Tech News Today
  • Hardware
    • Motherboards
    • CPUs
    • Graphic Cards
    • RAM
    • SSDs
    • Computer Cases
    • Monitors
    • Peripherals
    • Power Supply Unit
    • PC Builds
    • Computer Tips
  • Software
  • Operating System
    • Windows
    • Mac
    • Linux
  • Gaming
  • Mobile
  • Console
  • More
    • Internet
    • Networking
    • Security
    • Buyer’s Guide
    • Gadgets
    • Laptops
    • Reviews
    • How To
    • News
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Tech News Today
  • Hardware
    • Motherboards
    • CPUs
    • Graphic Cards
    • RAM
    • SSDs
    • Computer Cases
    • Monitors
    • Peripherals
    • Power Supply Unit
    • PC Builds
    • Computer Tips
  • Software
  • Operating System
    • Windows
    • Mac
    • Linux
  • Gaming
  • Mobile
  • Console
  • More
    • Internet
    • Networking
    • Security
    • Buyer’s Guide
    • Gadgets
    • Laptops
    • Reviews
    • How To
    • News
Tech News Today
Home»Windows»Fix: Microsoft Office Click-To-Run High CPU Usage

Fix: Microsoft Office Click-To-Run High CPU Usage

Abhishek SilwalBy Abhishek SilwalJuly 2, 2022
microsoft office click to run high cpu

Microsoft Office Click-to-Run is a program that uses virtualization and streaming technologies to install Microsoft Office and its updates quickly. This service runs during the installation and updates of Microsoft Office and uses streaming technology to allow users to use Office apps before their complete installation.

If this process shows high CPU usage, there’s likely an issue with the update or installation over the internet. So, you can either troubleshoot those errors or use the MSI installer to install the latest Microsoft Office.

Table of Contents

  • What’s Causing Microsoft Office Click-To-Run High CPU Usage
  • How to Fix Microsoft Office Click-To-Run High CPU Usage
    • Disable Metered Connection
    • End Process Thread
    • Repair Microsoft Office
    • Manually Reinstall Latest Microsoft Office
    • Check for Malware
    • Disable Click-to-Run Service
    • Delete Cache Files
    • Uninstall Click-to-Run

What’s Causing Microsoft Office Click-To-Run High CPU Usage

Here are some potential reasons for Microsoft Office Click-To-Run having high CPU usage:

  • Conflicts with metered connections.
  • Errors in the cache of downloaded update files.
  • Issues with the Microsoft Office version (especially after an automatic update).
  • Malware hijacking the process.

How to Fix Microsoft Office Click-To-Run High CPU Usage

First, if you have an unlimited internet connection, wait patiently for some time. Click-to-Run is most likely installing Office updates and the CPU usage should lower after the process completes.

If it shows a high CPU usage for a long time, shut down your PC and let it cool down. If you still get Click-to-Run’s high CPU usage after restarting and running any Office app, try the following possible solutions to resolve your issue:

Disable Metered Connection

Microsoft Office Click-to-Run often shows high CPU usage with limited connections like 4G broadband. You can fix this issue by switching to LAN or WLAN network connection.

Also, if you have enabled metered connection in the Windows Settings app, disable it using the steps below:

  1. Press Win + I to open Settings.
  2. Go to Network & Internet > Status.
  3. Click on Properties below your connected network.
  4. Toggle off Metered connection.
    Metered connection

End Process Thread

If you don’t want to disable the metered connection, you might as well end the Microsoft thread hogging your CPU resources. Doing so stops any updates, but you probably want to do so if you use the metered connection. 

You must download the Windows Sysinternals Process Explorer to check thread-level resource utilization. The process is as follows:

  1. Open the Process Explorer and double-click on your Office app with the highest CPU usage.
  2. Look for the thread with a high CPU (most likely a telemetry or update) and end it.

You need to perform this method every time you relaunch an Office app. So, we recommend updating Microsoft Office as soon as you connect to an unlimited data network.

Repair Microsoft Office

Another method you can try is repairing Microsoft Office. Doing so takes care of minor issues with the system that may be increasing the CPU usage of Click-to-Run. Here are the necessary steps for the method:

  1. Press Win + R to open Run and enter control.
  2. Go to Programs > Uninstall a program or Programs and Features.
  3. Click on your Microsoft Office program and select Change.
    repair-microsoft-office
  4. Check Quick Repair and click Repair.

Restart your PC. If a Quick Repair doesn’t resolve the issue, try selecting Online Repair.

Manually Reinstall Latest Microsoft Office

Microsoft Office Click-to-Run is an alternative to the traditional MSI installer. If this process shows high CPU usage for a long time, it indicates issues with the installation or the update.

So, you can avoid it by using the MSI installer to install the latest version of Office.

First, you need to uninstall your Microsoft Office. We recommend using the Office uninstall support tool to do so. Then, install the latest version for the build you want from the official website.

