Windows 10 Memory Leak error is caused by a host of reasons including faulty memory. In this tutorial, we’ll go through several steps to identify and diagnose this problem.

Perform Memory Diagnostics

A faulty memory is the biggest factor contributing Windows 10 Memory Leak error in large majority of the cases. The simplest way to identify problems with your Random Access Memory (RAM) is to use the Windows Memory Diagnostic.

1. Right-click your Start icon, select Run.
2. Type mdsched.exe in the Run dialog, press Enter.
3. Click on Restart now and check for problems.
4. Your computer will be restarted and perform memory diagnostic process. Wait for the completion.

If any problems are detected, switch off your computer/ laptop, and gently replace the existing RAM with a new one. Some of the popular RAM manufacturers in the US include Kingston, Transcend and Samsung.

Remove Obsolete Drivers

Do you know how old your system drivers are? Many unexplained system issues including Windows 10 Memory Leak are typically caused by obsolete drivers.

1. Press Windows Key + X, select Device Manager.
2. Click on the View menu, select Show hidden devices.
3. Identify faulty devices with a yellow-color exclamation mark.
4. Right-click such devices, and select the Uninstall option.

Once you’ve successfully uninstalled obsolete drivers, we recommend that you check your system board, graphics card and sound card drivers for newer updates.

Make Free Space For Windows Caching

Another major reason behind memory leaks in Windows is insufficient storage for Windows Caching mechanism. Your computer may be running low on storage. As a result, the core Windows functions cannot be performed smoothly. There are different ways by which you can securely reclaim your lost storage.

Method # 1: Fix Temporary & Junk Files

Using Disk CleanUp, an in-house tool in Windows, you can analyze your storage space for different types of temporary, junk files.

1. Double-click This PC.
2. Right-click your system drive, typically C:\
3. Select Properties.
4. Click on the Disk CleanUp button.
5. Wait for the Disk CleanUp to analyze and identify the amount of temporary storage.
6. Check-up all the items under Files to Delete.
7. Click on OK to start deleting your temporary files.

Method # 2: Analyze & Fix Duplicate Files

Clone Files Checker is a popular duplicate finder program from Sorcim Technologies. Use this tool to analyze your hard disk for duplicate files and fix them with a single click.

1. Download and install Clone Files Checker.
2. Click on the Add button on the left, and select your non-system partitions (such as, D:\, E:\).
3. Click on OK.
4. Click on Start Search.
5. Wait for some time for the program to accumulate duplicate results.
6. Click on Quick-Fix.
7. Select the version of duplicates you want to keep (for example, Newest or Oldest).
8. Select an action (Move to Recycle Bin or Move to Folder).

Clear Page File

Page File is a file created by Windows paging mechanism to deal with the problem of lower Random Access Memory. The Page file is hidden from the user’s eye, and the purpose behind its creation is to allocate additional free space of your hard disk for caching. Windows 10 Memory Leak error occurs due to Page File corruption. Modify your computer’s Registry to automatically clear Pagefile at shutdown interval.

1. Type RegEdit in the Search box and open Registry Editor.
2. Locate the following Registry node:
   • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE | SYSTEM | CurrentControlSet | Control | Session Manager | Memory Management
3. Double-click ClearPageFileAtShutdown
4. Replace its value to 1
5. Exit Registry Editor and then restart your computer.

Exit Resource-hogging Background Apps & Processes

While you use your computer, a lot of applications and processes run behind your screen, taking up your computer’s memory. Some of the popular resource-hogging applications include Google Chrome, Java & JavaScripts. Many poorly-designed applications in the C programming language also contribute to higher resources. To avoid Windows 10 Memory Leak, simply quit unnecessary background applications.

Method # 1: Quit Background Apps

1. Close unneeded applications that are running on your Desktop.
2. Click the More icon on the bottom right corner of your screen.
3. Right-click an application that you wish to quit, and select Exit option.

Method # 2: End Processes

1. Press Windows Key + X.
2. Select Task Manager.
3. Click the Details tab.
4. Check for processes that consume higher CPU power.
5. Right-click a high-resource consuming process, and select End process option.

Turn Off Malfunctioning Startup Applications

There are situations when memory leaks are caused by faulty junkware, spyware applications that automatically execute at the Windows boot interval. Open up your Task Manager and disable all Non-Microsoft items except your Antivirus software.

1. Launch Task Manager.
2. Click on More details.
3. Go to the Startup tab.
4. Disable all third-party startup applications.

Optimize Your Drives

Windows Drive Optimizer helps you defragment fragmented partitions of your hard disk. Defragmenting all partitions of your HDD may fix the problem.

1. Press Windows Key + R; type dfrgui
2. Click OK or press ENTER.
3. In the Drive Optimizer window, select one of your partitions and click on Optimize Drive button.