How to change the Hung App Timeout value in Windows. Ever tried closing a frozen app only to wait until Windows finally responds? Let's fix that. In this video, we'll break down the Hung App Timeout feature, and how to adjust it for better control over unresponsive applications. Before we begin, be sure to subscribe to Ninja One's IT video hub and our YouTube channel for more tech content like this. What is Hung App Timeout? Hung App Timeout is a built-in Windows setting that controls how long your computer waits before forcefully closing a frozen application. By default, this value is set to 5,000 milliseconds, that's five seconds, and the best part is, you can change it. Whether you're tired of delays or need more time for complex tasks to finish, modifying Hung App Timeout lets you decide how quickly Windows should react to hung programs. How to change the Hung App Timeout value. To change the setting, we'll use the registry editor which gives you access to deep Windows configurations. Don't worry, we'll walk you through the steps carefully. To change Hung App Timeout for the current user, first, open the registry editor by pressing Windows key plus R, typing regedit, and hitting enter. Next, navigate to this path, Computer/HKey_CurrentUser/Control Panel Desktop. On the right pane, find Hung App Timeout. If it's not there, right click new and then string value and name it Hung App Timeout. Double click it, enter your preferred value in milliseconds and click okay. Then sign out of your PC and back in to apply the changes. Note that this next method affects everyone using the device, so we advise some caution when following these steps. First, sign in as an administrator and open the registry editor. Navigate to this path. Computer/HKey Users/.Default/Control Panel Desktop and locate or create Hung App Timeout as instructed in the first method. Enter your preferred value, click okay, and sign out and back in to activate the changes. Finally, making changes in the registry editor can be risky. One wrong value and you might destabilize essential programs. So here's the golden rule: always back up your registry first; only change what you understand; and be precise, data entries are sensitive to even small typos. Overall, knowing how to adjust Hung App Timeout gives you power over how your system handles crashes. Whether you're a casual or power user, setting this up the right way saves you valuable time and keeps your system running smoothly. For more information, check out our official blog post on Hung App Timeout linked in the description below. Be sure to subscribe to Ninja One's IT video hub and our YouTube channel for more tech content like this.