How To Identify Unknown Processes In Windows

When it comes to Microsoft Windows Operating Systems, knowing what is running under the hood winlogo.jpgis the key to identifying problems and keeping the system running properly. One example is identifying what processes are running, and how did they start. Understanding how to track processes down, can be a big help if you think your system is infected with spyware, or if performance is sluggish.

You can use Task Manager to quickly see all running processes, but if you need to drill down and find out what program started the process, Task Manager falls short of reporting all the needed details. A tool that I use to get the details, is Process Explorer from Microsoft Windows Sysinternals site.

You can easily download Process Explorer at Microsoft TechNet Windows Sysinternals site and it's free. Process Explorer runs on Windows 9x/Me, Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000, Windows XP, Server 2003, and 64-bit versions of Windows for x64 processors, and Windows Vista.