What is happening: File access is slow to open files when browsing to the network resource, say S:\shared\docs\here\doc.doc. When they double click on that document it take 20-40 seconds to open. This statement is also true for ANY type of file, .xls, .pdf, .tif, .jpg, etc. We can also copy that same file that is slow opening on the network to the desktop of the server and it takes the same amount of time to open directly on the server.
However if we know we are going to open a PDF per say, and we open Adobe Acrobat PDF, then select FILE > OPEN and choose the file we wish to open (without regard to file location, local or network based), the file opens as normal with no lag time.
Our assumptions here was that SEP (Symantec Endpoint Protection) on the file server could be causing the issues, if this was true the following statement would apply:
· All workstations would also experience a delay of some nature, but this is not the case.
Based on the information above SEP on the terminal server would logically be the next step to remove, or disable. I suspected this in the process of diagnosing these problems, however someone had removed SEP from the terminal server previously, so it’s not even a factor to consider anymore.
I have ran a full Malbytes scan of the server looking for Spyware or other things, and the server came up entirely clean.
Filemon does not reveal any sinister processes running when any of these application call out a document or file. Filemon appears to show that everything opens normally and there are normal processes associated with it.
This problem impacts ALL users on the terminal server, on all programs. The server also has some “sluggish” response when trying to view things in admin tools, say log files or whatever. The system appears to stall for the same amount of time occasionally as the file take to open, however this is not consistent at all.
The server had 4gb of virtual memory on the E drive, 3gb of physical memory on the server and has a nice Xeon processor… so that’s not a factor really since they have 10 users give or take on it at any one time.