browsing folders very slow

[allinone]

i have windows xp installed, dual core 1.8, 512 mb ram.

my pc was working fantastically but now a problem came, browsing folders have become too slow, when i click on any drive, any folder it takes a pause then opens it is really irritating., other applications and softwares are running fine like i play cs, nfs mw they don't have any problem , pc resources are also not completely used .

do any one have idea whats happening, is it a virus or any other problem??????????????????????????????????????

[sin-master]

Assuming the you are using windows xp sp2+.
Basically, Its a virus,
If you can go to folder options, and click on view tab, enable "Show hidden files and folders" & un-check "Hide Protected operating system files(Recommended)
click apply.

After that try browsing to the directory and search for files like autorun.ini and unknown executables and delete them. if the file|s are read only or cannot be deleted, locate it/them in the task manager and end there task before deleting.
Then go get yourself a nice good anti virus.
P.S. some viruses disable the folder option function, I guess in this case back up, re-install the O.S. , install a good anti virus, i suggest Avast, Kaspersky or Node32.
update and then restore your data.

Regards,

[bugzon]

try a free anti virus like AVG

[Spartan Erik]

Is anything using your CPU while you browse your folders?

Some additional RAM would help out

[TechAsh]

I suggest doing a complete Virus scan just in case. But also adding a bit more RAM could solve the problem.
You may also want to upgrade to XP SP3 (If you haven't already), which is supposed to be slightly faster

[vol7ron]

You may have done an XP upgrade recently that requires more ram. 512 isn't really a lot at all. In my opinion it is the minimum. I would suggest 1GB+ for XP. And at least double that for Vista. -- Especially if you're running games like CS.

Go get avast antivirus for free. If you don't want to download it, it can scan your computer online w/o downloading anything for free as well. Or you could also do a free scan from Trend Micro.

Next, download HiJack This. and Spybot Search & Destroy. These will help find malicious files as well.

Don't do what the one guy suggested and delete .exes that you don't know. They could be important if you don't know what you're doing. Do the virus stuff first.

And if you don't have a virus (sometimes even if you do), please run Disk Defragmenter. It's already installed on XP and could speed up your PC a noticeable amount if you aren't running it regularly.

[Daniel S]

I have read that it is because you computer is searching for new sharing folders from a network every time you go to a folder (Doesn't matter how fast your cpu is or how much ram you have it will just be slow.)

Solution:

1. Go to My Computer.

2. Click on the 'Tools' Menu and then click folder options.

3. Click On the view tab, and scroll down until you see 'Automatically search for network folders and printers' option.

4. Deselect it and press apply and ok then hopefully folders will load quicker.

[allinone]

got the problem solved i set the visual effects optin from best appearance to best performance and every thing was fine