Windows 7 sulk mode

I'm now staying with my blind friends for a few days, so can do some
first-hand work on the sulk mode, rather than having to do it via
Teamcenter.

The mode is: after a certain time after booting, which seems to be 5 to
20 minutes, it goes into sulk mode - where most things don't work, but
no error message is evident. I click on a desktop icon; the wheel spins
for a few seconds, accompanied by the open program sound; then nothing
happens. This applies whether it's something we've installed, such as
Eudora (an ancient email prog.), or something part of (or supplied with)
Windows, such as IE; it also happens if I try, for example, to open task
manager, or even shut down.

A restart (by holding power button in) usually gives us another 5-20
minutes.

This started about the middle of the year; previous to that, the
computer (Dell dual core - IIRR an 860) had been fine. We don't know
what triggers sulk mode - if anything; I'm not convinced it doesn't
happen on its own. (Nor am I convinced it does!)

Sometimes, we get popups including one or more of "server execution
failed", "26EE0668-A00A-44D7-9371-BEB064C98683", and some others. I've
googled some of these, but none of what I've found seem to exactly
describe what we're getting: some describe loss of internet connection.

Things tried so far:

"Clean boot" as described in
https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/kb/929135 (as suggested from
http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/w...a7-4f71-b838-7
16de1ac0343?auth=1
). When booting in this mode, sulk mode still happened after a few
minutes.

"sfc /SCANNOW" from an administrator command prompt. Completed,
eventually, saying some corrupted files could not be restored, with
details in a log file. When I looked at said log file, I couldn't really
understand it.

It's tedious trying anything, because it requires a restart (and by
pressing and holding the [soft] power button, which I feel uneasy doing)
to get it back to responding to anything.

Possible next step - a repair using the W7 disc, if we can find it and I
can remember what to do (boot from it and select repair, IIRR).

Input gratefully received!
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

Less rules means fewer grammar? - Marjorie in UMRA, 2014-1-28 13:14

J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
I'm now staying with my blind friends for a few days, so can do some
first-hand work on the sulk mode, rather than having to do it via
Teamcenter.

The mode is: after a certain time after booting, which seems to be 5 to
20 minutes, it goes into sulk mode - where most things don't work, but
no error message is evident. I click on a desktop icon; the wheel spins
for a few seconds, accompanied by the open program sound; then nothing
happens. This applies whether it's something we've installed, such as
Eudora (an ancient email prog.), or something part of (or supplied with)
Windows, such as IE; it also happens if I try, for example, to open task
manager, or even shut down.

A restart (by holding power button in) usually gives us another 5-20
minutes.

This started about the middle of the year; previous to that, the
computer (Dell dual core - IIRR an 860) had been fine. We don't know
what triggers sulk mode - if anything; I'm not convinced it doesn't
happen on its own. (Nor am I convinced it does!)

Sometimes, we get popups including one or more of "server execution
failed", "26EE0668-A00A-44D7-9371-BEB064C98683", and some others. I've
googled some of these, but none of what I've found seem to exactly
describe what we're getting: some describe loss of internet connection.

Things tried so far:

"Clean boot" as described in
https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/kb/929135 (as suggested from
http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/w...a7-4f71-b838-7

16de1ac0343?auth=1
). When booting in this mode, sulk mode still happened after a few minutes.

"sfc /SCANNOW" from an administrator command prompt. Completed,
eventually, saying some corrupted files could not be restored, with
details in a log file. When I looked at said log file, I couldn't really
understand it.

It's tedious trying anything, because it requires a restart (and by
pressing and holding the [soft] power button, which I feel uneasy doing)
to get it back to responding to anything.

Possible next step - a repair using the W7 disc, if we can find it and I
can remember what to do (boot from it and select repair, IIRR).

Input gratefully received!

Start Sysinternals Process Explorer. You want to
start this as Administrator, if you want a breakdown
of what is inside the SVCHOST entries. And that will be
necessary for potential debugging.

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/...rocessexplorer

That's like Task Manager, only it can give more details.

My guess is, this is a manifestation of Windows Update
wuauserv bug. Your machine has limited RAM, and WU is
using all the RAM during one of its useless scans.

