

I'm not sure what is going on .... I seem to have all the current drivers but my comp is still so slow.

Apogee

First guess would be the SATA drive or its drivers. Check the BIOS to see if it is set to IDE or ACHI operation, and try switching. ACHI is faster, but seems to be less compatible; had the same sort of problem on my own computer. Also check to see if the drive needs some speciality drivers... a long shot, but possible.

The rest of the system (barring the Quadro) is plenty fast, so I would expect the drive is the culprit. It might just be dying too, so maybe swap it if you have a spare, or checking the SMART data to see if it's on the way out.

a5ehren

Also, fresh installs of Win7 will be slower than broken-in ones due to the caching algorithms. It's also probably trying to run the search indexer.

amateurhour

a5ehren wrote: »

Also, fresh installs of Win7 will be slower than broken-in ones due to the caching algorithms. It's also probably trying to run the search indexer.

Yeah, if you've got a 500 gb drive that's probably not the issue, but if it's a 2tb raid or something then that might be the issue. You can try manually disabling the search service (go to run and type services.msc, find the indexing service and disable it) and see if that helps speed things up. If not, it's another issue.

Fantasma

A possible solution is just reformat the hard drive and instal Windows XP instead of Windows 7.

Thanatos

Fantasma wrote: »

A possible solution is just reformat the hard drive and instal Windows XP instead of Windows 7.

This is not going to speed anything up, doubly so if you're using an SSD.

Apogee

Yeah, i think the windows XP vs 7 issue was put to bed a long time ago. Maybe if he was running Vista...

Xaquin

changing it to IDE made it crash every time =(

also, I need Windows 7 so I can make use of the 8gb of RAM so that I can actually run Revit 2012 on it. I guess it must be the graphics card. The hard drive is a 75gb WD Sata 2 drive that I plan to just put programs on (Revit and CAD 2012 as well as all my office stuff and adobe crap)

bowen

Yeah you'll need to reinstall once you switch it to IDE mode. That's my first guess with what's wrong here.

How long does it take you to get into windows from a cold boot? Once programs load, do they stay slow if they're not loading anything from hard drive? Meaning if you start something like word, does it function normal/fast in comparison to opening?

If yes, it's probably just the hard drive. If no, I'd check your RAM, you may have a dead unit, or, one that has errors.

Xaquin

bowen wrote: »

Yeah you'll need to reinstall once you switch it to IDE mode. That's my first guess with what's wrong here.

How long does it take you to get into windows from a cold boot? Once programs load, do they stay slow if they're not loading anything from hard drive? Meaning if you start something like word, does it function normal/fast in comparison to opening?

If yes, it's probably just the hard drive. If no, I'd check your RAM, you may have a dead unit, or, one that has errors.

From cold boot to windows is a couple minutes

Once programs load, they stay slow.

Will one dead RAM stick cause the others to not function properly? I have (4) 2gb sticks.

edit: also, can anyone recommend a graphics card upgrade .... I can unfortunately max out at around $150 =(

bowen

It could, I've seen weird things happen with RAM. Like after a certain threshold or utilization they crash and all that.

I'd take one of the sticks out, test it, then flip them, and test. See if performance drags with one, or increases with one. After this it might be the motherboard or power supply causing it.

Xaquin

bowen wrote: »

It could, I've seen weird things happen with RAM. Like after a certain threshold or utilization they crash and all that.

I'd take one of the sticks out, test it, then flip them, and test. See if performance drags with one, or increases with one. After this it might be the motherboard or power supply causing it.

The power supply I know is working, and the MoBo is brand new (of course, so is everything else, so that doesn't say much)

funny, I've built dozens of systems and the one I really REALLY need to work is the one giving my nightmares

Rook

amateurhour wrote: »

a5ehren wrote: »

Also, fresh installs of Win7 will be slower than broken-in ones due to the caching algorithms. It's also probably trying to run the search indexer.

Yeah, if you've got a 500 gb drive that's probably not the issue, but if it's a 2tb raid or something then that might be the issue. You can try manually disabling the search service (go to run and type services.msc, find the indexing service and disable it) and see if that helps speed things up. If not, it's another issue.

If it's a fresh install then it's probably also downloading about 5 million updates and trying to run them in the background. This can usually go on for 3-4 automatic reboots before you are fully up to date.

Xaquin wrote:

All other Drivers came on the MoBo CD (Asus P8Z68 VLX). It has 8gb RAM and the Processor is an Intel Core i5 3.30 ghz with a 6mb cache

I'm not sure what is going on .... I seem to have all the current drivers but my comp is still so slow.

Probably worth checking online for the latest drivers as well as Bios updates too. The CDs don't tend to get updated

Apogee

I'm still better on the HDD; a few minutes to load windows 7 is silly, and it tuels out the graphics card (it's barely being used at that point).
With a drive that old (assuming it's not an SSD), I think IDE mode is likely required. Perhaps reinstall with IDE on and try again?

