hi cpu usage

Hi , I have noticed in my installation of Vista Beta 2 it seems to be working all the time and has to stop and catch up. This means video and audio doesnt play smootly and even the cursor has to stop while some windows open. Has anyone else experienced very poor performance from vista. Task manager reports constant cpu usage of around 6-15% all the time.
Running on following spec: Sempron 3100+ (32bit) 120GB SATA HDD 1GB ram
Any info apreciated
Thanks
Fraser

Fraser pleurde in de NG:

Hi , I have noticed in my installation of Vista Beta 2 it seems to be working all the time and has to stop and catch up. This means video and audio doesnt play smootly and even the cursor has to stop while some windows open. Has anyone else experienced very poor performance from vista. Task manager reports constant cpu usage of around 6-15% all the time.
Running on following spec: Sempron 3100+ (32bit) 120GB SATA HDD 1GB ram
Any info apreciated
Thanks
Fraser

I also have poor video performance (geforce4 ti 4200, because havent suitable drivers), but sound is pretty good! :)
MY CPU usage is idle something lower, but not always 0%..
I think it's normal for this beta
-- mvg Jassy

A lot of things account for that such as the Windows Search Service, User Experience Service and DWM. -- -- Andre Windows Connect | http://www.windowsconnected.com Extended64 | http://www.extended64.com Blog | http://www.extended64.com/blogs/andre http://spaces.msn.com/members/adacosta
"Fraser" wrote in message

Hi , I have noticed in my installation of Vista Beta 2 it seems to be working all the time and has to stop and catch up. This means video and audio doesnt play smootly and even the cursor has to stop while some windows open. Has anyone else experienced very poor performance from vista. Task manager reports constant cpu usage of around 6-15% all the time.
Running on following spec: Sempron 3100+ (32bit) 120GB SATA HDD 1GB ram
Any info apreciated
Thanks
Fraser

If you want to get half decent performance, you can safely disable some services however expect small backlash in how it looks especially:
Application Experience Lookup Service (Glass goes) Desktop Windows Manager Session Manager DFS Replication (if it's a standalone machine) External memory Devices Management Service File Replication (as DFS Replication) Internet Connection Sharing (make sure nobody is sharing your network connection from your computer though) Media Center Extender & Reciever & Sheduler & Launcher Service (Media Center won't work afterwards) Microsoft iSCSI Initiator Service Microsoft Software Shadow Copy Provider Offline Files (no offline networking synchronisation) Parental Controls (make sure no kiddlywinks are using the machine!) Protected Storage Quality Windows Audio Video Experience Service Remote Registry Service Smart Card Smart Card Removal Policy SSDP Discovery Service Tablet PC Input Service (don't disable if you have a Tablet PC) Themes (Windows Classic will kick in, no Glass *at all* but saves loads of RAM) Volume Shadow Copy Windows Colour System Windows Image Acquisition Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service Windows Search Service
Disable at your own risk - but even on mine, I've tried and tested and noticed not much difference in how things run, but the machine runs faster on one of my older machines (Vista rating of 2, so it's not bad performance now!)
Hope this helps!
-- Zack Whittaker Microsoft Beta (Windows Server R2 Beta Mentor) » ZackNET Enterprises: www.zacknet.co.uk » MSBlog on ResDev: http://msblog.resdev.net » ZackNET Forum: www.zacknet.co.uk/forum » VistaBase: www.zacknet.co.uk/vistabase » This mailing is provided "as is" with no warranties, and confers no rights. All opinions expressed are those of myself unless stated so, and not of my employer, best friend, mother or cat. Let's be clear on that one!
--- Original message follows --- "Andre Da Costa [Extended64]" wrote in message

A lot of things account for that such as the Windows Search Service, User Experience Service and DWM. -- -- Andre Windows Connect | http://www.windowsconnected.com Extended64 | http://www.extended64.com Blog | http://www.extended64.com/blogs/andre http://spaces.msn.com/members/adacosta
"Fraser" wrote in message Hi , I have noticed in my installation of Vista Beta 2 it seems to be working all the time and has to stop and catch up. This means video and audio doesnt play smootly and even the cursor has to stop while some windows open. Has anyone else experienced very poor performance from vista. Task manager reports constant cpu usage of around 6-15% all the time.
Running on following spec: Sempron 3100+ (32bit) 120GB SATA HDD 1GB ram
Any info apreciated
Thanks
Fraser

