Task Manager is everyone’s go-to tool whenever someone faces performance issues on their PC. But what if Task Manager is not working in Windows? This can be problematic as you won’t be able to monitor performance issues on your PC or forcefully close apps.
Usually, the Task Manager doesn’t face any issues, but there can be bad days. Hence, to help you out, here are some quick fixes you can try immediately.
Fix: Task Manager is not working in Windows
To get rid of the Task Manager not working in Windows error, let’s now explore a few potential solutions:
- Run SFC and DISM
- Disable and Enable Task Manager
You will need admin permission to execute these suggestions.
1. Run SFC and DISM
Whenever Windows faces a system-level issue, SFC (System File Checker) and DISM (Deployment Image Servicing and Management) can help you. These tools are responsible for repairing and maintaining the integrity of the system image and files.
2. Disable and Enable Task Manager
You can also try turning Task Manager on and off. This will help you to refresh the application and ensure that there is no performance issue. To do this, you will have to follow the below steps:
Using Group Policy
- Press Windows Key + R to launch Run.
- Type gpedit.msc and press Enter to launch Group Policy Editor.
- Navigate to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Ctrl+Alt+Del Options.
- Double-click on Remove Task Manager policy.
- A new Window will now pop up. From here, select Enabled to disable Task Manager.
- Finally, click on Apply > OK.
- To enable it back, follow the same steps. However, at the last step, select Not Configured or Disabled to enable Task Manager.
Using Registry Editor
- Press Windows Key + R to launch Run.
- Type regedit, and press Enter to launch the Registry Editor.
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies
- Over here, check if you have a System key; if not, right-click on Policies and choose New > Key to create it.
- Next, click on System.
- Next, Right-click the System key, select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it DisableTaskMgr.
- Double-click on DisableTaskMgr and set its Value to 1 to disable Task Manager.
- To enable Task Manager, delete the DisableTaskMgr Key or change its Value from 1 to 0.
Conclusion
So those were a few ways to fix Task Manager not working in Windows error. You can try updating Windows or resetting your PC if the issue still exists. This will ensure that no corrupted or missing files are causing the error.
Why doesn’t Task Manager work?
Task Manager on Windows may not work for various reasons. Some key reasons behind this can be outdated Windows OS, corrupted system files, your Task Manager is disabled, Windows facing performance issues, etc.
What do you do when the task manager doesn’t end the task?
If Task Manager fails to end a task, try restarting Task Manager. If that doesn’t work, try launching CMD as an administrator and use the taskkill /im [process name].exe /f command to kill the program.
