Several instances of calculator popping up + major drop in PC performance

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Matthias_

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Jun 21, 2016
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Hi,
First off, i made a quick look and couldn't find an answer on other threads, plus i had to start one quick cause my PC is freaking out now.

So, after buying a new gpu rx480 strix, which i've yet to enjoy after running into some weird performance issues - off topic.
Now, having installed fresh Windows 10 - I'm big fan of win7 - but 10 as i understood is the only OS to support directx 12.
Just as i finished installing windows and amd driver, i was very anxious to play a video game and try the new card. I got about 120 fps on Crossout video game yesterday.

However, today after having updated windows with a bunch of updates:
First, fps dropped to 65-ish
Then, later today i started having major lag and fps drop on the same game.
Suddenly, an hour ago i was playing when the calculator activated by itself in many instances and cpu gone nuts, whole pc freaked out.

I'm currently resetting windows to the first image prior to any updates hopefully it'll solve the problem temporarily. But i wanna know what caused the issue in the first place. I've seen many people have the same problem but no actual solutions other than reinstall windows, which i could but it needs updates!
So, what updates should i avoid that would have caused the issue?
Would a fresh un-updated version of windows 10 (May 2016) pose security/performance threats?
Should i go back to windows 7 and ditch the whole directx 12 thing?

Edited: added
PC Specs:
i5 4460
Thermaltake Frio advanced cooler
Asus H97-Plus
FSP Aurum gold 750 psu
Asus RX480 strix edition
Kingstone 8gig ram
2x SSDs FuryX120 gig + Liteon 240gig
1x HDD WD 500gig
Bloody usb keyboard + mouse
Thermaltake v31 case
32" TV monitor
 
Solution
mjslakeridge
Try to download the Media Creation Tool from this link:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10

You will need a blank USB flash drive with a capacity of at least 5GB. It may work on a blank DVD (I used a DVD for installing Windows 8.1 Professional, but Windows 10 may be too large for a single layer DVD). When installing Windows 10, when it asks for your license key, respond with "I don't have a key", and proceed.

Make sure your USB flash drive is empty, because using the Media Creation Tool to create the installation media will erase anything on the USB drive.
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Hello Matthias_

For the dropped FPS, it might be due to any or all of the following reasons:

> An incompatible graphics driver was installed.

> An obsolete graphics driver was installed.

> The driver installation files were obtained from a non-trusted source. (Possibly from any unofficial/third-party driver download site.)

> Driver did not update automatically to remain compliant with the latest update of Windows 10 and needs to be updated manually.
Or
> The most recent version of graphics driver is not compatible and its earlier version might work well.

For the multiple instances of the Calculator app, please make sure that any of the multimedia (or normal) keys on the keyboard are not stuck. You can test this by disconnecting the keyboard from the PC.

Sometime this even happens due to some malicious scripts or viruses. Scanning the PC with an efficient antivirus program like Malwarebytes, Kaspersky, or Avast might resolve the issue.

In any case, you don't have to get back to Windows 7 merely because of these two reasons.

Please report back with the results to allow us to provide you with a more accurate solution, if the above ones fail.

Cheers!! :)
 
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As far as the graphics card driver is concerned, it's the latest stable version for win10 x64 on amd's website.
I've also tried an older version, the one that's supported and featured on Asus's website, same result.

As for windows opening calculator app by itself, my keyboard was fine - i've checked it instantly as i saw it was one of the suggestions for the issue online. I also checked the task manager, all calculator app instances\windows (around 24+) were under one instance in task manager.
The issue is definitely related to some windows update, because now i'm on un-updated version and haven't witnessed any app open by itself. I don't want to install updates to test which of them triggered the issue either, because it was a real pain to restore windows to earlier image without losing personal data.

I'm gonna do a full system scan tonight as i just came back from work.