I have been having the same problems with build 5365 (build 5270 ran quite well on my system), almost constant drive activity, mouse pauses about every 2 seconds as it moves etc Now I know I dont have the fastest system, but the OS alone shouldn't lag like mine does (Athlon XP2500 Barton cpu, 512M pc2700ram, Nvida FX5500 128M agp vid)
I've tried disabling a lot of services like the search service, DWM, the media center services, and the list goes on, none of which has helped. I also notice that I cannot download any files from the internet. Attempting to download any file results in the system locking up solid. At this point, I am assuming it is due to lack of drivers..no chipset drivers etc except those that came with Vista itself.
It looks pretty, but is un-usable on my system at this point...I hope that it works better in the next CTP and that hardware companies are going to get it in gear and start releasing more drivers :(
"Fraser" wrote:

Hi , I have noticed in my installation of Vista Beta 2 it seems to be working all the time and has to stop and catch up. This means video and audio doesnt play smootly and even the cursor has to stop while some windows open. Has anyone else experienced very poor performance from vista. Task manager reports constant cpu usage of around 6-15% all the time.
Running on following spec: Sempron 3100+ (32bit) 120GB SATA HDD 1GB ram
Any info apreciated
Thanks
Fraser

Or you simply need a BIOS update. I am not experiencing any of your symptoms in build 5381, so its possibly fixed, I didn't experience it also in 5365, so this issue could be specific to your machine. -- Andre Windows Connected | http://www.windowsconnected.com Extended64 | http://www.extended64.com Blog | http://www.extended64.com/blogs/andre http://spaces.msn.com/members/adacosta
"Bones" wrote in message

I have been having the same problems with build 5365 (build 5270 ran quite well on my system), almost constant drive activity, mouse pauses about every 2 seconds as it moves etc Now I know I dont have the fastest system, but the OS alone shouldn't lag like mine does (Athlon XP2500 Barton cpu, 512M pc2700ram, Nvida FX5500 128M agp vid)
I've tried disabling a lot of services like the search service, DWM, the media center services, and the list goes on, none of which has helped. I also notice that I cannot download any files from the internet. Attempting to download any file results in the system locking up solid. At this point, I am assuming it is due to lack of drivers..no chipset drivers etc except those that came with Vista itself.
It looks pretty, but is un-usable on my system at this point...I hope that it works better in the next CTP and that hardware companies are going to get it in gear and start releasing more drivers :(
"Fraser" wrote:
Hi , I have noticed in my installation of Vista Beta 2 it seems to be working all the time and has to stop and catch up. This means video and audio doesnt play smootly and even the cursor has to stop while some windows open. Has anyone else experienced very poor performance from vista. Task manager reports constant cpu usage of around 6-15% all the time.
Running on following spec: Sempron 3100+ (32bit) 120GB SATA HDD 1GB ram
Any info apreciated
Thanks
Fraser

I just flashed my BIOS last week, so i doubt that's the problem. though you arent experiencing the problem, I have read many posts from users who are experiencing the very same problem. Also, whatever is causing this issue was not present in build 5270, as that build worked almost flawlessly.
"Andre Da Costa" wrote:

Or you simply need a BIOS update. I am not experiencing any of your symptoms in build 5381, so its possibly fixed, I didn't experience it also in 5365, so this issue could be specific to your machine. -- Andre Windows Connected | http://www.windowsconnected.com Extended64 | http://www.extended64.com Blog | http://www.extended64.com/blogs/andre http://spaces.msn.com/members/adacosta
"Bones" wrote in message I have been having the same problems with build 5365 (build 5270 ran quite well on my system), almost constant drive activity, mouse pauses about every 2 seconds as it moves etc Now I know I dont have the fastest system, but the OS alone shouldn't lag like mine does (Athlon XP2500 Barton cpu, 512M pc2700ram, Nvida FX5500 128M agp vid)
I've tried disabling a lot of services like the search service, DWM, the media center services, and the list goes on, none of which has helped. I also notice that I cannot download any files from the internet. Attempting to download any file results in the system locking up solid. At this point, I am assuming it is due to lack of drivers..no chipset drivers etc except those that came with Vista itself.
It looks pretty, but is un-usable on my system at this point...I hope that it works better in the next CTP and that hardware companies are going to get it in gear and start releasing more drivers :(
"Fraser" wrote:
Hi , I have noticed in my installation of Vista Beta 2 it seems to be working all the time and has to stop and catch up. This means video and audio doesnt play smootly and even the cursor has to stop while some windows open. Has anyone else experienced very poor performance from vista. Task manager reports constant cpu usage of around 6-15% all the time.
Running on following spec: Sempron 3100+ (32bit) 120GB SATA HDD 1GB ram
Any info apreciated
Thanks
Fraser

