How to clean a computer so that it does not hang. Disk cleanup and defragmentation. Cleaning your computer with a free program

Has your computer started to slow down?

And the desktop is littered with unnecessary shortcuts and downloaded files a hundred years ago? At the same time, messages from programs that you have not even heard of regularly pop up from the tray?

Congratulations, you FUCKED your computer.

Today I will tell you about how I keep my main working tool clean - my laptop.

Fucked up computers

Oh, I see them all the time. Relatives and acquaintances regularly ask me to clean their computer.

After all, as is customary with us - I installed the game, played for a week, and then for 2 years it was lying on the disk. What if you want to play?

Or even worse - some kind of service that constantly hangs in the computer's memory, causing brakes. We may not need it for 100 years, but every time the system starts, it also starts.

And it also happens that programs themselves install themselves. Well, who, tell me, will remove unnecessary checkmarks during installation?

Over the years of such an attitude, the system turns into the Augean stables. And now all this rubbish is jumping, blinking, asking for an update or reporting some “important” news. Plus, everything slows down. And the owner is thinking about buying new hardware, otherwise the old “something no longer pulls”.

But all that is needed is to thoroughly clean the computer, and then follow the elementary rules of hygiene.

Regularity

Yes, this is the magic word and it is at the forefront here.

Regular cleaning is the key to a neat and nimble computer. Cleaning takes me only 6 minutes once every 2 weeks.

In order not to forget about it, I put up a separate reminder.

I also have a special checklist that helps me clean my computer point by point. It has 7 points:

Desktop cleaning
Cleaning up torrents
Removing unused programs
Autostart check
Clearing bookmarks

Below I will describe each point in more detail.

1. Desktop cleaning (45 seconds)

Like it or not, but the desktop is gradually littered. It accumulates various shortcuts, downloaded files, etc.

For example, right now my desktop looks like this:

But before the next cleansing, there are still as many as 9 days.

So, when cleaning day comes, I move everything useful from the desktop to my storage system (this is a topic for another article), and I delete the unnecessary.

By the way, I do not store frequently used shortcuts on the desktop. The most-most sit in the quick launch bar, others in the Start menu:

2. Cleaning up torrents (15 seconds)

Often torrents with some series can take up to 30% of my disk. I delete them regularly.

The less data on the hard drive, the faster the virus scan will be.

3. Disk Cleanup (30 seconds)

After installation, go to the "Cleaning" tab. There we press first "Analysis", and then "Cleaning".

What have we done?

We deleted all sorts of temporary files and emptied the trash:

As you can see, 273 MB will be cleared. Not so bad.

4. Registry cleaning (25 seconds)

Runs in the same program. We are interested in the "Registry" tab. On it, click "Search for problems", and then "Fix ...".

What have we done?

We cleaned the Windows system registry from various rubbish:

5. Remove unused programs (30 seconds)

It happens that I installed some program only, say, to create one video. After that, it can and should be removed.

Remember that you can always download desired program and install in a couple of minutes. So is it worth keeping such rubbish in your system for years?

Also, as I wrote above, programs can install themselves if I forget to uncheck the box somewhere during installation. Such programs all the more should be destroyed.

You can uninstall the program using the usual Windows tools, but I do it in the same CCleaner.

Go to Tools > Uninstall Programs. Select an unnecessary program and click "Uninstall". The "Remove" button does not remove the program from the computer, but only removes it from this list. Keep that in mind!

6. Autostart check (60 seconds)

Important point. Together with the start of the system, a cloud of programs starts and then sits in memory. For novice users, it can reach monstrous proportions and eat a lot of RAM.

Go to Tools > Startup > Windows. We check whether all applications should be launched at the start. If not, then turn off the application:

The slow operation of the computer annoys most users, and brings some to a real hysteria. However, you can often solve the problem by performing simple optimization steps.

Getting rid of dust

Dust is one of the main reasons that leads to a decrease in the speed of the PC, as it causes overheating. In some cases, it can cause more serious harm to the computer, causing the failure of components.

Regular cleaning of the computer from dust and dirt will help to avoid problems. It is recommended to do this at least 2 times a year. In stationary PCs, the user can complete the cleaning procedure on his own without the help of specialists.

Consider how you can clean your computer so that it does not slow down due to dust:

Important. It is recommended to replace the thermal interface (thermal paste) with each cleaning, as over time it dries up and loses its basic properties, which provide heat removal.

Checking your computer for viruses

Viruses often cause your computer to slow down. Once in the system, they can cause a wide variety of harm, for example, delete or encrypt important information. Many of the malicious programs significantly load the PC and slow down the system.

