When shutting down the computer the following message always appears: “WMS Idle is not responding”. To proceed with the shutdown I must click the “End Now” button. How can I stop this message from appearing and interrupting the shutdown process? The computer is running Windows XP SP2.

Searching the internet indicates that many users are experiencing this issue, but few have found a definite solution. It seems the most common cause of the problem is a process running in the background which does not close correctly, thus causing the WMS Idle process to also not close, resulting in the message appearing. To test this theory, you could try manually closing all background processes before shutting down the computer to see whether the problem still occurs. This will tell you whether any of those running processes are causing the problem. After you have finished using the computer during the day and are ready to shutdown, press CTRL-ALT-DEL to display the Windows Task Manager. In the window that appears, click the “Processes” tab. This will list all processes which are running on the computer. Click the “User Name” column heading to sort the table by user name. If this column is not visible, go to the “View” menu > “Select Columns” and tick “User Name” then click OK. Select each process running under your user name and click the “End Process” button. You should close all processes except ?explorer.exe? (the Windows graphical user interface) and ?taskmgr.exe? (the Windows Task Manager, which you are currently using to close the processes). In the event that some processes automatically start again once being closed, this is indicative of an auto-spawning process. This just means that the processes automatically restart themselves, most likely due to another running process which restarts the closed process. In this situation, leave the auto-spawning process for the moment and then try closing them again once you have closed all other processes running under your user name. Be aware, do not try to close processes running under any other user names, as these are likely to be system processes which are required for Windows to function.

Once you have closed all the processes running under your user name, or as many processes as you are able to successfully close, shut down the computer. If the problem does not occur, this indicates that one of those processes is causing the issue. Restart the computer so that all the processes re-load. Then, immediately shut down the computer again. This will indicate whether the problem is being caused by a process which loads on Windows startup, or only occurs after you have used the computer for a period of time (e.g. a program which you use on the computer, but does not completely terminate correctly once the program is closed).

Should the problem occur when immediately shutting down the computer following the restart, this shows that the problem is caused by a process loading on startup. In this case, use CTRL-ALT-DEL to display the task manager and then close one process running under your user name, then try shutting down the computer. Should the problem still occur, repeat the procedure to close a different process running under your user name. Keep repeating the procedure until the problem no longer occurs, at which time the most recently closed process is the one causing the problem. With this knowledge, you will now need to determine the nature and purpose of that process. To identify the purpose of the process from the process name (as they can sometimes be quite cryptic) try searching Google or ProcessLibrary.com (www.processlibrary.com).

Should you find that the process is not essential, you can disable it from loading on startup which should stop the error message from appearing on shut down. To do this, go to the “Start” menu > “Run” and type “msconfig” (without the quotes) and click OK. In the window that appears, click the “Startup” tab. This will list all the processes which load on Windows startup. Untick the process you wish to disable from loading, and then click the OK button. The process will no longer load on startup.

However, if the process is essential and you need the functions it provides, then you may need to find an updated version of the software which is associated with the process which does not have the problem. Alternatively, the process may be conflicting with another process on the computer, and there might be information on the manufacturer’s website to help resolve this situation. In any case, you will need to contact the manufacturer of the software for a resolution in this situation.

If the problem does not occur when immediately shutting down following a restart, the problem is caused by a program which was used during the prior computer sessions. In this scenario, it is probable that a program did not fully close but remained partially open in the background. Should this be the case, think of the programs which you use during a normal computer session. Open those programs and use the programs for a few minutes, and then close the programs. Now, shut down the computer and check whether the problem occurs. If so, one of those programs is not closing properly. Restart the computer, and then open one of those programs and then close the program. Shut down and check whether the problem persists. If not, repeat the procedure for another program, and keep repeating until the problem occurs. Similar to the previous procedure outlined, this will allow you to determine the exact program causing the problem. Some users have reported that Microsoft Outlook and Windows Media Player can cause this behaviour, so if these are programs which you regularly use on the computer then perhaps they can offer a starting point for your investigations. Once you determine the program causing the error, try searching Google with the program name and the error message “WMS Idle is not responding” to find any ways to fix the problem for that particular program. If you have difficulty in resolving the issue, then please contact me again for further advice.