“What can I do to speed up my computer?”

Categories: End Users Howtos Information Instruction

“What can I do to speed up my computer?” is the question I get most from my friends and family. While there is no one thing that you can do to instantly speed it up, there are several small things that will help over time. The following are a few items that you can try.

1. Move everything from your computer’s desktop into your My Documents. Anytime you open a file, program or folder your computer has to index everything that is saved on the desktop. Computers that are getting older or have many items on the desktop will take longer to complete this process.
2. Remove unused programs. If you have owned your computer for many years, you will have programs installed that you no longer use. These programs can take up storage space and continue running even when you are not using them. A really good example of this is old printer software. If you have replaced your printer recently, you will want to uninstall the old software. Note, only remove software you are sure you no longer need. Removing some software can cause your computer to no longer boot or operate correctly.
3. Run disk cleanup on your hard drive. Running Disk Cleanup will remove many unnecessary files and in some cases speed up your computer.
4. Defragment your hard drive. Defragmenting your hard drive reorganizes the file structure in a way that allows your computer to run more smoothly. In most of the newer operating systems, defragmenting is scheduled and runs regularly. However older operating systems and older computers can still benefit from being defragmented.
5. Move excess items to an external hard drive. If your computer is beginning to run out of storage space, you can move older items to an external hard drive. This will help speed up your computer by allowing your computer to find important files without searching the full drive from them. Also when a computer’s hard drive is close to full, it will start to have issues defragmenting which will further slow down your computer. Newer computers with large hard drives are less likely to have this problem.

If these steps do not help, then you may have a more complex issue. It could be anything from upgrading your computer’s hardware (RAM or Hard drive,) to removing malware on your computer or even needing to get a new computer. If you continue having issues, you will need to talk to an IT specialist. If this is your work computer, then call the person who is responsible for your area. If it is your personal computer, then look for someone local that can help speed up your computer.