Let's consider the main ones:

install antivirus software;
regularly download and install OS updates;
never upload suspicious files;
enable regular updating of anti-virus databases;
use a firewall, it has been built into the system since WindowsXP;
check all USB drives before opening.

These simple steps will significantly reduce the possibility of virus penetration, but will not give a 100% guarantee. If there is a suspicion that the system may be infected, it is recommended to immediately scan with special utilities, such as CureIT from Doctor Web.

Consider the main signs of malware penetration into the system:

Advice. At the slightest suspicion of viruses, do not delay the scan, the earlier the treatment is performed, the more likely it is to save important data and the less likely it is that the virus will cause significant harm to the system.

We carry out defragmentation

Sign up for HDD produced in the first free space to speed up the process. This can lead to the fact that parts of the file will be located in different parts of the disk - fragmented, which significantly reduces the speed of access to information, since the system is forced to search for it all over the disk.

Defragmentation organizes the arrangement of data on the hard drive and helps to increase the performance of the computer.

Consider the procedure for defragmenting a disk inWindows 7 orXP:

Windows 8 runs a defrag once a week by default. It passes in the background and the user may not notice it. If you need to start the optimization process forcibly, then you can do this by analogy with other versions of the OS from Microsoft.

Video: What to do if the computer slows down

Restoring system files

In some cases, system files may be lost or corrupted. This can happen due to incorrect operation of the uninstaller, viruses, or user actions. But in any case, the system without the necessary files may not work correctly: slow down and crash. To normalize the operation, a special recovery tool is built into the OS.

Consider the procedure for launching the System File Restore tool:

PC optimization with Glary Utilites

It is convenient to use special utilities to optimize PC performance that allow even an inexperienced user to complete the process. One of them is Glary Utilities. It is a whole set of utilities that will help increase the speed of the system.

Consider the main functions of Glary Utilities:

clearing the system of temporary data;
uninstall programs;
cleaning the registry;
encryption of important data;
optimization of work with RAM;
management of startup and active processes;
cleaning hard drive from unnecessary files.

The application interface makes it easy to perform system optimization even for an inexperienced user. The product is distributed free of charge. It can be freely downloaded from the developer's website.

Adding RAM

The amount of RAM has a significant impact on PC performance. If its volume is insufficient, then the system is forced to store part of the data used in the work on the hard disk, which significantly affects the speed of work.

Before you start adding memory, you need to find out what type is compatible with your computer.

You can do this in the following ways:

using special utilities;
referring to the documentation supplied with the PC;
in appearance and information on the modules.

It is worth noting that the best way to avoid annoying mistakes is to use documentation.

Before purchasing RAM modules, you also need to know how many modules the motherboard supports and how many of them are free. This will allow you to choose the volume of each module when purchasing.

Here is the procedure for installing new or replacing existing RAM modules:

turn off the power of the computer;
open the cover of the system unit;
if necessary, remove old modules;
after making sure of the correct location, install new strips in the slots;
check the reliability of the fastening and make sure that all the fasteners are completely snapped into place;
close the case of the system unit and check the operation of the PC.

It is important to remember that 32-bit systems cannot handle large amounts of RAM. When using 4 or more gigabytes of RAM, it is recommended to upgrade to a 64-bit version of Windows.

Swap file setup

System in case of lack of space for running applications in RAM uses what is called virtual memory. To do this, a special paging file is created on the disk, into which part of the data from RAM is moved.

Properly configuring the paging file can improve the performance of your computer. The optimal size, which is recommended to be set in the OS settings, should be 2-3 times the amount of available physical RAM.

Let's see how to configure the swap file inWindows 7:

In other versions operating system you can set the virtual memory settings in the same way.

When setting parameters, keep the following tips in mind:

the paging file must be located on the fastest hard drive;
the maximum and minimum (initial) size of virtual memory must match;
periodic defragmentation will speed up the operation of the OS with the paging file.

Video: CCleaner clean your computer

Not enough free disk space and its optimization

Normal operation of Windows is possible only if there is enough free space on the system drive. It is recommended to leave about 20% free, but not less than 5-10 GB.

You can free up space on your hard drive not only by deleting unnecessary files or programs, but also by cleaning up temporary files.

There are two ways to do this:

launching the built-in Windows tool;
using third party utilities.

In practice, the utility built into the OS often turns out to be ineffective. Therefore, the best option would be to use third-party utilities, such as Glary Utilities or CCleaner. They allow you to clean up using a friendly interface quickly and efficiently free up space from temporary files.

