Computer occassionaly freezes after being idle for a while.

Anonymous
2009-10-31T19:22:05+00:00

Freezes/locks up after being idle.  No applications running in the background.  Clean install of Win7 with no other issues noted on HP G60-120 laptop that was using Vista with no problems.  Will not unfreeze and have to power down and remove battery to reboot.

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Windows update

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Anonymous
2009-11-05T18:57:29+00:00

Update: my system now no longer freezes after being idle.  But it still returns to the logon screen all by itself after 10 minutes or so of inactivity, even though all power mgt is disabled, and screensaver is set to "none".  This is in Windows 7, and did not happen when we had Vista on the machine.

Regarding the freezing behavior that used to happen, on my system I found that on one of our 4 users, the 'application data' folder was missing the security entry to Deny Everyone permission to “List folder / read data”.  As a result it seems that we had some kind of recursive/infinate loop going on, e.g. in a search a single file came up 17 times, with paths such as:

C:\Users\Barry\AppData\Local

\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Microsoft\Windows

\Temporary Internet Files\Low\Content.IE5\HZTG9H19\ykb_popupWindow[1].js

I added the Deny entry to the security table to match the other users, and the computer doesn't freeze any more.  You might want to check your 'application data' file.  Step 1: in the file explorer click on 'organize' then folder & search options > view > show hidden files folders drives.  Step 2: go to \Users<user>\AppData\local.  Right click on the Application Data folder > properties > security > advanced, and make sure there is a "Deny" entry in the table.

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Anonymous
2009-11-10T14:20:33+00:00

Hey Ryan MC,

Welcome to Microsoft Answers.

There could be various reasons for Windows feezing when idle. Here are few steps suggested to troubleshoot the above issue.

Step 1: Run Check Disk to check your hard drive disk for file system errors.

To do so,

1)       Open the Start Menu and click on the Computer button.

2)       Right click the hard disk drive that you want to check, and click on Properties

3)       Click on the Tools tab, and click on the Check now button under Error-checking.

4)       Check the box Scan and Attempt Recovery of Bad Sectors

This will automatically attempt to repair problems with files and folders that the scan detects.

5)       Click on Start to start scanning.

Depending upon the size of your hard disk, this may take several minutes to finish.

See if this resolves the above issue.

If this doesn’t, go to step 2:

Step 2: Perform Clean Boot:

This checks whether the problem is to do with third party software conflicts.

Here’s how you put your computer in clean boot state.

1)       Click Start, type msconfig in the Start Search box, and then press ENTER.

2)       User Account Control permission

3)       If you are prompted for an administrator password or for a confirmation, type the       password, or click Continue.

4)       On the General tab, click Selective Startup.

5)       Under Selective Startup, click to clear the Load Startup Items check box.

6)       Click the Services tab, click to select the Hide All Microsoft Services check box, and       then click Disable All.

7)       Click OK.

8)       When you are prompted, click Restart.

Now that your computer is in clean boot state, see if the problem recurs.

If it doesn’t, then we know for sure that a background program or startup item is causing this issue.

Follow the steps mentioned in the link below to find out the culprit.

How to troubleshoot a problem by performing a clean boot in Windows Vista or in Windows 7

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929135

Having performed the above steps, make sure you return your computer to start normally.

Return the computer to normal startup mode.

To do so,

1)       Click Start, type msconfig.exe in the Start Search box, and then press ENTER.

2)       If you are prompted for an administrator password or for confirmation, type your password, or click Continue.

3)       On the General tab, click the Normal Startup option, and then click OK.

4)       When you are prompted to restart the computer, click Restart.

If you still face issue after clean boot, then problem some of the system files might be corrupt.

To fix it, go to step 3.

Step 3: Perform SFC Scan.

Steps to perform sfc scan:

1.      Click Start, click All Programs, click Accessories, right-click Command Prompt, and select Run as Administrator.

2.      Click Continue or supply Administrator credentials if prompted.

3.      In the Command Prompt window type the following, and press Enter:

sfc /scannow

4.      You should see the following on-screen messages:

Beginning the system scan. This process will take some time.

Beginning verification phase of system scan.

Verification % complete.