Check for Malware

First, you need to check if the program is actually Microsoft Office’s support program and not any malware script. You can do so by checking the process’s file location from the Task Manager. To do so,

  1. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open the Task Manager.
  2. Look for Microsoft Office Click-To-Run on the Processes tab or OfficeC2Rclient.exe on the Details tab.
  3. Right-click on it and select Open File Location.

The File Explorer should open to C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\ClickToRun\ if there are no issues. If it’s any other random location, a malware program is likely hijacking the process. 

Perform a full scan of your system in such cases. To do so,

  1. Open Command Prompt by entering cmd on Run.
  2. Enter the command “%ProgramFiles%\Windows Defender\MpCmdRun” -Scan -ScanType 2

Disable Click-to-Run Service

You can also try disabling the Microsoft Office Click-to-Run service altogether. However, you need to keep the following things in mind while doing so:

  • Click-to-Run allows running Office apps before their complete installation. So, you can use the apps if you disable this service before the streaming installation of Microsoft Office.
  • Your Microsoft Office stops updating automatically after you disable it. So, you must re-enable it to install the updates or do so manually.

So, the best way is to temporarily disable this service if the high CPU usage is troubling you. Here’s how you can do so:

  1. Launch Run and enter services.msc.
  2. Look for Microsoft Office Click-to-Run service and double-click on it.
    click-to-run-service
  3. Click Stop and set the Startup type to Disabled and click Ok.

Delete Cache Files

Microsoft Office 2016 and earlier users have mentioned that they were able to fix the issue by deleting the Office cache files. While it doesn’t work for later builds, you can still use the method on the earlier ones.

Here’s how you can delete the cache files:

  1. Disable the Click-to-Run service using the steps from the method above.
  2. Delete the contents of the following AppData folders:
    • C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Office\Spw
    • C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Office\15.0\OfficeFileCache

Enable the Click-to-Run service by setting its startup type to Automatic and then restart your PC.

Also, keep in mind that your Microsoft Office build may have a different location of the caches. So, make sure to check the official website first.

Uninstall Click-to-Run

If Microsoft Office Click-to-Run keeps showing high CPU usage even after performing all previous solutions, you should uninstall it. It’s not necessary for running Office apps and you can always manually update them. 

Here’s how you can uninstall this program:

  1. Open Run and enter appwiz.cpl.
  2. Search for and select Microsoft Office Click-to-Run.
    uninstall-click-to-run
  3. Click Uninstall and follow the on-screen instructions.
fix
Abhishek Silwal
  • LinkedIn

Abhishek Silwal is an Electronics Engineer and a technical writer at TechNewsToday. He specializes in troubleshooting a wide range of computer-related issues. His educational background in Electronics Engineering has given him a solid foundation in understanding of computers. He is also proficient in several programming languages and has worked on various robotics projects. Even in his early days, he used to tinker with various computer components, both hardware, and software, to satiate his curiosity. This experience has given him a breadth of experience that goes beyond his educational qualification. Abhishek has been writing articles on dealing with varieties of technical issues and performing specific tasks, especially on a Windows machine. He strives to create comprehensive guides on fixing many system and hardware issues and help others solve their problems. You can contact him at abhisheksilwal@technewtoday.com

Related Posts

boot loop

14 Ways to Fix Windows Boot Loop

March 19, 2023
how to change windows startup sound

How to Change Windows Startup Sound

March 17, 2023
scan disk windows 10

How to Scan Disk Windows

March 16, 2023
Shared GPU Memory

What is Shared GPU Memory? How is It Different From Dedicated VRAM?

March 12, 2023
firmware vs software

Firmware Vs Software – What’s the Difference?

March 8, 2023
update sound drivers

How to Update Sound Drivers on Windows

March 7, 2023
Add A Comment

Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

Latest Posts
what-does-spooling-mean-on-printer

What Does Spooling Mean on Printer?

March 23, 2023
sata ports on motherboard

All the Types of SATA Ports on Motherboard

March 21, 2023
anti-aliasing-on-or-off

What is Anti Aliasing? Should You Turn It on or off

March 21, 2023
You may also like
caps key not working

6 Ways to Fix Caps Key Not Working

March 23, 2023
how to increase ram on laptop

How to Increase RAM on Laptop? (Step-by-Step Guide)

March 23, 2023
how to overclock ram

How to Overclock RAM? (Step-by-Step Guide)

March 22, 2023
Recommended
Cookie Clicker Garden Guide

Cookie Clicker Garden Guide to Unlocking Every Seed

September 26, 2021
monitor no signal

Computer Turns On But Monitor Says No Signal (9 Ways To Fix)

November 10, 2022
Facebook Twitter Pinterest
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Our Team
  • Editorial Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Affiliate Disclosure
© 2023 TechNewsToday, editor@technewstoday.com | Tech Central Pvt. Ltd.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.