Have you been having trouble with your PC moving at a snail’s pace lately? Do not panic; It happens to everyone. Before you decide to invest in a new PC or take it to a repair shop, there are a few things you can do first to help get your computer working again.
Here are 10 tips to help you get your slow-running PC back up and running quickly. If you have a Mac, you’ll want to check out our 8 tips to speed up your Mac’s performance.
When you restart your PC, Windows will close all of your applications, which may resolve some slowdown issues. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
The first steps
Tip #1: Restart your PC
Before doing anything, quickly restart your PC. When you restart your PC, Windows will close all of your applications, which may resolve some slowdown issues.
- In the lower left corner of the screen, you will find the windows icon. Click on it to open the Start Menu.
- Inside the Start menu, you will see a power button icon. Click on it to reveal a submenu.
- In the submenu, select the “Resume” option. Windows will now start the reboot process.
- Your PC close all open applications and perform a hard reset. This process can take a few minutes.
- Once your PC has restarted, access using your credentials.
Tip #2: Enable automatic updates
Be sure to keep your Windows operating system up to date. Microsoft continually rolls out improvements for bugs that can slow down your PC. This is what you should do:
- Using the windows Search bar At the bottom left of the screen (center in Windows 11), look for Windows update.
- Then select Windows update settings.
- In more options, activate Get the latest updates as soon as they are available.
Be sure to keep your Windows operating system up to date. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Tip No. 3: Check Startup Apps That Can Slow Things Down
Check which programs open automatically at startup.
- Firstly, on your PC, navigate to the bottom left and click on the windows icon.
- Then find the gear iconmouse over the gear icon and click Settings.
- TO new window It will appear with your PC settings. Look for Applications and click on that.
- At the bottom of the app list, you should see something that says Start up. Find and click on that.
- You will now see a list of all the Startup Applications which starts when your PC starts.
- At the top of the list, click “Sort by” to select how you want to sort the list.
- Then scroll down the list and search for whatever programs you want to disable for startup.
- Get rid of things you don’t use and that may have gotten here a long time ago.
- When you have found one that you want to disable, click the small switch together with him. The fewer elements left to boot, the less drag there will be on your processing power.
Home screen of applications on PC. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
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Tip #4: Use Microsoft’s Defragment Disk Tool to Clean Everything
Cleaning your disk with Windows’ “Disk Cleanup” tool is an easy way to remove old temporary files and old system data stored on your hard drive, which can slow down your PC’s performance.
- Gonna File Browser.
- Right click on local drive C:
- Click Properties.
- Click Details.
- Go to the Tools tab.
- Run “Optimize and defragment the drive.”
Microsoft Disk Defragmentation Tool on PC. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
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Advanced steps
If none of the steps above helped speed up your PC, you may need to follow these slightly more advanced steps.
Tip #5: Uninstall unused apps
Depending on the PC you bought, it is very likely that you have some pre-installed programs that you do not use. It’s a good idea to go through your list of applications and remove programs that you no longer use or that were pre-installed on your system.
To do this:
- Look for Remove programs in the Windows Search taskbar.
- Click on Add or remove programs.
- Delete any unused applications.
Tip #6: Disable Background Programs
With Windows Command Center, you can find apps running in the background and close them. This will free up processing power and memory and help speed up your PC. To do this:
- Start Windows Settings application
- Click on the Applications tab on the left toolbar.
- From here all the applications on your PC will appear. Click on the ‘…’ symbol next to the app and select Advanced Options.
- Select any application, click Background permissions.
- Switch to Never for any apps you don’t want to run in the background.
Tip #7: Turn off visual effects
You can disable visual effects to free up additional memory and processing power.
To do this:
- press the Windows key + You.
- Click on the tab to visual effects.
- From here, you can disable any visual effects of your choice.
Screen to disable visual effects on PC. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Final steps
If everything else failed to speed up your PC performance, you can try the following steps. These steps will require a bit of technical knowledge, such as how to open and replace components within your PC, so you may need to seek professional help.
Tip No. 8: Upgrade your RAM
One of the most common problems that causes PCs to slow down is a lack of RAM for all your applications. While 8GB of RAM should be fine for most users, if you notice your PC running slow with 8GB of RAM, it’s worth upgrading to 16GB. Most computer stores can help you with this for a fee.
Tip #9: Use an SSD
Solid State Drives (SSD) can greatly improve the speed of your PC. They offer faster data transfer speeds, improved boot and load times, and greater bandwidth compared to traditional hard drives. By installing an SSD and moving your operating system and crucial applications to it, you can achieve faster boot, load, and read/write times.
You have two options when installing an SSD: do it yourself or consult a professional. If you are tech-savvy and comfortable handling computer hardware, you can install the SSD yourself. This involves replacing or supplementing the existing HDD with the SSD and transferring its operating system and files.
However, most people will want to consult with a professional. They can take care of the installation and data transfer for you. Whichever method you choose, it’s essential to back up your data beforehand and make sure your computer is compatible with the SSD you’ve chosen.
Tip #10: Perform a clean reinstall of Windows
This should only be attempted by people who are comfortable installing and reinstalling operating systems. Otherwise, we recommend taking your PC to a repair shop. If you want to perform a clean install of Windows 11 or 10, simply head to the Microsoft website and go to the “Reinstall Windows” page.
Kurt’s Key Takeaways
It’s never fun when your computer is running slow and we hope these 10 tips can help you get your PC back up to speed. The first four steps will be sufficient for most users, but if you are comfortable and have a lot of technical experience, you can try steps four through 10 or seek professional help to complete them.
Have you encountered any unique challenges when trying to improve your computer’s performance? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com/Contact
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