ACACD LT 2010 VERY slow startup on Win7 64-bit

[Anonymous]

What is wrong with AutoCAD LT 2010 on my machine? It takes MINUTES to start on my "fast" computer!

My old motherboard just died and I replaced it (ASrock 970Extreme4) and added an AMD FX 8350 CPU: Eight cores at 4Gig. And 8 Gig RAM. Had to change to Windows 7, Home Premium. 64-bit. Monitor is 23-inch Samsung Syncmaster 2343. Same as prior. New 750 Watt Power Supply. Same Logitech Wirelaess trackball (mouse) and keyboard as before.
Video card is ATI ALL-in-Wonder TV Tuner card - same as previously. Moderate graphic card, but not junk, for sure. Windows 7 shows computer performance at 5.6 out of possible 7.9. CPU/RAM are 7.8. HDD is 5.9.

RE-installed ACAD LT 2010. I didn't change any defaults. Didn't seem to work (I didn't realize how slow it was). Re-tried after copying DVD to HDD. Seemed OK, but very slow to start ACAD. VERY, VERY SLOW! Start-up times almost 5 min.! On a fast machine, not a slow, old one. Often 2 min., and normally at best 1 to 2 min. This is not right! When I was running XP, it was a few seconds, with a machine a dual core 2.3 Gig each.

Now, with a much faster machine, taking more than 10 TIMES as long as when I had Win XP! Once, and only once, it only took 18 seconds - long but livable. That was when I removed Start in UserDataCache from the desktop shortcut, but I don't get that time anymore - just over 1 minute usually is the best. I've even double-clicked the acadlt.exe file directly. Still very slow.

I've tried numerous things, without a seemingly reliable change or real cure.
And while ACAD LT is starting, it seems to almost freeze the machine - other programs are also very slow, so I can't just do something else while waiting. Browsers start like molasses . . .
Reducing my screen resolution seems to reduce the time, but not nearly enough. "Recommended" by Win 7 is 2048x1142. Stepping down, even way down, changes ACAD start time from 3 or 4 or 5 minutes to 2 or 1+. And it isn't consistent, other than being unreasonably long.
I made sure I was Registered and Activated - a painful process.
I applied Update 2, not bad.
Update 1 - I couldn't tell what the hell version information they referred to - "If your product is version D.55.0.0 (UNICODE)" where in the hell do I find that???? So no Update 1.
http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/index?siteID=123112&id=2334435&linkID=9240818#section5
Cleared Internet Explorer's "Publishers Certificate Revocation" per a tip.
Set STARTUP to 1, since sometimes I could see that "half" the delay was ACAD starting the civil template, but not always. This generates an Open A Drawing dialog box.
Added /nohardware to the startup shortcut. I initially ALSO had a problem with the screen dimming, which MAY be related to resolution, but the dimming is now hardly perceptible, even when at full screen resolution. (There are lots of posts on the web about that, too.)

This is more than just a minor irritation! Autodesk must know what the program is doing, or trying to do, when starting up, and there are lots of posts about this kind of problem, but posts and forums and possible solutions are all over the place. A program costing $850 should at least have a method to fix this if they can't prevent it. Is the program looking for files? Looking for drivers? Connecting to the internet? Checking license/serial number?

Then, I started testing. (I AM an engineer.) When ACAD starts, it is just a grey dialog box saying AutoCad LT 2010 in the top line, with an "hourglass" cursor whenever it is on the dialog box. Then, eventually, the small Startup Open a Drawing box appears where I can select the file to open. I click a file, and within a few blinks, there is there is the drawing. I timed the time to that box for much of today!

1:19 with resolution at 1680x1050
3:09 resolution at 1920x1280, then I just retried, with no other configuration changes, just minimal computer use:
1:05
3:08
1:12
4 seconds!
1:05
4 seconds
4:30
2:10
4:10
4 seconds, but then a minute + more to Open the file
4 seconds, then a minute+ to Open the file
3:17
2:08
1:30
1:05
1:05
1:09
1:16
Try adding UserDataCache back to Start-in, even though I can't see such a folder or file:
2:03
7 seconds! AND a quick Open file.
1:05
Try the AutoCAD standard original desktop shortcut once: 4:09
1:10
2:07
4 seconds, and a quick Open File.

Autodesk experts, there has to be an explanation for the fluctuating times. HELP! Obviously something is not right. The short times show that the machine works as expected when "allowed to," but usually something is slowing the process down.

[Anonymous]

It looks worth a try to me!  I'll give it a go later today.

[Anonymous]

Sigh. Even that didn't really help. Maybe I'm doomed.

Some testing of start times - occasionally once it opens it then takes a while to open the file. But usually just a second or 2 or 3.
Sometimes, not always, the top line of the drawing says Not Responding, but it eventually opens anyway.

Turned off the Comm Center using the 3rd party file
2:12
1:10
6 seconds
5:13
Add /nohardware switch to the shortcut
6 seconds
Reboot
15 seconds, then slow file for 1:20 total
2:15 to file, then 3:30 total
1:09
2:09, then file to 3:10 total
2:07

Sigh

OK, how about this? In looking at ACAD's files, there is a drv folder. MAYBE ACAD is searching for a driver, particularly for my "unusual" video card, even though Win 7 runs it just fine. Is there a way to see what ACAD is using, or what it chooses?

Maybe I could move/hide the other drivers to limit the search? But there are about 60 files, so just trying at random isn't practical, and I have no idea how many of them get used.

Ideas?

[Anonymous]

Here is another POSSIBILITY.  After opening ACAD (1:28) I happened to hit F2.  Said TWO customization files loaded successfully: ACADLT and AUTODESKSEEK.  What is autodeskseek, and is it optional?

[Charles_Shade]

Autodesk Seek is another online connection that gives you access to additional content that Autodesk and 3rd party vendors provide such as Furniture, Fixtures, adn other things someone is hoping you may spec and purchase.

I pretty sure that it can be turned off but you may need to find out how unless someone else comes along and knows.

Does ADCENTER open when you start up AutoCAD?

[Anonymous]

I don't think so.  To check, I typed "adcenter" in the input line of ACAD and it popped up a Design Center box that I hadn't seen before. So it normally doesn't start.

[dominik.meyer]

I had the same problem as described with my AutoCAD 2010LT: It took up to 5 minutes to start AutoCAD on my fast Windows-7-64bit-Computer with SSD.

All the solutions from this forum didn't work. I finally reinstalled Windows - no change...

Recently, I found the reason for the slow start: It was the AHCI/IDE-Setting in the BIOS! It was set on "IDE".

After changing to "AHCI", AutoCAD started faster than ever!

Maybe this will help you?!

Dominik

[Anonymous]

Way to go, Dominik!!!!  This seems to have solved the problem.  ACAD starts in maybe 15 to 20 seconds the 2 or 3 times I've tried it. Not a single long start. (Yet, at least)  I spent MANY hours troubleshooting and trying, but nothing worked until Dominik's post, after months of just suffering with horribly long start times.  Now it seems normal.

Take note, moderators - this is not an obvious path, but must relate to how ACAD starts.

And to others - read up first on how to change to AHCI from IDE  - do the registry changes first, then change the BIOS setting.

Thank you, Dominik!  And also to the moderators who tried hard with "standard" approaches.  But the problem was apparently more "exotic" and related to the evolution of PCs, Os's and software interfaces.