If we exclude flagship devices, Chromebooks are not exactly the most powerful laptops out there. Instead of relying on high-spec hardware, they usually rely on optimization and the undemanding nature of Chrome OS. However, low-end devices will occasionally run into issues. Some users report that their Chromebook got frozen and that it won’t turn off. We have a few things to suggest.
Table of contents:
How to fix a frozen Chromebook
1. Try a Hard reboot
The first thing you should do is forcibly power off your Chromebook. That is if you can’t open Task Manager (Search key + Esc). To do so, press and hold on to the power button until the device powers off. If that doesn’t work, you’ll either need to wait until the battery discharges completely or remove the battery and then unplug the cable.
Alternatively, you can try a Hardware reset followed by the Factory Reset (Powerwash).
2. Try with Hardware reset
The hardware reset on Chromebooks is an advanced boot option that, as the name says, resets hardware. This is a legitimate troubleshooting option if your Chromebook often freezes and would lead to a complete halt. It’s so serious that some users can’t turn off the device at all.
To perform a hardware reset on your Chromebook, make sure that it’s off. Then press and hold the Power button + Refresh button (circular arrow). When the Chromebook starts, you can release Refresh.
3. Do a Powerwash
Finally, to reduce the occurrence of freezes and system lag, we suggest resetting your Chromebook to factory settings. The procedure is also referred to as Powerwash and you can do it from system settings. Thanks to the nature of Chrome OS and frequent backups, the restoration procedure is quite fast.
The only problem might be if you have a whole Linux Subsystem and many Android apps. Linux and app data are not backed up.
Here’s how to do a Powerwash on your Chromebook:
- Back up your files to Google Drive or Google Photos.
- Open Settings.
- Expand Advanced.
- Select Reset settings.
- Click Reset.
After your device restarts, log in with your Google Account and wait until settings are restored. And, on that note, we can conclude this article. Thank you for reading and don’t forget to share your thoughts, questions, or suggestions with us in the comments section below. We look forward to hearing from you.
Editor’s note: This article was initially published in March 2022. We made sure to revamp it for freshness and accuracy.
