Slow windows - and I've tried about everything

Alias

Member
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65
Windows 8.1 ver 6.2

I've read proposed solutions here and on the web. No luck. Here is what I know.
After reboot, W8 runs pretty well. As the days go on, it gets exceedingly slow. (NOTE: all time given were actually timed)
Browser (Firefox, IE, Chrome) can take 5-6 minutes to complete an update when I hit F5. I get a LOT of "No Response." I've tried running browsers with Add-ins disabled and removing cookies.
EM Client will take 3 minutes to change from email to calendar.
Word takes 2 minutes to open.
Eventually, the keyboard will take 30 sec to 1 min from hitting a letter key to it's appearing on the screen.
CTRL-ALT-DEL takes 2 minutes to display.

I've tried emptying Recycle Bin, removing unused apps, checking Task Manager for memory hogging apps, memory uses 2.9 of 3.7GB, disabling/removing Avast, emptying browser history, ran anti-virus, searched for malware. I've read great debates about registry cleaners and, thus, haven't tried one. I haven't removed/reinstalled W8. Any further tests/tips would be appreciated.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Have you tried running "sfc /scannow" (without the quote marks) inside a command window? This will find and try to fix system files which may be corrupt.
They may have become corrupt due to a failing hard disk so also run "chkdsk /f C:" (without the quote marks) inside a command window. This will identify and fix disk problems but if your hard vdisk is on its way out then the fix will only be temporary because file corruption will continue to occur.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 64 bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
Try this: Run MSCONFIG. Go to the Services tab. Check the box which says "Hide all Microsoft services." Now select all items and click Disable then Apply. Now reboot the computer.

I suspect that your computer will run faster once you have done the above. If I am right, then that means that one (or more) of the non-Microsoft services was the culprit. You now have a choice: (1) Leave them all disabled, or (2) Re-enable all that you can without slowing down the computer.

Some of these non-Microsoft services are performing important functions, such as anti-virus monitoring. You definitely want to re-enable them. However, some of them are quite useless and can stay disabled. And one (or more) of them are slowing down the computer.

To re-enable them, go back into MSCONFIG, and go to the Services tab. Hide all Microsoft services. Now enable a service that looks important, or one that looks harmless. Click Apply, then reboot the computer. See how things go when you are back in Windows. If all is well, then you can leave that one enabled. Keep going into MSCONFIG and re-enabling one at a time, rebooting after each re-enable, until you find the culprit. Keep that one disabled, and make note of which one it was for future reference.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Linux Mint 18.2 xfce 64-bit (host OS) / Windows 8.1 Pro 32-bit (virtual machine)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 3847
    CPU
    Haswell
    Memory
    12 GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Acer 23"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    Two hard drives, 1TB each: One for Linux, one for my data.
    Keyboard
    IBM Model M
    Browser
    Firefox, Opera, Internet Explorer
    Antivirus
    Sophos (Linux), Windows Defender (Windows)
    Other Info
    I use Samba to share my data drive with the other computers at my house.
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