Symptoms for Windows 10 Not responding
There are many Windows 10 users who report the same problem, and the symptoms for this issue are various. Generally speaking, there are 2 cases about Windows 10 not responding. The first case is the problem related to system, and the second one is something wrong with programs.
Case 1: System Not Responding
Most Windows 10 users have encountered Windows 10 system not responding especially after they use their computers for a long time. Here are some specific problems below.
- Windows 10 not responding after startup: some users find that the computer boots, gets to the Windows desktop and then freezes and won’t respond to mouse or keyboard.
- Windows 10 not responding after login: sometimes users get the Windows login screen but then something odd happens. The computer just stops and not responds to anything they do, or it freezes up and reboots on its own.
- Windows 10 not responding after update: some users report that they performed Windows update a few days ago. Since then the Windows doesn’t work anymore. They can’t even run Task Manager or Command Prompt.
Case 2: Program Not Responding
Another case is program not responding on Windows 10. Some users receive “Program Not Responding” error message when they are trying to run a specific program, such as File Explorer, Google Chrome, Control Panel, etc.
If you’re facing the same problem, the best way to close a frozen program is to press the Ctrl + Alt + Del hotkey to find Task Manager, select the software in the Process tab and click End task. Then you can try opening the program again.
However, what if the solution doesn’t work? You can get the answer in the following contents.
Reasons for Windows 10 Not Responding
A computer that stops responding or freezes could be caused by various reasons. Some of the possible reasons for this problem are listed below.
- Lack of system resources
- A software or hardware conflict
- Driver issues
- Problems about antivirus software
- Corrupted registry entries
- Corrupted or missing system files
How to Fix Windows 10 Not Responding
10 Methods to fix Windows 10 not responding
- Disable your antivirus temporarily
- Close unnecessary applications
- Restart your computer
- Reinstall the problematic program
- Troubleshoot your computer
- Update available drivers
- Check for Windows Updates
- Run system file checker
- Modify your registry key
- Extend system partition
If you are facing one of the symptoms about Windows 10 not responding, you can try the following methods to fix it. Since our previous post What Should You Do If Windows 10 Freezes Randomly have talked about 11 solutions to case 1, I will focus on how to fix program not responding in the following contents.
Method 1: Disable Your Antivirus Temporarily
Some antivirus software might interfere with your system and cause some issues.When you encounter Windows 10 not responding, you can disable your antivirus tool temporarily and run the problematic program again to check if the problem is solved.
If the problem still exists, try the next solution.
Method 2: Close Unnecessary Applications
Overextended system resources are responsible for Windows 10 not responding. If you are running too many programs at the same time, they will compete for the limited system resources, which leads to one of the program freezes or not responds.
To unfreeze the program, you need to close some other applications which are not necessary. You can press Shift + Ctrl + Esc to open Task Manager and then end some programs. Then check if program not responding has been removed.
Method 3: Restart Your Computer
It could cost you much time when you have a huge number of applications to end. If you don’t want to end the programs one by one or the first two solutions don’t work for you, you can try restarting your system to fix program not responding. It is the easiest way to eliminate any potential conflicts resulting in this issue.
Method 4: Reinstall the Problematic Program
If your program still isn’t responding after your restart your computer, you can consider reinstalling the problematic software.
Step 1: Press Win + S to open Search. Then type control panel in the search box and select Control Panel app from the results.
Step 2: Choose View by: Category. Then click Uninstall a program.
Step 3: Right-click the problematic software and select Uninstall.
Step 4: Follow the instructions to complete the process.
Then you can reinstall the program and it should work properly.
Method 5: Troubleshoot Your Computer
If you encounter Windows 10 not responding suddenly, you can troubleshoot your computer to fix the problem and perform maintenance tasks.
Step 1: Open Control Panel.
Step 2: Select View by: Large icons and then click Troubleshooting.
Step 3: Click System and Security. In the pop-up window, click System Maintenance.
Step 4: Click Next to continue.
By default, Windows will detect the issues on the computer and repair them automatically. You can check the detected problems in Troubleshooting report which appears after detecting.
After troubleshooting, reboot your computer and see if your Windows 10 works fine.
If there are no problems detected or your problem still persists, you can follow the next method.
