Don't upset your SVCHost

Database News - Wednesday December 12, 2007

HELP DESK

Don't upset your SVCHost

I was back in the US for a few weeks and took the opportunity to order a brand new sparkling Dell laptop loaded with all the latest features. I did not order Windows Vista, instead I opted for XP Pro which Dell was still offering.

Everything in the laptop works fine and I am running Norton and keep it up to date - I turned off the Windows Firewall, instead letting Norton do the job. Here's the problem: when I boot up into Windows I get SVCHost messages that take a long time to close down. After researching this anomaly I have discovered it is not a virus. I did, for safe measures, run a scan on Norton and a second virus scan from the Microsoft web site and no viruses were found.

The last software I downloaded was HP's printer software, which, if my memory serves me, the svchost.exe started after the download. I do not know if they are related or not. I made sure the print software was up to date and still had the SVCHost problem. It seems Microsoft could offer a utility for users to easily turn this protection off when it is determined to be not a threat to the computer, but they do not. Please help if you can.

TODD

Database replies: SVCHost is an absolutely necessary process that comes with Windows. It has many generic functions, but a general description would be that it runs processes from the program fragments known as DLLs, or dynamic link libraries. On a busy Windows XP computer, there could well be half a dozen instances of SVCHost running without any problem.

The source of the problem on your machine is probably that some rogue element or program has got into the core Windows process. And again probably, the HP software is the main suspect. Not only did your problems begin after installing it, HP software is well-known to cause conflicts involving SVCHost.

Here are a couple of steps you can take. First, go to the following web page and download and install the latest Microsoft fix for SVCHost conflicts. Make sure you get the one for your operating system, Windows XP, at support.microsoft.com/kb/894391.

Restart your machine. If the problem persists, you have more work to do.

Next, either through MSConfig (Start, Run, "msconfig", startup) or third-party software, look carefully at what software is starting up when you boot, and turn off suspects, starting with those HP programs.

Perhaps better would be to get a third-party program such as Starter (codestuff.tripod.com). Don't try to be techie about the startup programs. But turn off programs you are familiar with, and don't need to compute.

Finally, to try to find the culprit, use MSConfig or Starter to turn off all startup software except the absolute Windows essentials. Reboot the computer. Turn on one of those processes and reboot again, until you find the miscreant. Then turn it off permanently.

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Burning question

Is there any freeware you have reviewed that could burn a folder full of window media video (WMV) files onto a DVD?

BRETT

Database replies: The answer to your question depends on another detail. If you want to copy the files for storage or backup, then a CD-burning program will work fine. I think that CDBurnerXP is a brilliant and easy program at http://www.cdburnerxp.se, but the much smaller and faster Deep Burner is also very good software at http://www.deepburner.com.

But if you want to burn the movies so that they will play back as movies on a TV, say, then I'm afraid the answer is effectively "No," you will have to buy software such as Nero or Roxio, both of which are try-before-you-buy shareware suites.

For starters, so far no freeware author has managed to clone or invent a CD- or DVD-burning program that will handle all formats. Before you can play back those WMV computer files, for example, they would have to be converted to a playable format such as .AVI.

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Vista drivers

I have an HP 1410 all-in-one. I downloaded the software and driver package from HP for Windows Vista. Then when installing the software on my computer, it asked me to connect the printer to the USB port, so I did. Then it said it can't find the driver for this USB device. What can I do to make this product install properly?

POST LASER DISC
Hat Yai, Songkhla

Database replies: Wanda Sloan replies: According to HP and some HP user forums, the software for the HP1410 will work with Windows Vista. This is a start. So much hardware is still waiting for proper drivers. Double check that you have the Windows Vista software for your system - there are both 32-bit and 64-bit versions.

I don't know precisely what happened on your system but usually a confused Windows system will ask you to tell it exactly where the driver software is. At that point, you have to direct it to the CD, to the installation folder or whatever.

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