The Central Processing Unit (CPU) is the brain of the PC. All major system components, like the graphics card and RAM, rely on CPU instructions.
The symptoms of high CPU usage are familiar: the cursor moves jerkily and slowly, and apps start to lag or shut down. The workstation can even heat up when it’s stressed to perform tasks. These are signs when diagnosing a malfunctioning system; you should start by checking the processor. Even if your Windows 10, 11, or 7 system has high CPU usage, we are always ready to help you solve the problem. All you have to do is follow the steps in our guide to regain complete control of your system.
How do you lower CPU usage on Windows 7, 10, and 11? How to Fix High CPU Usage? Read our (medCPU) guide below to find out more.
Why is my PC’s CPU usage so high when I’m gaming?
Your CPU can be a bottleneck for many reasons. We will first look at the problems and then attempt to fix them.
- Unnecessary third-party applications can be running in the background and hog your CPU while you’re gaming.
- In-game settings can cause this problem. This problem can be caused by the FPS cap being set to unlimited and your CPU not configuring to handle high FPS.
- This problem is known to be caused by problematic graphics drivers.
- Power-conserving modes can be a problem if enabled on your computer, especially if you play many games.
- Sometimes the problem is not with the hardware but the game itself. It can also cause other issues, such as if the game is corrupted.
- Your hardware might not be able to handle the demands of the game.
How can I check CPU usage in Windows?
Find out how much CPU your computer uses, open Windows Task Manager (Control + Shift +ESC), and click on the Performance tab.
The Processes tab provides an in-depth look at the issue and lists the processes that use the most CPU and RAM. This is crucial for finding ways to reduce CPU utilization. You can either end the unneeded processes or fix the root cause if they aren’t.
How To Lower Cpu Usage on Windows?
Reboot
Save your work first, and then restart your computer. This classic troubleshooting advice of “Turn it on and off again” is good. If the problem has been ongoing for a while, a restart may be able to resolve it. Temporary files can be deleted, and a reboot could fix slowdowns in long-running processes.
End or Restart Processes
CTRL+SHIFT+ESCAPE to open Task Manager. Task Manager is one of the most convenient ways to track down a program that has begun climbing in CPU usage after a restart.
Full-screen programs such as games can sometimes distract from Task Manager by hiding it behind their windows. Click “Options” on the top menu bar and then choose “Always on Top.” You can drag the Task Manager window to a second monitor if you have one.
Once you are in Task Manager, click on the Processes tab. To see background Windows processes, click “More Details” in the tab’s bottom. To order CPU usage, look for the ” CPU ” column near the Processes tab’s top.
High CPU usage can be expected when you play games, stream video, scan antivirus software, or manage many tabs. This is a common situation that can cause high CPU usage. Close all background programs and accounts, and then go back to Task Manager to see if it has improved.
Understanding that multitasking with high CPU usage can be done every day is essential. Modern CPUs can handle multitasking situations by dividing processes among multiple processor cores that work simultaneously on different instructions.
Intel(r) Hyper-Threading Technology is an extension of this concept. Each core creates multiple threads of execution that handle different tasks. It may use too many CPU cores for a program such as Adobe Premiere, a very heavy-duty program.
The Intel(r) Turbo Boost Technology dynamically increases the CPU’s frequency to help with heavy workloads. The Intel(r] Core(TM) X-series processor families have an additional tool to avoid slowdowns.
Their Intel(r] Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 assigns the most significant tasks to your fastest processor cores and boosts their frequency.
Although these processor technologies can dramatically increase multitasking speed and the ability to use demanding programs faster, there are still instances of abnormal CPU usage.
You may have an issue if you see a background process named Runtime Broker, Windows Session Manager, or Cortana at the top of the CPU column after hitting CPU usage 100.
These Windows processes are optimized to consume very little memory or processing power under normal circumstances. Task Manager often shows them as using 0% or even 1%.
These Windows processes will use less than 10% of your CPU when your computer is idle. Sometimes, however, unexpected behavior or buggy Windows processes can cause your system to use nearly all its resources.
Once Task Manager has been opened, and the process takes up a lot of CPU power, you can search online for it. If you have good reasons, you don’t want explorer.exe to be stopped. It manages many graphical elements, such as the desktop and Starts menu.
After you have identified the process as not critical (and checked that you have saved any work you did), click on it and then click End Process at Task Manager’s bottom right. The end Process will cause the program not to save.
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Update Drivers
You can update your drivers if a process uses too much CPU. Drivers are programs that control specific devices on your motherboard. Updating your drivers can fix compatibility problems or other bugs that could increase CPU usage.
Open the Start menu and then Settings. Click Updates and Security, then click the “Check For Updates” button. This will automatically update all critical drivers. NVIDIA GeForce Experience is another utility offered by graphics card manufacturers to improve performance while playing games.
You can also fix some rare bugs by updating your BIOS version. The BIOS (Basic input-output system) firmware is installed on the motherboard and instructions other computer components during startup.
The BIOS update is not usually a performance improvement and can cause new problems. Only do this after identifying the problem that caused high CPU usage.
Scan for Malware
If the problem persists, it could be caused by malware masquerading itself as a Windows process. Malicious programs can use CPU and GPU bandwidth to perform different tasks (for example, mining cryptocurrency) while appearing in Task Manager with familiar names like “Cortana.exe” or “Runtime Broker.”
To check for this, run a complete scan using your antivirus program. One option is the Windows Security offline security scan (running in your taskbar or Windows settings).
Power Options
Some power settings can slow down your CPU’s speed, whether you’re using a desktop or laptop. Click the start menu, and type “Edit Power Plan” to check your Power Options. Once the window is open, click on “Power Options” in your address bar.
Find Specific Guidance Online
Many different processes can cause high CPU usage. There is no single solution. For specific assistance, search the Task Manager Processes tab for the name of the process.
If you don’t get any results with your initial query, please add any additional information. For example, the model number of your processor (listed under “Processor” on System Information) or the names of any other programs that may be causing the problem. You are unlikely to find a bug in hardware or gaming forums. So take your time and try different search options.
Reinstalling Windows
If you have one, you can use a restore point created before your CPU problems began. Windows defaults to turning off System Protection, so most people don’t have it.
Reinstalling Windows is your last option in such cases. Although this can take a while, it can resolve any CPU usage issues caused by software.
Windows 10’s “Reset This PC” feature will remove all your programs but not your files. You will need to reinstall any non-Windows programs that you have installed. Your settings in those programs will also be lost.
You should also back up your files on an external drive (or through cloud storage). Click the Start button, then type “Reset this computer.” Click “Get Started” This process can take up to an hour. After completing the process, you will need to reinstall all your programs.
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Other Programs
The reliable tool CPU-Z can check general information about your motherboard and CPU. After opening the package, you will see the exact model numbers and performance information. These model numbers can be used to search the internet for support threads regarding CPU usage.
Task Manager isn’t the only tool that can be used to monitor background processes. Process Monitor logs more than CPU usage. It also records file system and network activity. This tool will check the network activity if you suspect a process may be malware.
Performance Monitor, a Windows tool with built-in features, gives you a detailed overview of the CPU usage of a process over time. Open it by pressing Windows Key + R and then typing “perfmon.”
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Conclusion
We hope our guide will teach you how to fix high CPU usage and hopefully solve the issues that adversely impact your CPU usage and gameplay. Leave a comment to let us know that you found this guide helpful. Thank you for spending your time at Medcpu.com. We are grateful for your support.