5.      Once the scan has completed you will receive an onscreen message resembling one of the following:

…  found no integrity violations

…  found corruption but repaired it

…  found corruption that it could not repair

For more information visit website   http://support.microsoft.com/kb/936212  

Regards,

Shinmila H - Microsoft Support

Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forumand let us know what you think

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  1. Anonymous
    2011-01-12T14:18:16+00:00

    Hi Aaron,

    I followed your instructions and this is what I got. Could you analyze this for me, please?

    Regards,

    Veselin

    ________________________________________________________________

    C:\Windows>powercfg -a

    The following sleep states are available on this system:

    Standby ( S1 S3 ) Hibernate Hybrid Sleep

    The following sleep states are not available on this system:

    Standby (S2)

            The system firmware does not support this standby state.

    ________________________________________________________________

    C:\Users\Veselin Marković\Desktop>powercfg -energy

    Power Efficiency Diagnostics Report

    Computer NameCOLOSSUS

    Scan Time2011-01-12T13:48:05Z

    Scan Duration60 seconds 

    System ManufacturerSystem manufacturer

    System Product NameSystem Product Name

    BIOS Date01/25/2010

    BIOS VersionASUS M2N-E ACPI BIOS Revision 1703

    OS Build7601

    Platform RolePlatformRoleDesktop

    Plugged Intrue

    Process Count55

    Thread Count837

    Report GUID**{2605fbed-e6ad-42ed-a62a-0cf5613f8bf5}**

    Analysis Results

    Errors

    Power Policy:Sleep timeout is disabled (Plugged In)

    The computer is not configured to automatically sleep after a period of inactivity.

    Power Policy:Disk idle is disabled (Plugged In)

    The disk is not configured to turn off after a period of disk inactivity.

    USB Suspend:USB Device not Entering Suspend

    The USB device did not enter the Suspend state. Processor power management may be prevented if a USB device does not enter the Suspend state when not in use.

    Device Name USB Root Hub

    Host Controller IDPCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_036D

    Host Controller LocationPCI bus 0, device 2, function 1

    Device IDUSB\VID_10DE&PID_036D

    Port Path 

    USB Suspend:USB Device not Entering Suspend

    The USB device did not enter the Suspend state. Processor power management may be prevented if a USB device does not enter the Suspend state when not in use.

    Device NameUSB Root Hub

    Host Controller IDPCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_036C

    Host Controller LocationPCI bus 0, device 2, function 0

    Device IDUSB\VID_10DE&PID_036C

    Port Path 

    USB Suspend:USB Device not Entering Suspend

    The USB device did not enter the Suspend state. Processor power management may be prevented if a USB device does not enter the Suspend state when not in use.

    Device NameUSB Composite Device

    Host Controller IDPCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_036C

    Host Controller LocationPCI bus 0, device 2, function 0

    Device IDUSB\VID_046D&PID_C52B

    Port Path3

    USB Suspend:USB Device not Entering Suspend

    The USB device did not enter the Suspend state. Processor power management may be prevented if a USB device does not enter the Suspend state when not in use.

    Device NameGeneric USB Hub

    Host Controller IDPCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_036D

    Host Controller LocationPCI bus 0, device 2, function 1

    Device IDUSB\VID_0409&PID_005A

    Port Path1

    USB Suspend:USB Device not Entering Suspend

    The USB device did not enter the Suspend state. Processor power management may be prevented if a USB device does not enter the Suspend state when not in use.

    Device NameUSB Composite Device

    Host Controller IDPCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_036C

    Host Controller LocationPCI bus 0, device 2, function 0

    Device IDUSB\VID_046D&PID_C318

    Port Path2

    USB Suspend:USB Device not Entering Suspend

    The USB device did not enter the Suspend state. Processor power management may be prevented if a USB device does not enter the Suspend state when not in use.

    Device NameCSR Bluetooth Radio

    Host Controller IDPCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_036D

    Host Controller LocationPCI bus 0, device 2, function 1

    Device ID USB\VID_0A12&PID_0001

    Port Path1,1

    ReasonThis Bluetooth USB device does not support selective suspend because it is not self powered.

    USB Suspend:USB Device not Entering Suspend

    The USB device did not enter the Suspend state. Processor power management may be prevented if a USB device does not enter the Suspend state when not in use.

