Computer running slow

[starman22]

I'm sure some of you guys out there are pretty computer savvy.

I see all the ads for speeding up your computer. My question is what, if any, program do you use to clean/speed up your computer. I run windows, if that matters.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Reality]

The first software I would download and and run is ..
https://www.malwarebytes.com/mwb-download/

Make sure you download the FREE version for Windows for Home .. it's all you need to check your computer for malware and remove it if found.

That will help you figure out if you have malware installed on your computer slowing it down.


You don't need to "buy" software to speed up your computer.

You simply need to figure out 1) what software is causing it to slow down or 2) where your computer is bottle-necking on resources.

The first thing you should do is open Task Manager. You can right-click the task bar to run it or use CTRL-SHIFT-ESC as a hotkey for it.

If you are running Windows 10 and the task manager window is small, click the "More Details" link and it will show you the full task manager.

Once you have that, click each of the columns starting with CPU sorting each one from largest-to-smallest (should show down arrow below column heading).

That should help you find if there are demanding processes running on your system that are causing it to slow down.


Your computer typically runs slow for one of three reasons ..

1) Performance-heavy software or Windows system (Search Indexing, Windows Update, etc.) processes are running in the background

2) Your hardware resources in the computer are too low (not enough memory, not enough drive space, slow hard drives, slow CPU, etc.)

3) Your computer is infected with malware

Use Malware Bytes Free version to eliminate #3.

The task manager should help you find issues with #1.

You will need tech help for #2 unless you are tech savvy.

 

[SlammedZero]

Reality pretty much hit it. Make sure to go through and uninstall any program you're not using. It may be running in the background and hogging up resources. Also, be careful when downloading some free software. They try to trick you into thinking you're agreeing to something needed for the software you want, but instead, you are agreeing to download unnecessary software packaged in. Just make sure to check over ever popup window.

 

[Hardline]

The first software I would download and and run is ..
https://www.malwarebytes.com/mwb-download/

Make sure you download the FREE version for Windows for Home .. it's all you need to check your computer for malware and remove it if found.

That will help you figure out if you have malware installed on your computer slowing it down.


You don't need to "buy" software to speed up your computer.

You simply need to figure out 1) what software is causing it to slow down or 2) where your computer is bottle-necking on resources.

The first thing you should do is open Task Manager. You can right-click the task bar to run it or use CTRL-SHIFT-ESC as a hotkey for it.

If you are running Windows 10 and the task manager window is small, click the "More Details" link and it will show you the full task manager.

Once you have that, click each of the columns starting with CPU sorting each one from largest-to-smallest (should show down arrow below column heading).

That should help you find if there are demanding processes running on your system that are causing it to slow down.


Your computer typically runs slow for one of three reasons ..

1) Performance-heavy software or Windows system (Search Indexing, Windows Update, etc.) processes are running in the background

2) Your hardware resources in the computer are too low (not enough memory, not enough drive space, slow hard drives, slow CPU, etc.)

3) Your computer is infected with malware

Use Malware Bytes Free version to eliminate #3.

The task manager should help you find issues with #1.

You will need tech help for #2 unless you are tech savvy.

Thanks for posting that link. I am going to download the Android app for my phone. it's been running pretty slow lately.

 

[Rockport]

I'm sure some of you guys out there are pretty computer savvy.

I see all the ads for speeding up your computer. My question is what, if any, program do you use to clean/speed up your computer. I run windows, if that matters.

Thanks in advance.

If you stream illegally, stop. If you visit porn sites, stop. Etc. The vast majority of malware and viruses are obtained by people visiting nefarious websites.

 

[The Fonz]

If you stream illegally, stop. If you visit porn sites, stop. Etc. The vast majority of malware and viruses are obtained by people visiting nefarious websites.

you took the fun out of the internet

 

[JohnnyTheFox]

As Reality mentioned above download and run the free home Malwarebytes.
You also might try CCleaner which will clean your pc better than the tools that came with Windows, once again download the free home version and run it.

More often than not the programs and ads that you see that promise to speed up your pc are total junk and more often than not fill your pc with more bloat and slow it down even further. Stay away from that junk.
You might post the specs of your pc/laptop so we can see how ram you have etc.

One of the best things you can do to get your pc back to the way it used to run is doing a total wipe and fresh install of Windows. Other things are..
Installing more ram
Installing a solid state drive aka SSD and getting rid of all mechanical drives aka HDD.

Try this and post the info as in your processor and amount of ram.
Go to control panel>>>>>System and security>>>>>>System, then under system you should see your version of Windows, processor, and installed ram.

 

[SlammedZero]

Installing a solid state drive aka SSD and getting rid of all mechanical drives aka HDD.

