Windows 11 file explorer is slow, lagging, hangs!

Anonymous

Hi,

I have a very strong PC with Samsung 970 EVO Plus NVMe, Intel i7-9700K, 32GB Memory and ASUS ROG Strix Z390-H Gaming.
When my PC was on Windows 10 there was no problem with File Explorer but after upgrading to Windows 11 I am facing a problem with file explorer slow, lagging, hangs even when just renaming a file.
Only full PC restart is solving the problem for a short time.

How to solve this problem on windows 11 please?

Thanks,
AG

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments

Answer accepted by question author

Anonymous

I also experienced Lags with the Explorer:

On Windows 10, i could solve them by removing external file-drives (SMB) from Quick-Access. I created a folder with Links to the drives instead and explorer was fast again. Probably the explorer tried to connect to these drives and for some reason failed, even though the connection was up and working.
On Windows 11 on a new computer i have again troubles with the explorer, this time i think it is due to a wrong/old account which is no longer active:
The problems came with the "Home"-Button, which was added at some point. Also the "Please sign in" only shows when selecting the "Home"-Button.

This might also be related to an account i am unable to remove:

Clicking on 'Manage' opens the login-page for the first account and i can not find the old account in the first account to remove it.

Can your problem also be associated with one of the issues above?

Does anyone know how to solve the second issue by e.g. disabling the "Home" button, changing the account in the explorer or removing a no longer existing old account?

Updated Info / what i use:

Don't use mapped Drives oder External Folders in Quick-Access. Keep all pinned-directories pointing to local files / folders. Instead, save them as files / links:

Disable OneDrive.exe in StartUp-Apps. If this still does not help, completely disable or remove onedrive: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/turn-off-disable-or-uninstall-onedrive-f32a17ce-3336-40fe-9c38-6efb09f944b0
'Home' as startup-folder seems to also be slow, change it: https://www.digitalcitizen.life/how-set-start-location-file-explorer-windows-10/

0 comments

276 additional answers

Anonymous

2024-11-09T16:16:43+00:00

are you serious? What kind of solution is this?

you are basicly saying this:

Hi customer, i'm sorry that our software is malfunctioning. Please spend 40 hours trying solutions that likely won't work, because our software is built by gen z developers, but at least I get a salary by responding with blank information about our malfunctioning product.

shame.
Was this answer helpful?

3 people found this answer helpful.

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2025-02-04T01:18:56+00:00

Any fix for this yet?
This issue was reported well over 2 years ago.
Was this answer helpful?

1 person found this answer helpful.

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2025-02-12T18:25:47+00:00

Unfortunately the solution by Sam Zürcher didn't work. I removed my phone, the external E,X,Y,Z drives from quick access and disabled OD Start up and it still gives that annoying hourglass just renaming or moving 2 small folders and you just sit and sit waiting for it to finish. My Windows XP was way faster with Explorer. I am using OneCommander and it is fast but kinda odd to use. They are making a fast computer slow with ms garbage software. Any update on his solution or a solution besides going back to a Windows 7 or earlier PC?
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
Deleted

This answer has been deleted due to a violation of our Code of Conduct. The answer was manually reported or identified through automated detection before action was taken. Please refer to our Code of Conduct for more information.

Comments have been turned off. Learn more