It is worth remembering that files can be located on the disk quite randomly. As a result, over time, free space also remains in different parts of the drive, and the speed will drop. Therefore, periodically it is necessary to defragment the disk.

Setting up visual effects

Modern OS versions contain many visual effects to create a more pleasing appearance. At the same time, they all require system resources and somewhat reduce performance. Rejecting part of the visual effects, you can improve the speed of your PC.

Consider how to open the visual effects settings window in Windows 7:

Deleting temporary files

When the computer is running, a huge number of temporary files are created, which not only take up free space, but also affect the system, slowing down the speed. Some of these elements are deleted immediately when the application is closed, but not all. You can solve the problem using the built-in OS tools or additional utilities.

The most effective cleaning is carried out by a variety of third-party software designed to improve PC performance, such as Glary Utilities.

By regularly cleaning the system of debris, removing dust from the computer, and performing simple steps to optimize the user experience, the user can significantly improve the performance of the computer, and in some cases, even extend its life.

Prolonged use of the computer inevitably leads to a decrease in its performance. No matter how modern the components installed on the computer are, sooner or later, the system will start to slow down. To return the original speed of work, it is necessary to establish why it is reduced.

Causes

When buying a new computer or after reinstalling the operating system, applications run quickly, and the system instantly responds to user commands. Over time, short-term freezes, overheating and sudden reboots begin to occur.

This is due to several reasons:

contamination of the case with dust;
the presence of malware;
clogged registry of the windows operating system;
the work of many unnecessary programs in the background;
the presence of a large number of temporary files;
storage of garbage on the hard drive.

All these problems are easy enough to deal with on your own.

How to clean your computer so that it does not slow down

To begin with, it is better to physically clean the system unit from dust. Often dust and other debris clog cooler fans and interfere with proper air exchange inside the system unit or laptop case. This causes the temperature to rise and performance to drop. You can get rid of dust yourself with a regular vacuum cleaner and a rag.

You should also check how well the fan rotates above the processor, as well as inside the video card. With a light touch of the finger, they should rotate easily. If they turn hard, it is better to think about replacing them. Their cost is relatively low compared to the cost of repairs after overheating.

The best option would be to pull out all the components from their slots and wipe them separately from each other.

First, disconnect all cables, and then carefully remove the components. This will help to clean in those places where it is difficult to penetrate with a rag in the assembled state. This is especially true for laptops. If you are unsure that you can correctly assemble and connect everything back, then you should not resort to this method. Simply removing the dust with a vacuum cleaner will suffice.

All components should only be cleaned with a dry cloth.

Another problem of overheating can be caused by dried out. Between CPU and cooler for better heat transfer a special paste is applied. Over time, it becomes unusable and must be applied again.

Attention! Before any actions inside the system unit, disconnect it from the mains.

It is worth noting that the laptop can overheat regardless of the internal state. Sometimes, users use a laptop in such a way that important air ducts are blocked, which can slow down the work speed.

One of the frequent reasons for the loss of former performance lies in the presence of viruses. Today, not every virus makes itself felt. They can penetrate the system when downloading files from the Internet, as well as through removable media. Therefore, the system may have many hidden malware, which penetrate into autoload and consume processor time, as well as occupy RAM.

To find and eliminate them, you can use paid or free antiviruses.

Also, specifically for this task, DR. Web released Cureit utility. It is completely free and weighs only 160 MB. It can be downloaded from the official site, and then run a disk scan. It will take some time, depending on the disk space used. After the scan is completed, the application will show all found threats and offer to neutralize them or do it automatically, depending on the settings. After restarting the computer, the malware will be removed.

How to clean your computer from unnecessary programs

After physical cleaning, as well as removing viruses, it would be advisable to get rid of unnecessary programs and files. Some of them may be installed without the user's knowledge, for example, when installing other programs. They take up not only space on your hard drive, but often write themselves into autoload. Thus, working in stealth mode, they take up RAM, which is why operating system startup time increases significantly.

To view a list of all installed programs in windows, you need to go to the control panel, select "Add or Remove Programs". Here you can find and remove those programs that are not used.

Removing junk files

Another problem affecting performance is residual and junk files. They remain even after uninstalling programs. At the same time, empty folders and temporary directories are saved on the hard disk. applications that no longer exist. You can get rid of them using standard windows tools.

For this you need:

go to "my computer";
open the "properties" of the desired hard drive;
select the item "cleaning the hard disk" and confirm the action.

After that, windows will analyze the disk and remove the remnants of non-existent programs.