    Device NameAmerican Power Conversion USB UPS

    Host Controller ID PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_036C

    Host Controller LocationPCI bus 0, device 2, function 0

    Device ID USB\VID_051D&PID_0002

    Port Path4

    CPU Utilization:Processor utilization is high

    The average processor utilization during the trace was high. The system will consume less power when the average processor utilization is very low. Review processor utilization for individual processes to determine which applications and services contribute the most to total processor utilization.

    Average Utilization (%)8.41

    Warnings

    Power Policy:802.11 Radio Power Policy is Maximum Performance (Plugged In)

    The current power policy for 802.11-compatible wireless network adapters is not configured to use low-power modes.

    CPU Utilization:Individual process with significant processor utilization.

    This process is responsible for a significant portion of the total processor utilization recorded during the trace.

    Process Nameiexplore.exe

    PID 5052

    Average Utilization (%)2.81

    Module Average Module Utilization (%) 

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Windows\SysWOW64\mshtml.dll 1.46

    \SystemRoot\System32\win32k.sys 0.47

    \SystemRoot\system32\ntoskrnl.exe 0.19

    CPU Utilization:Individual process with significant processor utilization.

    This process is responsible for a significant portion of the total processor utilization recorded during the trace.

    Process Name iexplore.exe

    PID3552

    Average Utilization (%) 0.92

    Module Average Module Utilization (%) 

    \SystemRoot\system32\ntoskrnl.exe 0.21

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Windows\SysWOW64\mshtml.dll 0.11

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Windows\SysWOW64\jscript.dll 0.11

    CPU Utilization:Individual process with significant processor utilization.

    This process is responsible for a significant portion of the total processor utilization recorded during the trace.

    Process Nameexplorer.exe

    PID3864

    Average Utilization (%)0.78

    Module Average Module Utilization (%) 

    \SystemRoot\system32\ntoskrnl.exe 0.29

    \SystemRoot\System32\win32k.sys 0.13

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Windows\System32\shell32.dll 0.06

    CPU Utilization:Individual process with significant processor utilization.

    This process is responsible for a significant portion of the total processor utilization recorded during the trace.

    Process NameSystem

    PID4

    Average Utilization (%)0.51

    Module Average Module Utilization (%) 

    \SystemRoot\system32\ntoskrnl.exe 0.35

    \SystemRoot\system32\hal.dll 0.03

    \SystemRoot\system32\DRIVERS\atikmdag.sys 0.03

    CPU Utilization:Individual process with significant processor utilization.

    This process is responsible for a significant portion of the total processor utilization recorded during the trace.

    Process Nameavp.exe

    PID1948

    Average Utilization (%)0.41

    Module Average Module Utilization (%) 

    \SystemRoot\system32\ntoskrnl.exe 0.15

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Program Files (x86)\Kaspersky Lab\Kaspersky PURE\icheck3.ppl 0.04

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Windows\SysWOW64\ntdll.dll 0.03

    CPU Utilization:Individual process with significant processor utilization.

    This process is responsible for a significant portion of the total processor utilization recorded during the trace.

    Process Namedwm.exe

    PID1928

    Average Utilization (%)0.40

    Module Average Module Utilization (%) 

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Windows\System32\dwmcore.dll 0.16

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Windows\System32\atidxx64.dll 0.09

    \SystemRoot\system32\ntoskrnl.exe 0.02

    CPU Utilization:Individual process with significant processor utilization.

    This process is responsible for a significant portion of the total processor utilization recorded during the trace.

    Process Nameiexplore.exe

    PID2280

    Average Utilization (%)0.30

    Module Average Module Utilization (%) 

    \SystemRoot\system32\ntoskrnl.exe 0.09

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Windows\SysWOW64\ntdll.dll 0.04

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Silverlight\4.0.51204.0\agcore.dll 0.03

    CPU Utilization:Individual process with significant processor utilization.

    This process is responsible for a significant portion of the total processor utilization recorded during the trace.

    Process Namewlmail.exe

    PID3400

    Average Utilization (%)0.24

    Module Average Module Utilization (%) 

    \SystemRoot\system32\ntoskrnl.exe 0.05

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Program Files (x86)\Windows Live\Contacts\lmcdata.dll 0.03

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Windows\SysWOW64\ntdll.dll 0.02

    CPU Utilization:Individual process with significant processor utilization.

    This process is responsible for a significant portion of the total processor utilization recorded during the trace.