Also, model #s would be handy... maybe a DXDiag copy/paste?

Gaslight

Fantasma wrote: »

A possible solution is just reformat the hard drive and instal Windows XP instead of Windows 7.

Just wow.

Xaquin

Reinstalling on IDE at this very moment!

with all fingers crossed.

thanks everyone, I'll keep you posted

Xaquin

Apogee wrote: »

I'm still better on the HDD; a few minutes to load windows 7 is silly, and it tuels out the graphics card (it's barely being used at that point).
With a drive that old (assuming it's not an SSD), I think IDE mode is likely required. Perhaps reinstall with IDE on and try again?

Also, model #s would be handy... maybe a DXDiag copy/paste?

I had tried that, but couldn't get explorer running long enough to post it =/

bowen

Yeah ACHI is problematic almost all the time unless you do a hell of a lot of research on compatibility. I've had motherboards go bad too.

Xaquin

UPDATE!

ok, so I switched it to IDE, reinstalled Windows 7 (64 bit) and it was still slow as molasses.

THEN, I turned off windows aero and it is now blindingly fast in every respect. However, I can no longer access nvidia properties to change my screen resolution. It's stuck at 1280x1024 when it needs to be 1440x900 (or similar) for my widescreen monitor.

any clues?

bowen

Right click on desktop -> resolution ?

Xaquin

bowen wrote: »

Right click on desktop -> resolution ?

only gives me three options 640x800, whatever the middle one is, and 1280x1024

Xaquin

ok, SOLVED for now .... apparently, it just needed to be restarted a few more times .... now I can change my res up to the 2000s

thanks for the help everyone .... now I can work aero free until I save enough money to upgrade the HD and Graphics Card

a5ehren

That card is pretty old (equivalent to the Geforce 6800), so the Aero support is kind of iffy. If you want a new card under $150, anything on this page will be a dramatic upgrade. If you have to have a Quadro for Pro apps, this is the best you'll do.

If you aren't playing games or doing anything that needs 3D acceleration, you might be better off with the Intel stuff integrated on that CPU (assuming it's an i5-2xxx or -3xxx) for Aero stuff.

Xaquin

it is i5 2500k

so you think that plugging my monitor directly into my MoBo may be better than the current graphics card?

edit: and the primary use of the computer is for Autodesk Revit (which is a huge everything hog unfortunately). Hell, most if the files I make usually end up being 1.5gb

a5ehren

Xaquin wrote: »

it is i5 2500k

so you think that plugging my monitor directly into my MoBo may be better than the current graphics card?

edit: and the primary use of the computer is for Autodesk Revit (which is a huge everything hog unfortunately). Hell, most if the files I make usually end up being 1.5gb

Well you'd have less problems with Aero, but your Revit performance would probably take a hit. If you have the budget for the Quadro 600 I linked, that would help your Aero and Revit performance pretty dramatically.

Here's Autodesk's certification of the Quadro 600 (for Revit 2013, anyway): usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/syscert/card?siteID=123112&catID=18254205&id=18844534&os=8192&product=57&hw=124

Xaquin

a5ehren wrote: »

Xaquin wrote: »

it is i5 2500k

so you think that plugging my monitor directly into my MoBo may be better than the current graphics card?

edit: and the primary use of the computer is for Autodesk Revit (which is a huge everything hog unfortunately). Hell, most if the files I make usually end up being 1.5gb

Well you'd have less problems with Aero, but your Revit performance would probably take a hit. If you have the budget for the Quadro 600 I linked, that would help your Aero and Revit performance pretty dramatically.

Here's Autodesk's certification of the Quadro 600 (for Revit 2013, anyway): usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/syscert/card?siteID=123112&catID=18254205&id=18844534&os=8192&product=57&hw=124

awesome, thank you! I'll switch off aero for now and sometime this fall I'll lobby for a new graphics card.

I appreciate the help everyone!

a5ehren

Beyond that, you should think about getting a small SSD and dedicating it to Revit and your current project. I/O is a big problem with the Autodesk stuff.

Xaquin

I'm not sure how that would work as all Revit projects are on our server to be used by multiple stations

fightinfilipino

honestly i'd check for newer drivers online, if you haven't done so already. i almost never trust the drivers included in-package with hardware. by the time the products hit retail, the manufacturer has already identified and fixed major driver issues.

also check to see if any of your hardware need/require BIOS or firmware updates. in fact, i would check your motherboard's manufacturer for any newer BIOS revisions.

a5ehren

Xaquin wrote: »

I'm not sure how that would work as all Revit projects are on our server to be used by multiple stations

Oh. Well never mind then.