THIS IS MY STORY AND FIX:
Problem: WDFME.exe Process Keeps Running
Another problem that has cropped up. wdfme.exe is running and taking 45-65% of the processor. Slows down or halts bootup. I found this through Norton Internet Security Performance, it does not show up on the Task Manager Processes, hidden? Why?
3/1/2011. What I have done:
Stop the backup in WD SmartWare.
Remove the Security Lock in WD SmartWare.
Exit SmartWare.
Go to the task bar’s notification area and eject the Passport.
Unplug the Passport.
Go to Control Panel and Uninstall WD SmartWare.
Note: It appears that WD SmartWare tries to reinstall, when Windows asks to allow your PC to be modified, Say Yes to this. It will take 5-10 minutes.
Note: Sometimes it does not seem to uninstall, and the program is still listed, still shows up under All Programs and icons remain. Processor usage is near 5-10% now. (Reinstall, reboot and uninstall)
If successful the WD SmartWare will not be listed and you will not see any files on the C: drive.
(Files can found in C:\Program Files (x86) under Western Digital, about 27Mb).
Reboot notebook.
Plug in Passport, if SmartWare tries to install, say NO.
Go to Computer and you can see the Passport drive, possibly as G: or H: .
Later you might want to erase or delete files (on Passport) to open space on drive.
Your backup files appear under WD SmartWare.swstor folder.
There is an erase function WD Quick Formatter.exe that has no description in the manual, but may delete all WD software. May not want to delete WD software, maybe need later?
Possible way to use Passport is to use SyncToy to back up changed files from C:\Users to H:(Passport)\Backup1. 65GB took me 1:20 min to copy the first time.
Later use SyncToy to copy H:\Backup1 to H:\Backup2, and then copy C:\Users to H:\Backup1. This gives you a fresh backup and an older one. SyncToy has the mode “Contribute” which adds and updates files but does not delete any from the target folders. For the paranoid people you can also create H:\Backup3, Backup4,…
PS: I did not use Ausologics SpeedBoost suggested by nanquan, nor did I use JV6 suggested by c2biz to uninstall and remove traces of WD SmartWare.
I may look into Cobian Backup suggested by Poddys.
PPS: This seems to be a serious problem because it appears in several threads in this forum (WD Community), you may need to explore several forums/threads to get all the details.