It's a long shot... but make sure your Firewall is on. There was a known issue of which in XP when the firewall was off, the Blaster worm would attact (always happened to me for some reason...) but this can cause the CPU to go right up, as well as have unexpected shutdowns.
Also disable the Windows Search, by heck, this eats up CPU like PacMan does to those little dots ;o)
-- Zack Whittaker » ZackNET Enterprises: www.zacknet.co.uk » MSBlog on ResDev: www.msblog.org » Vista Knowledge Base: www.vistabase.co.uk » This mailing is provided "as is" with no warranties, and confers no rights. All opinions expressed are those of myself unless stated so, and not of my employer, best friend, Ghandi, my mother or my cat. Glad we cleared that up!
--: Original message follows :-- "Bones" wrote in message

I just flashed my BIOS last week, so i doubt that's the problem. though you arent experiencing the problem, I have read many posts from users who are experiencing the very same problem. Also, whatever is causing this issue was not present in build 5270, as that build worked almost flawlessly.
"Andre Da Costa" wrote:
Or you simply need a BIOS update. I am not experiencing any of your symptoms in build 5381, so its possibly fixed, I didn't experience it also in 5365, so this issue could be specific to your machine. -- Andre Windows Connected | http://www.windowsconnected.com Extended64 | http://www.extended64.com Blog | http://www.extended64.com/blogs/andre http://spaces.msn.com/members/adacosta
"Bones" wrote in message I have been having the same problems with build 5365 (build 5270 ran quite well on my system), almost constant drive activity, mouse pauses about every 2 seconds as it moves etc Now I know I dont have the fastest system, but the OS alone shouldn't lag like mine does (Athlon XP2500 Barton cpu, 512M pc2700ram, Nvida FX5500 128M agp vid)
I've tried disabling a lot of services like the search service, DWM, the media center services, and the list goes on, none of which has helped. I also notice that I cannot download any files from the internet. Attempting to download any file results in the system locking up solid. At this point, I am assuming it is due to lack of drivers..no chipset drivers etc except those that came with Vista itself.
It looks pretty, but is un-usable on my system at this point...I hope that it works better in the next CTP and that hardware companies are going to get it in gear and start releasing more drivers :(
"Fraser" wrote:
Hi , I have noticed in my installation of Vista Beta 2 it seems to be working all the time and has to stop and catch up. This means video and audio doesnt play smootly and even the cursor has to stop while some windows open. Has anyone else experienced very poor performance from vista. Task manager reports constant cpu usage of around 6-15% all the time.
Running on following spec: Sempron 3100+ (32bit) 120GB SATA HDD 1GB ram
Any info apreciated
Thanks
Fraser

Thx for the replies, firewall is on, search is disabled..still no joy. Strange thing is, it works fine in safe mode, but not in a clean boot...it's weird 'lag' too, it's like it spikes for a split second every 2-3 seconds. The entire system pauses for a split second when it happens too...audio, video, everything
This is also a clean install (dual booted with XPP), the only thing I have installed on the Vista installl is the latest vista Nvidia drivers
"Zack Whittaker" wrote:

