What do I do if my computer is completely frozen and nothing moves?
You'll be able to: Safely unfreeze an unresponsive PC using shortcut resets or a physical power shutdown
- Risk
- Be careful
- Windows
- Windows 11 · Windows 10
Filed under Fix a problem
The steps
- 1
Press WinCtrlShiftB together on your keyboard. Your screen blinks black for one second and you hear a short beep as the graphics subsystem restarts.
Keyboard shortcut layout highlighting Windows, Control, Shift, and B keys.
Screenshot on the way. The steps above are complete without it.
Why try this first?
Many freezes are caused by a temporary display driver glitch. Restarting the video driver recovers your screen without restarting the computer or losing your open programs.
- 2
If the cursor is still frozen, press CtrlAltDelete once. A blue full-screen security menu appears with options to lock, switch user, open Task Manager, or access the power button in the bottom corner.
- 3
If the keyboard does not respond and the screen stays frozen, press and hold your computer's physical power button for 10 full seconds without letting go. The screen turns completely black, all cooling fans go silent, and the power indicator lights turn off.
A hand holding down the physical laptop power button until the indicator light shuts off.
Screenshot on the way. The steps above are complete without it.
- 4
Wait 15 seconds, then press the power button once normally to turn your PC back on. Your computer powers on from scratch, shows your manufacturer logo, and boots cleanly to the Windows sign-in screen.
It looks different on my screen
On a desktop PC with a tower case, the power button is on the front or top of the computer case. Never unplug the power cable directly from the wall socket while the PC is on; always use the 10-second button hold.
Did this work?