The Consistent Memory Leak Issue in Windows 11/10 is responsible for system crashes, freezes, and the slowing down of your PC. This occurs when certain processes, services, or applications reserve RAM for their operations but fail to release the allocated memory after the task is completed. This consumes unnecessary RAM and causes a memory leak issue.
A Memory Leak occurs when a certain part of the RAM is assigned to a program, service, or process and is not released back after the task has been completed. This way, the RAM, which is a temporary and reusable memory, becomes completely blocked, and the PC slows down because there is no free memory for new tasks. The final result is that the PC will crash as it runs out of memory. In simpler terms, if you keep storing things in your backpack without taking anything out, it will fill up, making it too heavy to carry, and the user will be unable to add more items to it.
1. Press `Ctrl + Shift + Esc` to open Task Manager.
2. Go to the Processes tab.
3. Sort by Memory to see which processes use the most RAM.
4. Monitor over time to see if memory usage keeps increasing even when not actively using the system.
1. Press `Win + R`, type `resmon`, and press Enter.
2. Go to the Memory tab.
3. Look for unusual memory consumption or a non-decreasing “Standby” memory usage.
1. Press `Win + R`, type `perfmon`, and press Enter.
2. Add counters like:
Process > Private Bytes
Memory > Available MBytes
Memory > Committed Bytes
3. Set logging to monitor long-term patterns.
| Editor’s Tip – Use PoolMon To check for Faulty Drivers 1. Download Windows Driver Kit (WDK). reg add “HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management” /v PoolTag /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f 5. Restart the PC. |
Drivers help establish the communication between hardware and software. In order for the hardware to receive commands from any software, it is necessary to keep your drivers updated at all times. Here are two different ways to do that.
Device Manager is an inbuilt tool that helps users update drivers. Here are the steps to run this tool.
1. Open the Device Manager by pressing Win + X and selecting Device Manager.
2. Expand the sections that display the yellow exclamation mark.
3. Right-click on these drivers one by one to view the context menu.
4. Select Update Driver and choose Search automatically for updated driver software.
The second way to update drivers is to use the Advanced Driver Updater app which can detect outdated, corrupted, and missing drivers on your PC and download/install the most compatible drivers with a few mouse clicks. Here is what you need to do.
1. Download and install Advanced Driver Updater.
2. Launch the app and click the Start Scan Now button.
3. A list of driver issues will appear on the screen.
4. Locate the outdated drivers among the list and click on the update link next to them.
5. The update process will now begin. Restart your computer once the update is completed.
A clean boot helps disable all third-party services, which means if any service is causing this error, it will be detected now. Here are the steps to clean boot the PC.
1. Press Win + R to launch the Run dialog box, type “msconfig,” and click OK.
2. Navigate to the “Services” tab in the new box.
3. Check the box that says “Hide all Microsoft services”.
4. Click the “Disable all” button.
5. Click on Apply, followed by OK, and reboot the PC.
1. Open the Task Manager by pressing Ctrl+Shift+Esc.
2. Click on more details under the setup tab.
3. Select the programs you want to disable and then press the Disable button.
4. This will disable all startup apps on your computer, hence resolving the computer slowdown issue and accelerating slow Windows.
Some experts have stated that the “Consistent Memory Leak in Windows” error occurs due to malware infection. It is recommended that you run a full malware scan on your PC. If you are running third-party antivirus software, you need to follow the steps accordingly. We have described the steps for running a malware scan using Windows Security, a Microsoft default antivirus app installed on your PC.
1. Press the Windows key and type “ Windows Security.”
2. Click on the relevant result under Best Match.
3. The Windows Security app will launch. Click on the Virus & Threat Protection box.
4. Next, click on Scan Options and select Full Scan.
5. Finally, click on the Scan Now button.
After you have completed a malware scan, follow the steps on the screen to quarantine or remove any infected files and restart your PC. If the issue persists, then move to the next section to troubleshoot this error.
