GWXConfigManager.exe is a legitimate Windows system process that is associated with the “Get Windows 10” (GWX) app. This app was used by Microsoft to promote the free upgrade to Windows 10 for eligible Windows 7 and 8.1 users.
The GWXConfigManager.exe process is responsible for managing the configuration settings of the GWX app and ensuring that users receive the necessary updates and notifications regarding the Windows 10 upgrade.
GWXConfigManager.exe runs in the background and is designed to automatically check for updates and notify users of the Windows 10 upgrade options. It is generally not a cause for concern and should not be terminated unless it is causing problems or behaving abnormally.
However, some users have reported issues with the GWXConfigManager.exe process consuming high CPU or memory resources, causing system slowdowns or freezes. In such cases, it is recommended to disable the GWX app or uninstall it completely using the Windows Control Panel.
GWXConfigManager.exe – What is it?
GWXConfigManager.exe is a legitimate Windows system process that is associated with the “Get Windows 10” app. It is responsible for managing the configuration settings and notifications related to the Windows 10 upgrade.
If you suspect that GWXConfigManager.exe is behaving abnormally or causing high CPU or memory usage, it is recommended to run a full system scan with a reputable antivirus or anti-malware software to detect and remove any potential threats. Additionally, you can monitor the process using the Task Manager or a system monitoring tool to identify any suspicious behavior or activity that could indicate malware infection.
As I have mentioned before, Gwxconfigmanager.exe can be a coin miner virus. The names of the .exe file can be different, but the consequences are usually the identical. Considering that coin miners aim at cryptocurrency mining, they utilize all available hardware power of your personal computer to perform this operation. This virus doesn’t care about the fact that you may need to use your machine for other activities – it will continuously use over 80% of your CPU power.
Gwxconfigmanager.exe – Extremely high CPU as well as GPU usage
In general, it is important to be cautious of any suspicious processes or activity on your computer, and to keep your antivirus and anti-malware software up-to-date to ensure maximum protection against potential threats.
About Cryptocurrency Mining
Cryptocurrency mining means the action of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a integral part of any project based on the blockchain technology. Since this action takes a lot of calculations, a very powerful desktop is required. Exactly, the video card is better for this task, because they have more cores available. Cryptomining farms usually consist of dozens of video cards to conduct their activity effectively. Such systems are not usable for “general” purposes, like gaming or web browsing. Fraudsters who gain money via this coin miner use someones’ PCs instead, even if they are used for the regular activity.1
List of the typical coin miner symptoms
How dangerous is the Gwxconfigmanager.exe miner?
Coin miners does not deal damage to your files. However, they make a lot of unpleasant things with the whole system
Initially, Gwxconfigmanager.exe malware makes your computer overloaded. It is not able to run your applications now, as all processor power is consumed by a virus. That malware does not care for your needs, all it pays attention to is generating income on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until browser is open, you will likely experience incredibly slow performance. Pages will open up for years, any kind of logins will take about a minute – just a nightmare for a person that works online.
Gwxconfigmanager.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Gwxconfigmanager.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | Nahimicsvc64.exe, Oneetx.exe, Clear.exe |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Gwxconfigmanager.exe removal. |
“Visible” harm is not a solitary negative thing coin miners do to your personal computer. Gwxconfigmanager.exe coin miner also deals damage to your operating system. To complete all malicious operations correctly, it ruins the protection components of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware stops it to prevent recognition. If you check the HOSTS file, you will likely see a ton of new notes – they are brought in by this trojan miner to connect your computer to a malicious cryptomining network. All these changes are about to be reverted to the initial state in the process of PC recovery.
Hardware effects of coin miner activity
Besides slowing down your PC, performing at peak power for long times may cause damage to your device and increase electricity costs. PC elements are created to easily deal with high load, but they are good with it only in case when they are in a good shape.
Small and covered CPU cooling system is not very easy to crack. Meanwhile, graphic cards have big and easy-to-access rotors, which can be easily cracked if touched while working, for example, by the user much before the malware injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the really high load caused by Gwxconfigmanager.exe can easily lead to graphic card failure2. GPUs are also tend to have very fast wearing when used for crypto mining. It is surely an undesirable case when the performance of your GPU decreases on 20-30% only after 1-2 weeks of being used in such a way.
How did I get Gwxconfigmanager.exe coin miner virus?
Coin miners are spread through different ways, but their main sources are malicious banners and programs from dubious sources
Coin miners are the most common malicious programs through “severe” viruses. Adware frequently functions as a carrier for Gwxconfigmanager.exe malware injection: it demonstrates you the banners, which contain a link to malware downloading. Sure, this abstract “malware” can belong to any type – yet another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. But the statistics say that approximately 30% of all malware spread with the malicious banners are coin miners – and Gwxconfigmanager.exe is just among them.
The example of malicious banners you can see in the Internet
An additional way you could get this item on your computer is by downloading it from the unreliable website as a part of a program. People that spread hacked variants of favored programs (which do not need the license key) have small chances to get paid. For this reason, there is a very big lure to add malware to the final package of the hacked app and acquire a coin for every setup. Before criticizing these people for hacking and also malware spreading, ask yourself – is it alright to avoid purchasing the program in such a way? It is much cheaper to pay $20-$30 one time than to pay a much bigger sum for antivirus program as well as new parts for your PC.
How to remove the Gwxconfigmanager.exe miner from my PC?
The best way to get rid of this coin miner virus is to use anti-malware software
Removing such a virus involves using specific program. Proper anti-malware program must have high capability at scanning and also be lightweight – in order to make no problems with utilization even on weak PCs. On top of that, it is better to have on-run protection in your protection solution – to halt the virus even before it starts. Microsoft Defender lacks these features for different reasons. That’s why I’d suggest you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that purpose. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a great option that fits all of the specified qualities.3
Prior to the malware removal, it is important to boot your operating system into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Gwxconfigmanager.exe miner consumes a lot of CPU power, it is required to stop it before launching the security program. Otherwise, your scan will last for years, even though the GridinSoft program is pretty lightweight.
Booting the PC into Safe Mode with Networking
Press the Start button, then choose Power, and click on Reboot while holding the Shift key on the keyboard.
Windows will reboot into recovery mode. In that mode, choose Troubleshoot→ Startup Settings→ Safe Mode with Networking. Press the corresponding button on your keyboard to choose that option.
When your PC is in Safe Mode, all third-party apps, along with the majority of non-crucial operating system components, are not launched with the system start. That allows you to clean the system without dealing with high CPU usage of the coin miner.
Remove Gwxconfigmanager.exe coin miner virus with GridinSoft Anti-Malware
Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware. You can use this anti-malware program for free during its 6-day trial period. In that term, all functions are available, and it takes no payments to remove malware from your system.
After activating your free trial, start Full scan. It may last up to 10 minutes. You may use the PC as usual.
When the scan is finished, press the Clean Now button to remove all detected elements from your system. This procedure takes less than a minute.
Now, you are good to go. Reboot your PC into a normal Windows mode and use just as there was nothing malicious.
Remove Gwxconfigmanager.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner
Name: Gwxconfigmanager.exe
Description: The Gwxconfigmanager.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Gwxconfigmanager.exe will create your CPU to go for very warm temperatures for prolonged periods of time, which could reduce the life of the CPU.
Operating System: Windows
Application Category: Trojan
User Review
( votes)References
- Detailed explanation of how does cryptomining work.
- About unwanted effects for GPUs in the process of cryptomining.
- Our review on GridinSoft Anti-Malware.
