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Why is browsing the internet so slow with Windows XP?

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  • Last reply by caspy7

SyncroScales
SyncroScales
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Hello.

I currently have Windows XP Home Edition and Vista Home Premium 32-bit on a multi-boot desktop setup. I know Windows XP is no longer supported. I use Windows Vista for internet and most of what I do and will until the end of Microsoft's support in April 2017.

I had to go into Windows XP and eventually needed to get onto the internet. I noticed it takes a very very very long time to navigate around the internet. Why is this?

I had Norton 360 as malware protection, I have a firewall and I think I had VPN going on. But a 15 minute web-browsing experience took between 1 hour and 1.5 hours.

Some people claim they can still use the internet on Windows XP. Personally I only want to if I have to, due to it being an old operating system and potentially being at risk with malware threats. Some people still use Windows 98 or Windows 2000 online. I don't know how though.

Is it the newer versions of Fire Fox slowing the Windows XP OS down? I updated it to I think version 45 or 46 and noticed a slow down immediately.

Any information or advice?

Hello. I currently have Windows XP Home Edition and Vista Home Premium 32-bit on a multi-boot desktop setup. I know Windows XP is no longer supported. I use Windows Vista for internet and most of what I do and will until the end of Microsoft's support in April 2017. I had to go into Windows XP and eventually needed to get onto the internet. I noticed it takes a very very very long time to navigate around the internet. Why is this? I had Norton 360 as malware protection, I have a firewall and I think I had VPN going on. But a 15 minute web-browsing experience took between 1 hour and 1.5 hours. Some people claim they can still use the internet on Windows XP. Personally I only want to if I have to, due to it being an old operating system and potentially being at risk with malware threats. Some people still use Windows 98 or Windows 2000 online. I don't know how though. Is it the newer versions of Fire Fox slowing the Windows XP OS down? I updated it to I think version 45 or 46 and noticed a slow down immediately. Any information or advice?

Modified by SyncroScales

All Replies (1)

caspy7
caspy7
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No guarantees, but here are my thoughts.

Start in Firefox Safe Mode on the chance that one or more addons is the cause (this also covers hardware acceleration issues).

Given that it's XP, I'd put doing full system scan high on the list. I'd recommend starting with Malwarebytes free (one of the best in my opinion).

Try disabling Norton temporarily. In my experience Norton has a poor history of performance and of disrupting the browser. (This counts for all things Symantec & McAfee.)

If none of these work, try testing in a fresh Firefox profile (use the Profile Manager to create and choose the test profile). If there is any issue with your Firefox profile itself, this could help determine that.