Windows 11 experiences notable performance drops when disk usage reaches high levels.
Windows 11 experiences notable performance drops when disk usage reaches high levels.
This often causes confusion. It’s easy to overanalyze. The main challenge is getting back up and running smoothly. Until you’re comfortable with that process, you’ll face these difficulties. A system that’s so difficult to restart is the biggest hurdle. You should be able to move drivers or utilities to a backup drive, wipe and reinstall them, then simply check the list to reinstall what you need. You should feel confident handling this. If something serious happens to your OS or storage, it’ll seem less overwhelming.
If this is a common issue then there would be a solution that isn't "just reinstall windows lol" because "just reinstall windows lol" could be used as a fix to every PC issue that isn't hardware-based This is an OS that was already installed on two SSDs and now an NVMe. I have backups of my system and I simply clone it. I really don't know what you people want from me, I was just wondering if anyone knew this issue and "just reinstall windows lol" isn't very helpful
Then we're at an impasse. You believe there is just some setting you can go in and change and its suddenly going to make everything better. We know from experience that from time to time you simply need to wipe and start over. It sounds like you've installed Windows 11 and have been cloning it between multiple drives now for probably years without a clean install and to me, and those that work with Windows know that sounds like a terrible idea if this system is used daily. Has this single install moved between hardware upgrades as well? If so its completely clear to me why its not working as well as expected. If you don't want to fix it because you feel it would be too much work to reinstall Windows, that's fine. I really don't want anything of you, we just tried to reason with you to which you've rejected. That's fine, you will still continue to have this problem.
I haven’t received any explanation for why a fresh Windows setup would instantly solve this problem. From my experience, a new install simply restores everything to its default state because at the end of the day, Windows is just data on your drive. Since I prefer my system settings in a specific way and want things to return to how they were after the install, there’s a strong chance this issue will reappear. That’s why I wouldn’t waste time trying it unless absolutely necessary. I was wondering if anyone else knows about this problem and its causes. As I mentioned, even if a reinstall seems like the only option, I wouldn’t choose it. It’s uncommon for me to use my computer during file copying or downloading large amounts, and waiting a few seconds for a program to load isn’t a major concern. This feels unusual, especially since I’ve only encountered this issue with Windows 11.
The most effective method to identify your esoteric issue is to reinstall Windows. If the problem disappears after a fresh installation, proceed with installing drivers and software until it reappears or disappears. If it persists, you’ll have pinpointed the cause. Troubleshooting 101.
I noticed the problem after a couple of months and managed to identify the cause. This might assist someone facing similar challenges with their Windows 11 setup. I removed ExplorerPatcher about two weeks ago due to slow updates, developer disinterest, and needing to wait for patches before installing updates to prevent complete failures. Now I’m choosing to replace it with the less ideal Windows 11 taskbar (Why not use a different monitor?) At least Start11 remains available for the Windows 10 start menu. I realized the PC performance improved after installing games or moving large files, which suggests ExplorerPatcher was the culprit. This also clarifies why the problem began with Windows 11—since I found and used ExplorerPatcher during the first day of upgrading. While you can definitely troubleshoot step by step, I thought this issue was minor and not a major disruption. Going back to the original installation would likely have taken much longer or risked losing important settings. It wouldn’t have been worth the effort given the potential downsides. Thanks still!