# Need help with Counter Control 1.1 output - 0xBBB



## Cookie_Monster (Jul 4, 2022)

Good day everyone!

First time poster here.  Kindly move this thread if this is not the correct sub forum.

I'm confused with the output of Counter Control 1.1 on my Acer E5-576G laptop.  The log file says 2022-07-04  09:55:47  00:01:00  0xBBB  Unknown.  Windows Defender is enabled.  I also attached a screenshot of the app.

Thanks for any input you can give.


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## Count von Schwalbe (Jul 4, 2022)

@unclewebb


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## unclewebb (Jul 4, 2022)

Counter Control 1.1 is showing the entire contents of this register when it really does not need to. Look for Counter Control 1.2 later this week.

0xBBB will be shown as 0x333 in future versions. There are 4 bits of information for each counter in that register. Only the lower two bits are the important ones. 

0x333 looks OK. It is better than 0x222. This app was just released a few days ago so I am still learning about the results it reports on different computers.

Thanks for your feedback. Here is the original thread for this discussion. 









						Windows Defender can Significantly Impact Intel CPU Performance, We have the Fix
					

Kevin Glynn, aka "Uncle Webb," our associate software author behind popular utilities such as ThrottleStop and RealTemp, developed a new utility named Counter Control, which lets you monitor and log the performance counters of Intel Core processors since 2008 (Core "Nehalem"). During development...




					www.techpowerup.com


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## Cookie_Monster (Jul 4, 2022)

Thanks again for your reply.  Looking forward to version 1.2.


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## unclewebb (Jul 6, 2022)

Counter Control (1.2) Download
					

Counter Control is a small program that will monitor the fixed performance counters on Intel processors.   Microsoft's Windows Defender anti-virus so




					www.techpowerup.com
				




@Cookie_Monster 
Let me know if the new version fixes the issue you were having.


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## (00) (Jul 6, 2022)

unclewebb said:


> Counter Control (1.2) Download
> 
> 
> Counter Control is a small program that will monitor the fixed performance counters on Intel processors.   Microsoft's Windows Defender anti-virus so
> ...


W O W . . . That was quick  8 )

m(_ _)m


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## Cookie_Monster (Jul 7, 2022)

Version 1.2 fixes the issue.

What does 0x333 Normal means? Is there a program latching to the counters as opposed to 0x000 Not Used? I am wondering why it displays Normal in the Current column, but once the laptop goes out of sleep mode, it says Not Used in the Previous column.

 I will also install the newer ThrottleStop.  I've previously installed an older version but have since removed it.

Thanks Uncle Webb for creating an effective tool for improving performance and temperature on laptops.


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## unclewebb (Jul 7, 2022)

The only purpose of the Counter Control tool is so users can watch to see if Windows Defender is setting the three different timers to mode 2. When that happens, Counter Control will show 0x222 and CPU performance will be reduced.

Most monitoring programs like HWiNFO will set two counters to mode 3 and the other counter is not used. The third counter will usually be left in mode 0. That is when you will see 0x330. That seems to be the most common value.



Cookie_Monster said:


> What does 0x333 Normal means?


That means that the three individual counters are all set to mode 3. I do not think this is as common as 0x330 but it is still perfectly normal. CPU performance should be OK. Windows Defender only reduces performance when the 3 counters are set to 0x222.

During sleep mode, all 3 counters are stopped and reset. That is when they are all set to mode 0. This shows as 0x000. If you have some software running on your computer that is using these counters, as soon as your computer resumes from sleep, that program will automatically turn the three counters back on and set them to mode 3.

On my computer when I resume from sleep, if ThrottleStop is not running in the background, Windows Defender will immediately set the three counters to mode 2 and performance will be reduced. I never realized that was going on until I started using Counter Control to monitor the situation.



Cookie_Monster said:


> Thanks Uncle Webb


You are welcome. Thanks for the feedback. Each counter has 4 bits of information that can be set or cleared. Counter Control 1.1 reported all 4 bits. To monitor for the Windows Defender issue, the upper two bits can be ignored. Counter Control 1.2 only reports the lower two bits. Each counter will only report if it is in mode 0, 1, 2 or 3. That is the important info.

Do you know if you have any Acer software running in the background on your computer? Some Acer program might be setting the three timers to mode 3. This is not an issue. Just curious. When I first boot up and Windows Defender is not doing anything, these counters are not used on my computer so Counter Control reports 0x000. It will stay like that until Windows Defender thinks that no one will notice if it takes over control of all of the system timers. Let's just say that, I noticed!


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## Cookie_Monster (Jul 8, 2022)

Thanks for clarifying how your program works.

After looking through the laptop's list of programs, there are no Acer-related programs installed that I can see. So it could be some other software or task associated with the OS that is setting the three timers to mode 3. As long as it is not reducing the performance of the system, I am perfectly fine with it.


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