How to troubleshoot and fix Windows 11 running slow due to a faulty or failing SSD or hard drive

Summary

This guide helps you troubleshoot and resolve: How to troubleshoot and fix Windows 11 running slow due to a faulty or failing SSD or hard drive. Follow the steps below to fix the issue.

Common Causes

If your Windows 11 computer has started running slowly, freezing, or taking ages to load files, a failing or faulty SSD or hard drive is one of the most common culprits. Storage drives degrade over time, and when they begin to fail, the entire system feels sluggish because Windows is struggling to read and write data reliably.

This guide walks you through diagnosing drive health using built-in Windows tools, identifying warning signs of a failing drive, and taking corrective action before you lose important data.

Signs Your SSD or Hard Drive May Be Failing

Before diving into diagnostics, look out for these common symptoms:

• Files take much longer than usual to open or save
• Frequent freezing or "Not Responding" errors when opening folders or applications
• Strange clicking, buzzing, or grinding noises (typical of mechanical hard drives)
• Files disappearing, becoming corrupted, or showing strange characters in their names
• Windows randomly freezing, crashing, or restarting
• Boot times have become significantly longer than when the computer was new
• Frequent Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) errors with stop codes mentioning disk or storage issues

Quick Fix Steps

If you suspect your drive is causing slow performance, work through these steps in order:

1. Back up your important data straight away
2. Check drive health using Windows built-in tools
3. Run the CHKDSK utility to scan for file system errors
4. Check for and install Windows updates
5. Free up disk space if the drive is nearly full
6. Replace the drive if it is failing or excessively degraded

Detailed Instructions

Step 1: Back Up Your Data Immediately

Before performing any diagnostics or repairs, ensure your important files are safely backed up. A failing drive can stop working entirely without warning.

• Copy critical documents, photos, and files to an external USB drive or cloud storage such as OneDrive
• If the computer is too unstable to copy files normally, consider booting from a Linux live USB to recover data
• Verify that any recent backups have completed successfully

Step 2: Check Drive Health Using S.M.A.R.T. Data

S.M.A.R.T. (Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology) is built into every modern SSD and hard drive. It tracks reliability indicators and can warn you before a drive fails completely.

Use the Get-PhysicalDisk PowerShell command for a detailed report:

1. Press Windows + X and select Terminal (Admin)
2. Type the following command and press Enter:

   Get-PhysicalDisk | Select-Object DeviceId, MediaType, HealthStatus, OperationalStatus

3. Review the HealthStatus column. It should read Healthy

You can also check drive health using the Windows Settings app:

1. Press Windows + I to open Settings
2. Go to System > About
3. Click Drive optimisation (or search for "Defragment and optimise drives" in the Start menu)
4. Select your drive and click Optimise to view its current status

Step 3: Run CHKDSK to Scan for File System Errors

The CHKDSK utility scans your drive for file system corruption and bad sectors, and can repair many common issues.

1. Press Windows + S and type Command Prompt
2. Right-click Command Prompt and select Run as administrator
3. To scan your main drive (typically C:) without forcing a restart, type:

   chkdsk C: /scan

4. Press Enter and wait for the scan to complete

To perform a more thorough scan that also attempts repairs, schedule a check at next restart:

1. In the same elevated Command Prompt, type:

   chkdsk C: /f /r

2. Press Enter
3. When prompted that the drive is locked, type Y and press Enter to schedule the scan
4. Restart your computer and allow the scan to run before Windows loads

Step 4: Check Windows Event Viewer for Disk Errors

Windows logs disk-related warnings and errors that can help pinpoint storage problems.

1. Press Windows + X and select Event Viewer
2. In the left pane, expand Windows Logs and click System
3. Click Filter Current Log in the right pane
4. In the Event sources dropdown, select disk, ntfs, and storahci
5. Click OK to view only disk-related events
6. Look for entries marked Warning or Error and note the source and event ID

Step 5: Free Up Disk Space

A drive that is nearly full can cause significant slowdowns, particularly with SSDs. Windows needs at least 10–15% free space to operate efficiently.

1. Press Windows + I to open Settings
2. Go to System > Storage
3. Enable Storage Sense to automatically clear temporary files
4. Click Cleanup recommendations and review items that can be safely removed
5. Under Temporary files, remove old Windows update files, temporary files, and items in the Recycle Bin

Step 6: Update Storage Drivers

An outdated or corrupted storage driver can cause poor drive performance and instability.

1. Press Windows + X and select Device Manager
2. Expand the Disk drives category
3. Right-click your drive and select Update driver
4. Choose Search automatically for drivers
5. Restart the computer once complete

Step 7: Optimise Your Drive

Windows 11 includes a built-in drive optimisation tool that can help maintain drive performance.

1. Press Windows + S and type Defragment and optimise drives
2. Select your drive and click Optimise

Step 8: Check for and Install Windows Updates

Outdated Windows components can sometimes cause storage performance issues. Ensure your system is fully up to date.

1. Press Windows + I to open Settings
2. Go to Windows Update
3. Click Check for updates
4. Install any available updates and restart if prompted

Step 9: Consider Replacing the Drive

If diagnostics confirm that your drive is failing or excessively degraded, replacement is the safest long-term solution. Signs that replacement is necessary include:

• S.M.A.R.T. status reports anything other than Healthy
• CHKDSK finds numerous bad sectors that cannot be repaired
• Event Viewer shows repeated critical disk errors
• The drive is more than 5–7 years old and showing symptoms of failure

When replacing a drive, consider upgrading to an SSD if you are currently using a mechanical hard drive — this typically delivers the single biggest performance improvement for an ageing computer.

Still Having Issues?