PC runs sluggish when connected to internet.

[MSNwar]

We have a machine that runs sluggish when connected to the internet. Otherwise, when not connected to the internet it runs fine. After installing XP PRO we added a modem, ELSA MicroLink 56K External USB model (spelling). The modem was connected directly to a USB hub. In the Device Manager under Universal Serial Bus Controllers there are four devices of which two are duplicated. We disconnected the hub, removed the USB Controller and all devices, connected the modem to one of the USB ports, and restarted windows so that it would rebuild the configuration. I thought that this would free up resources, IRQs, which may be causing the PC to run sluggish when connected to the internet, i.e. slow mouse movement, applications opening slowly, etc. Device Manager still shows the four enties and both are duplicates. The PC still runs sluggish.

Any suggestions would be kindly appreciated.

MSNwar - The Fat Man

Women are always running through my mind ... They dare not walk.

[zErO]

How much Ram do u run in ur system as XP does require more then previous O/S, really anything under 258mg will suffer slow system performance.

give us more info as to ur system specs???

what devices ur running and the amount of Virtual memory ur system may have available....etc

[babis]

na xp can run fine on a 128.. one of my bros and dad have 128 machines... pIII 933mhz and it runs pretty sweet.... but you just can't overload it with a lot of programs running in the same time..

Anyhow going back to the problem..

[i:cb4e8461e7]was it always slow? or did it become slow as you upgraded to xp?[/i:cb4e8461e7]

[MSNwar]

It only runs sluggish when connected to the internet.

It is a P3 1 GHz, 256 MB RAM.

[zErO]

How much speed/kps does ur connection run at when u connect, if its under 52 for a 56k modem that may be ur problem

check ur modem makers drivers for a more updated version, did u have any compatability problem reports when u first installed xp????

is ur current modem driver a digitally signed???

[Conan]

Do you have Norton Internet Security 2002 installed? Have you checked Task Manager to see what is using up the CPU?

[MSNwar]

I appreciate all your help with this. I'll answer the questions in the order they were posted first.

Unimatrix-Zero

I have to check the modem speed. It will be a few hours before I can get back on that machine. The driver is the latest and it is digitaly signed for XP.

Conan

I am not running Norton Internet Security 2002 on this box. It will be a few hours before I can get back on that machine. I will look at the the Task Manager first and let you know.

I plan to roll back the system to a point before the the modem was installed. Then I'm going to disconnect the USB External Hub. The hub had the modem, a printer, and scanner connected to it. I will remove from Device Manager the Universal Serial Bus Controller devices and reboot the box. I am hopeing this will rebuild the USB Controller in Device Manager. Then I will connect the modem directly to a USB port on the box and install it. If Windows still runs sluggish I will look at the Task Manager and see what is keeping the CPU so busy.

Let you all know in a few hours.

Thanks

MSN

[babis]

Basically, I think conan is trying to figure out if when connecting to the net, you might have some net application crushing your system.

so anything else running?(file sharing/instant messeging/firewall/etc..)

after you roll back and connect it directly to usb, we might be able to figure out more about the sluggish problem...

when checking in the task manager... make sure to do a before and after check.

ususally when performance decreases it's due to:

low memory, memory leak, startup program hog,multiple users logged, old video drivers, low hd space,a lot of stuff open etc...

anyhow just tell us how it went..

[MSNwar]

The problem is fixed. It was the duplicate Universal Serial Bus Controller devices. We disconnected the hub and connected the modem directly to a USB port on the PC. I disabled one of each duplicate, restarted Windows, and bingo the PC now runs normal when connected to the internet.

I did everything you all suggested before I disabled the duplicates. The modem speed was 42 kbs (its a 56k modem). The Task Manager did not have any applications running in the background except for the Windows Messenger. The CPU Useage before the fix (lack of better word) was kinda steady at 95% to 98%. Important...the driver was in fact 'NOT' Digitaly Signed. My bad as I reported earlier that it was digitaly signed (next time I will double-check myself), so please excuse my error.

I forgot to reconnect the hub to the second USB port before I walked away from the box, erg. The hub might cause the original effect - I don't know - but if it does I'll revisit this thread. Slap me with a wet noodle.

Thank you all for your help and time. I know the effort you put in this is your valuable time and I appreciate it.

MSNwar - The Fat Man

Women are always running through my mind...They dare not walk.