Windows 11 takes forever to boot when you turn on or reboot your computer. Many users report that Windows 11 slow boot after update, the system gets stuck on a black screen with the loading animation dots for a long time. There are multiple reasons including outdated drivers, malware infections, disk errors, buggy updates or too many startup programs, that cause Slow Boot Times in Windows 11. Whatever the reason, here we’ve put together some easy and helpful solutions apply to fix the Windows 11 slow boot problem after update.
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What causes Windows 11 slow boot problem?
Having too many startup programs, that set to start automatically when your computer start can slow down the boot process. And you can use Task Manager to disable the apps that might cause the Windows 11 slow startup issues. Drivers that are outdated or incompatible with your hardware can cause slow boot times, and you need to update them with the latest version to fix the slow boot problem on Windows 11.
Disable Startup Programs
Too many start-up programs load as the computer starts up, which may slow down the Windows 11 boot process. Let’s first Open the task manager and Disable Processes with High Startup Impact.
- Press Shift + Ctrl +Esc key simultaneously to open Task Manager
- Move to the Startup tab, here you will see a list of programs with startup impact that start when your computer boot.
- Right-click on any processes that need to be disabled. Then click Disable and close the window.
Disable Fast Startup
Fast startup feature introduced to speed up boot times, the name sounds promising but sometimes this is the reason behind Windows 11 slow boot problem. And a number of users recommend, disabling the fast startup feature help them fix the problem and speed up Windows 11 boot times.
- Press Windows key + R, type powercfg.cpl and click ok
- Click on “Choose what the power buttons do,” then Change settings that are currently unavailable.
- And finally uncheck the “Turn on fast startup” option and click save.
Change Power Options to High Performance
In addition, again open Power Options click on Show Additional Plans, and Select the radio button High Performance.
Update Windows 11
Sometimes Windows update bugs or older versions of Windows 11, that not optimized for newer hardware can also contribute to slow boot times. Install the latest Windows 11 updates to ensure you’re getting the latest performance improvements and bug fixes.
- Press the Windows key + X and select settings
- Go to update and security then Windows update,
- Now hit the check for updates button, to check and install the latest Windows updates
- Once done, you need to reboot your computer to apply the Windows updates.
Now check if installing the latest Windows 11 update improves your system’s performance and potentially speeds up your boot time.
Adjust Paging File Settings
Paging files or virtual memory uses part of your storage drive as pretend RAM, which allows more tasks to run on your system. But sometimes changes the virtual memory settings on its own, causing boot issues. According to users changing virtual memory settings helps fix such problems on Windows 11.
- Press the Windows key + S, search for Performance, and choose Adjust the Appearance and Performance of Windows
- Move to the advanced tab, here you will see the size of the paging file, click change to edit it
- Uncheck “Automatically manage paging file size for all drives” and click “Custom size“.
- Set the Initial size and Maximum size, refer to the Microsoft guide on how to decide the appropriate page file size.
- Click “Set” > “OK” and then restart your computer.
Update your graphics card driver
Again, old or corrupted drivers on your Windows 11 PC, can cause your computer to boot slowly. And you need to update the device drivers with the latest version to solve the Windows 11 slow boot problem.
- Press Windows key + X and select Device Manager,
- Expand display adapters, right-click on the installed graphics card, select update driver,
- Select the Search automatically option and follow the on-screen instructions to download and install the driver update from the Microsoft server.
Also, you can navigate the Graphics card manufacturer’s official site to download the latest driver for Windows 11 and install it on your PC. Once done, reboot your PC and check if after updating the device driver the Windows 11 boot time improved.
Reinstall graphics card drivers
If you’re having problems with slow boot time or stuck on a black screen while trying to start Windows the issue might be related to your graphics card. An outdated, incompatible display driver also causes Windows 11 to slow boot or start.
Reinstall the graphics driver is a very useful solution to get rid of this type of issue. Visit the device manufacturer’s website, Download the latest display driver and save it to the local drive.
Then press Windows + X, And select Device Manager, this will list all installed driver lists. Here expand display adapters, right-click on the installed display/graphics driver and select uninstall the device.
Now restart Windows and check there is an improvement on Boot time. Now install the latest display driver which you previously downloaded from the manufacturer’s website.
Run system file checker
Some of the Windows files responsible for the boot process are corrupted or missing due to some reason, which can cause Windows 11 slow boot problems. It’s worth running SFC (system file checker) command to check your Windows 11 installation for corrupted system files and replace them with working copies.
- Press Windows key + S, type cmd and select run as administrator
- First, run DISM.exe to make a Windows image to protect your data: DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth.
- When the DISM command has been completed, type sfc /scannow to start scanning and repairing your system files.
Check for Disk Errors
In addition, Disk errors can also cause slow boot times on your Windows 11 computer. If the above solutions didn’t improve the Windows 11 boot time then you need to check and fix the disk drive for errors using chkdsk command.
- Again open the command prompt as administrator,
- Run command chkdsk C: /f /r, type Y and press enter to schedule check disk error on the next start,
- Close everything and reboot your PC to scan your hard drive for errors and attempt to fix them.
Disable Ultra Low Power State (ULPS) (AMD Graphics Adapter)
ULPS is a sleep state that lowers the frequencies and voltages of non-primary cards in an attempt to save power, but the downside of ULPS is that is can cause your system to start slow if you’re using an AMD graphics Adapter. Simply disable ULPS by following the steps below
Press Windows + R, type regedit and ok to open the Windows registry editor. Then first backup the registry database, click on edit menu -> find and search for EnableULPS.
Here double click on EnableULPS” highlight the value and modify the value data from 1 to 0. Click OK when done. After that close the registry editor and restart your computer.
In addition, you need free up disk space on your computer to optimize the Windows 11 boot time. Also, open programs and features using appwiz.cpl and uninstall the programs or games you don’t use.
Virus and Malware infections can also cause slow boot times on your Windows 11 computer. To fix this, run a malware scan using your antivirus software. If you don’t have antivirus software, you can download and install one for free, such as Avast, AVG, or Malwarebytes.
If tried all the above methods but still can’t speed up Windows 11 boot time? It’s time to back up important data and factory reset Windows 11 and reinstall a fresh copy on your system. Head to Settings > Update & Security > Recovery and select Get Started under Reset this PC to start.
Your computer is still slow to boot after trying the above steps, you may need to upgrade your hardware. Upgrading your hard drive to a solid-state drive (SSD) can significantly improve boot times and overall performance.
