It can be a confusing situation when a user is casually browsing his or her laptop only to have the screen suddenly freeze up. Sometimes, users find can move their mouse cursor around the screen but their laptop seemingly refuses to let them click away from a particular screen. Other times, the entire screen shows no signs of life, with even the mouse cursor frozen in time. Regardless of the specific situation, there are a few strategies to fix a frozen laptop at home. Laptop users may want to try these out before calling up a professional for laptop repair.

Factors that can lead to a freeze

Laptops might freeze up because the computer has run out of available memory or room on the hard drive. Viruses or malware may also be the root of the problem, while an overstuffed registry – the part of the computer that tracks files and programs that are being used – may have simply been overworked, leading to a freeze.

Solutions

• Wait it out – Some laptop freezes are temporary, caused when the system is trying to process too much information at once. Websites with a lot of advertising or graphical elements are notorious for freezing browsers. Waiting a few minutes might give the laptop time to finish processing data.
• Close out of problem programs – Some particular programs – such as an overloaded browser – may slow the laptop's performance. Hitting the "Ctrl," "Alt," and "Delete" buttons at the same time will bring up Windows task manager, which provides information on programs that are "Not Responding." Hitting "End Task" can allow users to escape a frozen program.
• Restart the computer – Simply rebooting the laptop can help it recover from freezing. Users can press the Power button for about five seconds to turn it off, or they can unplug it and remove the battery.
• Clean up the computer – Even after fixing the temporary freeze, users should take steps to clear their computer of unnecessary files and potential viruses and clean their registry to free up space and improve laptop performance. That might prevent a future call to a Washington D.C. laptop repair specialist.