The SearchUI.exe file manages the search feature for Windows. Many users have reported that the feature stops responding within minutes of booting into the Windows 10 operating system. You cannot use Cortana’s search feature if this file is problematic.
SearchUI.exe suspended or not running
The cause could either be missing system files or an issue with the Cortana application itself. In case you are facing this problem, try rebooting the system and check if it helps. If not, proceed with the following solutions:
- Run the Search and Indexing Troubleshooter
- Run the DISM tool
- Restart the Cortana process in the Task Manager
- Reinstall Cortana
- Troubleshoot in Clean Boot State.
1] Run the Search and Indexing Troubleshooter
Click on the Start button and select Settings > Updates and Security > Troubleshoot. Select the Search and Indexing Troubleshooter from the list and run it.
Restart the system once done.
2] Run the DISM Tool
The DISM tool repairs a potentially corrupted system image. You could consider running it to fix your problem.
3] Restart the Cortana process in the Task Manager
Press CTRL + ALT + DEL to open the Security Options window. Select and open Task Manager from the list.
Locate the Cortana process, right-click on it and select End Task.
The Cortana process will restart on its own and re-initialize itself.
4] Reinstall Cortana
If nothing else works, you could consider reinstalling Cortana itself.
Right-click on the Start button and select Windows PowerShell (Admin).
Type the following command in the elevated PowerShell window and press Enter to execute it:
Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.Windows.Cortana | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}
Restart the system.
5] Troubleshoot in Clean Boot State
You can troubleshoot further manually by performing a Clean Boot. A Clean Boot starts a system with minimal drivers and startup programs. When you start the computer in clean boot, the computer starts by using a pre-selected minimal set of drivers and startup programs, and because the computer starts with a minimal set of drivers, some programs may not work as you expected.
Clean-boot troubleshooting is designed to isolate a performance problem. To perform clean-boot troubleshooting, you must disable or enable one process at a time, and then restart the computer after each action. If the problem goes away, you know that it was the last process which was creating the problem.
SearchUI.exe missing in Windows 11/10
SearchUI.exe is found in Windows 10 and not in Windows 11. If you find that SearchUI.exe is missing in Windows 10, you should run the PowerShell command mentioned above to reinstall Cortana. You could also run the System File Checker and the DISM Tool to resolve the issue. If that does not help, you may have to consider using the Reset PC option.
SearchUI.exe High CPU usage
If SearchUI.exe consumes high CPU usage, you need to troubleshoot in Clean Boot State, as explained above. Running SFC and DISM scans are also likely to help you.
SearchUI.exe crashing in Windows
If SearchUI.exe keeps crashing, you must re-register Cortana in Windows 10. You can also run the System File Checker and the DISM Tool to resolve the issue.
All the best!
