Tips to fix slow Windows computers

Task Manager 'divine'

Task Manager is a feature likened to a specialized clinic for Windows-based computers. The program helps users to monitor the running software, how much RAM or CPU or how much bandwidth is consumed in real time.

On Windows 10, just right-click the taskbar and select Task Manager in the drop-down list. With Windows 11, users have to go to the search (Magnifier icon) in the Taskbar or press the shortcut with the Windows icon on the keyboard and type Task Manager to search.

The default interface of Task Manager does not provide too much detailed information about running applications. To find out more specifically, you need to select the More Details section in the lower left corner of the window.

The content in the window will be divided into two main parts: The running application, the background processes and the types of resources on the machine that the program is using. The second part breaks down into columns like CPU, memory, speed on disk, network bandwidth in use, GPU, etc. and will jump continuously to show real-time usage of each application.

Usually, the programs on the top will take up a lot of memory or CPU of the machine and this is the cause of the slow processing speed of the computer. If you know for sure what application it is and do not need it, select End Task to turn it off, returning resources to other programs. If it's not clear what program is running, look up the name with the Google tool to make a decision after learning more about the application.

The machine is scanning for viruses

Anti-virus programs, including 'original' Security software on Windows, when scanning the system, are resource-intensive and can contribute to slower machines in many tasks.

To overcome the problem of scanning applications during times when the machine needs to operate smoothly to do other things, you should schedule anti-virus software to run at times when the device is rarely used such as lunch break, late at night. or at night if you don't often turn off your computer.

Too many programs running at the same time

If your computer 'freezes' for a long time after logging in or takes a long time to boot, it could be caused by too much unnecessary software being launched with Windows when you turn on the computer. This list of applications can be adjusted and changed through the Task Manager feature mentioned above.

In the Task Manager, select the Startup tab. There will be a list of licensed programs that launch with Windows, many of which are completely unnecessary. You should only let the software you really need to start up, such as sound managers, drivers, network connection managers, etc. Software such as browsers, social networks, OTT, Office. or applications. Entertainment should turn off launching with Windows.

Other solutions to do

Closing running applications after using them is a necessary measure to reduce the load on machine resource consumption. These software need to be completely exited, not running in the background (check in Task Manager) or appear in the notification bar. Normally, the way to turn it off completely is to right-click the software in the notification tray (Notification Tray, located next to the speaker icon group, Wi-Fi in the lower right corner of the screen) and select Exit or Quit the program.

Stop automatically syncing OneDrive: Microsoft itself admits that OneDrive's syncing process slows down your device, and stopping this process is nothing to worry about. When you need to use the device intensively, right-click the OneDrive icon (cloud image) in the notification tray, select More and Pause Syncing. The synchronization process can be restarted after the main work is done and necessary documents need to be backed up to the cloud.

Regarding the hard drive: HDD has a slower read/write speed than SSD, so opening and using applications takes longer. If you are using an HDD, try to replace it with an SSD or just store documents on a hard drive that uses this technology. A full or old hard drive can also affect the speed of use on the computer. To check the drive health, you can use some specialized programs (free or paid versions are available).

Shutdown: more than just Restart, it's still a good idea to shut down your computer from time to time and let the device 'rest' for at least a few minutes. Shutdown and then turn it back on will help the device free up memory and have a 'cleaner' launch than just a Reboot.

Samuel Daniel

Update 10 February 2022