Computer issue

Hi Guys

Annoying problem here, when a user logs into there machine ( Domain) first thing in the morning it takes about 20 minutes for the computer to show the windows desktop when the computer eventually logs in it's useable ( no slowdown etc).

What would be some good troubleshooting steps to diagnose the issue it's only effecting one user.

Many Thanks

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Comments

Lee H

does this happen when user logs onto any other machine?

try logging on as administrator on the PC and put a "1" at the end of the user profile name in Docu & Settings folder, this will give the user a brand new profile when they log back in

if this works you simply transfer all user docs to the new profile

hope this helps

sprkymrk

Is it XP?
Make sure you check the event logs for any Active Directory errors.

KGhaleon

Checking the event logs and creating a new profile are the best ideas, though you will likely need to reboot the machine before renaming the profile.

Any luck?

ally_uk

Do you mean local profile or a new profile within Active Directory. Only issue is everything is being handled by Linux how everything is setup is a bit above my level

( We do not have a Windows server in this building)

I might have to get our third party support to create a new profile and see if that resolves the issue.

undomiel

Did you check the event log? Was there anything being reported in there? Generally in my experience this problem is a sign of communication issues with a DC.

Lee H

On the local machine in "documents & settings" the user will have a folder in here called their login name example "jsmith"

While logged in as administrator rename this folder by putting a "1" at the end, when user next logs in it will create a brand new profile

This is the first thing I would try, it may not even be an issue with the client but its better to be sure before you go messing round with the server

In my experiance profiles that are very old tend to get slower logging in, I have seen this in every one of my IT jobs

Let us know how you get on

Lee H

tiersten

How big is their profile anyway?

Did you ever have NT workstations? If so, check to see if the root directory of their profile doesn't have a bunch of .tmp policy files.

paintb4707

Could be a DNS issue. Check that your DC is the primary DNS server, otherwise if it cycles through a list of DNS servers in an incorrect order it could cause delayed domain logins. Also check DNS suffixes, if you use a list.

That's a cool little trick Lee, I never heard of that before.

ally_uk

I am due to investigate this issue in the next few days I will report back my findings.

ally_uk

My findings so far.

Computer Spec: Celeron 2.53Ghz, 512Mb, 40GB

Problem: Takes roughly 20minutes to Log onto the Domain

Users Affected: All User's when logging into Domain through this computer

Solutions Tried so far:

Checked TCP/IP settings these are fine, DNS suffix is correct, DNS servers are correct.

I have tried to rename a user profile by adding a 1 to the end of the profile but the same problem occurs.

Event Log findings:

Searched through the event logs and have came across 3 errors they are the following and they all happened when I logged into the Pc this morning.

Automatic Certificated enrollments for local system failed to connect to the Active Directory (0x8007054b) the specified domain either does not exsist or could not be contacted. (9.08 a.m)

(System Errors)

Service control Manager Timeout 300000 Milleseconds waiting for Roxio hard drive watcger 9 service to connect (9.10 a.m)

W32Time NTPclient failed to start catastrophic failure ( don't like the sound or that lol)
9.09 (a.m)

I found out some more information and established that the domain logon issue started to happen after updates were applied to Firefox and Internet explorer.

Can any of you gurus shed some light on the situation I am unable to carry out any server administration as the server side gets handled by a 3rd party company.

The problem is more serious then I thought and all users who log on to the domian via that computer are being affected.

Many Thanks for your Insight and help I appreciate it

Lee H

Seeing as all users are affected, it is unlikely to be a profile issue.

Best solution is the quickest that has the best effect - RE-INSTALL EVERYTHING

You could sit on this for hours and still not find the solution and by that time you could already have re-installed the whole PC, in my opinion this would only be investigated if it were happening on many PC and was also a re-occuring fault

Lee H

ally_uk

Yeah I was thinking about reinstalling the O/S aswell otherwise it will be to time consuming.

undomiel

It does look like it is having some problems communicating with the domain. Is the time on the computer in sync with the time on a DC? What happens if you remove it from the domain and rejoin it?

Jordus

I have to agree here. If its taking this long to troubleshoot it and its just that one box...crater it and reimage it.

Any troubleshooting that takes longer than it would take to apply a fresh image should just be forgone for a reimage.

sprkymrk

undomiel wrote: »

It does look like it is having some problems communicating with the domain. Is the time on the computer in sync with the time on a DC? What happens if you remove it from the domain and rejoin it?

This is exactly what I was going to suggest before you reinstall anything. Make sure the clock is synched with the DC, then remove the computer from the domain, reboot, then rejoin.

Also - Make sure this setting is NOT enabled in Group Policy for the machine (unless network security requires it):

Computer Configuration\Administrative Templates\System\Logon\

Always wait for the network at computer startup and logon

Kaminsky

If it's a standard image with all work being saved on the server (how I always build them), if it's taking too long to fix a niggly, just reimage the bloody thing and save yourself a lot of time and a lot of face. The longer you sit in front of it going "uhmmm umm um!" the worse you look in front of the users in that dept. They talk you know! Won't be long before your name is mud.

Just give up and reimage it. Although you are conceding defeat, you are getting the user up and working quickly which is your primary role if you think about it ... They will love the speed increase even though they may have lost their favourite screen saver. Will be a good lesson in not pi$$ing about with their PC too and will help them treat it with a bit more respect.

Honestly, build everthing to a standard image with all work being saved on the server with a warning that anything saved elsewhere may be lost in the event of a catastrophic failure and you will save yourself tons of time that could be better spent elsewhere with users that haven't dic*ed about with their machines.

PC support time is precious and time management / judgement calls (especially when to cut your losses) are a skill. Make them learn that!

If it's all users having the problem, blame it on the network! (is ok... we're used to it) whilst you sort the server out.

ally_uk

I understand, I am one of those people who gets very annoyed when I can't resolve a issue lol I say annoyed obviously I don't potray this it's inner frustration I guess.

I reinstalled the O/S and the user is happy, I have also regenerated the error and have the issue occurs when Roxio Media Manager which is part of the Blackberry Syncing Package is installed. As soon as I installed this Ap and rebooted the PC bingo domain login slowdown checked the even viewer and the program is timing out on startup.

So I could either disable at startup via msconfig or go one step better and uninstall this app as the end user doesn't use it problem resolved.

You learn something new everyday!