I spend a lot of time working on the computer, and there is nothing more frustrating than when my laptop freezes randomly. Every laptop owner knows the feeling, and every laptop has the occasional lapse, but when a laptop freezes randomly several times a day, or when the freezing starts to interfere with the user’s ability to do anything with the laptop, it becomes a serious problem. Here are some tips for how to deal with a freeze-prone laptop without sending it into the shop.
The very first thing to do with any computer performance problem is check your antivirus and antispyware protection. You should have a solid antivirus program running at all times, and a compatible anti-spyware program that runs frequently to detect threats. As soon as you realize there is a problem, run a full scan with both programs to rule out the possibility that your performance problems are caused by hostile invaders in your computer. If you haven’t got an antivirus or antispyware, now is the time! Avast and AVG both put out excellent free antivirus software, while Malwarebytes or Spybot SD will take care of your antispyware needs. Always uninstall out of date or expired antivirus programs that you no longer use, or they can cause compatibility issues that might make your troubles worse.
If your system checks out as virus and spyware clean, you’ll have to look elsewhere for the solution to your laptop freezing randomly. Freezes upon startup may indicate registry errors, or a registry that is so clogged with old entries that it cannot run properly. Downloading a program like CCleaner is a good way for someone without a lot of expertise to safely deal with registry issues, plus its quick and easy disk cleanup tools may get your computer running faster in the bargain. Always, always remember to set a system restore point before you do anything with your registry, no matter what program you use!
A laptop freezing randomly might also be caused by too many programs running in the background, eating up RAM and causing compatibility issues. In newer versions of Windows, selecting or searching for “Run” from the Start Menu, then typing “msconfig” without the quotes will bring up a menu that allows you to edit what programs run on startup. If there are programs that you rarely use, or programs that you like but that don’t need to start with your computer, go ahead and disable them on the startup menu. If you don’t recognize the name of a program, try Googling it to see if that gives any clues. If you really don’t know what it does, it’s best to leave it alone. Once again, don’t forget to set your system restore point before getting into this menu.
Out-Of-Date Drivers Could Be A Reason Why A Laptop Freezes Randomly
Faulty or out of date drivers are another often-overlooked cause for laptop freezes. From the Start Menu, find Windows Update and check the settings you’re using. Are there a large number of updates waiting to be downloaded? Is your computer set to update at a time when it is normally turned off and unable to update? Your laptop needs up-to-date drivers to function properly, so it’s important to download these updates. Set your computer to update at a time more convenient for you, and make sure the updates are being downloaded and installed.
If software fixes don’t seem to be touching your freezing problems, it may be time to take your computer’s temperature. Laptops are prone to freezing or shutting down without warning when they get too hot, a failsafe designed to protect fragile components from heat damage. If your computer feels unusually hot when you’re operating it, or if you tend to operate it in environments that leave you sweating, your computer may be suffering from overheating. The solution to this might be as simple as a can of compressed air to clean out a clogged fan, as practical as turning on your air conditioning or using a fan pad under your laptop, or as fundamental as having your laptop cracked open and the fan replaced. Never ignore the warning signs that a computer is overheating. A computer that overheats too badly or too often can easily destroy its hard drive.
Unfortunately, not every situation where a laptop freezes randomly is going to be something you can fix at home. When my laptop freezes randomly, I run through these steps as a matter of course, but it doesn’t always work. If the problem is with a piece of essential hardware, such as the hard drive going bad, there’s not much to be done except to take it in for repair or replacement. In this scenario, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Backing up your essential files frequently, whether to an external hard drive, a USB storage device or a cloud server, is your best defense when it comes to laptop hardware failures. Having to repair your laptop or get a new one is bad enough without losing all the pictures, movies, music and documents you’ve collected there.
Don’t let yourself get frustrated when your computer starts freezing up. There’s always a reason behind it, and the faster you can find it, the faster you can deal with it. By practicing preventative medicine like virus and spyware protection, frequent backups, regular updates, and basic cleaning habits, you can stop freezes before they start and prolong the life of your laptop.