The System File Checker is an important tool that helps to scan and fix corrupted system files on your PC. Here are the steps –
1. Press Win + R to open the RUN box and type “cmd.”
2. Press Ctrl + Shift + Enter to open the Command Prompt in admin mode.
3. Type the following command and press the Enter key.
sfc /scannow
4. Wait for the scanning process to complete. It will automatically replace any corrupted system files.
5. Reboot your PC and check if the issue has been resolved.
The DISM tool helps to fix corrupted system images. Here is what you need to do:
1. Press Win + R to open the RUN dialog box.
2. Type “CMD” and press Ctrl + Shift + Enter to open the command prompt in elevated mode.
3. Copy and paste the following command, followed by the Enter key.
dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth
4. After the process is complete, restart your computer.
Reduce RAM usage by modifying the Visual settings.
1. Press Win + I to open the Settings box.
2. Go to System > Advanced system settings > Performance Settings.
3. Choose Adjust for best performance.
The Memory Diagnostic tool is a built-in utility that helps scan the memory for errors. Here is what you need to do:
1. Press the Windows keys, type “Windows Memory Diagnostic” and click the result with the same name.
2. A new dialog box will open, and click “Restart Now…”.
3. Follow the instructions, and the tool will check and fix memory-related errors.
Note : You can initiate this tool by pressing Win + R, typing mdsched.exe, and clicking on the OK button.
Sometimes the SysMain service keeps consuming RAM endlessly. In this case, you can try to disable this service and check.
1. Press Win + R, type services.msc, and click on OK.
2. In the Services box, locate the SysMain service and right-click on it.
3. Choose Stop from the context menu.
Some experts recommend turning on the Managing Paging file size option to fix this issue, especially if the issue is due to virtual memory. Here are the steps:
1. Press Win + E to open File Explorer.
2. Locate This PC and right-click on it to choose Properties.
3. A new box will open. Click the Advanced tab.
4. Click on the Settings button under Performance.
5. A new box will further open. Click on the Advanced tab and then click on Change.
6. Now, check the box next to Automatically manage paging file size for all drives and click the OK button.
If the error occurs when you launch a program, then it means that the software is causing the issue. In this case, you must uninstall the app and reinstall it if necessary. Here are the steps to remove an app from your PC.
1. Press the Windows key and type “Add or Remove Programs”.
2. Click on the best match result with the same name.
3. A list of installed apps will appear on the screen.
4. Click on the three dots next to any app and choose Uninstall.
5. Follow the steps on the screen to remove the app.
6. Check if the issue has been resolved first, and then reinstall the app.
Windows Updates are magical and may fix most minor issues and some major issues with ease. All you have to do is update your Windows OS completely. This can be done by following these steps.
1. Press Win + I to open the Windows Settings box.
2. Click on the Windows Updates tab in the left panel.
3. In the right section, click on the Check For Updates button.
4. Wait for Windows to connect to the Microsoft server and download/install updates for you.
5. After the update process is complete, press the Check for Updates button a couple of times to check if any pending updates were not done in the first round.
6. Next, click on Advanced Options and then on Optional Updates.
7. Select all the updates displayed here and click on the Download & Install button.
8. Wait for all the updates to complete and reboot your PC.
1. Open the Start menu and search for ‘Reset this PC.’ Then, select the appropriate option from the search results.
2. Click on “Reset PC.”
3. Select “Keep my files.”
4. Follow the on-screen instructions to start the reset process for your Windows computer.
Note : Although Windows provides an option to keep your data during the reset, it is recommended to manually back up your files externally to prevent any potential data loss.
Conclusion
We hope that the above-mentioned methods have successfully guided you to fix the Consistent Memory Leak Error on your Windows PC. Please write to us in the comments section explaining your issue and which method helped you fix it.
Read Also : Workable Ways to Fix – Your Computer Is Low on Memory in Windows 11/10
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