VS Code or my IDE gets slow after an hour
Extensions, language servers, and file watchers are greedy. A few big projects open + 20 extensions = gigabytes of RAM.
Try this first
- 1VS Code: Help > Process Explorer. Which language server or extension hogs memory? Disable unused extensions per workspace.
- 2Close projects you are not actively editing. Each open window keeps its own watchers and language servers warm.
- 3For big monorepos: add directories to files.watcherExclude (node_modules, dist, .next). Saves a ton of CPU.
- 4Restart the IDE once a day. Long-session memory leaks are real.
When to bring us in
Developers on 16 GB laptops in 2026 sit at the lower bound. For heavy workloads (Docker, container builds) 32 GB is the practical standard.
See also
- My laptop is suddenly slowThree main suspects: a runaway background process, near-full disk, or a Windows update in progress.
- One specific application is slow for everyoneIf an app is slow for one person: local. For everyone at once: server side or vendor side.
- Opening files from the file server takes minutesOften the server itself is fine and the issue is network routing or stalling DNS resolution.
None of the above fits?
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