Windows 10 update causes PCs to freeze — but there is some good news

Windows 10
(Image credit: Microsoft)

Windows 10 users are encountering an update issue that causes their systems to freeze. Fortunately, this particular problem only impacts a small group of users and Microsoft has already released a fix. 

The problem stemmed from the Windows 10 May 2020 update, which was optional for a few months before it rolled out to a wider audience. After installing the update, users began to experience sluggishness and freezes.

As Windows Latest reports, users have complained on Microsoft's community forums about the performance issues they are facing after installing the updates. 

"Windows 10 version 2004 which is the latest feature update, freezes randomly. If anyone knows how to fix it please help its victims," user fahadQL wrote. 

“I’ve also had 3 random 'freezes,' where system hangs and becomes more and more unresponsive until a hard reset is needed, since the 2004 update,” another person said.

In most cases, we advise you to remove whichever update is causing problems and return to a more stable version of the OS. This time, however, you don't need to. Microsoft updated a support page for Windows 10 version KB4580364, stating that the update should resolve an issue that caused the OS to "stop working or stop responding." 

The performance annoyances were apparently caused by a deadlock in a network feature (called TCP/IP) that decides how your PC talks with other devices. 

Microsoft is expected to release an update that patches any performance issues in the coming days.

Phillip Tracy

Phillip Tracy is the assistant managing editor at Laptop Mag where he reviews laptops, phones and other gadgets while covering the latest industry news. After graduating with a journalism degree from the University of Texas at Austin, Phillip became a tech reporter at the Daily Dot. There, he wrote reviews for a range of gadgets and covered everything from social media trends to cybersecurity. Prior to that, he wrote for RCR Wireless News covering 5G and IoT. When he's not tinkering with devices, you can find Phillip playing video games, reading, traveling or watching soccer.