Solving the 100% Disk Usage Issue in Windows 11

Updated by

Tracy King 

Updated on April 22, 2024

If you've upgraded to Windows 11 and your computer seems slower, you can use the Task Manager to find out why. The Task Manager provides information about each process currently running on your PC.

One common reason why computers (especially laptops) run slow is that the disk usage is at 100%. Normally, the disk usage shouldn't stay high for long periods of time. It should spike up to higher levels or near 100%, and then drop back down to normal levels, which are usually below 10%. If your computer's disk usage is consistently high, you need to find a solution to fix this issue. Try these 7 methods to optimize your computer.

• Solution 1: Update your device
• Solution 2: Reset Virtual Memory
• Solution 3: Change Power Options to High Performance
• Solution 4: Temporarily Disable Antivirus Software
• Solution 5: Disable Windows Notifications
• Solution 6: Repair the StorAHCI.sys Driver
• Solution 7: Run a Disk Check

Please read:

7 Ways to Fix 99% Disk Usage on Windows

Learn effective ways to resolve the 99% disk usage issue on Windows. Follow these 7 methods to optimize your system performance efficiently.

Fix 1: Update your device

Sometimes high disk usage is closely related to your computer's hard drive. If you have an older HDD, it might be time to replace it. A great option is to upgrade to a solid-state drive (SSD). SSDs are faster and more reliable than HDDs. Your computer will perform better with an SSD installed.

Solution 2: Reset Virtual Memory

If your hard drive isn't too old, you might be able to fix the problem by resetting your virtual memory. Virtual memory expands your computer's physical RAM by using a combination of RAM and a portion of your hard drive. When your RAM is full, Windows will store files in your virtual memory instead. Here's how to reset it:

Step 1: Type “Control Panel” in the search bar and click on the most relevant option.

Step 2. Go to System, and then click on Advanced system settings on the right.

Step 3: This will open the System Properties window. Go to the Advanced tab, and click Settings.

Step 4. In the new window, click on the Advanced tab and then select Change to adjust the virtual memory settings.

5. Deselect the “Automatically manage paging file size for all drives” option, and set the Maximum to a large number, but not too large – about 1.5 times your physical RAM is good.

Step 6: After setting the virtual memory size, click on Set and then OK to confirm the changes.

Step 7: Clean out your computer's temporary files. Hold down the Windows key and press R. Type in temp and hit Enter.

Step 8. This will list all of the temporary files on your computer. Select and delete all temporary files.

Step 9. You can now check if the disk usage is still at 100%.

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Fix 3: Change the power option to High Performance

Some users reported that changing the power plan to High Performance solves the issue. Here's how to do it.

Step 1: Go to Control Panel > Power Options > Click “Additional power settings.”

2. Click Change plan settings, and then click Change advanced power settings.

Step 3: Select High Performance from the drop-down menu, then click Restore plan defaults.

Select “High performance”:

Read more: Fix 100% Disk Usage in Task Manager on Windows 10

Fix 4: Disable antivirus software temporarily

In some cases, an antivirus program might use too much disk space. You can temporarily disable the software to fix the issue.

Fix 5: Disable Windows Notifications

This is another solution provided by a user who encountered the same problem.

Go to Settings > System > Notifications & actions, and turn off Get tips, tricks, and suggestions as you use Windows.

Fix 6: Repair the StorAHCI.sys driver

Certain AHCI PCIe (Advanced Host Controller Interface for PCI Express) controllers might also cause the 100% disk usage issue in Windows. You can fix it by repairing the StorAHCI.sys driver.

Step 1: Open Device Manager and find "IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers."

Step 2: Select Standard SATA AHCI Controller.

Step 3. Under the Driver tab, click Driver Details, and check if the storahci.sys file is listed.

Step 4: Close the Driver Details window, go to the Details tab, and select Device Instance Path. Note down the entry that begins with VEN.

Step 5: Type regedit in the search box on the Start panel, and press the “Enter” key on your keyboard to run the Registry Editor. Next, navigate to:

In an American English context, the string "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Enum\PCI\Device Parameters\Interrupt Management\MessageSignaledInterruptProperties" refers to a path in the Windows Registry that describes the interrupt management settings for PCI devices, particularly regarding the properties of Message Signaled Interrupts (MSI). In Chinese, it could be translated roughly as: "本地计算机\系统\当前控制集\枚举\PCI\设备参数\中断管理\消息信号中断属性"

By "here," we mean in the name field you see in Step 4.

This may differ from machine to machine.

Step 6: Double-click the MSISupported entry, and change its value to 0.

Fix 7: Run a disk check

If none of the above solutions work, you can also try running a disk check. You can do this by running chkdsk in Command Prompt, which will scan for and attempt to fix any issues.

However, do note that using the chkdsk command line can lead to data loss. You should back up all important data before you check the disk.

You can also use the Partition Master tool to check your disk. You can download the tool for free and follow the guide to learn how to use it to check the file system.

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