Question and Answers

How can I improve my PC's performance? - wacov_01 My computer is pretty high-spec and running only XP, but seems to be getting slower and slower, gradually losing functionality such as plug and play. I'm aware it could be a virus, but my scans come up clean and I only download from well-protected sites. How can I improve performance without a HDD format or hardware replacement?

Best Answer: Uninstall any old programs you no longer use. Do a disk cleanup then a defrag. "Start" "Run" type in "msconfig" then click the startup tab and uncheck the boxes for any programs you don't need starting up with windows and running all the time like yahoo messenger, quicktime. realplayer. itunes. etc. Run ad-aware. Get AVG anti-virus when your present anti-virus subscription runs out as it uses 1/3 of the resources that nortons and mcafee use--its better too. If you only have 1GB of ram put another GB in of the same speed. The longer you have a puter the more crap it loads up with and the slower it runs. Like a boat--the more people you have in it the slower it goes. I suggest you back up data you dont want to lose. I suggest people reimage their systems at least every 2 years. - s j

stick a 250GB HDD into it, and transfer some of the files to it, thus freeing up the space, which will make you OS find files faster - Niall S

your best bet would be to get a new computer you could delete unnesisary files and programs but that will only make it a bit faster you should probobly get vista anyway i have it and i love it if you want you could buy a new hard drive with more memory and either worry about transfering all of your files or lose them all you will also need to reinstall windows xp your computer probobly came with a disk for that - Austin H

Defrag the drive, see if it improves speed Go to Start/all programs/system tools/defrag. Also don't load too many things on startup. Just start only things youwant there like antivirus etc. To stop unnesecaRY THINGS TO LOAD ON START-UP GO TO START CLICK RUN AND TYPE "msconfig" without "" click ok In new window click start-up TAB and from there uncheck the boxes from programs u don't need to run on start-up. The Many start-up items load, the much memory you lose. hope above help - biggeo65

unistall any unused software from Control Panel > add remove programs Run disk cleanup under programs > accessories > system tools check for not only viruses but adware, spyware, & malware. you can download Adaware from http://www.lavasoft.com or spybot from http://www.spybot.info ( i would download both ) then defrag under Prgrams > Accessories > system tools and that should help - Z

you can lower the visuals of xp to look like windows 2000 and it will run a little more smoother. 1) Go to my computer and right click. 2) Go to properties. 3) Advanced tab 4) Performance button 5) and adjust for best performance hope it helps - Lucky B

Clean and defrag the hard drive. Go to lavasoft.com and download their free version of AdawareSE. A significant slow down usually points to spyware. Best to you.:-)= - Jcontrols

Try this it's free and safe to use, it identify's security and performance issues on your PC and then automatically fix them http://www.pcpal.com !! :) - <>

Most likely your hard drive needs defragmented. Got to: Start->All Programs->Accessories->System Tools->Disk Defragmenter. That should take care of the problem. But if not, then I'd try a free/free trial registry cleaner next, but be very careful. Some cleaners will get rid of registry keys that you still need. If neither of those work (which is unlikely) then a last ditch option would be to re-format. But hopefully you shouldn't have to do that. Hope this helps! :) - John

First Disable unnecessary programs from starting when you start windows Start>Run>type in MSCONFIG>Startup tab - uncheck any program you don't want to run when you start Windows For more info see the links below Streamline your startups http://www.pacs-portal.co.uk/startup_index.htm http://www.answersthatwork.com/Tasklist_pages/tasklist.htm http://www.windowsstartup.com/wso/index.php http://www.3feetunder.com/krick/startup/list.html http://www.greatis.com/appdata/ http://www.castlecops.com/StartupList.html Then disable unnecessary services http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/servicecfg.htm Then read these Basic computer maintenance everyone should do http://forums.majorgeeks.com/showthread.php?t=106650 Understanding, Cleaning And Preventing Spyware http://forums.majorgeeks.com/showthread.php?t=25834 Slow Computer? Check here first; it may not be malware http://www.castlecops.com/t175258-Slow_Computer_Check_here_first_it_may_not_be_malware.html Slow Computer Checklist http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/topic44694.html Last but not least read these for some great tips! How to Speed Up Windows Boot Time http://www.pchell.com/support/how_to_speed_up_windows_boot_time.shtml http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,1558,1786122,00.asp http://www.pcguide.com/opt/opt/bootSpeed-c.html http://www.neowin.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=235571 - techchick

LEAVE IT ALONE XP IS ABOUT THE BEST AT THE MOMENT,AUTO UPDATES SHOULD BE TURNED ON,AND THATS IT.ADDING ANYTHING WILL SLOW IT DOWN - jed slade

run disk cleanup, run scandisk along with disk defragmentation. - Rammi

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