You can have Task Manager or Resource Monitor open at the
same time, and watch some resource dwindle over the 20 minute
period.

If it's a dual core, and WU drives one core to 100% usage,
then you should still have "half the processor" capacity left.

You could also open the Windows Update control panel, and
change the setting for Windows Update away from the Auto
setting it is currently using. If you disable it, maybe it'll
stop with the scans. Do a reboot to stop the current
scan.

Now, if it did happen to be set for totally automated updating,
you might want to check the Windows Update history entry, and
see if all attempts to update the system recently have a
status of "Failed". It might mean that an update is stuck
in the plumbing. You can use the Catalog server and
get the updates manually, and install them one at a time.
If an update has Failed for one entry, followed by a later
entry with Success status, then you don't have to install
that one. But if an entry is Failed, and no Success comes after
it in time, then that might be a candidate for manual install.

I've virtually always been able to resolve "plumbing issues"
with Windows Update, via manual installation of pesky updates.

To get updates manually, use Internet Explorer and put the
proper KB article number on the end of a link like this.
You must use Internet Explorer, as this web site uses an
ActiveX plugin to run the Shopping Cart interface on the
web page.

http://catalog.update.microsoft.com/...aspx?q=3032663

And if you want to see what security patches (not optional patches)
are missing, you can use MBSA 2.3 for that process. It takes around
five minutes to present the list.

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/downl...s.aspx?id=7558

Example of the scan window on that thing.

http://s12.postimg.org/4df2ka8bh/mbsa.gif

Before you return the computer to the user, do a backup
of C: for a rainy day. The way patching is done in Win7,
will be switching to Cumulative updates only, and at some
point, maybe something will happen to the machine that will
require rolling back. Have at least one backup in hand for that
possibility. I've been working on patching my machines up to date,
in preparation for "surprises" on October Patch Tuesday. The
Microsoft plan is, if users won't switch their Win7 to Win10,
Microsoft will backport Win10 stuff into Win7. Which is why we
have to be vigilant, for a new kind of shenanigan.

Paul

J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:

after a certain time after booting, which seems to be 5 to 20 minutes,
it goes into sulk mode - where most things don't work, but no error
message is evident. I click on a desktop icon; the wheel spins for a
few seconds, accompanied by the open program sound; then nothing
happens. This applies whether it's something we've installed, such as
Eudora (an ancient email prog.), or something part of (or supplied
with) Windows, such as IE; it also happens if I try, for example, to
open task manager, or even shut down.

A restart (by holding power button in) usually gives us another 5-20
minutes.

Have you tried cold booting (shutdown and remove power - which also
means unplugging the power cord from the PSU for a few minutes and then
replugging it in) into Windows' safe mode? The preferred test would be
without networking but if you absolutely need it then select safe mode
with networking in the boot menu.

"Clean boot" as described in https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/kb/929135

I'm not sure that will eliminate all non-critical OS-only services.

Most anti-virus and other security software will be disabled in
Windows' safe mode but I'm not sure all will do so. Have you tried
disabling the AV software or uninstalling it? Just don't connect
anywhere on the Internet during this test.

Is Windows Update configured to NOT automatically update but instead
only notify (so you decide when to download and then when to install)?
Do not select to download and then notify. Don't even download. Just
have it prompt you about newly available updates.

"sfc /SCANNOW" from an administrator command prompt. Completed,
eventually, saying some corrupted files could not be restored, with
details in a log file. When I looked at said log file, I couldn't
really understand it.

I'm not a fan of System File Checker. It might work but most times it
doesn't fix anything. Instead I boot using the Windows install CD and
use it to perform a Repair.

In message , Paul
writes:
J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
I'm now staying with my blind friends for a few days, so can do some
first-hand work on the sulk mode, rather than having to do it via
Teamcenter.
The mode is: after a certain time after booting, which seems to be 5
to 20 minutes, it goes into sulk mode - where most things don't work,
but no error message is evident. I click on a desktop icon; the wheel
spins for a few seconds, accompanied by the open program sound; then
nothing happens. This applies whether it's something we've installed,
[]
Start Sysinternals Process Explorer. You want to
start this as Administrator, if you want a breakdown
of what is inside the SVCHOST entries. And that will be
necessary for potential debugging.

