Windows is definitely everyone’s first choice when it comes to operating systems. Its flexibility and availability of apps make it one of the best and most popular desktop operating systems. If you are using Windows then you too might have noticed how easy it is to use and customize. There are a lot of advantages of having Windows over other OS devices but there are several disadvantages too. Unlike Linux and macOS systems, Windows has a lot of bugs and Windows users often face problems with it. One common problem among then Windows users is 100% disk usage where the complete disk is occupied by a certain service, app, or third-party tools.
If you are facing a 100% disk usage issue in Windows then you have landed on the correct page. Here in this post, we are going to tell you about the best ways to fix 100% disk usage in Windows 11 and Windows 10. Though you can follow these steps on older versions of Windows like Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista, etc. Since a majority of the Windows users are using Windows 10 or Windows 11, we thought to target them specially. By following the methods mentioned below, you will be able to solve Windows 100% disk usage without any assistance and without using any third-party tools.
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What Causes 100% Disk Usage In Windows?
So, there are a couple of reasons why you might be facing 100% disk usage in Windows and it completely depends on the usage. Sometimes, this issue is caused by a third-party tool trying to scan or use your hard drive while sometimes it is caused by Windows itself. There are many services that run in the background and use your disks to perform certain steps. Windows Defender is one among them as it keeps checking for harmful files on your hard disk while you use your device but 100% disk usage error is not caused by it. Below are some reasons why you might be facing 100% disk usage in Windows 10 or Windows 11.
- Too many applications or programs running.
- Background service using the disk.
- Security software scanning the drives.
- The drivers are outdated.
- The system runs out of RAM.
- Windows Update using the disk to store files.
How To Fix 100% Disk Usage In Window 10 & Windows 11
Method #1. Disable SysMain Service [SuperFetch]
SuperFetch, a Windows service that uses your RAM to pre-load apps and data for faster access can sometimes cause this issue. Although this is a beneficial service, some users might have issues with it if they don’t have the latest drivers or hardware connected to their device. If you are facing 100% disk usage in Windows 11 then SuperFetch or SysMain can be a thing that needs fixing. Here’s how you can disable this service to fix this problem.
- First of all, press Windows Key + R to open the RUN dialog box.
- Type services.msc in the box and press Enter.
- In the Services tab, scroll down and find SysMain or SuperFetch service.
- Double-click on the service to open the Properties dialog box for it.
- In Startup Type, select Disabled and in Service Status click on Stop to stop this service immediately.
- Next, click on Apply and then on OK to save changes.
Restart your system and open Task Manager to see if the disk usage has been reduced or not. If not, then you need to do something extra and follow the other methods mentioned below.
Method #2. Perform A System Scan
There are chances that some apps, extensions, or tools that might get installed without your knowledge are causing this issue. Doing a system scan will eliminate them from causing serious damage to your system. Although you must do a complete system scan often on your device to keep your files protected, in case of 100% disk usage in Windows 11, this method might come handy. You can either use the Windows Defender to do a Full Scan of your system or use any leading third-party security software to do this. Here are some of the services we recommend using:
- Malwarebytes – https://www.malwarebytes.com/
- Avast – https://www.avast.com/en-in/free-antivirus-download/
- AVG Antivirus – https://www.avg.com/en-in/windows-10-antivirus/
- Kaspersky – https://www.kaspersky.co.in/antivirus/
- Avira – https://www.avira.com/en/free-antivirus-windows
Method #3. Change Energy Options From Balanced To High Performance
Windows power options provide various functions that help you in making your battery last longer. You can enable/disable USB device not recognized accordingly based on your needs to get the best performance or the best visuals on your device. You can change the energy options to High Performance on your Windows to disable unnecessary services from consuming the battery and running in the background. Well, we will recommend you to keep using High Performance mode all the time because it will help you in getting longer battery life. Here’s how you can switch between different power options on Windows.
- First of all, open Power and Sleep settings on your Windows.
- You can do this by searching “Power Options” in the start menu.
- Next, click on Additional Power Settings from the right side of the screen.
- A new Power Options window will appear on your screen.
- Here, you need to click on Change Plan Settings on the power plan you are using.
- Now click on the Change Advanced Power Settings to open a new window.
- Go back and select the High Performance plan as your default power mode.
Method #4. Disable Startup Apps & Services
Whenever you start your Windows system, several apps and services get started with it. Among these services and apps many can cause issues with disk usage. If you are facing a 100% disk usage problem right after booting into the system, then you can disable some startup apps to stop them from using the disk. This can be done in various ways but the best way for Windows 10 and Windows 11 devices is by doing it from the Task Manager. Here’s how to disable startup apps and services on Windows.
- First of all, right-click on the taskbar and select Task Manager.
- You can also press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager.
- In the Task Manager, navigate to the Startup tab.
- Sort programs listed there by Status – Enabled.
- Right-click on any program that is enabled and then click on Disable.
- You must do it for all third-party programs and the one you think must not start with the boot.
Method #5. Reset Virtual Memory
Virtual Memory is basically your hard disk storage which is used by the system where there is less RAM available for programs to run. You can reset the virtual memory on your Windows system so that your storage remains idle and free for your own usage. This can also be helpful when you want to speed up slow Windows 10 devices. Here’s how you can do it.
- First of all, open the RUN box and type sysdm.cpl in it, and press Enter.
- A System Properties window will appear on your screen.
- Navigate to the Advanced tab and click on Settings under the Performance option.
