Unknown data being written to disk in large quantities

[Freewill234]

i7-5700hq, 8gb ram, 1tb hdd, 970m (gigabyte laptop)

 

I have an issue where a failed windows update caused me to have to reinstall windows but I kept my personal files. my disk space showed the same amount being used prior to me reinstalling but for the sake of school purposes and needing a computer for class I was just going to roll with it until I had some more down time. As of a few minutes ago my disk space used went from approximately 450gb left to 3.31gb. Windows module installer has been working basically nonstop since my reinstall (plausible cause?) I can't really restart to see what happens because it takes upwards of an hour since the reinstall.

[kb5zue]

Can you take a look at the task manager to see what it is that is causing all the writes?  Not sure if you can do this at this point of the install, probably not but it's just an idea IMHO.

[Freewill234]

As of writing this message it would be Windows Module installer at around 2-5% disk usage. Using about 1.5gb of ram which seems high but I don't know much. Sitting at 0 bytes left though

[Freewill234]

So I downloaded WinDirStat after forum surfing, and it looks like what was being written was in here: C:\Windows\Logs\CBS. taking up 470gb total from the two folder contents.

[r4tch3t]

It's a bug

https://www.computerworld.com/article/3112358/microsoft-windows/windows-7-log-file-compression-bug-can-fill-up-your-hard-drive.html

[Freewill234]

Yeah I've found the article in the process, however; I can't stop the service (selection is grayed out)

[Freewill234]

I suppose my question at this point will be whether or not a pc reset is enough to get me back to a true square one, the first try with keeping my stuff didn't but maybe just getting rid of all files will help in that.

[TheKalmTraveler]

Try Shutting it down with:

 

1. Click the Start menu
2. Click Run or in the search bar type services.msc
3. Press Enter
4. Look for the service and check the Properties and identify its service name
5. Once found, open a command prompt as Administrator. Type sc queryex [servicename].
6. Press Enter
7. Identify the PID
8. In the same command prompt type taskkill /pid [pid number] /f
9. Press Enter

After successful kill continue with Potential Bug Fix and report back for further help.

[Freewill234]

Honestly now I'm having the wifi won't turn on issue because for some reason my computer is now hibernating when I close it. despite the fact I never hibernate because of that. Will resetting be much of an improvement? I'm going to spend twice as long for workarounds than I will just downloading my stuff again.

[TheKalmTraveler]

Well if the error is software related a fresh install may solve your problem but when you redownload your stuff to reach the old state the error may reappear. This is why I think a workaround will save you some time in the long run because reinstalling all your stuff over and over again won´t be much shorter.

In the end, it´s up to you and if you really want a quick solution, do a fresh install but when the error comes back try narrowing it down.

[Freewill234]

I think that perhaps I'm looking at my issues too singularly, perhaps there is a parallel between them that I'm not seeing, the issues will be place in the order of discovery/appearance.

-Primary Event- Intel meltdown patch fails and I reinstall windows while retaining personal files

-Disk space usage carries over from last windows install (after the reinstall I have 470/914 free) (however at this time its gone up to 516 free so I'm not entirely sure whats going on there).

-Restarting the computer takes approximately an hour (55-70min)

-Windows updates will no longer apply nor can I install geforce experience (due to another instance of the installer running)

-CBS logs spamming my disk (working on that one)

-Computer now hibernates about 1 hour after being put to sleep (closing the lid) causing my wifi to become turned off and am unable to turn it on manually

 

I suppose this supersedes the scope of the original post but I'm kind of between a rock and a hard place, I've dealt with windows 10 issues before but never to this degree.

[ElSeniorTaco]

Didn't Intel send out a notice not to install the meltdown patch, that it causes all types of crazy problems? 

https://thehackernews.com/2018/01/intel-meltdown-spectre-patch.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+TheHackersNews+(The+Hackers+News+-+Security+Blog)&_m=3n.009a.1668.kj0aof77tr.10du&m=1

 

Maybe the patch didn't exactly fail, and now you are seeing the results

[bcguru9384]

33 minutes ago, Freewill234 said:

I think that perhaps I'm looking at my issues too singularly, perhaps there is a parallel between them that I'm not seeing, the issues will be place in the order of discovery/appearance.

-Primary Event- Intel meltdown patch fails and I reinstall windows while retaining personal files

-Disk space usage carries over from last windows install (after the reinstall I have 470/914 free) (however at this time its gone up to 516 free so I'm not entirely sure whats going on there).

-Restarting the computer takes approximately an hour (55-70min)

-Windows updates will no longer apply nor can I install geforce experience (due to another instance of the installer running)

-CBS logs spamming my disk (working on that one)

-Computer now hibernates about 1 hour after being put to sleep (closing the lid) causing my wifi to become turned off and am unable to turn it on manually

 

I suppose this supersedes the scope of the original post but I'm kind of between a rock and a hard place, I've dealt with windows 10 issues before but never to this degree.

open taskman under hdd and view what files are being a written and by what child process(exe taskman goto view then select PID and children viewable)

note you can adjust viewed data under hdd too

 

[Freewill234]

On 1/24/2018 at 5:46 PM, ElSeniorTaco said:

Didn't Intel send out a notice not to install the meltdown patch, that it causes all types of crazy problems? 

https://thehackernews.com/2018/01/intel-meltdown-spectre-patch.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+TheHackersNews+(The+Hackers+News+-+Security+Blog)&_m=3n.009a.1668.kj0aof77tr.10du&m=1

 

Maybe the patch didn't exactly fail, and now you are seeing the results

That. That makes a lot of sense now, I'm pretty sure I got the patch day 1 (dont know why I thought that was a good idea).

[ElSeniorTaco]

Ever find out if that was the issue? I am just curious