Can You Really Increase Computer Speed

One of the most common questions raised on technical forums and discussion groups is, “Can you really increase computer speed and make your PC like new?”

The answer to this question is simply “Yes.” It is important for all PC users to try and optimize their computer’s performance by carrying out regular PC maintenance activities. This will not only keep your PC at its best performance, but will also increase the life of your computer by many years by keeping many computer problems at bay. This, in turn, will help you in improving your productivity and save money that you would otherwise would have spent in taking expert guidance to troubleshoot computer errors.

This brings us to the crucial question, “How do you increase computer speed?” Well, just follow the simple guidelines given below:
Upgrade your hardware components
Remember that your computer, just like any other machine, is made up of various hardware components and at best can work only as fast as its configuration allows. Be sure to verify that your hardware, such as RAM, processor, video card, and graphics card meet your current requirements. If any hardware is not up-to-date, you should upgrade it to improve your system’s performance.
Clean your hard disk of unwanted data
Over time, a lot of unwanted data gets accumulated on your hard disk. Run the built-in Disk Cleanup utility to get rid of unwanted files from your system. You can run this utility from Start | All Programs | Accessories | System Tools | Disk Cleanup.
Defragment your hard drive
Data on a new computer is stored in continuous blocks. As your computer gets old, the data on the hard drive tends to get fragmented. The fragmentation of data increases the file retrieval time and adversely affects the processing speed of your computer.
Computer experts recommend that users run the built-in Disk Defragmenter tool at least once-a-month to defrag the data stored on the hard drive. You can access this utility from Start | All Programs | Accessories | System Tools | Disk Defragmenter.
Install a reliable antivirus tool
Viruses are not only a grave security threat, but also considerably slow down your computer and cause various system errors. Install advanced antivirus software to keep these malicious programs at bay.
Install an efficient Spyware tool
Spyware are malicious programs that collect your personal information and pass it to a third party without your consent. Besides being a serious security threat, a spyware program also adversely affects your system’s performance by running numerous malicious processes in the background.
To prevent such malicious programs from inflicting damage on your system, install a reliable antispyware tool and run it regularly to prevent these programs from infiltrating your PC.
Maintain a clean and healthy registry
Although, most users do not directly use the registry, it is a critical component of your system. Your operating system, applications and device drivers constantly refer to the registry to successfully perform various operations. The registry of a new computer is compact and contains only necessary information.
However, with continuous usage, the registry is likely to get flooded with unwanted and incorrect information. A bloated registry not only causes your system to slow down, but may also lead to various system errors. Keep your registry compact and clean by running regular registry scans using reliable registry cleaning software.