PC Maintenance Software Guide

PC Running Slow? How To Fix A Slow PC For Free - Part 5

2010-03-14T14:01:00.001Z

* Run a defragmentation tool across all your drives. Some software options include the free Auslogic's Disk Defrag tool or Microsoft's own defragmentation tool. Microsofts tool is provided with all Windows operating systems). Note that some computer users should defragment their hard drives more often if they are repeatedly installing and uninstalling a lot of software or if using applications that generates hundreds of big files (for example, audio/visual applications).

* Attempt altering the allocated virtual memory. If you have freed up enough disk space on your computer then it is now possible to start giving back some of this free space to the OS. Increase the Virtual Memory in small increments of 100MB to gauge if you see performance improvements.

PC Running Slow? How To Fix A Slow PC For Free - Part 4

2010-03-13T13:58:00.001Z

* Manually run the Microsoft Windows Update service (you can find this in the Start Menu). Windows updates generally fix faults relating to bugs in the OS, device drivers or applications. But some updates can be performance related so it is always worthwhile to update regularly to get these benefits.

* Clean out old/unused/cached/temporary files and data from the registry and file system using a cleanup tool such as CCleaner or Windows Disk Cleanup tool. It is better to use a clean up application rather than attempt this manually (as the cleanup tools know which files are precious). You will find that using a web browser (Firefox, IE, etc) will cache a lot of temporary files on your PC that you no longer require.

PC Running Slow? How To Fix A Slow PC For Free - Part 3

2010-03-11T13:56:00.001Z

* Close down services you are not using. This is different from closing applications that you see on your task bar. Open the MS Task Manager on the Processes tab and close down any EXE's you don't require. Only close EXEs that are familiar to you (e.g. Skype, etc). An alternate free tool is Sysinternal's Process Explorer which provides extra information about the running EXEs, such as the files creator, which will help you decide on which services to kill.

* Do a complete PC reboot. A reboot clears out the RAM and Virtual Memory of any memory slots that have not been freed up by applications (this can be due to faults in these software applications.

PC Running Slow? How To Fix A Slow PC For Free - Part 2

2010-03-10T13:50:00.003Z

* Uninstall applications that you do not use often to free up disk space. Always remove programs using the Control Panel rather than just deleting the folder where the application was installed. Be ruthless about removing applications you use infrequently. Removing these files clears out valuable disk space and removes any services the applications use that can eat into CPU processing.

* Shut down any software application you use infrequently (these are the applications that you see in the Task Bar). You probably are not using more than three or four applications at any one time so there is little point in keeping these extra applications open that are hogging system resources.

Looking after your PC Software and Hardware

2010-03-09T14:10:00.000Z

The worst sight any Windows PC or laptop owners could possibly see is the dreaded blue screen of death. This is a screen of exception text stating a terminal error has happened leaving you no option but to reboot.

Thankfully this is a rare occurrence. That said, there are several practices that Windows PC users can execute to decrease the chances of problems happening. These actions or best practices fall into two key areas: Hardware and Software as follows.

Don't Overload Your PC or Laptop

Just as you shouldn't overload a power strip by plugging multiple devices into a single socket, you should avoid maintaining a large amount of peripherals connected to your PC/laptop. The main culprit here is USB hubs/splitters. Having peripherals that consume small amounts of energy is fine (e.g. keyboards and mice). But having several external hard-drives running simultaneously for long periods has the potential to overheat the USB hub resulting in a blow-out (of the hub) and/or the operating system having difficulties recognising/picking up the devices. Remember that the USB connection provides data connectivity and a power supply so the more devices it has to power, the greater the strain.

Software updates

Make a point to update the O/S and application drivers regularly, as over time software vendors release application improvements that fix errors and security issues. The better vendors will provide automated update checks with their products to help you out with doing this - otherwise it's a case of having to manually check with the vendors site.

The Microsoft Windows Update service (available in your Start menu) will be the first port of call for Windows O/S updates. These updates generally fix Windows minor bugs but you'll also find critical security updates which are essential to keep up to date to safeguard your PC/laptop.

Protection From Internet Dangers

There is the ongoing danger of receiving spyware/adware/hacker attacks to your PC while connected to the net so it is essential security practice to have a firewall installed along with spyware protection and virus scanners. Nowadays, there are even free versions of this software available so there is no excuse not to use them. Just be sure to keep the applications and their virus databases up to date.

Install Power Surge Protection

Use a power extension/power strip that has built-in surge protection since if there is a power cut in your community or some household appliance (such as microwave) blows a fuse then there is the chance of a power surge being sent to your computer which will burn out its electronic components. This is fatal for most machines.

Screen Savers/Standby Mode

Screen savers are really poorly named as they don't save your screen. This was true with older monitors where pixel were more easily damaged resulting ghost images that were constantly displayed on screen. However, modern monitors use less power so there is a lower chance of such damage.

One unfortunate myth about screen savers is that they conserve energy - which is not the case. If you want to conserve energy then use the Standby mode in Windows. An even better solutions is to use the Hibernation mode. Standby keeps the machine ticking over but is still using a small amount of power. Hibernation Mode takes a snapshot of the applications running on your system and then shuts down the computer completely, which saves power and saves the electronics from continual usage.

Remember that your Windows machine has a great many electronic components and circuits that have a specific workload capacity and shelf life. The above actions can go a long way to keeping your PC/laptop running within these constraints and therefore working better for longer without the need for calling in expensive pc repair services.

PC Running Slow? How To Fix A Slow PC For Free - Part 1

2010-03-09T13:50:00.000Z

Over time, a computer can slowly begin to grind to a halt due to a number of factors. Remedying these problems can often be easily done through some good housekeeping activities. These activities are not particularly technical. Rather, they can be run by any computer novice and, best of all, they require no additional cost.

* Ensure that you have at least 10% free disk space on each of your drives. Anything less and Windows performance can start to deteriorate. I have started with this activity as having less than 10% free disk space will dramatically slow down your PC. If you are under 10% then the following checks/tasks will help.

Welcome!

2010-03-09T13:29:00.000Z

Welcome to my PC maintenance Software Guide for Windows OS owners.

I’ll post articles, links and ideas about ways for Windows owners to maintain and, if need be, repair their computer.

I've been working in IT since 1993 so have worked on a lot of computers in my time. In addition, I'v read plenty of books about Windows OS and used a huge number of on-line software tools so hopefully can pick out some of the useful ones!

Please leave comments or recommendations as I’m open to hearing about new tools which might help me.
Rod