    Process Namewlcomm.exe

    PID1784

    Average Utilization (%)0.22

    Module Average Module Utilization (%) 

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Program Files (x86)\Windows Live\Contacts\lmcdata.dll 0.04

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Windows\SysWOW64\ntdll.dll 0.03

    \Device\HarddiskVolume2\Windows\SysWOW64\kernel32.dll 0.02

    CPU Utilization:Individual process with significant processor utilization.

    This process is responsible for a significant portion of the total processor utilization recorded during the trace.

    Process Namecsrss.exe

    PID572

    Average Utilization (%)0.22

    Module Average Module Utilization (%) 

    \SystemRoot\system32\ntoskrnl.exe 0.08

    \SystemRoot\System32\win32k.sys 0.06

    \SystemRoot\system32\DRIVERS\atikmdag.sys 0.04

    Information

    Platform Timer Resolution:Platform Timer Resolution

    The default platform timer resolution is 15.6ms (15625000ns) and should be used whenever the system is idle. If the timer resolution is increased, processor power management technologies may not be effective. The timer resolution may be increased due to multimedia playback or graphical animations.

    Current Timer Resolution (100ns units)156000

    Power Policy:Active Power Plan

    The current power plan in use

    Plan Name OEM Balanced

    Plan GUID**{381b4222-f694-41f0-9685-ff5bb260df2e}**

    Power Policy:Power Plan Personality (Plugged In)

    The personality of the current power plan when the system is plugged in.

    PersonalityBalanced

    Power Policy:Video quality (Plugged In)

    Enables Windows Media Player to optimize for quality or power savings when playing video.

    Quality ModeOptimize for Video Quality

    System Availability Requests:Analysis Success

    Analysis was successful. No energy efficiency problems were found. No information was returned.

    Battery:Analysis Success

    Analysis was successful. No energy efficiency problems were found. No information was returned.

    Platform Power Management Capabilities:Supported Sleep States

    Sleep states allow the computer to enter low-power modes after a period of inactivity. The S3 sleep state is the default sleep state for Windows platforms. The S3 sleep state consumes only enough power to preserve memory contents and allow the computer to resume working quickly. Very few platforms support the S1 or S2 Sleep states.

    S1 Sleep Supportedtrue

    S2 Sleep Supportedfalse

    S3 Sleep Supportedtrue

    S4 Sleep Supportedtrue

    Platform Power Management Capabilities:Processor Power Management Capabilities

    Effective processor power management enables the computer to automatically balance performance and energy consumption.

    Group0

    Index0

    Idle (C) State Count 1

    Performance (P) State Count6

    Throttle (T) State Count0

    Platform Power Management Capabilities:Processor Power Management Capabilities

    Effective processor power management enables the computer to automatically balance performance and energy consumption.

    Group0

    Index1

    Idle (C) State Count1

    Performance (P) State Count6

    Throttle (T) State Count0

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  2. Anonymous
    2011-01-12T07:51:27+00:00

    Hi Aaron

    In my case it happened with an Acer Vista Ultimate that was two and a half years old, which I'd upgraded to Windows 7 Ultimate, so your reply might be relevant to that.

    However, I now have a brand new Toshiba with Windows 7 Home Premium OEM installed. I had exactly the same issues with this when it was brand new in November 2010. As I said above, based on various replies all over the web I stopped sleep, hibernation, disks turning off, display turning off and screensaver. When I did this on the Toshiba it stopped freezing and has been freeze free ever since.

    Regards

    Alan

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  3. Anonymous
    2011-01-12T00:19:37+00:00

    Hello,

    More than likely this issue is occuring due to a BIOS update being required.  If everything worked in Vista but once 7 was installed it stopped working more than likely there will be a compatibilty issue with the hardware or the components of the computer.  Are these custom build computers or computer from the OEM?  My suggestion would be the following support steps...

    -Open Elevated Command Prompt (Run as Administraor)

    Type....

    -Powercfg -a (Show supported sleep states)

    -Powercfg -energy (Going to generatea report)  Please make sure you are pointing to "C:\users\usersname\Desktop" for easy access.

    -Driver Updates

    -BIOS Updates

    If there is a compatibilty issue with the BIOS or motherboard not beign Windows 7 compatible, it is highly possible you will experiencing issues with Power Saver functionality.

    I hope this information is beneficial.

    Thank you,

    Aaron

    Microsoft Answers Support Engineer

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