Introduction
Computers have become an essential part of our daily lives, whether for work, entertainment, or staying connected with the world. However, as our digital lives become more demanding, it’s not uncommon for our Windows PCs to start feeling sluggish and unresponsive. Slow boot times, laggy performance, and long load times can be incredibly frustrating, hindering our productivity and enjoyment.
Fortunately, there are various techniques and strategies you can employ to speed up your Windows system and breathe new life into your trusty computer. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore a range of practical solutions that can help you optimize your PC’s performance, from simple tweaks to more advanced system management tactics.
Whether you’re dealing with an older machine or a brand-new one, the tips and tricks outlined here will equip you with the knowledge to make your Windows system faster and more efficient, allowing you to get more done in less time.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- Clear out unnecessary files, programs, and browser data to free up disk space.
- Disable or remove unwanted programs from the Windows startup sequence.
- Keep drivers up-to-date.
Why is Memory Compression So Important?
Memory compression is a crucial technique for improving the performance and efficiency of modern Windows systems. As our applications and data sets continue to grow in size and complexity, the demand for available system memory increases dramatically. Memory compression allows the operating system to effectively “squeeze” unused or less-critical data in RAM, freeing up precious memory resources for active programs and processes.
This not only prevents performance-crippling swapping to the slower disk storage, but also enables your computer to handle more intensive workloads simultaneously without grinding to a halt.
The main benefits of memory compression are:
- It allows your computer to use its available RAM more efficiently, relying less on slower secondary storage like your hard drive. This leads to better system performance, especially if you don’t have a lot of physical memory.
- It enables more of your applications and data to fit into the computer’s active memory, making those programs run faster and smoother.
- It reduces the strain on your computer’s storage drives, since less information needs to be swapped out to disk.
- This reduced disk usage also means your computer consumes less power overall.
- With memory compression, you may be able to get by with less RAM than you’d normally need, since the compression allows the available memory to be used more effectively.
You can easily see how much memory compression is happening on your system by checking the “Memory” section in the Windows Task Manager.
Bonus: Use Advanced System Optimizer To Optimize Your Memory
The best and the easiest way to optimize and speed up your computer without any hassle is by getting the right software for your computer and what software could be better than Advanced System Optimizer.
Advanced System Optimizer is an all in one solution for your computer. It is one of the most effective optimization tools which helps in speeding up your PC. Let’s look at its amazing features which makes it the best in the category.
- It cleans old and defunct files from your computer and recovers space on your hard drive, which makes Windows run fast. Moreover, it also removes the redundant files of uninstalled applications.
- If you love to play games on your computer without any disturbance from the outer world, then this software would help you with that in a single click.
- To make your system run faster, the software finds and updates the drivers for you.
- It can also protect your system from spyware, Trojans and malware.
- To speed up PC, it also has a disk optimizer feature which makes your files load faster.
But if you want to optimize and speed up your PC manually instead, here, we have listed some hacks that you can perform to make your PC run fast
Manual Ways To Speed Up Your PC: Best Tips and Hacks
1. Get Rid Of Unwanted Startup Programs:
Startup programs are the ones that pop up as soon as your system starts, making your PC slow. So to speed up the slow running PC, you should disable unwanted Startup Programs to save the memory of your PC and CPU cycles.
To manage the Startup Programs, follow these steps:
- To open Task Manager, go to Start Menu, type Task Manager
- You will get the Task Manager window, click on the tab that says Startup Programs.
Note: You can also open Task Manager, press and hold Windows key and R together to open Run Window and type taskmgr.
- Now you will get a list of startup programs.
- Right-click on the app that you want to disable from the Startup.
2. Look For Resource Hogging Programs:
Sometimes you suddenly feel that your PC is running slow, because of used up resources. The case might be one of the applications using a fat chunk of CPU resources, making it difficult for other apps to load and save data on disk. So, you need to close down these programs to speed up your slow running computer. Follow these steps to make your PC run faster:
- To open Task Manager, go to Start Menu, type Task Manager.
- You will get Task Manager, click on the tab that says Processes.
- There are three headers, “CPU,” “Memory,” and “Disk” which sorts the apps by the ones using the most resources.
- You can close the ones that you find useless at that time, right-click on the app and click on End Task.
3. Defragmentation:
Defragmentation is a process of finding the non-contiguous fragments of data into which a computer file may be divided when stored on a hard disk, and rearranges the fragments and restores them into fewer fragments or a complete file. By performing this process, you can access data in a faster manner and also makes you use the storage efficiently. Windows has an inbuilt tool Disk Defragmenter to do the job. In the newer version, Windows takes care of it automatically, but for the older version, you have to initiate it.
To access Disk Defragmenter, follow these steps.