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/...rocessexplorer

That's like Task Manager, only it can give more details.

Thanks - I might give this a try, though it sounds a bit complex -
especially to do on someone else's computer.

My guess is, this is a manifestation of Windows Update
wuauserv bug. Your machine has limited RAM, and WU is
using all the RAM during one of its useless scans.

I don't _think_ so. The machine has IIRR 8G (it is 64 bit); they wanted
plenty as they thought their speech software (JAWS) is rather
memory-hungry, and I think that's correct.

You can have Task Manager or Resource Monitor open at the
same time, and watch some resource dwindle over the 20 minute
period.

If it's a dual core, and WU drives one core to 100% usage,
then you should still have "half the processor" capacity left.

That doesn't _seem_ to be the case; when in sulk mode, and I try to
start something, it seems to respond with the mouse cursor changing to a
spinning circle, and make the program starting sound (a baa on my
friend's machine), pretty quickly; it's just that, after a few seconds,
the spinning circle returns to an arrow, and nothing happening.
Including an attempt to start task manager, unfortunately.

You could also open the Windows Update control panel, and
change the setting for Windows Update away from the Auto
setting it is currently using. If you disable it, maybe it'll
stop with the scans. Do a reboot to stop the current
scan.

I might try that, even though I don't think that is the problem. I can't
leave it turned off - my friends believe in updates.

Now, if it did happen to be set for totally automated updating,
you might want to check the Windows Update history entry, and
see if all attempts to update the system recently have a
status of "Failed". It might mean that an update is stuck

If turning updates off (and a reboot) does seem to cure it, I'll
probably follow your instructions.
[]
Microsoft plan is, if users won't switch their Win7 to Win10,
Microsoft will backport Win10 stuff into Win7. Which is why we
have to be vigilant, for a new kind of shenanigan.

I'll try to get a backup of the system (especially if we cure the
problem) made; however, unfortunately, my friends'd need sighted help to
restore from it, as Macrium isn't speech-friendly yet.

Paul
John
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

"In the _car_-park? What are you doing there?" "Parking cars, what else does one
do in a car-park?" (First series, fit the fifth.)

In message , VanguardLH
writes:
[]
Have you tried cold booting (shutdown and remove power - which also
means unplugging the power cord from the PSU for a few minutes and then

I'm pretty sure my friends have tried that: he's a fan of the power-out.

replugging it in) into Windows' safe mode? The preferred test would be

Though not into safe mode. (Speech doesn't work therein.)

without networking but if you absolutely need it then select safe mode
with networking in the boot menu.

Well, the sulk does seem to have _some_ correlation with being
connected.

"Clean boot" as described in https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/kb/929135

I'm not sure that will eliminate all non-critical OS-only services.

No, nor am I: IIRR, it says to hide all Microsoft somethings before
hitting disable (by which I think it means disable _all_), so I suspect
some non-critical things are running.

Most anti-virus and other security software will be disabled in
Windows' safe mode but I'm not sure all will do so. Have you tried
disabling the AV software or uninstalling it? Just don't connect

We're considering it. (Avira.)

anywhere on the Internet during this test.

Though as I've said, there seems to be some correlation between being
connected and the problem appearing.

Is Windows Update configured to NOT automatically update but instead
only notify (so you decide when to download and then when to install)?

I've yet to check that - see reply to Paul's email.

Do not select to download and then notify. Don't even download. Just
have it prompt you about newly available updates.

"sfc /SCANNOW" from an administrator command prompt. Completed,
eventually, saying some corrupted files could not be restored, with
details in a log file. When I looked at said log file, I couldn't
really understand it.

I'm not a fan of System File Checker. It might work but most times it
doesn't fix anything. Instead I boot using the Windows install CD and

Though it did tell us there _are_ some corrupted files, so it wasn't a
complete waste of time.

use it to perform a Repair.

