What should I do when a computer freezes or locks up?
This page contains recommendations on what to do if a computer freezes or deadlocks. If your computer has stopped responding entirely, follow the steps below to attempt to unfreeze it. To proceed, we recommend going through each section in order.
Any unsaved work is lost when a frozen computer needs to be rebooted. That said, some programs have an autosave feature. If you were editing a document at the time of the lockup, it might be recoverable after rebooting. Either way, we recommend periodically saving your work as good practice.
If only your mouse is frozen or not working, see: Mouse is not detected or working in Windows.
Give the computer some time
Give the computer a few minutes to finish processing anything it might be performing. Sometimes, a computer may appear frozen, but it's only slowed down significantly when dealing with a complex task, updates, or scanning.
Check for deadlock
See if the computer responds by pressing Caps Lock on the keyboard and watching the Caps Lock LED (Light-Emitting Diode) to see if it turns on and off.
If nothing happens, the computer is deadlocked and must be rebooted. If the computer can turn Caps Lock on and off, continue to the next section.
Close unresponsive programs
If the Caps Lock feature turns on and off, Windows is still working, but a program isn't be responding, causing the computer to appear frozen. Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to open the Windows Task Manager. Once it does, select the program that is not responding and click the End Task button. Doing so forces the problem program to close, which should unfreeze the computer.
It could still take ten to twenty seconds for the unresponsive program to be terminated after end tasking.
If the Task Manager opens but you can't move your mouse cursor, see the following instructions.
Reboot the computer
If none of the previous suggestions helped, you must reboot the computer. To reboot a frozen computer, press and hold the power button until the computer turns off. Once the computer is off, wait a few seconds, turn it back on, and wait for it to boot into Windows.
During the computer startup process, you may see a screen asking to start the computer in Safe Mode or Start Windows Normally. Choose the Start Windows Normally option first.
Resolve hardware or device driver issues
If you tried all steps above and the computer still freezes, the problem may be defective hardware or a device driver issue.
Defective hardware
A defective hard drive, stick of RAM (Random-Access Memory), video card, or other piece of hardware can cause a computer to freeze. A device driver can also cause a computer to freeze if it's out of date or conflicts with another driver. If a defective piece of hardware is the culprit, replace it right away to prevent issues or even damage to the rest of the computer's components.
BIOS option
You can also try accessing the computer BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) and disabling any faulty hardware to see if that stops the freezes from occurring. If this helps, consider replacing that problematic device.
Defective drivers
If available, download the latest version of the appropriate device driver from the manufacturer's website and install it before the computer freezes. Alternatively, you can use another computer to download the driver if yours is repeatedly freezing.
If you cannot install the latest driver before the computer freezes, start it in Safe Mode.
Once in Safe Mode, you can access Device Manager and uninstall the hardware device corresponding to the device driver that isn't working correctly.
When finished, restart the computer and load Windows normally. Windows should detect the hardware you uninstalled as "new" and try to install the device driver. This process could fix the issue and prevent further freezes. If not, install the driver manually.
Other reasons the computer is frozen
As you may have noticed, computers can freeze or lock up for many reasons. Some additional common causes include:
Memory shortage
If a computer does not have sufficient memory for the programs it's being asked to run, it may freeze due to a lack of system resources. If your computer frequently locks up while running multiple programs, consider increasing the computer's memory.
- How much memory or RAM should my computer have?
- How much RAM can my computer have?
- How to install computer memory (RAM).
Too hot
If the CPU (Central Processing Unit) or GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) generates too much heat, a computer may lock up as a damage prevention measure. Check the temperature of the video card and processor to ensure those components are not overheating.
File issues
Corrupt operating system files can cause many problems, including fatal errors that result in a frozen or non-responsive computer. If you have issues with corrupt files, try restoring Windows to an earlier date when the problem was not occurring.
Take the computer to a PC repair shop
If the options above do not work, we recommend taking your computer to a repair shop where a computer technician can diagnose and fix the problem.