Hi, I have been using Avast! V5 since it was released, and am using V5.0.594 now. Lately loading time is getting longer to the point I’m waiting a few minutes if there are definition updates. First it seems to load, and the HD light is on showing it’s spinning, and the Avast icon is spinning. Then after what seems like forever, the pop up appears saying definitions have downloaded. The HD light goes off momentarily but lights right up again and I can’t do anything because my RAM is using 1008Mb out of 1049Mb during this whole process. Finally after a few more minutes the HD light goes off and now I’m using about 450-500Mb of RAM which is normal. I seem to remember other threads a while ago complaining of loading getting longer after a while, but I don’t remember what their problem was. Does anyone have an answer to this problem that has developed? Thanks in advance. 
Well my system roughly matches yours (XP Pro SP3, Outpost Firewall Pro, SAS Pro and MBAM free and I don’t have any such problem, though I have 2gb RAM (but there is nowhere near 1GB being used) and My CPU is still reasonably quick.
What version of Outpost are you using and essentially what functions are you running (it has an anti-spyware function which is very active on boot) ?
Check the Task Manager and see what is using the bulk of this RAM ?
That’s me for the night now almost 3am here.
I’m not using the AS feature in Outpost. I’ll try to run the Task Manager if the window will access while all this is happening. Thanks for your help.
You’re welcome.
You could try Stopping the SAS resident protection so it doesn’t run on boot and see if that makes a difference, certainly in getting into the task manager.
I have my OS on 2 other snapshots with FD-ISR so I booted to one of them and the trouble doesn’t seem to be there. Something must have happened on my #1 snapshot that I couldn’t find. Maybe it wasn’t even my Avast! I will copy over my #1 snapshot and destroy the problem. (I hope) ;D
You didn’t say what version of Outpost firewall you are using, if on the Pro version and there have been two updates recently, one of which (Outpost Firewall Pro ver. 7.0 and 7.0.1 ) included a number of different security measures/functions.
However, I haven’t noticed any performance impact with them. They have just released Outpost Firewall Pro ver. 7.0.2, which I have downloaded 28.3MB (a pain on dial-up), but have yet to install after I do my weekly drive image backup.
I’m using OP V7.0.2. That starts loading after Avast! starts loading and finishes way before Avast! is done loading and downloading definitions.
One thing that I find with OP is that it is in on the act of downloading its Updates, check the firewall logs, Product Internal Events and that one does hog my dial-up.
I have broadband, so that’s not an issue for me.
Avast! no longer loads excessively slow if 3 minutes is average, but watching it load and download definitions from Task Manager, I see that with 1GB RAM total, I only show about 200 +/- Mbs of available physical memory throughout the entire process. As soon as Avast! is quiet I show 500Mbs +/-. 
How much RAM does the system have?
Is it XP Home or Pro?
You could update that infromation in your signature.
1GB RAM XP Home. I’ll include that in my sig now. Thanks
Does anyone have an answer?
What I can say is that the RAM shown into task manager does NOT reflect the exact reality.
You need, at least, to use the Virtual Memory column of it to check.
OK next time I boot up I’ll check. All I know is, I can’t open any other app while Avast is loading and downloading definitions because my RAM is being eaten up.
In the mean time I’m going to experiment and disable the Behavior Shield for a while to see if that has any effect. Thanks for responding.
twl845, do you see this slowdowns every time avast updates or just after booting?
On my XP Pro system I have to un-select Use special grapics effects in Basic Settings and Load avast! services only after loading other system services in Troubleshooting to help preventing system slowdown during boot up.
I’ve done this too. Also set ‘engine and virus data base’ update to manual instead of auto. Partially because it speeds up the boot and also because I’m a bit of a control freak. ;D
Quite possibly nothing to do with it, but I couldn`t help noticing the similarity to my own problem … excessively slow loading of XP Sp3 that began very recently.
It`s not Avast, though, but wuauclt. exe, the Ms Auto-Update running for an unusally long time (memory use but not CPU in Task Manager) and making the computer unusable for anything up to 40 mins depending on how many MS programs you have.
This problem seems to have arrived with KB2286198, part of the 5th August update.
The workaround is to switch from Microsoft Updates to Windows updates as suggested here http://social.answers.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/vistawu/thread/ef18ff87-db7f-4705-8105-33dcf9a9a03b/#44e80262-9a91-4ddb-9770-63810962cb8c
Worth checking out, anyway.
@ havildar
Please go to PROFILE then Modify Profile then Forum Profile Information then Signature: and put information about your system just like my signature about your system just like my signature so that the helpers can offer pertinent advice.