Cleaning the windows registry

In addition to the presence of unnecessary files and programs in the system, the registry of the operating system itself becomes clogged over time. To clean it, you can use the simple and free program CCleaner. This program finds and clears temporary and unnecessary files of installed applications, such as browser cache.

After clicking on the analyze button, CCleaner will collect all the information and show which files can be deleted. The program performs all actions automatically, the user does not need to delve into the intricacies of the registry device. In case something important is deleted, the program creates backup the previous version of the registry, with which everything can be restored.

For such purposes, you can also pay attention to the programs RegCleaner and Norton WinDoctor, but they are suitable for advanced users.

Defragmenting a hard drive

All programs and data are written to sectors of the hard disk. Over time, some programs are updated and become larger, and some are removed. This leads to uneven filling of the hard drive.. It turns out that one program is recorded in several places on the hard disk that are far from each other, and reading slows down significantly. Defragmentation takes all the data of one program and writes them side by side so that the data is read sequentially. This significantly speeds up the work.

V windows system this function is built-in. To run it, you need to do the following (using windows 7 as an example):

go to "my computer" and right-click on the desired disk partition;
in the list that opens, select "properties";
next, go to the "service" section;
click on the "defragment" button.

Moving files It will take some time, after which the laptop will work faster.

By following these simple steps, you can achieve the same system performance as on a new computer. It is recommended to perform them regularly so that the computer pleases with the speed and reliability of its work all the time.

Almost every action you take on your computer is recorded, and after each installation and removal of the program, temporary and unnecessary files remain. Over time, viruses collect, dust collects, thermal paste dries up, and this can be continued for a long time. I can only say one thing, periodically it is necessary to clean the computer so that it does not slow down.

In this post, I want to show you how to properly, what and where to remove, clean, lubricate. After such a cleaning, you yourself will be pleased to sit in front of a computer that works without glitches and brakes.

Why does the computer slow down

Before you clean something, you need to figure out why the computer slows down. There can be a whole carriage of reasons, and in order not to do extra work, let's do a little diagnostics to determine the cause of the brakes. Do all the tests listed below, then everything will become clear.

How to clean your computer from dust

If the computer used to work well, and you didn’t do anything with it, you just used it for its intended purpose, but now it started to fail, you can most likely get by with the usual cleaning of dust and replacing the thermal paste. In any case, it will only benefit.

In order not to take 100 photos and every action (take a computer, put it down, turn the screwdriver to the left ...) I attach a good video in which everything is visible, shown, told:

RAM Diagnostics

In no case do not exclude this item. Personally, in my practice, it was such that after 2 months of using a new RAM bar, the computer began to slow down a lot and diagnostics showed that not everything new was good. Also, over time, your RAM could fail and give significant hallucinations to your PC or laptop.

To diagnose the RAM, open the Start menu and type "mdsched" in the search. Now click "Reboot and verify (Recommended)...".

It remains to wait for the result and everything will become clear. One of the two, or everything is fine, or you need to change the RAM.

HDD Diagnostics

When a hard drive lives its life, it has characteristic brakes. For example, your computer freezes a lot, but the device manager shows that the memory and processor are not loaded. He can also make sounds (whistling, tapping, rustling, etc.).

Let's do some diagnostics to determine the state of the HDD:

Download the free program "SeaTools for Windows" to check the hard drive from the official website - https://www.seagate.com/files/www-content/support-content/downloads/seatools/_shared/downloads/SeaToolsforWindowsSetup.exe
Start the installation, wait for completion, open the program.
Open the program, select "Basic tests" in the menu and wait until the program completes the diagnostics.
Next, the program will prompt you to correct the errors (if any). Click "ok" and wait for completion.

After such a procedure, as a rule, the computer should work many times better. Even if SeaTools did not help, then everything is sad and you need to change the hard drive.

Removing superfluous from autoload

I won’t even be surprised if you have at least 5 unnecessary programs there. I constantly watch someone else's computer with a diagnosis of "slows down", in the tray (icons in the taskbar, near the time) there are a lot of unnecessary things. An example of such programs: torrent, mediaget, @mail.ru agent, Viber, Skype, etc.

Definitely, these programs are needed for certain purposes, but not when you use your computer for other things. To make the computer run faster, you need to remove them from startup, after that, they will work only when you need them.

Clean up windows 7 startup

To remove programs from startup in windows 7, do the following:

Open the start menu and search for "msconfig" without the quotes. Next, press "Enter" and go to the "Startup" tab.
Carefully

Clean up windows 10 startup

Press "Win" + "R" enter the command "regedit" without quotes and press "Enter".
Before you opened a list of programs that run with the OS. Carefully look at those programs that do not affect the operation of the OS (torrent, mediaget, @mail.ru agent, Viber, Skype, etc.) and disable them.
Click "ok" and restart your computer.