One of the best upgrades I ever made. HUGE difference. I couldn't imagine going back to HDD.

 

[Tabascocat]

Throw it against the wall and go buy a new one

 

[JohnnyTheFox]

One of the best upgrades I ever made. HUGE difference. I couldn't imagine going back to HDD.

Nope, never would go back. Night and day.

 

[morasp]

CCleaner works great for system optimization. I also maintain a subscription to FixMeStick that does an excellent job. Even when it doesn't find malware the computer always seems to run faster. Don't click links in emails and if you have Norton use safe search and only go to sites with the green check mark.

 

[YosemiteSam]

My father just visited me. He loves playing games and he had recently bought an Asus laptop because I had recently bought a gaming Asus laptop. The problem was, he didn't ask me about the specs. He just bought one in his price range.

It only had 8GB of memory and a hybrid hard drive. (spindle drive, with an on board SSD cache to help speed up access to commonly accessed files) Needless to say, evening being brand new, it was still painfully slow booting up or loading large games.

So while he was here, I added 16GB of memory to boost him to 24GB and imaged his 1TB hybrid drive to a 1TB Samsung EVO SSD drive. When it was installed and I handed it back to him, he booted it up. When it reached the login screen in seconds, he turned to me and said WOW!

I agree, there is ZERO chance I will ever go back to a spindle drive except for network storage.

Happy Birthday dad! (though his bday isn't actually until Dec 31st)

 

[Boom]

When someone in the family tells me their computer is running poorly, I go with:

1) Run defrag/Empty cache
2) Malwarebytes
3) Spybot
Note: Each usually finds something the other misses
4) CCleaner (be careful, it will let you clean out things you want)
5) AVG free antivirus
6) If I need something stronger: I get them to purchase Hitman Pro

 

[YosemiteSam]

When someone in the family tells me their computer is running poorly, I go with:

1) Run defrag/Empty cache
2) Malwarebytes
3) Spybot
Note: Each usually finds something the other misses
4) CCleaner (be careful, it will let you clean out things you want)
5) AVG free antivirus
6) If I need something stronger: I get them to purchase Hitman Pro

I second the be careful with CCleaner. I've never used it, but anything with a registry cleaner in it, be extremely weary of using it. The registry isn't something to be trifled with if you don't know what you're doing. So if you use CCleaner, steer clear of the registry cleaner and if you do use it. Backup your registry before running it.

 

[Reality]

When someone in the family tells me their computer is running poorly, I go with:

1) Run defrag/Empty cache
2) Malwarebytes
3) Spybot
Note: Each usually finds something the other misses
4) CCleaner (be careful, it will let you clean out things you want)
5) AVG free antivirus
6) If I need something stronger: I get them to purchase Hitman Pro

Don't run defrag on SSD drives!

 

[YosemiteSam]

Don't run defrag on SSD drives!

Unless you're using a Mac. You should defrag your mac everyday!

 

[nobody]

Unless you're using a Mac. You should defrag your mac everyday!

By defrag, you mean put a fragmentation grenade on it and run, right?

 

[Tabascocat]

Does this SSD and HDD apply to laptops as well? Going to buy a new one tomorrow, one strong enough to run PC games on too if that is possible. The nerd at Best Buy better not steer me wrong!

 

[YosemiteSam]

Does this SSD and HDD apply to laptops as well? Going to buy a new one tomorrow, one strong enough to run PC games on too if that is possible. The nerd at Best Buy better not steer me wrong!

Never buy anything except SSD drives.

As for a laptop, I picked up the Asus ROG GX502GW. It should play everything you can throw at it for years to come.

The two down sides are it doesn't have a webcam. (I don't use them anyhow) and it doesn't support Thunderbolt which IMO is only useful if you use a docking station with like three 4k monitors. (ie, using your laptop as a desktop)

I know that's how Reality rolls, but I have multiple desktops at home and the laptop is mainly used only when I'm travelling.

 

[Tabascocat]

Never buy anything except SSD drives.

As for a laptop, I picked up the Asus ROG GX502GW. It should play everything you can throw at it for years to come.

The two down sides are it doesn't have a webcam. (I don't use them anyhow) and it doesn't support Thunderbolt which IMO is only useful if you use a docking station with like three 4k monitors. (ie, using your laptop as a desktop)

I know that's how Reality rolls, but I have multiple desktops at home and the laptop is mainly used only when I'm travelling.

That come in a bigger screen? I also need a disk drive for older games I like to play around with from time to time.

Also, no webcam is no problem for me. I have no idea what Thunderbolt is, so I guess I don’t need it either