As computer hardware speeds up, so is its software, and Windows is not an exception. This is mostly true when it comes to startup time: when you upgrade to the latest Windows, you will be intrigued by how fast your PC is. But there are several other factors that influence the performance of your machine, and even the latest Windows version is not immune to these.
Below are 10 tips to help you optimize Windows 10 speed.
- Restart Your Computer
While starting your machine seems an obvious step, many people always keep their PCs running for weeks. Windows 10 always puts the display to sleep automatically, but processes that are running will still continue, which would eventually slow down the machine. Such issues can be fixed by shutting down the PC every day after using it.
- Check the Startup Apps
Computers can be bogged down by processes that run simultaneously. This happens because many installers let Windows run programs immediately the machine is turned on, thus, slowing down the speed. To check for such apps, open the Task Manager, and click the “Startup” tab to confirm if all the programs have ‘High Startup Impact.”
- Update as Frequent as You Can
Windows 10 continues to receive updates from Microsoft often, which are designed to prevent bugs that may affect the system performance. If your machine performance is slow, check the Windows menu for ‘Updates” in the settings. If there are available updates, run them after saving all your personal data.
- Run Disk Cleanup
Disk Cleanup can be used to clear out temporary files that slow down your machine. To perform this, search for “Disk Cleanup” on the Windows menu, and choose the files you want to remove from the utility list. Simply check the options you want to be deleted. This process also presents an opportunity to delete files in the hard drive that you no longer use.
- Deactivate Special Effects
Windows 10 utilizes a lot of special effects, which fade in and out of view. Other unnecessary features that are resource-incentive also include animations and translucency. Under ‘Performance Settings’ in the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab, search for ‘Visual Effects’ then click the ‘Custom’ button. Here, you will be able to uncheck all the visual effects that you don’t need. Click ‘Apply’ to maintain the changes.
- Remove Unused Software
Several machines are bundled with third-party software that is unnecessary. You may also find yourself keeping software that you do not specifically need. To optimize Windows 10 performance, you may need to ‘Uninstall’ all the programs that you no longer need.
- Upgrade Your RAM
You can greatly boost your PC performance by increasing the size of your virtual memory. To increase space, insert chips into the RAM slots. However, ensure that you know the type of memory that your machine uses by checking the ‘Performance’ tab on the Task Manager.
- Run Windows System Maintenance
Windows 10 has a software utility that performs maintenance tasks like checking for malware, scanning updates, and hard drive defragmentation. However, if you notice a system performance issue, you can run maintenance manually by clicking “Security and Maintenance: on the “System and Security” tab.
- Use SSD
Solid State Drives (SSD) allow for faster access when used on PCs compared to traditional hard drives. With this kind of disk, you will be able to improve your boot time and the overall responsiveness of your Windows system.
- Turn off Search Indexing
Search indexing always takes up system space, especially in the case of lower-powered machines. To turn off indexing, search for ‘Indexing Options’ in the Control Panel Window then modify and uncheck the locations you want to unindexed.
