A slow computer is frustrating and unproductive. However, you don’t have to contact a computer tech support company to speed-up and optimize your computer. There some things you can try yourself first.
If your computer is more than five years old, it probably is time to consider getting a new one. It probably just doesn’t have enough memory and RAM to be able to work fast enough to satisfy you. If the computer is for business purposes, you probably will want to upgrade every few years.
Whenever you are experiencing problems with a computer, it is a good idea to try restarting it first, especially if it hasn’t been shut down for a day or two. This will restart programs that may have developed errors that could be fixed on the restart and will delete temporary files that may be causing problems.
When a computer is slow, make sure it has enough memory. If it doesn’t have at least 500MB of free space in the hard drive, it won’t have enough room for the swap file to increase and for temporary files.
You can check the space on your hard drive on a Windows Vista computer or newer by opening the computer icon on the desktop. For older Windows computers, you can open “My Computer.”
Disk cleanup can help speed-up and optimize your computer
If you do need some more space on your hard drive, you can right-click on the drive that you want to fix and select “Properties.” Go in the General tab and select “Disk cleanup.” This will look for ways to clear space on the drive. Do not try to compress the drive, which is one of the disk cleanup options. Make sure that box is not checked.
If this doesn’t clear enough space, you can try to disable hibernation mode if it isn’t already. You can do this in the Control Panel under “Power Options.” When hibernation mode is disabled, you will need to shut down your computer when you aren’t using it to save on power.
On a computer with Windows XP or newer, you can choose to decrease the default space used for System Restore, which could yield several gigabytes of space on your hard drive. Go to Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools > System Restore and click on “System Restore Settings.” Decrease the space usage so you have enough room on your hard drive.
If you have enough space on your hard drive, try running Scan Disk or a similar program to look for errors that can be easily fixed. If this doesn’t yield satisfactory results, you can try to defragment your drive. Go back to the drive and right click on it. Go to Properties > Tools and click on “Defragment now.”
Another problem could be malware. Run antivirus software on your computer to check for any malware that may be slowing down the computer. Follow the instructions presented on how to get rid of any malware found.
If your computer also has been locking up or shutting down randomly, it could mean that your processor is overheating. This could be caused by improper ventilation due to vents being dirty or fans not working properly. Try cleaning the outside of the case with a dry cloth and vacuuming out vents. You also could try opening the case and using a can of compressed air to clean out vents, fans and components. Compressed air can be found at an electronics store.
If your computer is still slow, you may want to consider contacting a computer tech support company, which can help you speed-up and optimize your computer. They can diagnose problems based on your specific operating system and hardware on your computer and recommend the best way to speed-up and optimize your computer.
