What Is Csrss.Exe? Is It a Virus? Is It Safe?

You may not notice it, but at present there are a number of system processes hidden in the background of your Windows PC (if you use it). They allow you to browse this page, see the time, find out your last email address, update your computer and much more without interacting directly with these processes.

However, if you look at Windows Task Manager, you might be surprised how many system processes you don’t know are running. An example is csrss.exe. If you are wondering what csrss.exe is, don’t worry, it is not a virus. This is all you need to know about the Windows csrss.exe process.

What is csrss.exe?

The csrss.exe process is used by the Microsoft Client Server runtime subsystem to manage most graphical command sets on a Windows PC.

This process boots up automatically when you start the system. Csrss.exe is located in the C folder: \ Windows \ System32 and is mostly 6,144 bytes in size. Other known sizes are 4096 and 7680 bytes.

Can I turn it off or disable it?

You cannot disable this process because it is an important part of Windows. In any case, you do not need to disable it – it uses few resources and performs few important system functions.

If you go to Task Manager and try to finish the client-server process, Windows will notify you that your computer becomes unusable or will shut down. Click on this warning and you will see the message “Access denied”. This is a secure process and you cannot stop it.

Windows always starts this process at startup. If csrss.exe does not start when Windows starts, Windows will show up with error code 0xC000021A. This is how important this process is.

A virus with the same file name

Is Csrss.exe a virus? No, it is not. The real csrss.exe file is a secure Microsoft Windows system process called client-server execution. However, the authors of malicious programs such as viruses, worms and Trojans deliberately assign the same file name to their processes to avoid detection. Viruses with the same file name: TROJ_GEN.R47C3JT or TROJ_GEN.R3EC2L8 (detected by TrendMicro) and Trojan-Dropper.Win32.VB.ased or Backdoor.Win32.Gbot.bs (detected by Kaspersky).

To make sure that the malicious csrss.exe is not running on your computer.

How did Csrss.exe get into my computer?

Computer infections can spread in many different ways. Some of the most popular are spam campaigns, dummy software updates, unreliable and unofficial sources / tools for downloading software, trojans and tools for hacking software. To spread malware through spam campaigns, cybercriminals send out emails with infected attachments. The main purpose of these emails is to make the recipients download and open (run) the attachment. By opening it, users allow downloading and installing malicious programs. Unnecessary software updates are used to reproduce viruses and use them as tools to install computer infections instead of updates or patches.

They can also infect systems by exploiting outdated software bugs and errors. Peer-to-peer networks (e.g. eMule, torrent clients, etc.), Unofficial websites, free file hosting or free software download sites and other similar sources are widely used to present malicious executable files as legitimate and harmless files. Their use can make users install viruses. Downloaded and open files can be viruses. Trojans are malicious programs that cause chain infections. Once installed, they reproduce other infections. Many people use software piracy tools to bypass paid software activation. Unfortunately, these tools are used by cybercriminals to spread malware. Instead of activating the software, these tools can lead to the installation of malware.

How to fix 100% CPU with csrss.exe error

There are two main reasons why most users encounter the csrss.exe process at maximum CPU load. The first reason is usually because of a corrupted user profile. In this case you can fix the error by creating a new Windows user account and then deleting the old one. Remember to back up your information from your own files and other folders before deleting the old profile!

The second problem may be that the registry is corrupted. This problem usually occurs when the software you have written has been installed incorrectly, a hardware failure has occurred, or when you are too much confused with regedit. When there are problems with the writing, there is no right solution. However, the first thing I would like to try is to use a system recovery point to solve the problem. Try to go back to the date when you know that the system is 100% operational. If not, you can reinstall Windows 7.