It's a long shot... but make sure your Firewall is on. There was a known issue of which in XP when the firewall was off, the Blaster worm would attact (always happened to me for some reason...) but this can cause the CPU to go right up, as well as have unexpected shutdowns.
Also disable the Windows Search, by heck, this eats up CPU like PacMan does to those little dots ;o)
-- Zack Whittaker » ZackNET Enterprises: www.zacknet.co.uk » MSBlog on ResDev: www.msblog.org » Vista Knowledge Base: www.vistabase.co.uk » This mailing is provided "as is" with no warranties, and confers no rights. All opinions expressed are those of myself unless stated so, and not of my employer, best friend, Ghandi, my mother or my cat. Glad we cleared that up!
--: Original message follows :-- "Bones" wrote in message I just flashed my BIOS last week, so i doubt that's the problem. though you arent experiencing the problem, I have read many posts from users who are experiencing the very same problem. Also, whatever is causing this issue was not present in build 5270, as that build worked almost flawlessly.
"Andre Da Costa" wrote:
Or you simply need a BIOS update. I am not experiencing any of your symptoms in build 5381, so its possibly fixed, I didn't experience it also in 5365, so this issue could be specific to your machine. -- Andre Windows Connected | http://www.windowsconnected.com Extended64 | http://www.extended64.com Blog | http://www.extended64.com/blogs/andre http://spaces.msn.com/members/adacosta
"Bones" wrote in message I have been having the same problems with build 5365 (build 5270 ran quite well on my system), almost constant drive activity, mouse pauses about every 2 seconds as it moves etc Now I know I dont have the fastest system, but the OS alone shouldn't lag like mine does (Athlon XP2500 Barton cpu, 512M pc2700ram, Nvida FX5500 128M agp vid)
I've tried disabling a lot of services like the search service, DWM, the media center services, and the list goes on, none of which has helped. I also notice that I cannot download any files from the internet. Attempting to download any file results in the system locking up solid. At this point, I am assuming it is due to lack of drivers..no chipset drivers etc except those that came with Vista itself.
It looks pretty, but is un-usable on my system at this point...I hope that it works better in the next CTP and that hardware companies are going to get it in gear and start releasing more drivers :(
"Fraser" wrote:
Hi , I have noticed in my installation of Vista Beta 2 it seems to be working all the time and has to stop and catch up. This means video and audio doesnt play smootly and even the cursor has to stop while some windows open. Has anyone else experienced very poor performance from vista. Task manager reports constant cpu usage of around 6-15% all the time.
Running on following spec: Sempron 3100+ (32bit) 120GB SATA HDD 1GB ram
Any info apreciated
Thanks
Fraser

I get the lag as well sometimes... I guess it's just a performance issue.
-- Zack Whittaker » ZackNET Enterprises: www.zacknet.co.uk » MSBlog on ResDev: www.msblog.org » Vista Knowledge Base: www.vistabase.co.uk » This mailing is provided "as is" with no warranties, and confers no rights. All opinions expressed are those of myself unless stated so, and not of my employer, best friend, Ghandi, my mother or my cat. Glad we cleared that up!
--: Original message follows :-- "Bones" wrote in message

Thx for the replies, firewall is on, search is disabled..still no joy. Strange thing is, it works fine in safe mode, but not in a clean boot...it's weird 'lag' too, it's like it spikes for a split second every 2-3 seconds. The entire system pauses for a split second when it happens too...audio, video, everything
This is also a clean install (dual booted with XPP), the only thing I have installed on the Vista installl is the latest vista Nvidia drivers
"Zack Whittaker" wrote:
It's a long shot... but make sure your Firewall is on. There was a known issue of which in XP when the firewall was off, the Blaster worm would attact (always happened to me for some reason...) but this can cause the CPU to go right up, as well as have unexpected shutdowns.
Also disable the Windows Search, by heck, this eats up CPU like PacMan does to those little dots ;o)
-- Zack Whittaker » ZackNET Enterprises: www.zacknet.co.uk » MSBlog on ResDev: www.msblog.org » Vista Knowledge Base: www.vistabase.co.uk » This mailing is provided "as is" with no warranties, and confers no rights. All opinions expressed are those of myself unless stated so, and not of my employer, best friend, Ghandi, my mother or my cat. Glad we cleared that up!
--: Original message follows :-- "Bones" wrote in message I just flashed my BIOS last week, so i doubt that's the problem. though you arent experiencing the problem, I have read many posts from users who are experiencing the very same problem. Also, whatever is causing this issue was not present in build 5270, as that build worked almost flawlessly.
"Andre Da Costa" wrote:
Or you simply need a BIOS update. I am not experiencing any of your symptoms in build 5381, so its possibly fixed, I didn't experience it also in 5365, so this issue could be specific to your machine. -- Andre Windows Connected | http://www.windowsconnected.com Extended64 | http://www.extended64.com Blog | http://www.extended64.com/blogs/andre http://spaces.msn.com/members/adacosta
"Bones" wrote in message I have been having the same problems with build 5365 (build 5270 ran quite well on my system), almost constant drive activity, mouse pauses about every 2 seconds as it moves etc Now I know I dont have the fastest system, but the OS alone shouldn't lag like mine does (Athlon XP2500 Barton cpu, 512M pc2700ram, Nvida FX5500 128M agp vid)
I've tried disabling a lot of services like the search service, DWM, the media center services, and the list goes on, none of which has helped. I also notice that I cannot download any files from the internet. Attempting to download any file results in the system locking up solid. At this point, I am assuming it is due to lack of drivers..no chipset drivers etc except those that came with Vista itself.
It looks pretty, but is un-usable on my system at this point...I hope that it works better in the next CTP and that hardware companies are going to get it in gear and start releasing more drivers :(
"Fraser" wrote:
Hi , I have noticed in my installation of Vista Beta 2 it seems to be working all the time and has to stop and catch up. This means video and audio doesnt play smootly and even the cursor has to stop while some windows open. Has anyone else experienced very poor performance from vista. Task manager reports constant cpu usage of around 6-15% all the time.
Running on following spec: Sempron 3100+ (32bit) 120GB SATA HDD 1GB ram
Any info apreciated
Thanks
Fraser

