How To Speed Up Your PC

Over time, your PC can become sluggish and start to slow down.  Reasons for this include: temporary files from browsing the Web, viruses, spyware, registry errors, browser toolbars, programs that automatically start up when your PC is turned on.  Luckily, there are some free programs that do a good job of cleaning up your PC.

1. CCleaner
CCleaner is one of the most versatile tools I have at my disposal.  CCleaner will analyze your system and run the equivalent of a “disk cleanup,” which deletes temp files and files in your recycle bin.  These files accumulate over time and need to be cleaned out.  CCleaner also can fix registry errors.  I always do a backup of the registry before I run this.  The program will ask you before you to a registry scan whether or not you want to save a backup.  It can also be used to check which programs run on startup.  This can be done alternatively through MSConfig, which is a built-in Windows program, but CCleaner is much more simpler.  You’ll want to minimize how many programs that run automatically on start up.

2. Malwarebytes Anti-malware
The next thing to do is run a virus scan.  I prefer Malwarebytes but another very good program is SuperAntiSpyware.  I know it has a funny name, but it does a good job.  These 2 programs will scan your system for viruses, trojans, and spyware.  Spyware can really slow down your computer so its important to run a scan regularly.  Have you heard of the infamous Antivirus 2009 virus?  Its a rogue anti-spyware program that tries to scare you into buying their antivirus program and can be very frustrating to get rid off.  There are several different variants of this particular virus and each one has its quirks.  But Malwarebytes Anti-malware will get rid of it every time.  Here’s another tip:  when you have a virus that continues to regenerate itself and keeps coming back, turn off System Restore, then run a scan and reboot.  Those particular viruses will hide themselves in System Restore.

3. Auslogics Disk Defrag
Windows  has its own built in defrag application but I have found that Auslogics runs much faster.  And to be honest, running a disk defrag only needs to be done once or twice a year.  Its not something that needs to be done very often.

These are just a couple of programs that I personally use and have found to help me out when trying to clean up an old system.  Another thing that I do is check the installed programs.  It will also help to do an inventory of your system and see if there are some programs you can uninstall.  Uninstall any browser toolbars that you have but don’t use.  They can also affect the speed of your browsing.  User behavior is the biggest factor in how a system behaves.  Be careful about the websites you browse to, do not click on links in email or download attachments.  This will minimize the potential for getting spyware and viruses on your system.