In order to understand the system running low on resources error you have to research it. That’s what I did to correct this one. If there is one thing computer users don’t like, it’s working on a slow computer with low resources. When your computer is running low on system resources you can definitely feel it. Opening multiple tabs on Google Chrome to a heavy multilayered Photoshop document. Better yet, log into one of your user accounts and open a bunch of programs like I just mentioned, them leave them there as you switch over to your other user account. Most of the time we end up forgetting the other user account was still running programs. Doing this usually causes a memory dump of some kind on Windows 7.
This error happened to me on a Windows 7 computer. The error was, System running low on resources – Cannot log on as new user and System running low on resources by it’s self. Note, there’s a chance the fix for this Windows 7 error might not work on your computer.
The Actual Error
This error would appear whenever while I would switch back and forth between user accounts before closing the other. I would forget about how many programs I had open in each account. Turns out he memory stacks were not fully clearing when I would leave the account and go over to user account 2. On user account 1, I had a few heavy programs running and forget to close them. Then continue to work inside user account 2, completely forgetting about closing all the programs that were running in user account 1.
The Fix
In order to properly fix this error you must log all users out and restart your PC. That will clear the memory stack. Going into the future, make sure to close programs before you switch over to a different user account. Use your PC’s resources where they are needed most.
The above fix should do the trick for most users. If you are still encountering the “System running low on resources” error, then you may want to consider checking your file system for misc. file corruption and over file integrity. There are 2 tools I know of that have been known to cure this. SFC scan and DISM scan.
System File Checker Scan
SFC stands for System File Checker. It’s a Windows built-in administrative tool to verify the integrity of operating system files and to repair files that are corrupt, damaged or changed. Here’s how to scan your computer using the Windows 7 built in System File Checker tool.
- In the Windows search bar, type cmd.
- Then right-click on cmd.exe and select Run as Administrator.
- Click Yes on the User Account Control (UAC) prompt that appears.
- Once the blinking cursor appears, type: SFC /scannow and press the Enter key.
Deployment Image Servicing and Management Scan
DISM scan uses Windows Update to provide the files that are required to fix corrupted files.
Many times you will not need to run the DISM tool or one like it. On Windows 7 and earlier, the DISM command is not available. So the alternative is the System Update Readiness Tool from Microsoft. Use it to scan your system for issues and fix them similar to the DISM tool.
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