How to Fix 100% Disk Usage Message in Windows 10

One of the most frequent issues which are observed by the users in Windows 10 is the 100 percent disk usage error. This error generally slows down the speed of the computer and also hangs whenever trying to run a program on the computer. It makes the operating system to run and respond very slowly, or to freeze, even when no additional applications are running.

In this article, I am going to demonstrate step by step procedure to fix the 100 percent disk usage message error by implementing the methods discussed by others as well as by my own experimentation. There are several ways to which you can get rid of this problem. I will explain the best possible methods which are tested by me and works perfectly fine with Windows 10.

How to Check 100% Disk Usage Error

Whenever you are trying to run a program and your computer is hanging up as well as is running painfully slow then it might be possible that your computer is getting 100% disk usage error. To confirm that you need to follow the steps below

Step-1: First you need to right click on the Windows 10 Start button and then click on the Task Manager option. You can also open the Task Manager by pressing CTRL+ALT+DEL keys altogether.

Step-2: Once you clicked on Taskmanager a new window pop-up will open and here click on the Process tab and under this tab check for the Disk column.

Now in the disk column, it will show 100% if the error exists but if there is no error then it will show only 5 to 10% disk usage.

Possible Reason for 100% Disk Usage Error

There could be various reasons for High Disk Usage error on your computer as it basically depends on how you use your computer. These errors are mainly caused by some windows service such as BITS (Background Intelligent Transfer Service which uses ideal bandwidth on your computer to download and check updates on Windows updates), Superfetch, Prefetch and Windows search. There could be more issue causing this error such as

• Improper page file configuration
• Serious damage to system files
• Malware and viruses
• Hardware issue

Methods to Fix 100% Disk Usage Error in Windows 10

1. Disable Superfetch Service

Superfetch service is one of the most common reasons for the high disk usage error on the computer which is running on Windows Operating system. The Superfetch service tries to predict which application the user is using most at the given point of time and then it pre-load the necessary files into the memory. To disable the Superfetch service follow the steps below

Step-1: First click on the search box which is available at the left bottom of the screen and in the search box type “Services” and then click on the Services app.

Step-2: Once you click on Services a new Window pop-up will open naming services and there you need to scroll down to locate Superfetch services.

Step-3: Now right click on the Superfetch option and then click on the Properties.

Step-4: In the Superfetch properties click on the General tab.

Step-5: Under General tab click on the drop down option which us next to the Startup option and in the drop down menu select Disabled option.

Step-6: Finally click on the Ok button to complete the process of saving the setting of Superfetch service.

Now restart your computer to check if the issue is resolved or not.

2. Increase the Virtual Memory

Increasing the Virtual Memory also helps in reducing the disk storage memory of your Windows. So, follow these simple steps to increase the Virtual Memory.

Step-1: First right click on the computer icon naming This PC and then select the Properties option

Step-2: Now in the Properties menu click on the Change Settings option

Step-3: Once you clicked on change setting link a new pop-up will open naming system properties here click on the Advanced tab.

Step-4: Under Advanced tab click on the Setting option which is under the Performance section.

Step-5: Now in the Performace section click on the Advanced tab and then click on the Change option which is in the Virtual memory.

Step-6: After clicking on the Change option you need to uncheck the checkbox which is right next to “Automatically manage paging file size for all drives” option.

Step-7: Click on the radio button which is next to the option Custom Size

Step-8: Now set the Initial size to twice and Maximum size to half of your RAM in MB and then click on the Set option.

Step-9: click on the Ok three-time to exit and complete the process.

Step-10: Now restart your computer.

3. Disable Prefetch service

The Prefetch service is also the reason for the high disk usage error on the computer which is running on Windows Operating system. To disable prefetch service follow the steps below

Step-1: Click on the search box which is available at the left bottom of the screen and in the search box type regedit and then click on the suggested regedit run command.

Step-2: Now the Registry editor will open and here navigate to \HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SYSTEM

Step-3: After clicking on the successive folder now navigate to the Prefetch parameter folder by using the following path:

\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SYSTEM\ CurrentControlSet\ Control\ Session Manager\ Memory Management\ Prefetch Parameters

Step-4: Once you reach the Prefetch parameter folder now on the right side of the screen double click on the Enable Prefetcher option.

Step-5: Once you double click on the Enable Prefetcher option you will see a 32-bit DWORD Window with value data set to 3. Now here you need to change the Value data to ‘0’ to disable the Prefetcher service on your computer.

You can also try to use the value 1 but this value will disable the prefetcher service for only the boot files.

4. Turn Off Notifications

Windows 10 offers Notification about the operating system from time to time, and disabling those seems to have helped to solve the  100% Disk Usage error for a variety of people. To turn off the notification follow the steps:

Step-1: First click the Start button and then click the Setting button.

Step-2: In setting Window click on the System option.

Step-3: Now at the left pane of the screen select the option Notification & Actions.

Step-4: After that set the set these notifications to OFF which is available on the right side. You can disable any of them or all of them.

Step-5: Now close the Setting Window check if the “System and Compressed Memory Service” high CPU usage problem persists. If it persists, then try to turn off all other notifications.

5. Disable BITS (Background Intelligent Transfer Service)

BITS service uses ideal bandwidth on your computer to download and check updates on Windows updates. BITS might end up leaving fewer resources for the Computer to efficiently run programs and read the hard drive which causes the high disk usage error on the computer. Instead of entirely disabling the BITS service, you can also change its settings to Manual so that you are able to start the service when you want. To disable BITS service follow the steps below

Step-1: Click on the search box and in the search box type Services and then click on the suggested Services App.

Step-2: Now in the services window scroll down and locate Background Intelligent Transfer Service option.

Step-3: After that right click on the Background Intelligent Transfer Service option and then click on the Properties option.

Step-4: Once you clicked on the properties a new pop-up will open and here click on the drop-down menu next to the Startup type option and set it to Manual.

Step-5: Finally click on the OK button to save the settings.

Now restart your computer Hopefully, disabling BITS service should fix the 100% disk usage problem on your computer.

6. Remove Temporary Files

The next solution to fix high disk usage error on Windows 10 is to delete the temporary Windows files from your computer. To remove these files follow the steps

Step-1: Load the Run dialog box by pressing the Windows key + R  from your keyboard together at the same time.

Step-2: Now in the Run dialog box type %temp% and then press the Enter button.

Step-3: Once you press the enter button a new Window will open naming Temp, here you need to select all the files and then Delete them.

This is all for this article I hope these methods help you to fix 100% Disk Usage error in Windows 10. If you liked this article then share it with your friends and on the social media. If you want to ask any question or want to give any suggestion regarding this article then your suggestion are always welcome please comment below in the comment section.