KPerry
You were sadly told wrong - ASIO is so clearly not a background task by Windows' definition of "background task".  Worryingly, the internet is full of so-called experts who get treated as gurus.
 
Nor is it a "daughter process" (which is meaningless in Windows' terminology).

I was like just paraphrasing what was posted by a CW dude a few years ago.
 
And what I read that indicated Steinberg recommended changing the setting to background tasks because of how their code handled ASIO. And that Sonar did not do it that way.
 
Not meaningless: any process that is started and stopped by another process, that is listed as part of a process tree, is what we way old dudes call a daughter process.

I'm going to tweak the settings on my COMMODORE 64 to run SONAR XXX. I've got fastload so disk speed is not a problem. I'll keep my songs short and mostly MIDI tho as 64k of RAM is a bit stuffy for all that super high-end SONAR stuff!. ;) -Shawn
 
Seriously, when I do a windows 7 install I always disable updates (WIN7 is perfect right out of the box, you don't need those big corporate security updates to make great music with SONAR XXX). Then I disable bit defender, system restore points, remote operation, action center notifications, UAC, & I think thats it! The machine runs great and if I'm on an older machine I will also "Optimize display for best performance". -Shawn Lee Farrell

Actually there are C++ run time routines that are required for anything past X2a (I think that was the last one), and those routines only get installed as part of Service Pack 1 for Windows 7, so anyone choosing to ignore all Windows updates beyond their initial install should know that SP1 MUST be then part of that install, or Sonar X2b and beyond will not even install.
 
(For sure they won't run, but I think the installer fails if the maintenance level is not a min of Win 7 + SP1)
 
I would also never ever suggest to someone that they skip applying Microsoft updates, in addition to my comments above.  It is certainly each user's choice as to how they approach things, but I am quite certain that Cakewalk and Microsoft, and a hugely disproportionate percentage of the users out there would also not recommend deliberately running without maintenance applied - as a blanket statement.
 
At the very least, running without current maintenance would almost certainly result in nobody providing any support for any issues - and I wouldn't run any business where I depend on what I use to have support available.  If I found out a studio I was using ran in an unsupported fashion, I would be out of there in a heartbeat, to protect my work.
 
Bob Bone
 

shawn@trustmedia.tv
I'm going to tweak the settings on my COMMODORE 64 to run SONAR XXX. I've got fastload so disk speed is not a problem. I'll keep my songs short and mostly MIDI tho as 64k of RAM is a bit stuffy for all that super high-end SONAR stuff!. ;) -Shawn
 
Seriously, when I do a windows 7 install I always disable updates (WIN7 is perfect right out of the box, you don't need those big corporate security updates to make great music with SONAR XXX). Then I disable bit defender, system restore points, remote operation, action center notifications, UAC, & I think thats it! The machine runs great and if I'm on an older machine I will also "Optimize display for best performance".

These settings are perfect for anybody who doesn't install any software or connect to anything. Performance and stability fixes are of course distributed by MS for purposes of their own amusement, and of course nobody needs security ;)

I think it would be quite cool to see a tweak list from the Bakers themselves!

There seem to be two basic ideas about updates. One is if your DAW is working and your system is working, freeze it in its current state...don't update anything, and treat it like a multitrack tape tape recorder that doesn't need its heads cleaned. The disadvantage is you can't take advantage of changes and improvements that evolve over time.
 
The other is to keep on top of all updates for all software - DAW, system, plug-ins. The disadvantage is that something could "break" when you apply an update. Personally, I do the "all updates all the time" routine with the possible exception of upgrading operating systems. I'm still on Windows 7 and will likely skip Windows 8 altogether.

Anderton
...if your DAW is working and your system is working, freeze it in its current state...don't update anything, and treat it like a multitrack tape tape recorder that doesn't need its heads cleaned.

 
This is exactly why I'm happily running SONAR 8.5.
 

Anderton
The other is to keep on top of all updates for all software - DAW, system, plug-ins... 

They call it the "bleeding edge" for good reason...but I'm not dogmatic about it - I update Windows once every 10 years, whether it needs it or not.

This s a myth now. This was for before PC have exploded in power!!! Any new PC that has been built in the past 8 years, give or take doesn't need background services adjusted. today's PC's are too strong. Little simple BG services running in your background will not effect Sonar at all.
 
The only thing you need to do with a new PC or one that has been built recently (8 years old) is to adjust your power options to always on (USB and FW hubs also). That is it!!!
 
CJ

And stop all auto updates, and auto tasks such as system performance, and defrag,...that will start whether or not they are set to not interfere.

CJaysMusic
This s a myth now. This was for before PC have exploded in power!!! Any new PC that has been built in the past 8 years, give or take doesn't need background services adjusted. today's PC's are too strong. Little simple BG services running in your background will not effect Sonar at all.
 
The only thing you need to do with a new PC or one that has been built recently (8 years old) is to adjust your power options to always on (USB and FW hubs also). That is it!!!
 
CJ

For once I find myself mostly agreeing with CJ - well I never.
 
I would also update software, Windows etc., with the option to restore, just in case.