Service TrustedInstaller.EXE permanently active taking up to 50% CPU resources

Question

On my machine (Windows 7, 64 Bit) the TrustedInstaller.EXE is permanently active. The amount of used CPU changes permanently. 2 seconds 0 % then up to 50% (I have a dual core) for a second then down to 0.

Rebooting the machine did not help. Also a complete Virus scan was negative.

I have monitored the process with the Process Explorer tool. I can see that the process always access the same Registry key when it gets active. The key is

HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Component Based Servicing\PackageDetect\Microsoft-Windows-IIS-WebServer-AddOn-2-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~0.0.0.

Answer 1

Hi Robear,

in the meantime I have found the process that was responsible for the trustedinstaller activities. It was the xenservice.exe that was installed together with the Citrix XenCenter on my machine. I have killed this process and suddenly the trustedinstaller.exe stopped its activities. So the problem is solved now because the XenCenter can work without this process and I will remove it from the auto

Thanks for your help.

Martin

Answer 2

Hey M. Herbst,

Here's a little insight on TrustedInstaller service.

TrustedInstaller is used by a service called “Windows Module Installer” which is used to install Windows 7 system modules. The system modules include Windows Update and Automatic Updates which automatically scans your system to check for any new updates and hotfixes available. So when scheduled Windows Update is performing its update scan or check on your system, the TrustedInstaller.exe process increases the CPU usage.

The simplest resolution for the TrustedInstaller high CPU usage problem is to wait for a while for the TrustedInstaller.exe to complete its job. Once it finishes running the tasks, the CPU usage rate will return to normal.

However, if you want to stop TrustedInstaller.exe from taking up all your CPU resource, here’s a suggestion that may help.

Disable Windows from automatically updating.

Here’s how:

Turn automatic updating on or off

After disabling automatic updates, depending on your preference, you can change the way Windows notify you about updates.

Refer this article: Change how Windows installs or notifies you about updates

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Regards,

Shinmila H - Microsoft Support

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Answer 3

Thank you for your answer. But the problem is that the process is permanently active and its CPU usage changes every 2 or 3 s between 0 and more than 20 %. 

I have disabled the automatic updates but it does not help. The TrustedInstaller is furthermore active.

Regards

Martin Herbst

Answer 4

Hi Martin,

Try these additional steps.

Method 1: Clear Problem History

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The following fix is intended for situations where trustedinstaller.exe causes problems due to the Problem Reports and Solutions history maintained in Windows 7.

Refer the steps to clear the history from: How do I clear the problem report history from my computer?

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More information about problem reports: See all problem reports for this computer

Method 2: Stop the Windows Module Installer That Runs Trustedinstaller.exe

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a.    Click onStart, in the Start Search box, type “msconfig” without the quotes and then press Enter.

b.    Click Continue whenUser Account Control prompt is displayed.

c.    In the System Configuration window that is displayed, open the Services tab.

d.    Locate and clear the Windows Module Installer check box.

e.    ClickOK save your changes and exit the dialog box.

f.     Next, open Services window by typing “services.msc” without the quotes in the start search field.

g.    Double-Click on Windows Module Installer.

h.    Change the Startup type of Windows Module Installer to Manual.

i.     Click Apply.

j.     If the services status is running, click on Stop button.

k.    Click OK.

Method 2 is for test purpose. If there is no improvement after following method 2, revert the changes done. Keep us posted on the issue.

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Regards,

Shinmila H - Microsoft Support

Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forum and let us know what you think.

Answer 5

Hi Shinmia,

unfortunately neither method 1 nor method 2 worked. After stopping the service (as described in method 2) it started immediately again. It seems to be impossible to stop this process from working :-(.

Regards

Martin