The quickest way to access the Activity Monitor is by using Spotlight Search. To view open processes and computer resources usage, use the Activity Monitor. Be sure to run a scan with your security software to uncover something that shouldn't be there. You might also have hidden software, such as a virus, causing problems.

This should tell you what software is acting up so you can uninstall or update it.Ĭlick here to learn how to unravel what processes tell you about your programs. Sort the list by CPU, memory or disk, whichever was really high last time the computer froze, and see what process pops up to the top of the list as the computer freezes. This time, however, choose the 'Processes' tab. Make a note of which area was really high then restart the computer and open Task Manager again. If the computer freezes, and one of these shows an unusually high number, then that could be your answer. Start using your computer as normal, but keep an eye on the CPU, memory and disk categories. Click here for more Task Manager tricks that you should know. In Windows 8.1 and 10, you might need to click the More details link at the bottom of the Task Manager to see it. Windows users can try the keyboard shortcut CTRL + SHIFT + ESC to open Windows' Task Manager and then select the Performance tab.

A recurring freeze could be the result of a buggy program.

Task manager freezing windows 10