Useful Tips: SSD Slows Down While Downloading Large Files

SSD Is Slowing Down When Trying to Download Large Files

“SSD is slowing down when trying to download files/games larger than 10GB. Good day! The problem is whenever I try to download files or games more than 10 GB, my download speed, along with the disk usage, goes down to 0 at worst. When I tried downloading the same game but using a different disk, this problem did not occur.”answers.microsoft.com

The forum post above describes an issue where an SSD slows down while downloading large files or games. This problem is not limited to just the user above. Many users have reported similar experiences.

Typically, the problem of “internal/external SSD slowing down during downloads” can be caused by insufficient disk space, interference from other processes, file system errors, and more. If you are also facing this issue, read on to get possible solutions.

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How to Fix if SSD Slows Down While Downloading Large Files

Way 1. Check Available SSD Space

One common reason your SSD slows down during large file downloads is insufficient disk space. So, you need to check how much free space is left on your disk. If the SSD is nearly full, you can delete some unnecessary files to free up space.

Way 2. Monitor Disk Usage With Task Manager

Some background processes or applications may consume excessive disk resources during downloading large files, causing the SSD to slow down. You can right-click Start and open Task Manager to check the disk usage. If you find that programs or tasks are consuming high disk resources, you can end that task or uninstall that program.

Way 3. Check the SSD for File System Errors

If there are file system errors on the SSD, the problem may also occur. How to check and repair file system issues? CHKDSK and MiniTool Partition Wizard can help you.

Use CHKDSK:

It is a built-in disk check and repair tool that is used to detect and repair file system errors and block bad sectors.

Type cmd in the taskbar search box. When Command Prompt shows up, click Run as administrator under it.

Type chkdsk drive letter: /f /r and press Enter to execute it. The drive letter should be replaced with the actual one of your SSD.

Use MiniTool Partition Wizard:

MiniTool Partition Wizard is a professional partition manager for Windows users. Checking and repairing file system errors is available as a free feature in this software.

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Download and launch this free partition manager. On the main interface, select the SSD partition and choose Check File System from the left sidebar. In the new window, choose Check & fix detected errors and click Start.

Way 4. Format the SSD

Formatting is the last step to fix the SSD large file download slowdown issue. Only if the methods above do not work should you use it, because formatting will remove all files on the disk and rebuild the file system.

If you need to do this, be sure to back up your files beforehand to prevent data loss.

To format the SSD, open File Explorer, right-click your SSD, and choose Format. In the new window, set the file system and volume label, check Quick Format, and then click Start.

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Bottom Line

In short, if your SSD slows down while downloading large files, you may need to free up disk space, check for disk errors, rule out application interference, or format the drive.