- A new pop-up will appear on your screen with performance options.
- Navigate to the Advanced tab and click on Change under Virtual Memory.
- A new pop-up will appear on your screen.
- Uncheck “Automatically manage paging file size for all drives”.
- Select Custom Size and enter values according to your system configuration. An example can be seen below.
NOTE: Entered values will be in MB and you must enter 1.5x times the value of your current RAM size in MB. So, if your system has 8GB RAM, then you can enter 12288 that is:
8GB RAM x 1024 x 1.5 Times = 12288
- Enter Recommended size in the Initial Size and enter value calculated on your device RAM in Maximum Size.
- Once done, click on OK and restart your system to make changes.
Method #6. Fix Your StorAHCI.sys Driver
AHCI is Advanced Host Controller Interface for older models running on Windows 10 and Windows 11. If it is affecting your Windows drivers, then you might get a 100% disk usage problem. To disable this, you will have to check the Driver name from the Device Manager and then use the Registry to disable this service. Here’s how to do it in the correct way.
- First of all, open Device Manager either by searching in the Windows search box or by right-clicking on the Start button.
- Then, expand the IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers and Right-Click on the controller shown in it.
- Select Properties and wait for a new window to appear.
- In the pop-up window, navigate to the Drivers tab and click on Driver Details.
In the Driver files box, check if the StorAHCI.sys driver is shown or not like it is shown in the image below. If yes, then you can continue following this method and if you see something else than StorAHCI.sys, then this method is not for you.
- Next, go to the Details tab in the same pop-up window.
- In Property, select Device Instance Path from the drop-down menu.
- Right-click on the Value shown in the box and Copy it.
- Paste the Value in a notepad file because you will need it later.
- Now, open Registry Editor by using regedit.msc command in the RUN box.
- Navigate to the following path:
Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Enum\PCI\
- Now, find the entry name with the Value we have copied in the notepad file.
- Once found, expand Device Parameters -> Interrupt Management -> MessageSignaledInterruptProperties.
- In the right-right box, double-click on the MSISupported entry.
- In its Value Data, change the value to 0.
- Now, close the registry editor and restart your system to make changes.
Method #7. Disable Connected User Experiences and Telemetry
These two services are related to Microsoft itself and track diagnostics data and send it back to Microsoft. It basically helps Microsoft in understanding how a particular app and service runs on Windows. Whenever something crashes on your Windows device, these two services help Microsoft in understanding the reasons behind it. You can also use them to check Windows 11 version installed on your device. There are very high chances that these services are causing Windows 11 100% disk usage problem. Here’s how you can disable them.
- First of all, press Windows Key + R to open the RUN box.
- Now, type “services.msc” (without quotes) and press Enter.
- In the services list, search for Connected User Experiences and Telemetry.
- Double click on the Connected User Experiences and Telemetry to open its properties.
- In Startup Type, select Disabled and in Service Status click on Stop to stop this service immediately.
- Next, click on Apply and then on OK to save changes.
Method #8. Disable Windows Update Service
Windows constantly download and install updates from the official Microsoft servers. Not all hardware and software are compatible with the latest Windows 11, so you might face this issue. Also, while updating and searching for new Windows updates, there can be disk usage by Windows itself. You can try disabling automatic Windows updates to see if it is causing the issue. Here’s how you can disable automatic updates on Windows.
- Click on the Start button then tap on the Settings button.
- Then, click on Windows Update.
- You can either click on the Pause Updates For 7 Days or click on Advanced Options for more options.
In Advanced Options, you can select a particular date until which you want Windows to pause getting the updates. You can pause Windows updates up to 35 days from the current date.
Method #9. Disable Scheduled Defragmentation
Disk Defragmentation is a necessary process to keep hard disks clean and faster but as it scans and fixes each block size on the hard disk, 100% of the disk space is used. If you are facing 100% disk usage problems often, then you can try disabling the Disk Defragmentation process. If you want then you can also update Minecraft on Windos 10 by following our methods. We will recommend you to follow this method only when your system is free and you are not running any important tasks. This method might cause a force restart, so keep your work closed while doing it.
- First of all, press Windows Key and search “defragment” (without quotes).
- Click on the first result, which is Defragment and Optimize Drives.
- A new window will appear on your screen.
- Simply, click on Change Settings and wait for a new pop-up.
- Now, uncheck the Run on a schedule (recommended) box and click on OK.
This will disable the program to defrag the disks automatically. You can try using your system and see if it has helped you or not. You can manually do disk defragmentation but we will recommend you to turn this back on for automatic optimization of your disk drives.
Method #10. Update Your Windows or Do A Clean Install
If none of the above-mentioned methods has worked for you, then you can try to do a clean installation of Windows to reset all apps, services, and installed programs. This will help you in setting up Windows as a new device. Remember that you will lose all of your data if you will do a clean installation of Windows. To do this, simply use a DVD or USB Windows media device to format your system and install fresh Windows on it.
Final Words
So, this is all about how to fix 100% disk usage in Windows 10/11 and we hope you are able to get rid of this issue now. There are many ways available to solve Windows 10 100% disk usage problem but we will recommend you to stick to the ways we have mentioned in this post. Do not download or use any third-party app or tool to fix this issue.
We will keep adding more methods to fix 100% disk usage in Windows 11, so keep visiting Hipop Eratinon to know about it. If you know about any working method to fix Windows 11 100% disk usage problem or you have any questions related to the methods mentioned in this post, then feel free to contact us via the comments below.