That, I think, is probably the next thing to try. Anything to watch out
for? (In particular, is it easy to avoid accidentally doing a reinstall
rather than a repair?)
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

"In the _car_-park? What are you doing there?" "Parking cars, what else does one
do in a car-park?" (First series, fit the fifth.)

J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:

Well, the sulk does seem to have _some_ correlation with being
connected.

My aunt had a similar problem: all her programs and the OS were really
slow. I found she had installed adware and some that bordered on
malware that consumed a monsterous portion of her network bandwidth
while sucking up the CPU. A boot into Windows' safe mode eliminated all
that crap and her computer ran just fine. I scanned using Avast,
MalwareBytes Anti-Malware (free version), removed some iffy startup
programs, uninstalled some non-malware that was doing the same
phone-home crap and would cause lags until they transferred their data
or did an update, and did some remnant file and registry cleanup.
Whoosh, her computer was like new. Yeah, she would claim she did not
install that crap but she did because she installed iffy software from
iffy sources, would install Adobe Flash when prompted at a site but most
users don't know from where that download really comes, and installed
some non-malware with bad behaviors.

What have you checked yet regarding malware, adware, startup programs,
and any installed programs the user really does not need? Most of that
crap does not load in Windows' safe mode. Just because his speech
program does not load should not preclude you from using safe mode as a
troubleshooting step.

Something else to consider: when was the last time this computer had all
the dust and lint blown out of it? That means using a cotton swab to
wipe the fan blades (since crud sticks to them that won't blow off) and
using up 2-3 cans of compressed air to blow out the CPU and GPU heat
sinks, the fans, the PSU (from both directions), and everything else.

That crud is a thermal insulator. Means the heat cannot escape.
Protective logic will throttle down the computer when it gets too hot.
So you power up and the computer is cold[er]. Then you start to use it
and the CPU heats up and maybe the GPU, too. If they get too hot, the
CPU and GPU are throttled down by reducing their duty cycle. This means
they slow down, way down, and possibly to the point the computer seems
to have locked up or hangs for a very long time. If the computer uses
air cooling then air must pass across the computer's components to cool
them. Dust prevents transfer of heat from component to air and blocks
the passage of air.

So it could be the computer is throttling down to prevent itself from
burning up because it is filthy inside. I blow out my computers at
least once per year, sometimes twice per year. With all the dust that
collects inside them, I don't blow all the crud back into the room but
disconnect the computer and take it outside to blow it out.

In message , VanguardLH
writes:
[]
So it could be the computer is throttling down to prevent itself from
burning up because it is filthy inside. I blow out my computers at
least once per year, sometimes twice per year. With all the dust that
collects inside them, I don't blow all the crud back into the room but
disconnect the computer and take it outside to blow it out.

Good thinking, but the computer is very responsive - in particular, the
mouse cursor moves as soon as I move the mouse; in fact there's
absolutely nothing I can see that changes between running normally, and
sulk mode, other than that in sulk mode nothing opens (e. g. when you
double-click on its desktop icon or run it from the start menu). There's
no gradual slowing down, or increase in erratic behaviour, or _anything_
- it just suddenly stops opening things. I _think_ things that are
already open, continue to do so; certainly a command prompt window
continued to respond. I don't know, from its responsivity etc., that the
computer _has_ gone into sulk mode, until I try to run something.

I have found my W7 DVD; about to try a repair.
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

Of course, this show - like every other cop show on earth - massively
overstates the prevalence of violent crime: last year, in the whole of the UK,
police fired their weapons just three times. And there were precisely zero
fatalities. - Vincent Graff in RT, 2014/11/8-14

J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:

In message , VanguardLH
writes:
[]
So it could be the computer is throttling down to prevent itself from
burning up because it is filthy inside. I blow out my computers at
least once per year, sometimes twice per year. With all the dust that
collects inside them, I don't blow all the crud back into the room but
disconnect the computer and take it outside to blow it out.