Thanks for the reply
 
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You shouldn't have any malware with a fresh install of Windows (assuming you downloaded the iso from Microsoft or an authorized reseller), unless you have another hdd/ssd installed and the virus resides there. After letting Windows do the updates, try booting into safe mode and see if the calculator problem re-occurs.
 
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I think i should've posted my pc specs. My bad. Yes, i do have more than one drive. Three, 2x SSDs and 1 HDD.

Here's the thing though. I live in Syria, where there's absolutely no access to any genuine Microsoft products neither through verified resellers or online shopping. Everything is either banned by government or under USA sanctions. The only way to install operating systems or apps is either be it freeware or via torrent.
So yea, my windows 7 and 10 are pirated versions, I've been using (forced to use) pirated OS ISOs for a long time, and i doubt it's the KMspico cracker - though i've already had it pop up on windows defender as malware. There's no other way round that fact. And none of Linux distros support any of my video games even those on steam platform.
Sorry to make things more complicated for you to answer. I'd love to get a paid version of my apps, but that's how it is here. Even buying paypal/pre-paid visa card/bitcoin falls under "security threat to national market" lol

And yea i booted up yesterday into safemode before reinstalling windows, and problem still persists. CPU/SSD readings skyrocketing as the same calculator app opens tens of times. I'm still wondering why they all register under one single process in the task manager instead of multiple.
 
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So yea, my windows 7 and 10 are pirated versions, I've been using (forced to use) pirated OS ISOs for a long time, and i doubt it's the KMspico cracker - though i've already had it pop up on windows defender as malware. There's no other way round that fact. And none of Linux distros support any of my video games even those on steam platform.
Sorry to make things more complicated for you to answer. I'd love to get a paid version of my apps, but that's how it is here. Even buying paypal/pre-paid visa card/bitcoin falls under "security threat to national market" lol
Click to expand...

While we feel your pain regarding your software situation...this is not something we can help with.

1. Tom's Hardware has a strict policy on pirated software

2. The issues may well be due to that cracked software. Even if you think it isn't.
 
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Can you even connect to the Microsoft website from Syria? If you can, I believe you can run Windows without a licence key, but you will get reminders to authenticate Windows, and there will be a "watermark" on the screen.

And I would agree that the issues you are having are probably related to the cracked software, which is often loaded with virus/malware.
 
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You're absolutely right on that one. I understand TH's situation too.
I mean i pay double even triple the price of hardware here compared to global market, i would definitely have paid for original OS copy if i had the means to.
I even have to run most websites, like this one, through a vpn cause they don't open or lead to errors.

Anyway, thanks for the reply.
 
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For reals? Well i can open Microsoft website but not Win10's market. Is it a windows 10 free copy? I didn't know such exist. I thought it was free upgrade for paid windows 7/8.1 copies.
 
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Try to download the Media Creation Tool from this link:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10

You will need a blank USB flash drive with a capacity of at least 5GB. It may work on a blank DVD (I used a DVD for installing Windows 8.1 Professional, but Windows 10 may be too large for a single layer DVD). When installing Windows 10, when it asks for your license key, respond with "I don't have a key", and proceed.

Make sure your USB flash drive is empty, because using the Media Creation Tool to create the installation media will erase anything on the USB drive.
 
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Solution


It's not "free", but you can use Win 10 unactivated.
You will have a watermark that shows up at the bottom right, and you can't personalize the desktop or taskbar.
But it WILL be real and not pirated.
 
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Nice!
I don't mind the watermark or the inability to customize desktop/taskbar. I barely see the desktop unless logging in/out lol
As long as it receives updates and gives me administrator rights, i'd be a happy fella.
So, i guess i'll try it. I've installed most ISOs from USB sticks, not gonna have hard time doing it again, thanks for the tips.
I'm currently running emsisoft antimalware full scan and will install said OS later tonight.
Hopefully, it'll fix the drop in performance on my FPS too *fingers crossed*

Thanks, both :)
 
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