Method 6: Update Available Drivers
Missing or outdated drivers could also cause Windows 10 not responding. So, you should always keep your drivers up to date. You’d better update your drivers in Device Manager. Here is how to do it.
Step 1: Press Win + R to invoke Run window. Then input devmgmt.msc in the box and press Enter to go to Device Manager.
Step 2: Double-click Audio inputs and outputs to expand the list.
Step 3: Right-click your audio driver and select Update driver.
Step 4: In the following window, select Search automatically for updated driver software and then follow the onscreen instructions to finish the process.
Repeat the steps above to check updates for all your drivers. Then restart your computer to make the changes effective and see if Windows 10 not responding has been fixed.
If Windows doesn’t find any available updates, you can check the latest drivers from the manufacturers’ website or use a third-party software to update drivers.
Method 7: Check for Windows Updates
Windows update keeps releasing patches where you can get the latest fixes and security improvements, helping your computer run efficiently and stay protected. You can also try fixing programs not responding by updating Windows.
Step 1: Press Win + I to open Settings.
Step 2: Select Update & Security.
Step 3: In Windows Update, click Check for updates and then wait while Windows looks for the available updates for your computer. Then follow the instructions.
If you have any questions about Windows update, you can visit Microsoft help to get assistant.
Method 8: Run System File Checker
System File Checker (SFC) is a handy tool that helps you fix corrupted system files. If you face Windows 10 not responding due to missing or corrupted system files, you can run SFC scan to check and repair the problem.
The detailed steps are as follows.
Step 1: Open Run window and input cmd in the box. Then press Shift + Ctrl + Enter to run Command Prompt as administrator.
Step 2: In Command Prompt, input the command sfc /scannow and press Enter to execute it.
Then Windows will starting scan the systems to check for errors. The process may take up 15 minutes or even long. Please wait patiently. When you see the message “Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files and successfully repaired them”, close the Command Prompt and restart Windows.
Now run the program which shows program not responding to check if the problem has been fixed.
Method 9: Modify Your Registry Key
According to users who have solved Windows 10 not responding successfully, sometimes certain registry values can cause the problem. You can try deleting few registry entries to solve the problem too.
Step 1: Input regedit in Run window and click OK to open Registry Editor.
Step 2: Click File > Export to back up the registry. If anything goes wrong after you modify the registry key, you can simply run the backup file to restore your registry to the original state.
Step 3: Go to Edit > Find. Then enter 54533251-82be-4824-96c1-47b60b740d00 or Core Parking in the box and click Find Next.
Step 4: Repeat Step 3 to find all keys related to Core Parking and then delete them all.
After deleting all these keys, you can open the program again and check if the problem is solved.
Method 10: Extend System Partition
You might encounter Windows 10 not responding because your system drive is running out of space. You can solve the issue by extending the system partition. MiniTool Partition Wizard is a good tool to help you. In order to protect the data in your system, you need to create a bootable media first and then extend the partition.
Step 1: Download and install MiniTool Partition Wizard Pro Ultimate by clicking the following button.
Step 2: Connect a USB flash drive to your computer and then launch the wizard.
Step 3: Click Bootable Media and then follow the wizard to finish creating the bootable media. You can get detailed information from this post.
Step 4: Restart your computer and boot from the burned USB drive.
Step 5: After launch MiniTool Partition Wizard Bootable Edition, right-click your system partition and select Extend.
Step 6: Follow the onscreen instructions to complete the process.
Step 7: Click Apply to execute the changes.
Once it’s done, you can restart your PC and boot from your system partition. Then check if Windows not responding has been solved.
How to fix Windows 10 not responding? You can find the answer in this post.Click to Tweet
Bottom Line
There are many users who have the problem of Windows 10 not responding after startup, Windows 10 not responding after update, Windows 10 not responding after login or programs not responding. Here are 10 solutions to this issue. Don’t hesitate to have a try.
If you have any questions or better ideas to this topic, feel free to post them in the comment section below. For any questions about MiniTool Partition Wizard, you’re welcome to contact us via [email protected].
Windows 10 Not Responding FAQ
You can solve software not responding simply by restarting the program, reinstalling the software or restarting the computer. If the problem still exists, you can try the other solutions mentioned above.