Good thinking, but the computer is very responsive - in particular, the
mouse cursor moves as soon as I move the mouse; in fact there's
absolutely nothing I can see that changes between running normally, and
sulk mode, other than that in sulk mode nothing opens (e. g. when you
double-click on its desktop icon or run it from the start menu). There's
no gradual slowing down, or increase in erratic behaviour, or _anything_
- it just suddenly stops opening things. I _think_ things that are
already open, continue to do so; certainly a command prompt window
continued to respond. I don't know, from its responsivity etc., that the
computer _has_ gone into sulk mode, until I try to run something.

I have found my W7 DVD; about to try a repair.

A moving mouse cursor is hardly indicative of a responsive computer. It
is the *time* you mention as to when the computer gets sluggish. When
cold then there will be no throttling. As the parts heat up - which
takes time - but are not properly cooled then throttling will kick in.
How much load is placed on the CPU and GPU dictates how fast they heat
up. 20 minutes seems too long under a heavy load before throttling
would kick in but not if the load were light.

Have you installed or used a program to monitor the CPU and GPU
temperatures? High heat in the PSU can also affect usability (can cause
a shutdown) but few users have temperature sensors inside the PSU.
Also, many computers for a long time have provided a means to vary the
fans speeds either via BIOS settings or using software that loads on
Windows startup. If those speeds are set too low, there is some cooling
that would slow when the component eventually got too hot and when
throttling would engage. Dirty fans can do the same since they aren't
moving enough air, as well as dust and lint laying on components or
buried within the fins of a heatsink. Some air movement but not enough
to properly cool, the parts heat up, and eventually they protect
themselves by throttling the CPU so the load goes down (which, to you,
is exhibited as sluggishness or hanging).

Throttling is not usually something that is gradual. The heat buildup
may be gradual but once the temperature threshold is hit then throttling
is immediate. Throttling isn't fix, however. Typically there is some
throttling to reduce load but if that isn't sufficient then throttling
is increased. If the temperatures were to rise suddenly then so, too,
would the throttling.

Even if not the problem, and because users rarely do it, tis probably
overdue to blow out the dust. While inside, check for pregnant caps,
leakage onto the mobo, a fan or heatsink not properly seated, fans not
spinning (do that before disconnecting to blow it out), and do a general
inspection to look for any other damage.

In message , "J. P. Gilliver
(John)" writes:
[]
I have found my W7 DVD; about to try a repair.

Inserted it while Windows running: disc loaded, then gave install W7 as
the only option. Restarted with it already in drive: this time, repair
was an option, so I selected it, only for it to say this repair console
is not compatible with the version of Windows running, or something like
that: odd, because I'm sure that's the disc this system was booted from.

Have found another W7 disc, and will try that later. Doing other
(non-computer) things now.
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

_____
___ |[]|_n_n_I_c
|___||__|###|____)
O-O--O-O+++--O-O

In message , VanguardLH
writes:
[]
Good thinking, but the computer is very responsive - in particular, the
mouse cursor moves as soon as I move the mouse; in fact there's
[]
A moving mouse cursor is hardly indicative of a responsive computer. It
is the *time* you mention as to when the computer gets sluggish. When

It doesn't get sluggish; it just stops opening things. No perceptible
speed change in anything. Before sulk mode cuts in, all works as normal;
after, things just don't start, though the activity cursor appears for a
few seconds, and the program start sound plays.
[]
The cleaning advice you give is all good advice.
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

_____
___ |[]|_n_n_I_c
|___||__|###|____)
O-O--O-O+++--O-O

J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:


I have found my W7 DVD; about to try a repair.

Don't forget your backup.

You can make a backup by booting your Macrium CD,
and backing up from there. By running the OS on the
Macrium CD, there is no danger of any "defect" in the
device, from upsetting the backup. (Like Malware tipping
over the backup.)

If you Repair Install from the running OS, there's
a chance it'll get stuck during the repair.

If you do a clean install, that would be an astronomical
amount of work.

Have you checked the Event Viewer thoroughly for symptoms ?
Like "Delayed Write Failure" filling the log because the
hard drive is bad ? That would slow the machine down.

You can benchmark the hard drive with HDTune 2.55 free version
and check to see if basic block I/O works properly or not.
And that's independent of file systems. You don't even need
partitions on a disk, to test with HDTune. Downward spikes
in the performance curve, if they're deep enough and wide enough,
spell hard drive trouble.

