Windows can be slow running "55 processes"

Q: My computer is running slow and I wonder if the 55 "processes" Windows Task Manager lists has anything to do with it. Surely I don't need all of them. How can I determine what is needed and what is not?

David Turley

A: In principle, yes, the 55 processes that are running have something to do with your computer's slow performance. When you run any application, it will start certain processes running under Windows. The more processes running, the more memory and other system resources are consumed. If you check the Performance tab on the Windows Task Manager you can see how much system memory is occupied and available, as well as how much demand is being placed on the CPU.

Unfortunately, it can be difficult to determine which processes belong to which programs. Some are kind of easy to guess. "Outlook.exe," for example, belongs to Microsoft Outlook. But many may be more difficult to tie to their applications.

If you want to try disabling some applications from loading at startup, I'd suggest you run the MSCONFIG utility. To do so, launch the Run window and type "msconfig.exe." Click on the Startup tab in the window that pops up and you'll see what's loading. You can selectively disable specific applications. In Vista, you would find the Run utility by going to the Start button, selecting All Programs, then Accessories.

Q: Recently I noticed a significant slowdown in my laptop processing speed. As I searched for the problem I also began to experience broadband and digital phone-service failure, two or three times a day for 15 minutes to two hours each time. The service technician from the provider restored normal service but the computer processing speed was still extremely slow.

At this point I looked at the Windows Task Manager and found that a single process, "ibackup.exe," was using 97 to 99 percent of the CPU resources full-time. I immediately tried to find what program used the offending process, without success. I have not downloaded a program for several months and presumably the only changes to the system would come from automatic updates from Microsoft, Norton or Iomega (external hard-disk drive).

I have not found a source for "ibackup.exe" so, where did it come from and how do I get rid of it? I tried deleting the process from the Windows Task Manager, but it reappears each time I reboot the system.

Phil Weber, Anacortes

A: The program using up your computer's resources — ibackup.exe — very well could be the software used by your Iomega external hard drive. Or it could be malware masquerading as the Iomega backup program.

Yes, backup programs can preoccupy your computer so much that performance really suffers. That's why backup software generally lets you schedule backups for times when you don't expect to be using your computer. Check your backup software to see when it is scheduled to kick in.

And, by the way, deleting the process using the Task Manager only causes the program to stop running temporarily. Once it is launched again, either automatically or manually, the process will reappear.

The first thing to check on is whether the ibackup.exe you have running is, indeed, Iomega backup software. One way to find out is to disable or uninstall the Iomega software. If the problem goes away, you can figure that it is the backup software. Then just schedule the backups to take place when you're not using the computer.

If that doesn't solve the problem, you may have malware on your computer.

Questions for Patrick Marshall may be sent by e-mail to pmarshall@seattletimes.com or pgmarshall@pgmarshall.net, or by mail at Q&A/Technology, The Seattle Times, P.O. Box 70, Seattle, WA 98111. More columns at www.seattletimes.com/columnists.