Windows host process (Rundll32) high CPU usage

Anonymous
2013-11-09T05:32:25+00:00

Most of the time, the rundll.exe process uses consistently above 80% CPU usage. It slows down everything considerably. It also appears that this process gets executed indefinitely slowing down the whole system all the time it runs. It can be killed safely, but then it runs again after sometime and the slow down continues.

I run Windows 8.1 64 bit. Toggling the 'command line' view option in the task manager reveals the following:-

rundll32.exe aeinv.dll,UpdateSoftwareInventory

How do I fix this annoying issue?

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Performance and system failures

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

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Anonymous
2014-11-19T23:46:59+00:00

Hello, I was having the same issues with rundll32.exe using a lot of my CPU usage. Here is what was causing my issues.

Step One: I downloaded Process Explorer. This is an excellent tool. It is similar to Task Manager but goes into way more depth on the processes and dlls that are running. I extracted the download and then ran Process Explorer as an administrator.

Step Two: One of the first things I noticed was rundll32.exe was using 23 percent of my CPU again. 

I right-clicked on the rundll32.exe process and selected properties. I clicked on the Image tab and at once saw the culprit. A utility to monitor and gauge my battery usage, called PwrMgrBkGndMonitor, was draining my battery instead of saving it.

**Step Three:**After a little digging around in my installed programs I located a program called Lenovo Settings Dependency Package. PwrMgrBkGndMonitor was installed in the Lenovo Settings Dependency Package.

I didn’t use this program and decided I didn’t need it. I uninstalled the program and restarted my laptop. I haven’t had a problem with the rundll32.exe using up my CPU since I uninstalled Lenovo Settings Dependency Package.

If you are experiencing the same symptoms has stated above and you are running a Lenovo laptop with Windows 8.1, this may be your issue. However, before you uninstall the program I would recommend using Process Explorer. Process Explorer will help you determine the exact program that is giving you issues before blindly uninstalling and killing services. I hope my troubleshooting steps can help you find program is making rundll32.exe use high CPU usage. Let me know in the comments if this helped you!

(removed by FM)

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  1. Anonymous
    2015-09-25T04:08:29+00:00

    that right 

    also open prosesr explor select rndl32.exe clic proprtis  selct threeds then selct on of thred namd ntdll end prosesor

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  2. Anonymous
    2015-07-13T23:23:59+00:00

    I am aware of this being old, but I found a far safer way of disabling the DLL causing the issue; that DLL is actually the ProgramDataUpdater scheduled task starting and subsequently hanging... :D (EDIT: I also found a couple of other things in there triggering the same glitch! see below for new instructions)

    Anyway, onto fixing it... you do this. A big thanks to the people on eightforums.com for finding it! :)

    1. On windows 8.1 go to Charms -> Search. Enter "Schedule tasks"
    2. In the Task Scheduler window in the left hand pane expand "Task Scheduler Library" and go to Microsoft > Windows > Application Experience
    3. There should be 4 entries. The offenders that cause the high CPU usage are "ProgramDataUpdater" and "Microsoft Compatibility Appraiser". You could disable it as some have recommended, however some opted to configure the task to kill it self if it runs for more than 1 minute. To do that:

    a. Right click on each offending entry and go to properties.

    b. Go to the Settings tab. Ensure that the box next to "Stop the task if it runs longer than." is ticked (checked).

    c. In the drop down selection box, simply type in "1 minute" (or other time limit). Then click OK.

    Alternative of course is to just disable those two. I did it in the end to stop the battery from draining itself so quickly at school, despite the battery being fairly new. (It got replaced a short while ago from being worn out back when I had windows 7)

    EDIT: re-wrote sections to add more info; there was a second rundll32 windows process causing issues as well!

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  3. Anonymous
    2015-04-19T05:25:11+00:00

    I have a problem with Windows 8.1 on a Surface Pro 2, that within a few seconds of booting my CPU gets busy with some processes running.  I searched the web for weeks with no remedy that worked for me.  I keep checking from time to time to see if someone figured it out.  Nope.  Not yet.

    But I did stumble on a workaround that fixes it temporarily.

    After I boot up, I let the CPU spin for a bit and do whatever its busy with while I do this:'

    1. Open Word or Notepad
    2. Type In a few random characters
    3. Minimize window
    4. Go to Metro space and attempt to Sign Out
    5. You will get a message that there are open processes in the background that need you to respond.  (Remember, you have Word or Notepad open and have not saved anything).
    6. Select "cancel" so that you don't log out
    7. Voilà, whatever process that was hogging the CPU was shut down.

    Do as often as needed to kill that process whenever it starts up again.

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  4. Anonymous
    2015-04-06T08:43:54+00:00

    Microsoft did are you even reading the forums before you post the same answer you give to everyone about every single problem??

    i think they don't at least not all of them, almost awry time i ask something they give instructions (do this do that) & not answers

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