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PC Freezes When Idle: Causes & How to Prevent It

System file corruption is often the cause of this problem

6 min. read

Updated onOctober 4, 2023

updated onOctober 4, 2023

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Key notes

We all have, one way or the other, experienced acomputer freezing problembefore and know how that can be annoying sometimes. Some of our readers have recently reported that their PC freezes when idle too.

Fortunately, we have gathered some potential causes of this error and fixes to apply whenever your PC gets frozen when it was idle.

Why does my PC freeze when idle?

You need to know what is wrong if you were using your PC, but you had to leave it to attend to something else while your PC remains idle, but upon your return, your PC is frozen. Below are some of the factors responsible for this error:

Since you now know some of the possible reasons why the PC freezes when idle, let us proceed to how you can fix this problem.

What can I do when my PC freezes when idle?

Before trying any of the advanced solutions below, whenever your PC gets frozen when it is idle, try to perform the following preliminary checks:

Having confirmed the above checks, and none of them fixes the issue, you can explore the advanced solutions provided below.

1. Change your System’s Sleep Mode settings

Although this is not a permanent solution, adjusting your system’s sleep mode should help you keep your PC active when it’s not in use, hence making it less idle.

2. Change your system’s resolution settings

It is worth noting that Windows 11 has different hardware requirements than earlier versions and this may sometimes trigger hardware issues.

Also, your screen resolution may be too high for your graphics adapter, so, try a few different resolutions to see if any of them solve the freezing problem.

3. Run the Windows Memory Diagnostic

By running this test, you’ll be able to detect any errors with your VRAM. Alternatively, you can use the Event Viewer to check the scan result in our detailed guide onMemory Diagnostic Tool mdsched.exe.

4. Update your Graphics driver

To be on the safe side, update all your graphics drivers. However, you can visit the manufacturer’s website for dedicated display drivers such asIntel,AMD, orNvidia.

If you’re concerned about picking the incorrect versions for your drivers, you can use a dedicated tool, such as Outbyte Driver Updater, to automatically get the right and latest driver options.

Outbyte Driver Updater

5. Perform a Clean Boot

To detect the cause of the problem, perform a clean-boot troubleshoot, follow the steps above, and then restart the computer after each action. Once you have identified the culprit, you can consider removing or disabling it.

Try to work your way through the steps provided in this article one after the other to know what fixes the problem.

Similarly, you can explore our dedicated guide onthorough solutions to apply if Windows 11 is not responding or is frozenfor further information on how to fix the issue.

If you have any questions or suggestions, do not hesitate to use the comments section below.

PC Freezes When Idle: Causes & How to Prevent It#

Why does my PC freeze when idle?#

What can I do when my PC freezes when idle?#

1. Change your System’s Sleep Mode settings#

2. Change your system’s resolution settings#

3. Run the Windows Memory Diagnostic#

4. Update your Graphics driver#

Outbyte Driver Updater#

5. Perform a Clean Boot#