Released in July 2015, Windows 10 is the latest version of Microsoft’s operating system for personal computers. By the end of 2017, Windows 10 was the preferred choice of operating system for more than 600 million devices, which is a testament of its popularity.
Since the release of Windows 10, Microsoft has been releasing monthly updates to fix bugs and add new features. Sometimes, as was the case with the April 2018 update, the patches that come with the update tend to do more damage than the benefits they provide.
Ever since the April 2018 Windows 10 update, users have been reporting issues while browsing on Google Chrome. Most common problems include that the computer hangs for several seconds causing unwanted delays and at certain times the system freezes leaving the user with no other option than to reboot the system. Even Microsoft itself has acknowledged these issues and says that it is working on a fix, which will be included in the next patch. For the time being, a few suggestions have been offered by Microsoft to temporarily overcome the issue at hand.
Solutions
Reset the Graphics Driver
The first solution deals with resetting the graphics driver. You can reset the Graphics driver by simultaneously pressing the Windows Key + Ctrl + Shift + B combination. In case you are operating Windows 10 on a smartphone or a tablet, you can perform the same task by simultaneously pressing the volume up button and the volume down button thrice within two seconds. This will reset the Graphics driver and might solve the freeze issue you face while you are browsing on Google Chrome.
As a feedback mechanism, the screen of your personal computer will blink or get dim, which is an indication of Windows trying to refresh the display of your computer. If you face a freeze while browsing on Google Chrome, Microsoft has even proposed a quick fix for this too, which is only applicable to laptop users. In case your system freezes you should close the lid and then open it again. This move should unfreeze your system. If all of these solutions fail, then you will have to resort to the reboot option, which might result in some loss of data.
Repair Browser Profile
In certain cases, the cause of the freeze issue in Chrome is the corrupted browser profile. You can rectify this issue by recreating the browser profile. First, you will have to close Google Chrome and open File Explorer. You can open it by simultaneously pressing the Windows key and E. Once it has been opened, you will have to enter the following path in the address field: %LOCALAPPDATA%\Google\Chrome\User Data\. After entering the above mentioned path, just press Enter. This path will lead you to a directory window. In the directory window look for the folder named Default and rename it to Backup Default. Now you can safely launch Google Chrome again. You will see that a new Default folder is automatically created once you resume browsing in Google Chrome. This method has proved beneficial for many users.
Effects
The issue has had a significant impact on both the Windows 10 users and Google. Chrome enjoys a 62 percent share in the web browser market, which means that a huge population of computer users is now suffering the consequences of this bug caused by the Windows 10 April 2018 update. Developers from Google, Intel and Microsoft are looking into this issue to find out what causes the sudden crashes and freezes while browsing via Google Chrome. Initial reports are pointing towards an underlying bug in chromium, since other applications that rely on the embedded version of chromium such as Slack are also crashing in the aftermath of the latest Windows 10 update.
A surprising aspect of this widespread issue is that such an erroneous update should have never been released to the public in the first place. Currently, Microsoft has 10 million people signed up for its program that tests new Windows updates prior to their release. An issue with such a popular web browser would have been picked immediately. This raises concerns that how many of the 10 million people actually actively participate in the testing activities.