I had a WinXP setup, that was running out of Paged Pool or
something, and file system operations because so slow, it
was taking minutes to write small files. And eventually
there were "Delayed write failure" events in the Event Viewer,
as the thing was timing out before the file I/O could finish.
And that was a "resource" the OS was running out of. WinXP
doesn't allow a large allocation for the Pool memory areas,
making it easier for a pathology to develop. That gets
fixed in later OSes, where the Pool can take up practically
all of main memory. It just takes longer before you see
trouble, if you have a "Pool Leak" :-)

Paul

J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:

J. P. Gilliver (John) WROTE:

I have found my W7 DVD; about to try a repair.

Inserted it while Windows running: disc loaded, then gave install W7 as
the only option. Restarted with it already in drive: this time, repair
was an option, so I selected it, only for it to say this repair console
is not compatible with the version of Windows running, or something like
that: odd, because I'm sure that's the disc this system was booted from.

Have found another W7 disc, and will try that later. Doing other
(non-computer) things now.

You likely have Win7 SP-1 installed on the box. Is the original install
CD also SP-1 of Win7?

The disc must be at the same service pack level as what is currently
installed in the machine. That's why there are utilities, like nLite,
that let you slipstream in the service pack(s) into an install image
that you then burn onto a disc and use that.

https://www.ntlite.com/

On 01/10/2016 20:11, J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:


It doesn't get sluggish; it just stops opening things. No perceptible
speed change in anything. Before sulk mode cuts in, all works as normal;
after, things just don't start, though the activity cursor appears for a
few seconds, and the program start sound plays.

Chances are that the program *has* started, but has failed to display
its window on the screen for some reason - or has hidden it behind
something else. If you look in Task Manager, does it say that the
program is running? If so, what happens if you Alt/Tab around the open
applications - does it then appear?
--
Cheers,
Roger
____________
Please reply to Newsgroup. Whilst email address is valid, it is seldom
checked.

Back in September (2016),

In message , Paul
writes:
J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
I'm now staying with my blind friends for a few days, so can do some
first-hand work on the sulk mode, rather than having to do it via
Teamcenter.
The mode is: after a certain time after booting, which seems to be 5
to 20 minutes, it goes into sulk mode - where most things don't work,
but no error message is evident. I click on a desktop icon; the wheel
spins for a few seconds, accompanied by the open program sound; then
nothing happens. This applies whether it's something we've installed,
such as Eudora (an ancient email prog.), or something part of (or
supplied with) Windows, such as IE; it also happens if I try, for
example, to open task manager, or even shut down.
A restart (by holding power button in) usually gives us another 5-20
minutes.

Julia tells me she can sometimes prevent sulk mode from happening - or,
delay its onset - by unplugging the wifi adapter (a USB one) when
restarting, i. e. so that the machine has no internet while booting, and
then reconnecting it once the machine has passed some point in its
bootup sequence (which, with the Braille/speech interpose, as well as
all the stuff she's installed, lasts several minutes). [Yes, she's got
far too much installed, or at least too much starting with Windows
rather than just when required, but (a) I don't think any of them were
added about the time sulk mode started, (b) I don't want to infringe on
her freedom/independence: it's _her_ computer.]

I'll be back visiting them over Christmas and new year; further
suggestions most welcome!

FWIW, when I was there in September, we tried various things, none of
which worked. One was an sfc /scannow, which said it couldn't fix all
files, with the ones it couldn't shown in some .log file; unfortunately,
when I looked at that file, it was many megabytes in size, and beyond my
ability to interpret. (I'm pretty certain I tried it in safe mode too.)
Any explanation on how to get a simple list of what sfc can't fix (and
where to get such files - we will have at least one W7 machine, and
assorted W7 discs).

