Opening Reliability Monitor on Windows 11

Microsoft has buried this useful utility a few clicks deep, but it's simple to reach if you know the steps. The simplest way to access the Reliability Monitor is through the Start menu search bar.

Start Menu Search

Begin typing "reliability" into the search field, and “View reliability history” will show up as you type.

### Control Panel

If you prefer accessing it from the Windows Control Panel, open "System and Security," then select “Security and Maintenance,”* and you'll find the “View reliability history” option in the Maintenance section.

### From the Command Prompt

For those who enjoy using the command line, launch the Reliability Monitor by entering "perfmon /rel" in the Command Prompt. Press enter, and the tool opens immediately.

### Adding a Shortcut to the Desktop

I suggest creating a desktop shortcut for quicker access. To do so, right-click on an empty area of your desktop and choose New > Shortcut.

Then input the path to the utility:

Now give the shortcut a suitable name and click Finish.

Regardless of how you get there, the information available can help identify what’s happening with your system.

Related ##### How to Use Advanced Startup Options to Fix a Windows 11 PC

The Advanced Startup Options will become essential if your Windows PC is experiencing issues.

Let’s explore the interface. You can switch between days or weeks using the dropdown in the upper left corner of the chart. A full month of data appears in the graph, and even more details are accessible if you click "View all problem reports" at the bottom left of the window.

At the top of the chart, the blue line shows the "Reliability Scale," which ranges from 10 (most reliable) to 1 (least reliable).

On the right side of the chart, each row is labeled accordingly.

• Application Failures
• Windows Failures
• Miscellaneous Failures
• Warnings
• Information

### Event Categories

Each row contains icons representing different types of logged events. Here's what each icon stands for:

• A red circle with a cross means a critical event that affected system reliability.
• A yellow triangle with an exclamation mark (!) indicates warning events that didn’t directly impact system stability but should be monitored.
• A blue circle with an "i" symbol represents informational events, showing successful updates and actions.

Making Use of the Data in Windows Reliability Monitor

Let’s see how this data works in practice. Looking at my report, I notice that on May 20th, my system reliability index dropped to 5. Clicking on that date, highlighted with a blue background, reveals that my system had several issues that day. There were two critical events: a Copilot-related warning and multiple updates along with app reconfigurations.

You can click any of these items to view detailed technical logs. In the example below, you can see the failure of a Microsoft Copilot update. The error code 0x80073D02 is visible. By searching online, I could learn more about the error and how to resolve it.

This kind of insight is extremely helpful when troubleshooting problems like recurring application crashes. An Information Event might reveal that a crash began shortly after an antivirus update. Temporarily disabling the antivirus could confirm this. If true, you could either add the app to the antivirus exceptions list or roll back the update. Also, ensure that your application is updated to the latest version.

Another situation may involve repeated hardware-related errors. With that knowledge, you could check Device Manager for malfunctioning devices or outdated drivers. Recently, one of the HDMI ports on my multi-monitor setup failed. The Reliability Monitor helped me locate the issue in Device Manager. After reinstalling the driver and swapping cables failed to fix the issue, I connected via a USB hub and restored use of my second monitor.

If your computer frequently crashes, you can use the data to determine how often and when the instability started. It might point to a recent Windows update or new driver installation.

Regardless of how you use it, the Windows Reliability Monitor is worth exploring. Its intuitive layout allows average users to track down frustrating crashes and freezes quickly and return to normal operations.

However, keep in mind that the Reliability Monitor alone won’t solve every issue. Sometimes you might not find the answers you need here — in such cases, try the Windows Event Viewer. There are also many other tools and methods available to maintain and improve the performance of your Windows device.

The above is the detailed content of How to Use Windows Reliability Monitor. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!