When installed incorrectly or due to incompatibility issues, Adobe CEF Helper High Memory or CPU usage or CPU usage on your Windows computer. This will result in various device issues such as lags, screen freezes, and glitches.
The Adobe CEF Helper will operate in the background when you launch the Adobe Creative Cloud services. It then performs routine checks to ensure all your Adobe apps are up-to-date. Even in an idle state, this application is known to occupy a lot of CPU resources.
This article addresses the Adobe CEF Helper High Memory or CPU Usage issue of Adobe CEF Helper. Please read this article further to know more about this issue and fixes that can completely resolve it.
What is Adobe CEF Helper?
The Adobe CEF Helper is a processing service used by Adobe creative cloud applications. Its primary function is to render various adobe components. For instance, this service is used for rendering when you export a photograph from Adobe Photoshop.
Go to Task Manager Processes window. You’ll notice that various background processes (with similar names) are on the list when you run Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop. In a sense, the Adobe CEF Helper is a vital service necessary during the two situations- Runtime and the Rendering process.
Why is Adobe CEF Helper Causing High Memory or CPU Usage?
Usually, Adobe product(s) (Photoshop and Premier Pro) demand a lot of CPU resources. Your CPU can quickly become overburdened if Adobe CC and CEF Helper continually operate.
The Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop applications operate various components with many background processes. It manages these processes through Adobe CEF Helper. Because CEF Helper renders each component assigned to it individually, many jobs can execute under the same name (why you can see processes with similar titles?).
Even if you are not using any Adobe software, these processes run in the background and occupy your computer’s memory and CPU resources.
Although CEF Helper runs in the background, the issue might not be with it specifically. Following are some possible situations that may cause the Adobe CEF Helper high memory or CPU usage issue.
- System files on your computer may be corrupt.
- Or, the Creative Cloud you downloaded might be broken, harming your CPU.
- Or, the Adobe creative cloud products are incompatible with the version of Windows OS installed on your computer.
- Or, it may be the clash between the Antivirus program and Adobe CEF Helper.
Find out more about these points in the next section.
How to Fix Adobe CEF Helper High Memory or CPU Usage?
Following is a list of solutions (fixes) that you can apply to fix the “Adobe CEF Helper High Memory or CPU usage” issue.
- Restart Your Computer
- Update Windows OS
- Run The SFC Scan
- Suspend Or Temporarily Disable Your Anti-virus Program
- Uninstall & Reinstall Adobe CEF Helper
1. Restart Your Computer
A restart can clear your computer’s memory (RAM). The processor can also work more efficiently by terminating or updating programs.
If you’re facing the ‘Adobe CEF Helper High Memory or CPU usage’ issue for the first time on your desktop or laptop, restarting your computer may fix it.
- Save your work and close any active program.
- Press the Windows key or click on the Start icon.
- Select the Power icon.
- Click Restart.
Wait for the computer to finish the reboot. Now check your computer’s Memory and CPU usage indicator. If this fix doesn’t help, try the next solution.
2. Update Windows OS
Another problem can be an outdated/older version of Windows. You can resolve this by updating your desktop/laptop operating system.
Microsoft releases regular update packages containing security updates, bug fixes, driver updates, etc.
If you face Adobe CEF Helper High Memory or CPU Usage, it may be a compatibility issue with the Windows OS. Regularly updating your Windows OS will keep your system up-to-date with the latest technical standards.
- First, access the Settings App: Press Windows + I.
- Select Update & Security.
- Click Windows Update. It is on the left pane.
- Select the Check for Updates button to check for the latest available updates.
- If there are any new updates, you can tickmark the required updates.
- Click on the Download and install option.
- After the updates download and installation is complete, the update wizard will ask for Restart. Click on Restart Now.
3. Run The SFC Scan
The SFC (System File Checker) scans your computer’s protected system files for corruption. It then replaces the corrupted files with a cached copy from the directory “%WinDir%\System32\dllcache”.
Any chance the Adobe CEF Helper is causing High Memory or CPU usage due to corrupt system files? Then the SFC scan will prove helpful.
- To access the Windows Search bar, press the Windows + S keys.
- Now type cmd into the search box and right-click the top result.
- Select “Run as administrator.”
- Copy-paste or type the following command into the window and press Enter.
“sfc /scannow“
Wait for the process to finish. It may take several minutes, then restart your computer.
4. Suspend or Temporarily Disable Your Anti-virus Program
For a short duration, disable the anti-virus protection. With this, you can check whether the incompatibility between Adobe CEF helper and the anti-virus program is causing high CPU usage.
- Right-click the anti-virus icon (Umbrella with red background) in the taskbar and select Avast Shields Control.
- Choose the option Disable for 10 minutes, then click Ok.
If you have another anti-virus program installed, you can temporarily disable it using the above steps.
For example, if you have installed McAfee:
- Right-click on the McAfee antivirus icon.
- Select Change Settings-> Firewall
- Click Turn Off.
- Choose the time from the drop-down menu.
- Select Turn Off.
5. Uninstall & Reinstall Adobe CEF Helper
It may be that all the other solutions didn’t work well on your computer. In that case, you can try reinstalling the latest version of the Adobe Acrobat Creative Clouds Desktop application.
- Type Control Panel into the taskbar search box.
- Click on the Control panel option from the results list.
- Navigate to Programs -> Programs and Features.
- Search and select the app Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop.
- Right-click on the app and select Uninstall or Uninstall/Change.
- Now follow the on-screen instructions.
- Reboot your computer.
Uninstall Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop from the Start menu.
- Click on Start -> All Apps.
- Right-click on the software and select Uninstall.
- Now follow the on-screen instructions.
- Reboot your computer.
You can also uninstall the Creative Cloud application from the installation folder.
- Open File Explorer.
- Type or copy-paste the path “C\:Program Files>Adobe Systems>Adobe CEF Helper or Adobe Creative Cloud >Adobe CEF Helper_uninstall.exe”
- Run the uninstaller executable file (uninstall.exe).
- Follow the on-screen instructions of the uninstaller wizard.
Now download and install the latest version of Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop. Go to the Adobe Official page. Download the latest version of the software and install it on your system.
Conclusion
In conclusion, you must have a general idea of the function of Adobe CEF helper. All Adobe Creative Clouds Desktop programs depend on the Adobe CEF Helper service to function correctly. If your computer experience high memory and CPU usage, try the fixes given in this article.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How To Stop The Launch Of Adobe CEF Helper At Startup?
You can stop the Adobe CEF Helper service from automatic startup through the following steps. Launch Adobe Creative Clouds Desktop application. Navigate to Profile-> Preferences-> General. Toggle the option Launch Creative Cloud at login to off. Finally, select Done to save the changes.
Why Is CEF Helper Running?
The Adobe CEF Helper service powers and maintains (renders) the Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop apps. It is in charge of gathering and processing essential data. Adobe CEF helper also manages your licenses and subscription.
Why Is Creative Cloud Causing High CPU Usage?
There are situations when Abode Programs occupy much more than the usual CPU and memory resources. High CPU usage will result in lag, screen freezes, glitches, and other device issues. The case is also valid when the programs are in an idle state. Corrupt system files, incompatibility, and anti-virus programs are primarily responsible for this issue.
How To Remove Creative Cloud From Windows?
Uninstall Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop from the Start menu. Go to Start -> All Apps. Search for software you wish to uninstall—Right-click the Creative Cloud program. Select Uninstall/Change. Follow the on-screen instructions.
