Internet only runs slow in Internet Explorer!

[RyanOnline]

Hi,

I have Cable internet and for the last week my internet has been running very slow. It's perfect when downloading or using downloading programs such as Kazaa. but when i'm browsing in Internet Explorer it is really slow. I have three computers on the network and the other two run fine, donwloading and browsing, only the server computer is slow.

Does anyone know what to do? I've rung my ISP and they've said it has nothing to do with them, which is true as the other two computers are fine, so it must be something on this computer or something that's wrong with internet explorer.

Please help me...

RyanOnline

[Dani]

I'm not going to run and say "IE sucks and go use an alternative browser such as Mozilla". But to be perfectly honest, installing Mozilla would be a great first step to debug this issue. It will determine whether the problem is with the computer or just the Internet Explorer web browser.

You say it's a server computer? Is there a lot of stuff running in the background that might slow it down? What firewalls and antivirus solutions are installed?

[DMR]

It's perfect when downloading or using downloading programs such as Kazaa.

Umm... Kazaa, huh? Methinks you've answered your own question right there. :mrgreen:

Kazaa and other filesharing programs are chock full of all sorts of spyware nasties, many of which attack and modify IE. As Dani suggested, try Mozilla, firefox, or Opera as an alternative to IE; those browsers aren't prone to much of the "malware" that infects IE.

If you can't pinpoint the slowdown, I'd suggest running SpyBot, Ad Aware, and HijackThis to check your system for malware. These programs are free to download, and they work well:

SpyBot: http://www.safer-networking.org/
Ad Aware: http://www.lavasoftusa.com/
HijackThis and CWShredder: http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/downloads.html

Read through the theads in our Security forum for more information on spyware issues and their solutions.

[RyanOnline]

Thanks for your help, Mozilla didn't run any quicker and i'm running SpyBot S&D again to make sure it got everything.

Do you think Uninstalling and then reinstalling Internet Explorer would help?

Oh, and i'm using Norton Systemworks with all the virus and email checks on, i've had that for over 3 years and its only been going slow for the past week.

Anyway thanks for your help,

Ryan

[DMR]

Since you said Mozilla was slow too, reinstalling IE probably won't help, but it won't hurt either.

After you run SpyBot, reboot and then run Ad Aware; one of those programs will often catch something that the other didn't detect. Tell us what happens after that.

[RyanOnline]

YAY! I know why it is running slow!

Ok, I have Norton Personal Firewall, and its always enabled. When i disabled the firewall to visit a blocked website it was back at its normal speed! But i can't have it disabled all the time so what should i do?

Oh, and it started getting slow when the resubscription dialog box came up saying i need to resubscribe soon. Could the two be linked?

Thanks

Ryan

[Catweazle]

Your best option by far, given that you have a network, is to use an all-in-one Cable/ADSL Gateway/Router/Modem. Full anti-intrusion protection, no software overhead, and you can now purchase them at a quite low price.

You should also check to see if you have your network configured appropriately. Just because it works doesn't necessarily mean it's properly configured to work well.

I's also check, if you have Windows XP, to make sure you're not using the inbuilt Windows XP Firewall as well as your Norton one. Having both running can slow things down. If you're simply getting a reminder message that you need to renew your subscription, I'd doubt very much that it would impact on performance.

[RyanOnline]

Hi,

All i had to do was to upgrade my Norton Anti Virus Software, its a bit strange that because i haven't upgraded my internet goes slow but it's all fine now.

Thanks everyone!

Ryan

[GraveyGuy]

i have the same problem (super slow web browsing), which started when I recently did a live update on my 2002 Norton Firewall. I had just re-subscribed a few weeks earlier. When I disable the FW, the speed returns, so I know that therein lies the problem. I was hoping there was some way to "undo" the update, or just reconfigure things.
RyanOnline said he solved the problem when he upgraded his Norton AntiVirus software. That's it? Just upgrade the Antivirus software to a 2004 version? What about the Firewall? Does that have to be upgraded as well?
Thanks. This is killing me. It is horribly slow.
GraveyGuy

[adawa]

Solid, now I can start picking up all the hair I've pulled out and apologize to my computer for the frowning and fist-shaking. I'm having the exact same problem, slow IE6, Norton subscription required. Thanks for posting this. :D

[DMR]

It's weird, but I've seen this exact problem reported in a few different places lately. It does seem like there's something flaky in one of Norton's recent updates, but I haven't been able to find anything that can verify that, nor have a seen a definitive fix. Some users have solved the slowdown by upgrading, some by downgrading, and some by removing Norton altogether and using other AV software.

