220-1101 Question 390
Single answerSluggish performanceA user's Windows 10 laptop has become very sluggish over the past week. Applications take a long time to open, the mouse intermittently stutters, and the hard drive activity light stays on almost constantly even when only a web browser and email client are open. In Task Manager, CPU utilization is low, but memory usage is near 95% and the disk is heavily utilized. The laptop has a traditional 5400 RPM hard drive and 4 GB of RAM. Which action is the BEST recommendation to improve performance based on these symptoms?
- A
Upgrade the system memory to 8 GB or more
- B
Replace the laptop battery because low battery health causes disk thrashing
- C
Increase the monitor refresh rate to reduce mouse stutter and application load times
- D
Disable Windows Update permanently so background activity stops using the disk
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A
Explanation
This scenario is a classic example of sluggish performance caused by insufficient RAM. In Windows, when physical memory is nearly exhausted, the operating system relies more heavily on virtual memory stored in the page file. On a system with only 4 GB of RAM and a mechanical 5400 RPM hard drive, this can cause severe slowdowns, constant disk activity, and intermittent interface lag even when CPU usage remains low. Task Manager is an appropriate tool to identify this pattern by comparing CPU, memory, and disk utilization. The best recommendation is to increase RAM, which aligns with standard troubleshooting methodology: identify the bottleneck and address the component causing it. Microsoft documentation for Windows performance troubleshooting and common industry best practices both support checking Task Manager and reducing paging by adding memory when systems show high memory utilization and disk activity.
- A. Correct.
Correct. The symptoms point to insufficient RAM causing heavy paging/swapping to the hard drive. When memory usage is near maximum, Windows uses the page file more aggressively, which is especially slow on a 5400 RPM HDD. Adding more RAM is a standard best-practice recommendation to reduce paging and improve responsiveness in a system showing high memory and disk utilization with low CPU usage.
- B. Incorrect.
Incorrect. A degraded battery can affect portability and, in some cases, power settings, but it does not directly cause the sustained disk activity and near-maxed memory usage described here. This option reflects a misunderstanding of the relationship between battery health and system performance metrics.
- C. Incorrect.
Incorrect. Refresh rate affects display smoothness, not application launch times or disk-heavy slowdowns. A user might choose this because of the mouse stutter, but the performance data clearly indicates a memory bottleneck leading to disk thrashing rather than a display issue.
- D. Incorrect.
Incorrect. Windows Update can temporarily use system resources, but permanently disabling it is not a best practice and would create security and maintenance problems. The scenario describes an ongoing performance pattern tied to high memory usage and paging, not a one-time update process.