Windows comes with a lot of extra features and if your PC isn't powerful enough to handle it, you'll find your CPU being hogged by hidden Windows services. However, not all of these services are essential, meaning you can disable some of them and give your CPU some breathing room.
1. Runtime Broker
Windows Runtime Broker manages permissions for Microsoft Store apps in the background. The service is said to only use about 20 to 30 percent of your CPU at best, but it frequently spikes in usage. These unusual spikes can be triggered by a Microsoft Store app you might be using or an app that has requested permissions in the background.
In any case, this can slow down your PC for a few seconds and is quite annoying when it happens repeatedly. If you don't have enough RAM , it can even freeze your system to the point where a hard reset is needed.
As long as you don't use any Microsoft Store apps, disabling Runtime Broker won't affect your Windows usage and will save you a significant amount of CPU resources.
2. Windows Search Indexer
As its name suggests, Windows Search Indexer runs in the background to maintain a searchable and up-to-date index of files, documents, images, videos, and emails stored on your PC. So while Windows Search Indexer is a great help when you're searching for a lost file, it tends to increase CPU usage when indexing large files or doing basic index repairs.
If you don't have enough CPU, this service alone can slow down Windows significantly. Unless you're constantly searching for files, you should disable this service.
3. Antimalware Service Executable
Antimalware Service Executable or MsMpEng.exe is a Windows Security service that constantly runs in the background and scans your PC in real-time for any threats. However, sometimes this service tends to scan large files or folders, which can cause a spike in CPU usage.
If you store a lot of large files on your system, Windows Search Indexer and Antimalware Service Executable can take up to 50% of your CPU.
You can disable the service, but it leaves you vulnerable to viruses and malware. You can disable it temporarily from Task Manager , but it will take longer than expected. To disable it permanently, you'll have to disable real-time protection in Windows Security.
4. CTF Loader
CTF Loader supports alternative text input methods such as speech recognition and handwriting. If you don't use those features, you're wasting CPU resources on this process that keeps running in the background.
Disabling CTF Loader or ctfmon.exe can be a bit tricky. You can close the process from Task Manager, but it may automatically re-launch and start running again. A more permanent solution is to disable the service through Windows Services.
5. Microsoft Store Background Apps
By default, Windows comes with a lot of junk software pre-installed. Among them are some Microsoft Store apps, like Outlook, Teams, Copilot, etc. that you may not use on a daily basis. However, all of these apps are enabled by default and will continue to run in the background and consume system resources.
The best way to solve this problem is to uninstall all these applications immediately. TipsMake.com.com has mentioned many ways to uninstall software on Windows if you need a reference. If you want to keep them, you can disable them from automatically starting up with Windows.
Windows 11 may seem like it's taking a toll on your CPU, there's a lot going on under the hood, not all of it useful. Turning off some background services and other tweaks can give you the extra hardware resources you need to enjoy using Windows.