Strange.... I confoozed

[Catweazle]

Agreed. I've seen many reports of this problem recently. I've also seen more reports related to Norton products which indicate incompatabilities with orther software than I have for any other line of product.

I'd personally recommend NOD32 as an AntiVirus product for domestic or stand-alone use, and Sophos AntiVirus for Corporate use.

[nic_m_moon]

I'm not going to run and say "IE sucks and go use an alternative browser such as Mozilla". But to be perfectly honest, installing Mozilla would be a great first step to debug this issue. It will determine whether the problem is with the computer or just the Internet Explorer web browser.

You say it's a server computer? Is there a lot of stuff running in the background that might slow it down? What firewalls and antivirus solutions are installed?

Y wuld you install an alternate browser IE works fine but if you aren't wise and have a malware checker it can easily be crappy.

[nic_m_moon]

YAY! I know why it is running slow!

Ok, I have Norton Personal Firewall, and its always enabled. When i disabled the firewall to visit a blocked website it was back at its normal speed! But i can't have it disabled all the time so what should i do?

Oh, and it started getting slow when the resubscription dialog box came up saying i need to resubscribe soon. Could the two be linked?

Thanks

Ryan

Same for downloads or networking uploads norton or symantec scans all incomming and outgoing files

[nic_m_moon]

Since you said Mozilla was slow too, reinstalling IE probably won't help, but it won't hurt either.

After you run SpyBot, reboot and then run Ad Aware; one of those programs will often catch something that the other didn't detect. Tell us what happens after that.

Mine never crashes while running what win u have

[nic_m_moon]

Umm... Kazaa, huh? Methinks you've answered your own question right there. :mrgreen:

Kazaa and other filesharing programs are chock full of all sorts of spyware nasties, many of which attack and modify IE. As Dani suggested, try Mozilla, firefox, or Opera as an alternative to IE; those browsers aren't prone to much of the "malware" that infects IE.

If you can't pinpoint the slowdown, I'd suggest running SpyBot, Ad Aware, and HijackThis to check your system for malware. These programs are free to download, and they work well:

SpyBot: http://www.safer-networking.org/
Ad Aware: http://www.lavasoftusa.com/
HijackThis and CWShredder: http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/downloads.html

Read through the theads in our Security forum for more information on spyware issues and their solutions.

Imesh is the worst then Limeware and Kazza only has the infamous BDE which doesn't alter your computer its a hijacker.

[caperjack]

NIC ,why come into a fourm and start answering post that are 4 or 5 mnts old !!

[kajo55]

I'm glad to read that I'm not the only person who's having trouble with IE running VERY slowly! I use IE 7 on a new Dell Dimension and am running Vista Home Basic. IE has always been slow on this computer but recently my DSL is running at about the speed of dial-up on IE... lightning fast with my MSN Browser, so the problem is definitely with IE.

I empty my cache often. I use Webroot real time spyware protection, CA Anti-Virus and Windows Firewall. I disabled Defender in spite of MS warnings not to do so. In addition to my real time virus and spyware protection, I run Spybot about once a week and Registry Mechanic whenever I've installed programs or moved a lot of files. Is this too much protection? I am especially wary because my last computer was hacked and it was a nightmare!

In short, I would much prefer to use IE. I like my Google Toolbar and certain features which MSN Explore does not have. But the speed issue has made it too frustrating to deal with.

Thanks for "listening",
Kathy

[andysacks]

It's either a filled up Internet Explorer cache, in this case run a program called SecuredPrivacy that will remove the unnecessary files...

or

Your windows registry is filled with junk and in this case run a Registry Cleaner.

[LAMBO290]

Get the latest internet explorer.i think your internet explorer is a old version.its better if you use opera.as it is really nice.ie is not that good compared to opera

[jesica88]

Hi,
Try scan you computer with Anti Virus,registry cleaner and spyware.
if you can do it in safe mode.
i use:
1. Nod32 Anti Virus
2. Ms-error Registry Cleaner
3.S&D spyware.
I scan and fix every month and have no problems errors or slow internet.

[dooblilk]

I had it too like many others.
i use the ms-errors registry cleaner run it once in a month i use the latest update and my i.e run great.
try it- ms-errors
good luck

[WebDave]

One needs to have or develop some basic Desktop Skills in order to troubleshoot the browser speed issues. By doing so you can handle or troubleshoot the basic issues and keep your computer free from malicious content.

[tomin]

Speeding up your old internet explorer is a waste of time..Better try this:<snip>

Use opera 10 or later

[keveenanderson]

You can do defragmentation for your system drive and delete the system cache and uninstall some unnecessary software from your computer system and if then your internet properly not working then reinstall internet explorer and then use it.