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Windows 10 Randomly Hangs/Freezing

Anonymous
2018-01-14T06:33:05+00:00

Hello Everyone

I seem to be having an issue with random hangs/freezing... as the title suggests. I for the life of me cant figure out what this problem is, if its a hardware issue / software issue / driver issue or anything else. The problem is that the computer will randomly freeze without any warning these freezes started somewhere around late November 2017, I assume with one of the Windows updates. The actual freezes also vary... sometimes they last only 10 seconds to a minute and I can still move my mouse but not interact with any programs, other times the computer completely freezes and I am forced to do a hard boot on my computer. This makes doing any sort of assignment for school or playing any sort of game an issue. As I said before the freezes are very random. I can sit down on my desktop for over 5 hours and not have a single freeze, other times the computer will freeze shortly after I start the computer.

An important side note is that the computer has never had a problem starting up or loading startup processes. The freezes also occur with any/all programs including Google Chrome and Gaming applications.... really anything. 

Computer Info:

Processor: AMD FX(tm)-8320 Eight-Core Processor     3.50 GHz

RAM: 24 GB

System type: 64-bit Operating System

Storage: SanDisk 480GB SATA III (NTFS, also what the OS is loaded on) and Toshiba 1TB Hardrive

Graphics Card: Nvidia GeForce GTX 970

(I'm not sure what else to post that would be important please let me know if there is anything else that would be helpful to know)

In terms of solutions I have tried quite a few, I have already done a clean boot of Windows 10, also tried rolling back to Windows 7, however neither of these fixes seemed to solve my issue. I have also changed quite a few settings in my Power settings, as well as optimizing my Virtual Memory, I have also done a clean reboot of my Nvidia Graphics Card driver. There are many other "fixes" that google/youtube has suggested that I have tried, and I cannot remeber them all, however none of those have worked as well. 

-Any advice/suggestions/help is greatly appreciated, and Thank you for taking the time to read all of this

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Performance and system failures

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

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  1. Anonymous
    2018-01-15T16:09:22+00:00

    Thank you for providing us details of the troubleshooting steps that have been already done on your computer. Since the initial troubleshooting that was provided seems doesn't fix the issue, we also suggest following the steps below and check if it makes any difference:

    Solution 1 – Run netsh winsock reset command

    1. Press Windows Key + X and choose Command Prompt from the menu.
    2. When Command Prompt starts, enter the following and press Enter to run it:

    netsh winsock reset

    1. Close Command Prompt and restart your computer.

    Solution 2 – Remove problematic software

    • Certain software can cause a random freeze on Windows 10. Users have reported that software such as Speccy, Acronis True Image, Privatefirewall, McAfee and Office Hub App can cause problems with Windows 10. If you have any of these programs installed on your computer, we advise that you remove them by following these steps:

    1. Open Settings App and go to System.
    2. Go to Apps & features section and delete the aforementioned apps.
    3. After you’ve uninstalled these apps, restart your computer.

    Solution 3 – Disable F . lux

    It seems that F.lux software has some compatibility issues with certain display drivers. Due to these issues, you might experience a random freeze on Windows 10. In order to fix this problem, it’s advised that you disable F.lux software on your computer. If you want to keep using this software, you can also try updating your display drivers to the newest version.

    Solution 4 – Disconnect all USB devices

    • USB devices such as external hard drive, printers, etc. can sometimes cause Windows 10 to freeze randomly. If you have any USB devices connected to your computer, you should disconnect them before you turn on your computer.

    Solution 5 – Download latest chipset drivers

    • To update your chipset drivers, you need to visit your motherboard manufacturer’s website and download latest chipset drivers for your motherboard.

    Solution 6 – Update network drivers

    • You might want to visit your network adapter manufacturer’s website to download the latest drivers.

    Solution 7 – Update your BIOS

    • To perform a BIOS update, you have to visit your motherboard manufacturer’s website and download the latest version of BIOS.

    You may also refer this documentation which provides advanced troubleshooting for Windows-based computer freeze issues:

    https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/client-management/troubleshoot-windows-freeze

    Get back to us if the issue still persists.

    Note: Microsoft has updated information in this reply, so that users facing this issue got benefited.

    100+ people found this answer helpful.
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  1. Anonymous
    2018-01-14T13:57:05+00:00

    Hi,

    Malware, outdated drivers, and corruption with system files are several reasons why your PC is freezing.

    Since you've tried some troubleshooting steps already but the issue still persists, try updating the device drivers which is helpful in resolving the issue. Click here for more information on how to update the drivers on Windows 10.

    We also recommend running a full antivirus scan on your PC using Windows Defender and see if it will detect any issues or infections.

    Update us with the result.

    100+ people found this answer helpful.
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  1. Anonymous
    2018-01-16T16:22:53+00:00

    Solution 1 - I completed the netsh winsock reset, and then restarted my computer

    Solution 2 - The only software I currently have on my computer that isn't pre-loaded onto windows is Google Chrome and Steam

    Solution 3 - I do not have any F.lux software

    Solution 4 - I tried this solution as well, turning off my computer, then unplugging every USB device including my keyboard / mouse, then turned on the computer and plugged them back in.

    Solution 5/6/7 - I currently have all of my chipset / network drivers, and my BIOS was updated a little under a year ago, and is still the latest version.

    I am still experiencing these random freezes / hangs

    40+ people found this answer helpful.
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  2. Anonymous
    2018-01-27T03:29:06+00:00

    So I think my problem may be resolved (I am not sure if it is, however I have not had a freeze on my computer in at least 4 days now).

    Back in late November I had installed Driver Booster 5 on my computer, it is an application that scans / installes / updates outdated drivers. I did this so that i wouldn't have to go through each one, it worked however I think that DB5 installed a different driver for my chip set. I have heard other people getting a Blue screen of death, through this, and needing to reinstall their chip set driver, so that's what i did using Driver Talent to uninstall the driver and then restarting my computer I re-installed the driver through Windows Updater. (not actually using Driver Talent to update the driver only to remove).

    Driver Talent (Link) 

    https://www.drivethelife.com/free-drivers-download-utility.html

    Ever since I have not encountered a freeze/hang. This wouldn't however be the first time I thought I found the solution and then got another freeze on my computer. I will post again if my computer freezes again... hopefully it won't, maybe this "fix" could help you as well Oneofseven, I hope it does, because having an issue without an answer really sucks, especially when the problem lasts for over 2 months!

    (PS)

    Never use any sort of application similar to Driver Booster 5, they easily mismatch appropriate drivers on your computer with the incorrect driver... even if my computer continues to freeze I won't use an application like this to download and install my drivers.

    30+ people found this answer helpful.
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  3. Anonymous
    2018-01-21T06:08:10+00:00

    Reinstalled Windows 10, I decided to remove my Toshiba hard drive, I thought maybe there might have been a conflict with the solid state drive and the hard drive... only have Steam and GoogleChrome Downloaded, computer freezes after about 20 minutes of installing windows. I'm loosing my mind, I have no idea what the problem can be at this point.

    (EDIT): I would also like to make a note that I have an ASUS gaming laptop that doesn't have any sort of freezing issues, so I at least know the problem isn't my network in any way.

    10+ people found this answer helpful.
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