Speeding up a Slow Computer

If your computer has started running slowly, you can use the steps in this guide to try and speed it up. If you need assistance with any of these steps, or you cannot resolve your issue, please contact a member of DIDE IT for further help.

Run Fewer Programs at the Same Time

Don't have too many programs running at the same time. Each running program consumes a bit of the system's resources. Have multiple open windows for the same program (e.g. having three Word documents open) also lowers resources as each window takes up a bit of memory and processing power.
If you are not using an open file or program, close it so that the files/programs you are working in can speed up a little.

Restart Your Computer

If you haven't restarted your computer for a while, or your normally put it into Sleep or Hibernation modes, allow it to restart. This clears the memory and allows your system to 'clean boot', freeing up resources in the process.

Remove Viruses and Malware

Viruses and malware can slow down your computer, as well as causing other problems like not allowing you to access the internet or programs installed on your computer.

• Make sure you have antivirus software installed on your computer, and that it is enabled and up to date. Then run a full system scan to remove anything suspicious from your computer.
• The College uses Symantec Endpoint Protection to scan for and remove viruses and malware. To check it and run a scan, do the following:
  • Click on Start -> All Programs -> Symantec Endpoint Protection -> Symantec Endpoint Protection. Windows Vista/7 users may get a prompt asking them if they want to allow the program to make changes to their system, so choose Yes:
  
  
  • If it is up to date and running, you will see a big green tick with the words "Your computer is protected. No problems detected":
  
  
  • Click on 'Scan for threats' in the left hand column and then click on Full Scan. This may take a while to complete:

• You can also use a free dedicated malware scanner such as Malwarebyte Anti-Malware to scan your computer.
  • Download, install and run it. Allow it to update itself, and then choose 'Perform full scan':
  
  
  • At the end of the scan click on the 'Remove selected' button to remove the malware. You may need to restart your computer:

Free up Hard Disk Space

Use the Disk Cleanup tool to free up space on your hard disk. The tool will scan for files that can be safely deleted.

• In My Computer, right click on the C: drive icon and choose Properties. Click on the Disk Cleanup button:

• Disk Cleanup will take a short while to scan the hard drive:

• Once done, tick the boxes next to the items you would like deleted and then click on Ok to delete. It should be safe to tick all the boxes if you wish:

• Windows 7 users have an additional button labeled 'Clean up system files'. Clicking on this button will add a tab labeled 'More Options'. This will allow you to remove old System Restore points and Shadow Copies (backups) of files, which will free up a lot of space:

You'll be prompted to confirm that you want to cleanup old restore points:

Verify Windows System Files

Use the System File Checker tool to scan for and fix corrupted Windows system files.
In Windows Vista/7:

• Click on Start and then type into the box cmd.exe (see image below).
• In the list of programs that appears, right click on cmd.exe and choose 'Run as administrator'. Say Yes to the confirmation prompt:

• Type in sfc /scannow and press return. This will take a few minutes to scan and fix any problems:

In Windows XP:

• Click on Start and then Run.
• Type in cmd.exe and click on Ok:

• Type in sfc /scannow and press return. This will take a few minutes to scan and fix any problems:

Uninstall Unnecessary Programs 

You may have many programs install on your computer that you never use or don't need. Uninstalling these programs can free up hard disk space and speed up your computer.

• Click on Start and then Control Panel.
• In Windows XP click on 'Add/Remove Programs'. In Windows Vista/7 click on 'Programs and features'.
• Select the program you no longer need and click on Remove/Uninstall:

Important Note: Be careful what you uninstall, as it may be an important program or system utility. If you are unsure about what is safe to remove or not, please ask a member of DIDE IT.

Adjust Windows Visual Effects

Windows has a number of stylish visual effects turned on by default. Although these may be pleasing to the eye, they can take up some of your computer's resources and slow it down a little. By turning them off, you free up the resources for your programs to use.
In Windows XP:

• Right click on the My Computer icon and choose Properties.
• Click on the Advanced tab (see image below).
• Click on the Settings button under 'Performance':

• Select 'Adjust for best performance' and click on Ok. This may take a minute to apply the changes and your screen may flicker briefly:

• Click on Ok to exit System Properties.

In Windows Vista/7:

• Click on Start and then Control Panel.
• Click on Performance Information and Tools (see image below).
• Click on Adjust visual effects:

• Select 'Adjust for best performance' and click on Ok. This may take a minute to apply the changes and your screen may flicker briefly:

Run a Disk Scan

You may have errors or bad sectors on your hard disk, which can slow down the performance of your computer. Running a disk scan can fix these errors and move data off bad sectors to speed up the reading of data from your hard disk.

• In My Computer, right click on the C: drive icon and choose Properties.
• Click on the Tools tab and then click on the Check Now button:

• Tick the box next to 'Automatically fix file system errors' and 'Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors'. Then click on Start:

• You may get a warning that Windows can't check the disk while it's in use. It will ask you if you want to schedule a check the next time your restart your computer. Click on 'Schedule disk check' and restart your computer. This scan may take a while to complete:

Defragment Your Hard Disk

Over time, data becomes scattered across your hard disk as it is written, read, and deleted. This can slow down your computer as it takes additional time to find and read the necessary data. By running the disk defragmenter, the data is consolidated in one location and related data is placed near to each other.

• Click on Start -> All Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools -> Disk Defragmenter.
• Click on the Analyze button to allow Windows to check if the disk needs to be defragmented (see image below).
• If Windows reports that the disk needs to be defragmented, click on the Defragment button. This may take some time to complete. Try not to use your computer whilst it is defragmenting:

Upgrade your Hardware

You may want to consider investing in upgrades for your computer to speed it up. The most common hardware upgrade is memory (RAM). Adding more memory can speed up your computer quite a bit, and it's relatively cheap.
It may also be necessary to replace your computer with a new one, as it becomes unfeasible to upgrade very old machines continuously or after several years.
If you are considering a hardware upgrade or new computer, please speak to a member of DIDE IT for your available options.

Reinstall Windows

Windows can become slow and develop problems after years of use on the same machine. Security updates and patches are applied, programs are installed and uninstalled, and settings are modified regularly. It is therefore a good idea to wipe the hard drive and reinstall Windows from scratch, back to its optimum configuration and performance. Doing this after around three to four years of use may give a noticeable speed improvement.
When reinstalling Windows from scratch, it is important to backup any data you have stored on the hard drive, as well as making a note of the programs you would like reinstalled.
Please speak to a member of DIDE IT if you think the time has come for your machine to be wiped and setup with a fresh installation of Windows (which will normally be the latest version of Windows).

Advanced Steps

Important note: These steps are for advanced users only. Failure to backup your system and proceed with caution could result in Windows not booting up at all, requiring a reinstall. Please ask a member of DIDE IT if you need assistance with these steps.

• Use a registry cleaner to delete redundant and incorrect entries in the registry. One example of a good free registry cleaner is CCleaner. Warning: Make sure you create a full backup of your registry first in case you need to revert a change made by a registry cleaner:

• Manually disable programs from starting up when Windows starts up using the msconfig utility. Click on Start -> Run (or just Start in Vista/7), type in msconfig and press return. Click on the Startup tab to view a list or programs that starts up when Windows does. Uncheck the box next to all the programs you don't want to startup automatically: