Many Windows 10 users have complained of sudden high disk usage on their computers that slow down the computer. This high disk usage is generally caused by the Service Host SysMain. It is a Windows 10 service that consumes high system resources and causing a disturbance in the working. Luckily, you can disable this service without compromising on disabling any feature on Windows 10.
In this post, we would discuss the ways to disable the SysMain service and solve the service host SysMain high disk usage problem.
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What is SysMain?
SysMain, which was previously known by the name Superfetch, is a Windows 10 system service. It analyzes your system usage pattern and optimizes the application launching on your computer. However, in that process, the SysMain uses high system resources and causes the computer to slow down.
It is better to disable the SysMain process and get rid of service host SysMain high disk usage. The good thing is, disabling it would not have much impact on your system performance; in fact, since the SysMain would be disabled, there would not be any high disk usage, and hence the system would run smoothly.
How to fix Service Host SysMain High Disk Usage?
Stop SysMain using Windows Services
You can stop the SysMain from the Windows Services application. For that, follow these steps:
On the windows search box, type Run and click on the Run command Window icon to launch it.
On the Run command window, type services.msc and hit enter to launch the Windows Services window.
In the Windows Services window, search for SysMain.
Right-click on it and select Properties.
Click on the Stop button to stop the SysMain process.
To ensure that the SysMain service does not start up again on the system restart, you have to disable it. On the same Properties window, open the drop-down menu next to Startup Type and choose Disabled.
That’s it the SysMain should be stopped, and service host SysMain high disk usage problem would have solved.
Stop SysMain using Command Prompt
In some systems, the Stop button to stop the SysMain from Windows Services is greyed out. So, to disable the SysMain on such devices, the users can use the Command Prompt. For that, follow these steps:
- On the windows search box, type Command Prompt, right-click on its icon and select Run as Administrator.
- On the command line window, type this command and hit the enter key: sc stop “SysMain” & sc config “SysMain” start=disabled
- You will see the success message on the Command Prompt window.
Disable Service Host SysMain using Registry
- Press Windows+R keys to launch the Run command window
- Type regedit and hit the enter key to launch the Registry editor.
- In the Registry Editor, navigate to the following path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\SysMain. You can copy and paste it directly.
- On the right pane, right-click on the Start and select Modify.
- Change Value data to 4 and click OK.
- Close the Registry Editor
Restart the system to make the changes effective.
Run System File Checker
The service host SysMain high disk usage may also occur because of corrupt system files. To check and repair the damaged files, you can run the System File Checker from the Command Prompt. Here are the steps for that:
- Open the Windows Command Prompt with the administrative rights.
- On the command line window, type this command and hit enter: sfc /scannow
- The scanning would take some time to complete. Don’t close the command window.
Disable Background Intelligent Transfer Service
The high disk usage may also cause because of Background Intelligent Transfer Service running. You can disable it by following these steps:
- Press the Windows+R key to open the run command window.
- Type msconfig in the command box and hit enter
- Under the System Configuration window, switch to the Services tab.
- Scroll down and search for Background Intelligent Transfer Service and uncheck it.
- Click Apply and OK to make the changes effective.
- Restart the system
Switch to SSD
The service host SysMain high disk usage generally occurs when SysMain and other services run in the background. On the traditional hard disk drives, this would occur regularly as they are slow in processing. Therefore, it is suggested to switch to the modern Solid State Drives (SSDs) as they are fast in processing. The windows services are unlikely to cause high disk usage on SSDs.
Install the Windows Update
Sometimes the high disk usage could also be caused by a glitch in the outdated operating system. So to solve that, it is recommended to update your Windows operating system to the latest version. For that, follow these steps:
- Open Windows Settings and select Update & Security
- Click on Check for updates
- Install the pending Windows Update, if any.
Bottom Line
Windows 10 is a sophisticated OS, and therefore sometimes indirect problems can occur and slow down the system like the service host SysMain high disk usage. A slow computer can highly disturb your workflow and cause frustration. This guide has listed down all the possible ways to fix the SysMain high disk usage issue.
The 100% Disk Usage means that the disk on your computer is being utilized by some tasks and has reached its maximum capacity.
You can detect 100% Disk Usage by launching the Task Manager and see the disk utilization percentage.
Peter is an Electrical Engineer whose primary interest is tinkering with his computer. He is passionate about Windows 10 Platform and enjoys writing tips and tutorials about it.
