7 Solutions to Windows 11 Moving Files Slow

Scenario: Windows 11 moving files slow

What causes Windows 11 moving files slow?

In the dynamic world of information technology, rapid development and stability have become prominent trends. However, this advancement also brings challenges, one of which is slow file transfer speeds. Daily operations involving uploading, downloading, and transferring countless files can be hampered when transfer times are long (from a few hours to a full day). Slow file transfers can be frustrating for those who prioritize efficiency.

Many Windows 11 users have reported experiencing slow transfer speeds in various situations, whether it's between internal drives, an internal drive to an external drive, or between two computers over a network document. The root cause of this problem remains unclear to users, prompting people to seek practical solutions to improve file transfer efficiency.

Several factors cause Windows 11 moving files slow, including network issues, external drive complications, and computer-related issues. To resolve these issues, here are some simple methods you can adopt to ensure a smoother and more efficient file transfer experience.

How to solve slow file transfer speed in Windows 11?

When you need to transfer files frequently, you can consider using the following 7 methods in order to solve the slow file transfer Windows 11 problem. Alternatively, explore the option of using third-party file transfer free software that can quickly transfer multiple files simultaneously. This approach promises to significantly increase efficiency, ensuring a seamless and fast file transfer experience.

Way 1. Change the limit reservable bandwidth

By default, Microsoft reserves the right to cut network bandwidth by up to 80% to accommodate system activity. This allocation can impact network performance and cause Windows file transfers to be slow, especially when working with large files. To work around this limitation, follow the step-by-step tutorial to adjust or disable the default settings.

Step 1. Press Windows+R to open the Run dialog box, type gpedit.msc, and then press Enter to access the Group Policy Editor to start the process.

Step 2. Navigate through Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Networking > QoS Packet Scheduler.

Step 3. In the QoS Packet Scheduler section, double-click Limit Reservable Bandwidth in the list on the right.

Step 4. In the subsequent window, select "Enabled" and you can choose to modify the default bandwidth limit value to a smaller percentage or set it to zero.

Way 2. Disable Windows Auto-Tuning

When planning to conduct file transfers over the network, the auto-tuning feature can enhance the performance of programs receiving TCP data, optimizing the efficiency of your transfer process. However, in certain scenarios, disabling this feature might boost transfer speeds.

Follow these steps to fix Windows file transfer slow:

Step 1. Search for Command Prompt in the search bar, right-click, and choose "Run as administrator."

Step 2. Enter the following command and press Enter:

netsh int tcp set global autotuninglevel=disabled

Step 3. Attempt the file transfer again to assess if the speed has improved. If not, use the following command:

netsh int tcp set global autotuninglevel=normal

These steps provide a method to disable or re-enable the auto-tuning feature, allowing you to determine the configuration that optimizes file transfer speed over the network.

Way 3. Disable RDC (Remote Differential Compression)

To enhance file transfer speed on Windows, consider the following steps:

Step 1. Search for "Turn Windows features on or off" in the Windows search bar and select the corresponding option.

Step 2. Locate and uncheck the box for "Remote Differential Compression API support." Click OK to save the settings.

Step 3. Restart your PC to apply the changes and assess if the file transfer speed improves.

Way 4. Update the USB drivers

To update USB drivers on Windows systems, follow these steps:

Step 1. Right-click the Start icon and select Device Manager from the list.

Step 2. In Device Manager, find "Universal Serial Bus Controller". Right-click on each entry under this category and select Update Driver.

Step 3. Select "Automatically search for drivers" and allow the system to complete the update process. Repeat this step for each entry under Universal Serial Bus Controller.

Way 5. Convert format from FAT32 to NTFS

To enhance the performance of your USB drive, it is recommended to update it to the latest NTFS format. Note that this will delete any existing data on the USB drive, so make sure you have a backup before proceeding.

In this order:

Step 1. Search for "Command Prompt" in the search box, right-click it, and select "Run as administrator."

Step 2. In the Command Prompt window, type the following command, replacing F with the drive letter of your USB drive, and then press Enter:

convert F: /fs:ntfs

Wait for the process to complete. Once you see "Conversion complete," the USB drive has been successfully formatted to the NTFS file system.

Way 6. Change device for better performance

To optimize the performance of your USB flash drive and speed up file transfers, follow these steps:

Step 1. Right-click the Start icon and select Device Manager from the list.

Step 2. Find and expand the Disk Drives category and select the USB drive you want to optimize. Click Properties.

Step 3. In the Properties window, navigate to the Policies tab. Select Better Performance and click OK.

Step 4. By selecting "Better Performance" you can enhance the performance of your drive by enabling write caching, resulting in faster data transfers.

Way 7. Disable drive indexing

To potentially improve file transfer performance, follow these steps:

Step 1. Right-click the drive where you want to optimize file transfer and select Properties.

Step 2. Navigate to the "General" tab. Uncheck the option that says "Allow files on this drive to have their contents indexed in addition to file properties". Click Apply.

Restart your computer to apply the changes and evaluate whether file transfer performance improves.

How to move files quickly in Windows 11?

If the previously mentioned methods don't meet your expectations or meet your file transfer needs, consider leveraging a third-party solution. AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional is a fast file transfer tool that provides an efficient and user-friendly interface, allowing you to quickly transfer files in various scenarios. Whether you need to move files to a local folder, an external hard drive, or copy files between two hard drives, this versatile software supports a variety of devices, including internal/external hard drives, USB drives, and SD cards.

Here is the step-by-step guide on how to speed up file transfer Windows 11 using AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional:

Step 1. Install and launch PA Professional, click "App Mover" under "Free up".

Step 2. There are two options, click "Move Folders". 

Step 3. Select the Documents folder. Choose a new location for the folder like D drive or F drive, and click "Move". Please make sure the target drive has sufficient free space to store your Documents, if not, extend the partition can help a lot.

Step 4. You will see a pop-up message to confirm forcibly closing running applications when moving starts. Click "OK" to begin the process.

Step 5. Wait for a while, and click "Finish" to complement the movement.

Conclusion

Facing the problem of Windows 11 moving files slow is a common concern for everyone. The 7 solutions provided can be patiently explored to solve the problem. However, if these fixes don’t meet your requirements or prove ineffective, then an alternative worth considering is AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional.

It also provides other features for users looking for better disk management such as resizing/moving partitions, recovering lost partitions, cloning hard drive for backup, and more.