Everyone is looking for ways to speed up PC performance, but you don’t have to buy or download separate utilities to do it. Some basic maintenance, which is often overlooked, as well as a little spring cleaning for your computer may often be the only things you need to do in order to get your computer running quickly again. And best of all, these 3 methods don’t require anything more than a little bit of your time.

Before you even think about taking on any cleanup tasks, you absolutely must back everything up. While there is very little risk associated with these simple cleanup routines, there is always a chance for something to go wrong. And things seem to go wrong far more often when you are not ready.

Another great way to speed up PC performance is to keep the registry clean. This can be done with a registry cleaning program. You can find free versions online, but you will definitely want to check out the local computer store for a high quality piece of software that doesn’t come with the threat of infecting your computer with malware or viruses. A dirty registry is a common culprit when it comes to computers loading slowly or even crashing when loading programs. Using a registry cleaner on a regular basis should be a part of any regular maintenance schedule.

Another easy task you can do is run disk defragmenter. You will probably have to run scan disk first and if you haven’t done this in a while it can take quite some time. A badly fragmented drive can take hours to scan and fix, but the difference afterwards is significantly noticeable. If you don’t have the time to wait, let your computer defrag itself overnight. It is a hands-free process and your computer can do it all without your help. In order to avoid the long defrag nights, run this process every month to make sure your drives are kept in good working order.

Many programs have a nasty habit of adding themselves to your auto startup menu. This means they are loaded every time your computer starts up. That can lead to some serious delays. Windows comes with the ability to remove certain programs from your auto start menu. While you should never remove programs you don’t recognize, as they may be vital to the function of Windows, you can turn off char programs or music stores so that your computer loads faster at startup.

Network drives are just right for sharing files with friends’ computers, but have you deleted unused drives recently?  This is another way to speed up PC performance.  Operating systems automatically connect to installed networks when they boot up.  You can delete these network drives by clicking on “my computer”, then access the “tools” tab.  See it right there?  It reads “disconnect network drive”.  It is simple and fast!

One last thing that can help with your PC’s efficient functioning is added RAM. One can never overemphasize the importance of having ample memory as inadequate and defective memory can also contribute to a poorly-performing computer. These steps are easy-to-follow and certainly don’t take a lot of time and money. But if you can do them successfully, you will certainly accomplish a lot to speed up pc performance.

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