This started about the middle of the year; previous to that, the
computer (Dell dual core - IIRR an 860) had been fine. We don't know
what triggers sulk mode - if anything; I'm not convinced it doesn't
happen on its own. (Nor am I convinced it does!)
Sometimes, we get popups including one or more of "server execution
failed", "26EE0668-A00A-44D7-9371-BEB064C98683", and some others. I've
googled some of these, but none of what I've found seem to exactly
describe what we're getting: some describe loss of internet connection.
Things tried so far:
"Clean boot" as described in
https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/kb/929135 (as suggested from

http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/w...7-performance/
server-execution-failed-26ee0668-a00a-44d7-9371/3e095a5b-fda7-4f71-b838-7
16de1ac0343?auth=1
). When booting in this mode, sulk mode still happened after a few minutes.
"sfc /SCANNOW" from an administrator command prompt. Completed,
eventually, saying some corrupted files could not be restored, with
details in a log file. When I looked at said log file, I couldn't
really understand it.
It's tedious trying anything, because it requires a restart (and by
pressing and holding the [soft] power button, which I feel uneasy
doing) to get it back to responding to anything.
Possible next step - a repair using the W7 disc, if we can find it
and I can remember what to do (boot from it and select repair, IIRR).
Input gratefully received!

Start Sysinternals Process Explorer. You want to
start this as Administrator, if you want a breakdown
of what is inside the SVCHOST entries. And that will be
necessary for potential debugging.

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/...rocessexplorer

That's like Task Manager, only it can give more details.

My guess is, this is a manifestation of Windows Update
wuauserv bug. Your machine has limited RAM, and WU is
using all the RAM during one of its useless scans.

It has 8G; my friends wanted that as the Braille/speech software is more
comfortable the more memory it has.

You can have Task Manager or Resource Monitor open at the
same time, and watch some resource dwindle over the 20 minute
period.

I'll try that. Though it seems sudden.

If it's a dual core, and WU drives one core to 100% usage,
then you should still have "half the processor" capacity left.

It doesn't "feel" like a loss of resources; the mouse cursor still moves
smoothly enough. And when, previously, I was trying to diagnose it
long-distance (we're at opposite ends of the country - over 300 miles),
TeamViewer also continued to operate!

You could also open the Windows Update control panel, and
change the setting for Windows Update away from the Auto
setting it is currently using. If you disable it, maybe it'll
stop with the scans. Do a reboot to stop the current
scan.

Will try.

Now, if it did happen to be set for totally automated updating,
you might want to check the Windows Update history entry, and
see if all attempts to update the system recently have a
status of "Failed". It might mean that an update is stuck
in the plumbing. You can use the Catalog server and
get the updates manually, and install them one at a time.

_You_ can - I doubt it is within _my_ abilities (-:

If an update has Failed for one entry, followed by a later
entry with Success status, then you don't have to install
that one. But if an entry is Failed, and no Success comes after
it in time, then that might be a candidate for manual install.

I've virtually always been able to resolve "plumbing issues"
with Windows Update, via manual installation of pesky updates.

To get updates manually, use Internet Explorer and put the
proper KB article number on the end of a link like this.
You must use Internet Explorer, as this web site uses an
ActiveX plugin to run the Shopping Cart interface on the
web page.

http://catalog.update.microsoft.com/...aspx?q=3032663

And if you want to see what security patches (not optional patches)
are missing, you can use MBSA 2.3 for that process. It takes around
five minutes to present the list.

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/downl...s.aspx?id=7558

Example of the scan window on that thing.

http://s12.postimg.org/4df2ka8bh/mbsa.gif

Before you return the computer to the user, do a backup
of C: for a rainy day. The way patching is done in Win7,

Now that, we will be doing!

will be switching to Cumulative updates only, and at some
point, maybe something will happen to the machine that will
require rolling back. Have at least one backup in hand for that
possibility. I've been working on patching my machines up to date,
in preparation for "surprises" on October Patch Tuesday. The
Microsoft plan is, if users won't switch their Win7 to Win10,
Microsoft will backport Win10 stuff into Win7. Which is why we
have to be vigilant, for a new kind of shenanigan.

Paul

We're resigned to having to do a reinstall of W7, and all the softwares
(for a blind person, she's installed an awful lot of software - more
than I would have I think! - since having the machine, which is two to
four years). But of course we'd prefer not to!
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

science is not intended to be foolproof. Science is about crawling toward the
truth over time. - Scott Adams, 2015-2-2