How to Manage ntoskrnl.exe High CPU or Disk Usage on Windows

Is your PC getting slow? Are there unnecessary processes taking up most of the memory while running a process? Well, the ntoskrnl.exe may be the culprit. When you check your Task Manager closely, you may find that a system process is taking up the majority of the memory, resulting in high CPU usage. If you go into the properties of this system component, you may find the ntoskrnl.exe.

Short for Windows NT operating system kernel, the ntoskrnl.exe is a core system process that interacts with the kernel of your computer. It manages system processes and hardware virtualization for the OS.

If the same issue is bothering you, and you are worried about dealing with a system process, then do not panic as by the end of this post, you will learn how to manage ntoskrnl.exe high CPU or disk usage on your PC.

Without further ado, let’s begin!

Working Ways to Fix Ntoskrnl.exe High CPU/Disk Usage

The issue can be frustrating as it slows down your entire PC by taking up valuable resources. The ideal way to handle this is by trying to shut this process down. Here are a few things that you can try to minimize its impact on your PC’s performance.

Fix 1 – Disable Windows Search Service Module

Usually, the ntoskrnl.exe is associated with the search service module and other processes on your PC. Since the search module is not necessarily used every time, you can shut it down using the service configurations.

Here are the steps to do so – 

Step 1 – Go to the Windows search option and look up Computer management.

Step 2 – Open the Computer management utility and go to services using the left panel.

Step 3 – Scroll down to find Windows Search in the listed services.

Step 4 – Select the service and right-click on it to find the option that says Stop.
Step 5 – After clicking stop, exit the services window and refresh your PC.

Once you have closed the Windows search process, try opening other apps and you may find a slight improvement in the overall performance of your PC. 

Fix 2 – Update Your PC to Latest Build

In case you are facing multiple issues on your PC, chances are that you are using an older build of your OS. Check if there is a bug update available on your PC. 

Step 1 – Go to the Start menu and go to Windows Update.

Step 2 – Click on Check for Update to fetch the latest updates.

Step 3 – Click on Download and update if the updates are available. 

After you have downloaded and installed the updates, restart your PC for them to take effect. From the very first instance, you will be able to experience a recovery of speed and resources on your PC. In case you do not think an update helped, do not worry as we have other fixes as well. 

Fix 3 – Try to Optimize PC and registries

Registries on your Windows operating system play a crucial role in the operations of your PC. Unfortunately, it is not advised to play around with these files as they are crucial and might ruin things for a user. 

Now, while you should not interact with the registries directly, some tools might help you optimize them. One such tool is the Advanced System Optimizer. The tool is one of the top-rated PC optimization tools available for Windows. 

Here’s how you can use the tool –

Step 1 – Go to the official website and download the tool via this link.

Step 2 – After you have installed it, run it to find the Start Smart PC Care button.

Step 3 – Click on it to initiate the scan.

Step 4 – This will initiate a scan that will work on all the major components of your PC, including the registries.
Step 5 – Give it time as it will also try to manage your disk and memory to ensure that they are optimized for regular usage. 

In case you find improvement with the scan, you are good to go. If not, You can also run a dedicated Registry Optimizer, Simply move to the Registry Optimizer settings from the left panel and open Registry Optimizer.

Fix 4 – Use the SFC Scan to Manage System Files

High CPU usage due to ntoskrnl.exe can be the result of corrupt system files. Fortunately, you have an option to manage these faulty files using the command prompt. 

Step 1 – Press the Windows key and look up Command Prompt.

Step 2 – Launch Command Prompt as Administrator.
Step 3 – In the command prompt, use the command SFC/Scannow.

Step 4 – Let the process run and finish the scan.
Step 5 – Once the scan is over, close the command prompt and restart your PC.

After eliminating corrupt system files, you can try to launch multiple apps just to check if it is still slow and ntoskrnl.exe is still causing high CPU usage.

Other than these fixes, you can also try to reset your PC to ensure that the issue is resolved, however, it is only advised in advanced cases. Fortunately, you can get rid of the ntoskrnl.exe high CPU usage using these issues. 

That will be all for this post, let us know which fix solved your problem. Thanks for reading. Good luck!

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