Also, startup in Windows 10 can be found in the manager. To do this, press Ctrl + Shift + Esc at the same time and go to the "Startup" tab. Remember You need to disable only those programs that you do not need. Otherwise, you can disable drivers (audio, video) and other necessary software.

Removing unnecessary programs

Now you are installing one program, and with it 3 more that you do not need. Over time, there are more and more of these programs, and there is less and less space on the C drive. Also, these programs load your system. If you don't use them, it's best to delete them right away.

conclusions

I hope I helped you clean your computer and it doesn't slow down anymore. I recommend doing all this regularly, and not bringing it to the point where the brakes and . Temporary files, viruses, startup - it's not as scary as dust in the system unit and dried thermal paste. Keep this in mind and clean up.

The slow operation of the computer annoys most users, and brings some to a real hysteria. However, you can often solve the problem by performing simple optimization steps.

Getting rid of dust

Consider how you can clean your computer so that it does not slow down due to dust:

Important. It is recommended to replace the thermal interface (thermal paste) with each cleaning, as over time it dries up and loses its basic properties, which provide heat removal.

Checking your computer for viruses

Let's consider the main ones:

install antivirus software;
regularly download and install OS updates;
never upload suspicious files;
enable regular updating of anti-virus databases;
use a firewall, it has been built into the system since WindowsXP;
check all USB drives before opening.

Consider the main signs of malware penetration into the system:

Advice. At the slightest suspicion of viruses, do not delay the scan, the earlier the treatment is performed, the more likely it is to save important data and the less likely it is that the virus will cause significant harm to the system.

We carry out defragmentation

Writing to the hard disk is performed in the first free space to speed up the process. This can lead to the fact that parts of the file will be located in different parts of the disk - fragmented, which significantly reduces the speed of access to information, since the system is forced to search for it all over the disk.

Defragmentation organizes the arrangement of data on the hard drive and helps to increase the performance of the computer.

Consider the procedure for defragmenting a disk inWindows 7 orXP:

Video: What to do if the computer slows down

Restoring system files

Consider the procedure for launching the System File Restore tool:

PC optimization with Glary Utilites

Consider the main functions of Glary Utilities:

clearing the system of temporary data;
uninstall programs;
cleaning the registry;
encryption of important data;
optimization of work with RAM;
management of startup and active processes;
cleaning the hard drive from unnecessary files.

Adding RAM

Before you start adding memory, you need to find out what type is compatible with your computer.

You can do this in the following ways:

using special utilities;
referring to the documentation supplied with the PC;
in appearance and information on the modules.

It is worth noting that the best way to avoid annoying mistakes is to use documentation.

Before purchasing RAM modules, you also need to know how many modules the motherboard supports and how many of them are free. This will allow you to choose the volume of each module when purchasing.

Here is the procedure for installing new or replacing existing RAM modules:

turn off the power of the computer;
open the cover of the system unit;
if necessary, remove old modules;
after making sure of the correct location, install new strips in the slots;
check the reliability of the fastening and make sure that all the fasteners are completely snapped into place;
close the case of the system unit and check the operation of the PC.

It is important to remember that 32-bit systems cannot handle large amounts of RAM. When using 4 or more gigabytes of RAM, it is recommended to upgrade to a 64-bit version of Windows.

Swap file setup

The system, in case of lack of space for running applications in RAM, uses the so-called virtual memory. To do this, a special paging file is created on the disk, into which part of the data from RAM is moved.

Let's see how to configure the swap file inWindows 7:

In other versions of the operating system, you can set the virtual memory settings in the same way.

When setting parameters, keep the following tips in mind:

the paging file must be located on the fastest hard drive;
the maximum and minimum (initial) size of virtual memory must match;
periodic defragmentation will speed up the operation of the OS with the paging file.

Video: CCleaner clean your computer

Not enough free disk space and its optimization

Normal operation of Windows is possible only if there is enough free space on the system drive. It is recommended to leave about 20% free, but not less than 5-10 GB.

You can free up space on your hard drive not only by deleting unnecessary files or programs, but also by cleaning up temporary files.

There are two ways to do this:

launching the built-in Windows tool;
using third party utilities.

Photo not enough free space

Setting up visual effects

Modern versions of the OS contain many visual effects to create a more pleasant appearance. At the same time, they all require system resources and somewhat reduce performance. Rejecting part of the visual effects, you can improve the speed of your PC.

Consider how to open the visual effects settings window in Windows 7: