Speed up Your Slow Computer For Free
Are you wasting time waiting for your slow computer to load web pages or programs lately? While it may seem like a first-world problem, waiting around for your computer to perform basic tasks can be truly frustrating.
Eventually, all computers become obsolete as software gets more demanding and hardware is outdated. Luckily there are a few things you can do to keep your computer running faster. Follow these simple steps to help speed up your PC or laptop for free.
STEP 1 - REMOVE UNNEEDED PROGRAMS AT STARTUP
You may not realize it, but unnecessary programs may start running as soon as you boot up your computer. This can really slow down older PCs.
To manage your startup, open the task manager by pressing Ctrl-Shift-Esc
You should now see all the programs currently running
Click More Details in the bottom left
Click the Startup tab at the top
Under the Status tab, you can monitor what programs are enabled at startup
Simply right-click and Disable any applications you do not want running at startup
Step 2 - scan for Viruses
The reality is, PCs are prone to getting viruses through day-to-day activities. Luckily, Windows Defender software makes scanning for viruses a snap.
While Windows Defender is free and allows you to easily scan for malware, it isn’t quite enough to keep your computer safe. You will eventually need some type of third-party antivirus. We recommend and use ESET. If you would like to save money on virus protection with ESET, contact us and one of our technicians will be happy to help. But for now, here’s how to use Windows Defender to scan for viruses free of charge.
To turn on Windows Defender
Go to Start
Click Settings
Click Update & Security
Select Windows Security
Click Virus & threat protection
From here you can click Quick Scan or select different options based on your needs
We recommend clicking Manage Settings and turning Real-time Protection On
Step 3 - Disk Cleanup and defragmentation
While this sounds scary, it’s really easy to do. Over time, your computer will accumulate programs and files that you simply don’t need anymore. Windows allows you to run a disk cleanup that will remove unnecessary files from your computer and make your computer more efficient.
Click Start and type Disk Cleanup into the search bar
Select the drive you would like to clean up
You should see options showing temporary files, web pages, and installers that you don’t need.
Choose which files you would like to remove.
We also suggest running disk defragmentation.
Click start and search for Defragment
Select the app Defragment and Optimize Drives
Here you can have the program analyze and optimize your drives for you.
You can also schedule an optimization every so often. We recommend weekly or monthly.
Step 4 - Clean up Your Browser
If webpages are taking a while to load, you may need to optimize your internet browser too. If you are running Google Chrome, make sure it is updated. You can also clear your browsing history and cache to help speed things up.
For Google Chrome:
Click on your profile in the top right corner of your browser. If it says Update simply click relaunch to update chrome
Close unused tabs, this may seem like a no-brainer, but the more tabs that are open, the slower your computer will run.
Click the three dots in the top right corner again
Select More Tools
Select Clear Browsing Data
You can customize what info you would like to delete from here, including browsing history, cookies, cached images etc.
Tip: Deleting cookies might delete the autofill function in the browser search bar, so you may want to bookmark your favorite websites beforehand.
For Internet Explorer:
Click the Gear icon in the top right corner
Click Internet Options
From the General tab, go to Browsing History
Here you can delete browsing history or customize automatic settings to do so periodically
Tip: Deleting cookies might delete the autofill function in the browser search bar, so you may want to bookmark your favorite websites beforehand.
Step 5 - Run System File Checker
Lastly, if you aren’t afraid to get a little techy, you can run the System File Checker to see if there are any problems with any files on your computer.
To Run System File Checker:
Make sure your windows is up to date
Go to Start and type Command Prompt
Right click on the Command Prompt search result and select Run as administrator
Type DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth - be sure to include a “space” before each "/" and then press Enter. This might take a few minutes to start and complete, so maybe go grab a treat from the kitchen for making it this far.
Once completed you should get a message that says “the operation completed successfully”
Now type type sfc /scannow -again with a space before the “/” and press Enter.
Once you see "Verification 100% complete," type exit and press Enter.
Conclusion
Hopefully these steps helped speed up your computer or laptop a little bit. Even if you don’t see much of a difference in speed, these practices are good for the overall health of your computer and will help maintain it for years to come.
If you are still experiencing slow speeds, you may want to look into other means of speeding up your computer that may cost a little money. We would recommend simple upgrades such as adding a solid state drive or RAM.
Did this help? If so, let us know in the comments below!