Hey everyone! I've been dealing with some serious RAM issues on my PC lately. I went on vacation for about 15 days, and when I returned, my memory usage shot up to around 97% right after booting up. The only major process showing up in task manager is Windows Antimalware Services, using about 290MB. I know a little unused RAM is normal, but this is getting out of hand. It leads to stuttering and frequent crashes. If my PC can last for about 15 minutes, the usage drops to a more reasonable 35-40% with nothing open. However, after that, it slowly creeps back up and I experience stuttering and crashes until I restart. I can't figure out where the RAM is getting drained since resource monitor and task manager don't show anything suspicious. I ran a Windows memory diagnostic tool which reported no issues. I've got 16GB of 3200MHz RAM, and I've already reinstalled the chipset and GPU drivers and performed all the Windows updates available. I really could use some help or advice on this, thanks!
3 Answers
Try using Task Manager to see what exactly is consuming your memory. Make sure to check the details tab and sort by memory usage. You can even customize the view to get more specific info. It should help identify if something unusual is going on.
Sounds like you might be dealing with a memory leak or something along those lines. If it were a serious leak, you’d typically see it in Task Manager. You should try checking your RAM with UEFI diagnostic tools—there might be a RAM utility that could help you out.
Since Task Manager isn’t showing anything suspicious, consider using RAMMap from Microsoft. It provides a more detailed breakdown of your memory usage. Also, check if the Non-Paged Pool is high—if so, it might indicate a driver leak, especially with network or audio drivers. If you have any third-party antivirus software, try disabling or uninstalling it for a bit; they can sometimes create hidden memory problems. You could also try a clean boot to rule out any non-Microsoft services causing the issue.
I found some errors related to audio drivers in my Event Viewer, so I'm going to address those next. Thanks for the heads up!