Question Microsoft Word requires significantly greater power and resources compared to Google Chrome!
Question Microsoft Word requires significantly greater power and resources compared to Google Chrome!
Even after stopping all Web Viewer and AI processes, Microsoft Word continues to consume significantly more power and resources compared to Google Chrome. I can still feel my machine working hard, with TaskManager reporting 14 times higher CPU usage, memory consumption, and power draw. The previous advice to accept this situation doesn’t seem right to me. How can I permanently block these processes while still using Word 2021 on Windows 10?
Chrome functions as a web reader while Word is mainly an application within the MS Office suite. They are fundamentally different tools. Even in online office environments, most resources are handled on the server rather than on your local machine.
Btw: If resource issues arise, other options for MS Office exist, such as Libre Office, or you can use standalone programs like Abiword (sorry, I was a bit quick there—you definitely use Windows).
have you tried uninstalling and reinstalling office?
that is def high and abnormal usage. don't think word uses more than 100 mb when i start it up. and it barely uses any cpu resources.
what are you doing with word when using it? just a simple doc your typing up? or something more complicated? that would make a difference in resources used if you got a 200 page doc with tons of flashy stuff in use.....
but if you shut it off and it's still running a bunch of processes and resourcers, suggests a problem with office itself. have you run your AV scan to be sure something malicious is not running?
Thank you, Grobe. I understand the context well. I used Google Chrome to demonstrate how it consumes a lot of resources, and it's not that Word is the main culprit anymore. I wanted to show the growing issue with Word usage.
I wasn't seeking a complete replacement for Word. By using Task Manager, I found that two child processes are contributing to the resource drain. How can I permanently prevent these processes—AI host for Microsoft Windows and Web Viewer 2—from running? If blocking them is not feasible without affecting Word, what alternative approaches can I take to limit the resources Word currently uses?
Thank you again.
you should verify the settings to determine if you can disable that artificial intelligence content. it's probably a recent addition and is set to be active by default. if you can't turn it off, then you're left with no real choice but to handle the issue or look for another solution.
Yes, I attempted that as well. I'm just creating brief documents under 3,000 words. Word processing and resource problems cease once I close Word. I ran an AV scanner. I know MS Office 2021 and O365 are essentially the same, except one is installed on the desktop PC while the other runs as a web-based app. This might mean the newer version uses more resources? Also, the child processes for Web Viewer accumulate when I have many Word files open simultaneously. When I close other documents, those processes remain until I fully close Word.
that's quite typical. each document receives its own set of resources, which is part of the sandboxing security measures. closing one document would halt its operations, but the open documents would continue running. i don't use that version, so it's hard to say what's considered normal resource usage. in 2016 this seems connected to the new AI features they introduced.
I run Office 2016 and AI is here too, although no matter what I do, it stays steady at 9.3 MB for memory (way less than Edge) and 0.1% for CPU (the same as Edge). No real impact I can see.
I don't use Chrome so can't use that for comparison.
I changed the names of two ai.exe files in Office folders to ai.xxx and ai.yyy. The Office applications are working fine so far. Updates might restore the original files. I’ve recorded my changes in case of any problems.