CPU usage spikes for egui.exe

Using 5.2.9.1 under XP Home SP3. Why is it that occasionally egui.exe starts using 50% of CPU and stays there for hours? It isn't scanning or anything. It causes my CPU fan to come on and makes noise when the computer should be quiet and idle. Is there any way to figure out what egui.exe is actually doing? See CPU usage table below:

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/DMHPKctunsZFdyZHMRRriNMTjNZETYmyPJy0liipFm0?feat=directlink

Seems to do this for an hour or so on occasion, but today it's been at it all day.

 

ESET Start up scan, scheduled disk scan, virus signature update, program update. As well as other programs accessing the disk or network interface particularly if executables are involved. Microsoft program updates etc can cause it. Would need to look around your computer for something happening in the foreground or background.

I have not noted ESET consuming resources for no reason but it can occur at unexpected times. Alternatively you may have found a bug or driver incompatibility.

 

This thread seems to be similar: https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=321107&highlight=CPU

but with a different component. It's definitely not a scheduled disk scan or signature update (unless it got stuck somehow, but I don't think so because it updated several times while it was doing the CPU load), not startup scan either. Not sure what "program update" means. Are there any logs I can look at that might give some indication of what it's doing?

[BTW, I stopped it by logging off and logging back on]

 

ESET can update itself via module or more rarely program updates. Other software on your computer is likely to have similar capability which will trigger scanning activity in ESET.
Tools -> Statistics will tell you what it last scanned. Having the last scanned file constantly changing would be reassuring.

That suggests ESET was being kept busy by a user process, either by repeatedly blocking it or scanning while the user process was busy doing what it was suppose to be doing.

The other thread is consistent with ESET HIPS blocking a PC process, perhaps as a false positive but it is difficult to be sure.

 

I'm a bit confused how that will let me know what's causing the problem/conflict. If egui.exe is pegging the core again, and I look at the Tools|Statistics, what am I looking for exactly?

 

Eset was busy doing something. If it was busy repeatedly scanning a file or directory, that may suggest what may have gone wrong. It is probably a long shot though.

 

Does the problem go away after disabling "Action to take after inserting removable media" box under Computer -> Antivirus and antispyware -> Removable media ?

 

I'll let you know. It hasn't happened again recently, and since I don't know what triggers it, it's tough to experiment.