Most likely, yes..I know this is beta and there is still a lot of debug code in there. Hopefully it will work better for me in the next build
"Zack Whittaker" wrote:

I get the lag as well sometimes... I guess it's just a performance issue.
-- Zack Whittaker » ZackNET Enterprises: www.zacknet.co.uk » MSBlog on ResDev: www.msblog.org » Vista Knowledge Base: www.vistabase.co.uk » This mailing is provided "as is" with no warranties, and confers no rights. All opinions expressed are those of myself unless stated so, and not of my employer, best friend, Ghandi, my mother or my cat. Glad we cleared that up!
--: Original message follows :-- "Bones" wrote in message Thx for the replies, firewall is on, search is disabled..still no joy. Strange thing is, it works fine in safe mode, but not in a clean boot...it's weird 'lag' too, it's like it spikes for a split second every 2-3 seconds. The entire system pauses for a split second when it happens too...audio, video, everything
This is also a clean install (dual booted with XPP), the only thing I have installed on the Vista installl is the latest vista Nvidia drivers
"Zack Whittaker" wrote:
It's a long shot... but make sure your Firewall is on. There was a known issue of which in XP when the firewall was off, the Blaster worm would attact (always happened to me for some reason...) but this can cause the CPU to go right up, as well as have unexpected shutdowns.
Also disable the Windows Search, by heck, this eats up CPU like PacMan does to those little dots ;o)
-- Zack Whittaker » ZackNET Enterprises: www.zacknet.co.uk » MSBlog on ResDev: www.msblog.org » Vista Knowledge Base: www.vistabase.co.uk » This mailing is provided "as is" with no warranties, and confers no rights. All opinions expressed are those of myself unless stated so, and not of my employer, best friend, Ghandi, my mother or my cat. Glad we cleared that up!
--: Original message follows :-- "Bones" wrote in message I just flashed my BIOS last week, so i doubt that's the problem. though you arent experiencing the problem, I have read many posts from users who are experiencing the very same problem. Also, whatever is causing this issue was not present in build 5270, as that build worked almost flawlessly.
"Andre Da Costa" wrote:
Or you simply need a BIOS update. I am not experiencing any of your symptoms in build 5381, so its possibly fixed, I didn't experience it also in 5365, so this issue could be specific to your machine. -- Andre Windows Connected | http://www.windowsconnected.com Extended64 | http://www.extended64.com Blog | http://www.extended64.com/blogs/andre http://spaces.msn.com/members/adacosta
"Bones" wrote in message I have been having the same problems with build 5365 (build 5270 ran quite well on my system), almost constant drive activity, mouse pauses about every 2 seconds as it moves etc Now I know I dont have the fastest system, but the OS alone shouldn't lag like mine does (Athlon XP2500 Barton cpu, 512M pc2700ram, Nvida FX5500 128M agp vid)
I've tried disabling a lot of services like the search service, DWM, the media center services, and the list goes on, none of which has helped. I also notice that I cannot download any files from the internet. Attempting to download any file results in the system locking up solid. At this point, I am assuming it is due to lack of drivers..no chipset drivers etc except those that came with Vista itself.
It looks pretty, but is un-usable on my system at this point...I hope that it works better in the next CTP and that hardware companies are going to get it in gear and start releasing more drivers :(
"Fraser" wrote:
Hi , I have noticed in my installation of Vista Beta 2 it seems to be working all the time and has to stop and catch up. This means video and audio doesnt play smootly and even the cursor has to stop while some windows open. Has anyone else experienced very poor performance from vista. Task manager reports constant cpu usage of around 6-15% all the time.
Running on following spec: Sempron 3100+ (32bit) 120GB SATA HDD 1GB ram
Any info apreciated
Thanks
Fraser

