User finds how a key Windows 11 feature could be quietly eating lots of RAM on your PC

Recently, Microsoft altered the behavior of a system service on Windows 11 24H2, 25H2, and Server 2025 such that it will now start by default. What this means is that it may now be constantly running in the background instead of when the user or system needs it, potentially leading to overuse of system resources.

Interestingly, one of the comments by a long-time Neowin forum member neufuse highlighted another such system service called Delivery Optimization that is also known to be a network and RAM hogger at times. He quipped: "can't be as bad as the delivery optimization service..... which sometimes will eat up all your memory and just sit there for fun....."

As if on queue, a Reddit user ran some tests to track and monitor the Delivery Optimization process and he discovered how over time, the service can eat up loads of your system memory.

For those who may not know what it is, Delivery Optimization in Windows 11 and 10 is a peer-to-peer client update service that helps devices obtain Windows updates (cumulative updates) as well as Microsoft Store updates more efficiently since many such cumulative or feature updates may be really large in size.

Thus, instead of downloading updates solely from Microsoft’s servers, it allows PCs to share parts of downloaded updates with other devices on the same local network or even across the internet. This reduces bandwidth usage, speeds up update delivery, and minimizes congestion. Delivery Optimization is said to automatically balance between Microsoft’s servers and peer sources to ensure reliability and security. A good thing is that users are able to configure the feature's settings via the Windows Update settings options to restrict sharing to local networks or to disable it entirely.

The Reddit user Niff_Naff explains in their post how they used the Windows Process ID (PID) and the process' service name to plot the memory usage over time. The author noted that the DoSvc (Delivery Optimization Service) kept using significantly more memory over time compared to the others indicating a possible memory leak; the user adds that they have been noticing the behavior since the last month or so.

Hence it is probably a good thing that Microsoft has decided to delay another automatic Windows Update feature to 2026 citing user and admin feedback. No wonder the company now recommends a minimum of 16GB of memory on gaming and AI PCs.

Source and image: Niff_Naff (Reddit)

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Posted Friday 19 December 2025 at 2:47 am AEST (my time).

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