- Go to Start Menu, type Disk Defragmenter, and you will get Defragment and Optimize Devices, click on it to open.
- You would be able to see the drives on the disk.
- Select the drive and click on the Analyze, and it will get the results, what percentage of files are fragmented on the disk.
- To defrag, click on Optimize Disk and it is done.
4. Check Your PC For Malicious Content:
Most of the times, when you are on your computer, you use the internet for one reason or another. Unintentionally or Intentionally, you might click on links or most-visited websites that have malicious content. If the system is infected, it will make your PC run slow. It is recommended to have anti-malware software on the system and scan the PC from time to time. One of the best software to detect and protect your computer from virus and malware is Advanced System Protector, in turn boosting the system speed.
5. Check If The Driver & Apps Are Updated:
Outdated drivers and apps could be one of the main reasons why your PC might be running slow. It is suggested to check for the updates of installed apps and drivers every now and then to make your system run smoothly. Outdated Video card drivers could be one of the culprits of your slow PC. However, updating the driver can be really frustrating as you have to check the hardware, the drivers, versions, locate the manufacturer’s website and more.
To ease the pain, you can get Advanced Driver Updater which is a simple and easy to use tool which not only scans your PC for an outdated driver but updates them to keep up the system performance.
6. Make Some Space:
Sometimes, you have thousands of junk files and unwanted data on your PC, which you meant to delete ages ago, but somehow it is still in your things-to-do pile. Well, if you want to speed up the slow running computer, you have to clean the PC from time to time.
To remove the junk files, follow these steps:
- Go to Start, type Disk Cleanup in the search box and hit Enter.
Note: You can also open Disk Cleanup – Press Windows key along with R to open the Run box and type cleanmgr.
- You will see Disk Cleanup tool, click it to open and will calculate the space that could be freed up with this action.
- You will be provided with the options to remove files from your system to free up space. Select Temporary Internet Files, Temporary files (Temp), Thumbnails, Downloaded Program Files, Offline web pages.
- Press OK, now, it will ask you if you are sure to delete all your files permanently. Click on Delete files to confirm the action.
7. Get Rid Of Unwanted Apps:
Unintentionally or intentionally, you install some apps on your PC that are not really needed by the system. These apps could become a significant hog on system resources. Therefore it is always best to uninstall such apps to speed up your PC. To uninstall unwanted apps, follow these steps:
- Go to Start menu and type Programs in the search box.
Note: You can also open Programs and Features – Press Windows key along with R to open Run box and type appwiz.cpl.
- You will see Programs and Features, click on it.
- You get the list of programs installed.
- Check the list and if you find any unwanted app, right-click on it to Uninstall.
8. Trust Me! You Don’t Need Animations:
Windows OS, especially Windows 10, uses several animations, which no doubt makes it attractive but it somehow slows your PC. So, disabling the animation can speed up your PC.
To disable animation, follow these steps:
- Press Windows Key and X together to open the context menu or right-click Start Menu.
- Now select System.
- You will get a System interface.
- Click on Advanced System Settings, from the left side pane.
- From the new dialog box, System Properties click on Settings under Performance.
- Now select you will get various Performance options to choose from.
- Select Adjust for Best Performance and click OK to save the changes.
9. Switch To SSD:
If you have HDD(Hard Disk Drive) on your PC, it is time to move on and get SSD(Solid State Drive), it will improve your system’s performance to a reasonably good extent. Unlike HDD, SSD does not possess a mechanical arm to read and write data, it depends on an embedded processor called a controller to perform a bunch of operations related to reading and writing data. So to make your laptop run faster, it is always best to replace HDD with an SSD.
10. Reset or Reinstall Windows To Start Fresh:
If nothing from the steps mentioned above work for you then, you must Reset or Reinstall Windows to speed up your PC. In Windows 10, you get an option Reset your PC to start fresh without losing your data. Follow these steps:
- Press Windows and I together to open Settings or click on Start Menu, select Settings(gear like icon just above the shutdown icon)
- Now click on Update & Security.
- Click Recovery option from the left-hand side panel.
- Now you will get an option Reset This PC.
- Click on Get Started and follow the onscreen instructions to reset your PC.
So, these are ways to speed up your PC. Try them and let us know what difference does it create in the performance of the system.
Conclusion
By implementing the strategies outlined in this guide, you’ll be well on your way to transforming your Windows system into a responsive, high-performing machine. From clearing out unnecessary files and programs to optimizing your system settings and leveraging the power of your hardware, these proven techniques will help you regain control over your computer’s performance. With a faster, more efficient PC at your fingertips, you’ll be able to work, play, and navigate your digital world with ease, enjoying seamless and productive computing experiences for years to come.
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