Hello!
"Bones" wrote in message

I have been having the same problems with build 5365 (build 5270 ran quite well on my system), almost constant drive activity, mouse pauses about every 2 seconds as it moves etc Now I know I dont have the fastest system, but the OS alone shouldn't lag like mine does (Athlon XP2500 Barton cpu, 512M pc2700ram, Nvida FX5500 128M agp vid)
I've tried disabling a lot of services like the search service, DWM, the media center services, and the list goes on, none of which has helped. I also notice that I cannot download any files from the internet. Attempting to download any file results in the system locking up solid. At this point, I am assuming it is due to lack of drivers..no chipset drivers etc except those that came with Vista itself.
It looks pretty, but is un-usable on my system at this point...I hope that it works better in the next CTP and that hardware companies are going to get it in gear and start releasing more drivers :(

Here are some suggestions/hints:
1. Do you have wireless network card, bluetooth? What happens if you disable such devices?
2. Maybe this link helps: http://www.chris123nt.com/guides/5365/
3. What printers have you installed?
4. Using TaskInfo you can maybe find which process is problematic ... http://www.iarsn.com/download.html
Cheers, Roman

No printers, and no wireless devices installed. In fact no extarnal hardware installed at all except for monitor, PS2 keyboard and a USB mouse. I will definaely go through the tweak list and try the task info app though..thanks for the links! :)
"roman modic" wrote:

Hello!
"Bones" wrote in message I have been having the same problems with build 5365 (build 5270 ran quite well on my system), almost constant drive activity, mouse pauses about every 2 seconds as it moves etc Now I know I dont have the fastest system, but the OS alone shouldn't lag like mine does (Athlon XP2500 Barton cpu, 512M pc2700ram, Nvida FX5500 128M agp vid)
I've tried disabling a lot of services like the search service, DWM, the media center services, and the list goes on, none of which has helped. I also notice that I cannot download any files from the internet. Attempting to download any file results in the system locking up solid. At this point, I am assuming it is due to lack of drivers..no chipset drivers etc except those that came with Vista itself.
It looks pretty, but is un-usable on my system at this point...I hope that it works better in the next CTP and that hardware companies are going to get it in gear and start releasing more drivers :(
Here are some suggestions/hints:
1. Do you have wireless network card, bluetooth? What happens if you disable such devices?
2. Maybe this link helps: http://www.chris123nt.com/guides/5365/
3. What printers have you installed?
4. Using TaskInfo you can maybe find which process is problematic ... http://www.iarsn.com/download.html
Cheers, Roman

Hey Roman, thanks again for the Taskinfo program! It showed me that almost all of the excessive cpu usage was in interupt requests (driver issue) and I have found that it is the WDDM nvidia drivers that is causing the problem. I tried installing several different WDDM drivers, but all of them have the same lag issue. I made the problem go away by using legacy nvidia drivers that were included with my Vista build. Unfortunatly, no aero support, but I am hopeing that this issue is resolved with future driver releases.
Thanks again to everyone who replied.
"roman modic" wrote:

Hello!
"Bones" wrote in message I have been having the same problems with build 5365 (build 5270 ran quite well on my system), almost constant drive activity, mouse pauses about every 2 seconds as it moves etc Now I know I dont have the fastest system, but the OS alone shouldn't lag like mine does (Athlon XP2500 Barton cpu, 512M pc2700ram, Nvida FX5500 128M agp vid)
I've tried disabling a lot of services like the search service, DWM, the media center services, and the list goes on, none of which has helped. I also notice that I cannot download any files from the internet. Attempting to download any file results in the system locking up solid. At this point, I am assuming it is due to lack of drivers..no chipset drivers etc except those that came with Vista itself.
It looks pretty, but is un-usable on my system at this point...I hope that it works better in the next CTP and that hardware companies are going to get it in gear and start releasing more drivers :(
Here are some suggestions/hints:
1. Do you have wireless network card, bluetooth? What happens if you disable such devices?
2. Maybe this link helps: http://www.chris123nt.com/guides/5365/
3. What printers have you installed?
4. Using TaskInfo you can maybe find which process is problematic ... http://www.iarsn.com/download.html
Cheers, Roman