Renaming of files is as slow as in Windows 10

One thing I was hoping for in Windows 11, I didn't get: Faster GUI operations. I try to rename a file by clicking on its filename, and I stare at the blue circle thingy while it makes up its mind. I try to drag and drop a file, same thing. I spend a lot of time staring at that blue circle thingy. Just like in Windows 10. Is there something wrong with my PC, or is that just how Windows 11 is?

Eksy61 said:

One thing I was hoping for in Windows 11, I didn't get: Faster GUI operations. I try to rename a file by clicking on its filename, and I stare at the blue circle thingy while it makes up its mind. I try to drag and drop a file, same thing. I spend a lot of time staring at that blue circle thingy. Just like in Windows 10. Is there something wrong with my PC, or is that just how Windows 11 is?

Click to expand...

How long do you actually stare at the progress circle? Is it a couple of seconds or a couple of minutes?

I would run a DFT on the drive and test the memory. I suspect a hardware issue. Rename operations shouldn't take that long.

Just tried it on my computer, file name was changed fast

A filename change on my computer is instantaneous. There is no time for a progress circle to even be displayed.

File copying can be a different matter. Small file copies are instantaneous. Large file copies could take several minutes depending on file size.

The only time I see such slowness is with accessing files on my NAS drive but it is several years old.

If you had the problem in 10 then upgraded to 11 and still have the problem, IMO it would point to hardware, corruption in your user account, or an app you have installed. Here are things to try. Do 1, 2 & 3 first, testing after each one. The others can be done in no particular order.

1. clear file history Use File History Cleanup to Delete Older Versions of Files in Windows 11 Tutorial

2. see if the issue exists in a clean boot. Perform a Clean Boot in Windows 11 to Troubleshoot Software Conflicts Tutorial If a clean boot fixes it, follow the detailed tutorial to narrow it down to which software by using the process of elimination.

3. Make a new user account and give it administrative priviledges. Log out of your account and into the new account. If you have no problems there, the issue is with your user account.

4. open command prompt as administrator and type sfc /scannow This will verify that all the systems files are without corruption.

5. run a scan with Malwarebytes

6. check your hard drives for errors.

• Right-click the hard disk drive to scan, and click Properties.
• In the Local Disk Properties window, click the Tools tab.
• Click Check Now.
• In the Check Disk Local Disk window, click to select the box next to Automatically fix file system errors.
• Click Start.

7. defrag your hard drives (but not your ssd)

8. run disk cleanup

9. test your ram How to Test RAM: Making Sure Bad Memory Isn't Crashing Your PC
You can also eliminate ram by removing sticks in bank 2. If that fixes the problem one of the sticks in bank 2 is bad. If problem still exists, remove sticks in bank 1 and replace them with the sticks you removed from bank 2 and test again.If that fixes the problem one of the sticks you removed from bank 1 are bad. Always remove the power cord and drain the capacitors (hold power button down for 10 seconds with cord disconnected.) before working inside your case.

10. Are these files in Onedrive. If so make a test file on one of your local drives that is not syncing to onedrive to see if it corrects the problem. If it does, the problem is with onedrive.

TraderGary said:

How long do you actually stare at the progress circle? Is it a couple of seconds or a couple of minutes?

Click to expand...

I can be staring at that progress circle for 20 seconds at least. Guess I'll try a clean boot and see if I can isolate the problem.

If a Clean Boot doesn't help, then do Diagnostics on your SSD/HDD's one of the HDD's may be aging and starting to fail.