8 Ways to Fix Windows 10 100% Disk Usage in Task Manager

Windows 10 100% Disk Usage in Task Manager is a very common issue. But don’t worry as we have 8 Ways to Fix Windows 10 100% Disk Usage in Task Manager. After following one of these ways, you will be able to overcome this problem. In the Task Manager, under the Process and Performance tab, you can see the disk utilization as 100%. And also it creates a lagging and unresponsive system. The system starts freezing. The system event log also contains many events which have Event ID 129. It shows resets of the disk controller.

How to Fix Windows 10 100% Disk Usage in Task Manager

Below are given a few ways to address the Windows 10 100% disk usage problem.

Method 1: Fix your StorAHCI.sys Driver

Some Advanced Host Controller Interface PCI-Express (AHCI PCIe) cause resets of the disk controller. It runs with inbox StorAHCI.sys driver. When Message Signaled Interrupt (MSI) mode enables, a firmware bug the does not allow Solid-state drive (SSD) to complete input/output. Hence, Windows tries to reset the device.

The first solution to Windows 10 100% disk usage lies in disabling MSI mode.

1. Firstly, press Windows + R keys simultaneously. It will open the Run dialog box.
2. Secondly, then type devmgmt.msc. Press Enter.

3. Find “Standard SATA AHCI Controller” under “IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers.” Then right-click on it and select Properties.
4. Afterward, click Driver details under Driver tab. If you see storahci.sys, you are running the driver.
5. Then go to the Details tab. Select Device instance path from Property drop-down menu. Copy the value starting from PCI\VEN.
6. In the Run box, type regedit. It will open the Registry editor.

7. Then Navigate to “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Enum\PCI\<AHCI Controller>\Device Parameters\Interrupt Management\MessageSignaledInterruptProperties”.
Here <AHCI Controller> refers to the value you copied in Step 5.
8. Finally, change the MSISupported key value from 1 to 0.

Restart your system. See if it works.

Method 2: Change Energy Options from Balanced to High Performance

Changing energy options can also help in solving 100% disk usage Windows 10.

1. Firstly, go to Power Options.

2. Then go to Change plan settings -> Change advanced power settings

3. Afterward, choose High Performance from the drop-down list and also Keep all other settings as default.

For High Performing PC, You need to Delete System Error Memory Dump Files now.

See if it has solved the issue.

See Also: – 8 Ways to Fix Windows 10 Update Error Code 0x8024a105

Method 3: Disable Windows Search

Disabling Windows Search stops the indexing of all files. In addition, it may be causing the High Disk Usage Windows 10 problem. To check it, first, try temporarily disabling. To temporarily disable Windows Search:

If you temporarily disable it, Windows Search starts working again when you restart your system.

1. Firstly, press the Windows + X keys simultaneously. Then select Command Prompt (Admin).

2. In the Command Prompt window, type net.exe to stop the Windows search. Hit Enter.

Check if your disk usage improves. If it does, not permanently disable it, following the steps below.

1. At First, press Windows + R keys simultaneously. It will open the Run dialog box.
2. Then type services.msc. Hit Enter.

3. In the list shown, find Windows Search. Double-click on it to open Properties.
4. Change the Startup type option to be Disabled. Click on Apply -> OK.

Check if this works for Windows 10 100% disk usage.

Method 4: Disable SuperFetch Service

SuperFetch helps to decrease the boot time. It also makes must-load programs work more efficiently. But it works as a potential for high disk usage in Windows 10.

1. At First, press the Windows + X keys simultaneously. Select Command Prompt (Admin).

2. In the Command Prompt window, type net.exe stop superfetch. Hit Enter.
3. Then wait for some time. Check if your computer performs better now.

Method 5: Reset Virtual Memory

The virtual memory is used when the RAM is not enough to perform a task. Windows keeps switching files between the RAM and virtual memory. An unnecessary amount of virtual memory can cause Windows 10 100% disk usage.

1. Firstly, press the Windows + Pause/Break keys together and also open the System information.
2. Secondly, then choose Advanced system settings from the left panel.

3. In the Advanced tab, click on Settings.
4. Again, in the Advanced tab, click on Change. It is in the Virtual memory section.
5. Make sure “Automatically manage paging file size for all drives” is unchecked.

6. Highlight your system drive. Customize the initial and maximum size for your virtual memory.
7. Afterward, click on Set then OK.
8. Now you need to clear all temporary files. Press the Windows + R keys simultaneously. It opens Run dialog box. Type temp and press Enter.

9. Finally, windows Explorer will open the Temp folder. Select all files within it and delete.

Wait for a few minutes. Then see if the issue is fixed.

Method 6: Update your Device Drivers

The drivers help in communication between your system and all the installed applications and programs. And also these drivers should always be kept up-to-date. To see if they need to be updated, follow these steps:

1. Firstly, right click on My Computer.
2. Then select Properties from the drop-down menu.
3. Afterward, Choose Device Manager.

4. See through the devices are given. Also, check for any that has a yellow exclamation mark on it.
5. Then right-click on any of these devices. Then choose Update Driver.

After the update is done, restart your PC. Finally, check if updating your drivers has solved the Windows 10 100% disk usage issue.

Method 7: Change Settings in Google Chrome and Skype

For some reason, a particular combination of settings in Chrome and Skype can cause the Windows 10 100% disk usage.

1. Firstly, go to Settings in the Google Chrome application.
2. Secondly, then scroll to the bottom of the page. Click on Advanced.
3. In the Privacy and Security category, check if Using a prediction service to load pages more quickly is turned off.
4. Skype should be quitted in the taskbar.
5. Afterward, open Windows Explorer. Navigate to “C:\Program Files (x86)\Skype\Phone\”.
6. Then right-click on Skype.exe, and choose Properties.
7. Then open Security tab, and select Edit.
8. Highlight ALL APPLICATION PACKAGES. Then check the Write box. Afterward, click on Apply -> OK and then OK again. Finally, save the changes.

Check the task manager if it has solved the issue.

Method 8: Perform a Clean Installation of Windows

It is the last method you should try. Before you proceed, you should also back up all your relevant documents, pictures, and other data. It is a time-consuming step. It will also erase everything from your hard drive. Above all, a clean installation will also remove all the junk, get your computer ready for normal usage.

See Also: – 10 Ways to Fix Steam Disk Write Error in Windows 10

Conclusion

These were some methods, which you can use to address the high disk usage issue. Hopefully, either works for you.