Which of the following is the best way to handle a program that is unresponsive?

• To close a not responding app on Windows 11, use the “Alt + F4” keyboard shortcut.
• Alternatively, open the “Processes” tab in Task Manager and end the task.
• Or run the “taskkill /im AppName /t /f” command on Command Prompt.
• Or run the “Stop-Process -Name ProcessName” command on PowerShell.

On Windows 11, you have at least five easy ways to close an application that is not responding, and in this guide, you will learn how.

Although you can often work with apps without issues, they can sometimes freeze or get stuck suddenly for many reasons. For example, a bug after an update can cause an app to become unresponsive. If the program relies on an internet connection but can’t find it, the application may get stuck loading. Also, depending on the task, the action can cause the app to go “Not responding.”

Whatever the reason it might be, if the system doesn’t offer a way to close the app, Windows 11 offers several ways to force close an app that’s not responding using a keyboard shortcut, Task Manager, Settings app, Command Prompt, and even PowerShell.

This guide will teach you the five best ways to close programs that are not responding on Windows 11.

If an application appears frozen or unresponsive, you have multiple ways to close it.

1. Force close unresponsive app with shortcut

To force close an app with a keyboard shortcut on Windows 11, use these steps:

1. Click the app’s title bar to bring it to focus.

2. Press the Alt + F4 keyboard shortcut.

   Quick note: Depending on the keyboard, you may need to press the Alt + Fn + F4 shortcut combo.

2. Force close unresponsive app with Task Manager

To force quit unresponsive apps from Task Manager, use these steps:

1. Open Start.

2. Search for Task Manager and click the top result to open the app.

3. Click on Processes.

4. Select the app.

5. Click the End task (or Restart task) button.

   

3. Force close unresponsive app with Settings

To close a frozen Microsoft Store app on Windows 11, use these steps:

1. Open Settings.

2. Click on Apps.

3. Click the Installed apps tab on version 22H2. (Click on Apps & features on version 21H2.)

4. Click the menu (three-dotted) button next to the apps and select Advanced Options.

   

5. Click the Terminate button.

4. Force close unresponsive app with Command Prompt

To close an unresponsive app from Command Prompt on Windows 11, use these steps:

1. Open Start.

2. Search for Command Prompt, right-click the top result, and select the Run as administrator option.

3. Type the following command to view the running applications and press Enter:

   tasklist

   

4. Type the following command to force quit the application and press Enter:

   taskkill /im AppName /t /f

   

   In the command, change AppName for the application’s name as it appears in the previous step. For example, this command closes Task Manager: taskkill /im Taskmgr.exe /t /f

5. Force close unresponsive app with PowerShell

To force close an app that’s not responding from PowerShell on Windows 11, use these steps:

1. Open Start.

2. Search for PowerShell, right-click the top result, and select the Run as administrator option.

3. Type the following command to view the running applications and press Enter:

   Get-Process

   

4. Type the following command to close the unresponsive application and press Enter:

   Stop-Process -Name ProcessName

   

   In the command, change ProcessName for the application’s name as it appears in the previous step. For example, this command closes Task Manager: Stop-Process -Name Taskmgr

Once you complete the steps, the system should terminate the application.

If none of the above methods seem to work, you may need to restart your computer.

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