How do I disable these tasks in Windows 11?

William Turner 0 Reputation points
2026-10-14T13:51:37.22+00:00

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I have only 4GB of RAM and I usually use my laptop for gaming (I just suffer through the frame drops), today these four tasks popped up on my Task Manager and are hogging far too much RAM. I tried to press "end task" but it just denied it and they kept running. Does anyone know how I can turn all of these off? I did try and turn off the virus protection but it just disabled the defender session host, I want all of them gone (particularly the bottom one, that is exceptionally poor)

Windows for home | Windows 11 | Performance and system failures
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  1. AI answer

    2026-10-14T13:52:03.1+00:00

    Those entries are Microsoft Defender components. The supported way to reduce background RAM use in Windows 11 is not to force-end protected system tasks, but to reduce other background activity and startup load.

    Try these steps:

    1. Check what is actually using memory
      • Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager.
      • Open the Processes tab and click the Memory column to sort by highest usage.
      • Open the Performance tab and select Memory to see total RAM usage.
    2. Disable unnecessary startup apps
      • In Task Manager, select Startup apps.
      • Right-click apps not needed at startup and select Disable.
      • This reduces background usage after sign-in.
    3. Stop apps from running in the background
      • Go to Start > Settings > Apps > Installed apps.
      • Find an app, select More options (...) > Advanced options.
      • Under Background app permissions, set Let this app run in background to Never.
      • Repeat for apps that do not need notifications or background updates.
    4. Close unused apps and restart
      • Close apps and browser tabs not in use.
      • Select Start > Power > Restart.
      • A restart can clear current memory pressure better than repeatedly ending tasks.
    5. Use best performance settings if gaming is the priority
      • Go to Start > Settings > System > Power & battery.
      • Set Power mode to Best performance.
      • Note: this increases power use, drains battery faster, and can make the laptop run warmer.
    6. Reduce visual overhead
      • Select Start, type Adjust the appearance and performance of Windows, and open it.
      • On the Visual Effects tab, select Adjust for best performance.
    7. Free disk space if the system is also slow
      • Go to Start > Settings > System > Storage.
      • Run Storage Sense or remove Temporary files.

    Important limitation:

    • Some Windows and security-related processes are protected and cannot be ended from Task Manager.
    • On Windows 11, some RAM usage by the operating system itself is normal, and Task Manager does not show all OS memory under app processes.
    • With only 4 GB RAM, Windows 11 can remain memory-constrained even after reducing startup and background apps.
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  2. DaveM121 939.7K Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-10-14T14:28:40.58+00:00

    Do not try to disable those processes in your screenshot, if you disable Defender, if you do not have another anti-virus installed you will leave your PC open to being infected with malware, the only correct method to disable Defender is to install a 3rd party anti-virus.

    If you only have 4GB of RAM on your PC, that is not enough RAM for Windows 11, Windows 11 by itself will use 4GB - 5GB of RAM for the operating system alone, and what happens then is Windows will be constantly accessing the drive on your PC for virtual memory and that will slow your PC down and over time may wear out the drive.

    A minimum of 8GB of RAM is required for Windows 11, so really the only solution would be to upgrade your RAM from 4GB to at least 8GB of RAM

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