

Be warned, though, that this will erase your entire hard drive, so make sure that any vital data is as thoroughly backed up as possible beforehand. This is pretty much the 'nuclear option', but if all else fails, you may be forced to simply erase your previous copy of Windows and simply start from scratch. Step 6. Perform a clean Windows installation. A more in-depth fix than just doing a System Restore, the Startup Repair tool (also accessible from the Advanced Startup Options screen) can sometimes fix underlying issues that may be hampering the update process. You can access the System Restore function from Safe Mode, or from the Advanced Startup Options if that doesn't work. In order to safeguard against this type of thing, Windows will usually create a restore point just before applying an update, so you can roll it back if there are any problems.

If you suspect that updates are hogging your connection speed, try switching your WiFi or Ethernet connection to a metered connection. Especially if it’s downloading a large update in the background. After the update installs, you can restart Windows to exit Safe Mode. Windows 10 can be really greedy with bandwidth every now and then. Accessible from the Startup Settings menu, this mode disables everything but the absolute essentials Windows needs to run, ensuring that any software conflicts that could be interfering with the update are removed. Use your computer's physical power or reset button, and remember that you may have to hold it down. A computer will boot up slowly is drivers have not been updated. Resetting your PC mid-installation is a cardinal sin and expressly warned against by manufacturers, but if your update is genuinely stuck then you haven't got a lot of options. Part 1: Reasons for a slow startup in Windows 10: Corrupt or out-of-date drivers. (Expect, say, 2mins plus for HDD, 9-12s for SSD cold boot to lock screen).Step 2. Restart your PC. I think, from your description, this is NOT just a slow boot problem, as it seems you report slowness after logging in too, thus wouldn't recommend, at present, the use of MS's WPA technically challenging free graphical analysis tool. Typically people reporting this see 100% or very high disk usage, and transfer rate being limited to under 10MB/s. (How fast does task manager, Performance tab and file explorer dialogue report the transfer as being when you copy a large file (a couple Gb. Please test the transfer rate of your disk. What technology is the system disk? SSD? HDD? How long is 'forever'? Specifically, how long does it take for a cold boot to lock screen? was there any hardware or other change that preceded the problem? I5 (8th generation) laptop that takes forever
