Hey everyone,
I'm trying to clean out and speed up a friends computer. Ideally I'd like to just wipe out the OS and re-install it, however I don't have the original disc to do so, and they don't really want me to because they don't want to loose their data.
So far I've managed to yank alot of spyware and other useless junk and processes from it so it's running a bit faster now, however I've read that getting rid of some of the now useless entries from the registry would be another step to improving it's speed.
I'm not about to go in there and do it all manually, and apparently there's programs out there that will do this. Anybody know of any software out there, that is preferably free (or able to be found free if you know what I mean) that I can use to have this done automatically?
Anything would be a great help... Thanks! :up:
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http://www.piriform.com/ccleaner
CCleaner is a nice tool to clear up files and unused registry keys.MikeHoncho, maynard and brandon27 like this. -
-malware bytes
http://www.malwarebytes.org/
-advanced system care (free) just uninstall after you've run it, it is the closest I've found to System Mechanic without costing
http://download.cnet.com/Advanced-SystemCare-Free/3000-2086_4-10407614.html
-http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-10165_7-5554402-1.html To stop those programs that slow down boot times (msconfig)
-free windows registry repair http://www.regsofts.com/free_registry_repair/registry_repair.htm
It can also be helpful to run chkdsk /f if it is an XP box:
http://kb.wisc.edu/helpdesk/page.php?id=5097
http://www.ehow.com/how_2052292_run-chkdsk-f-windows-xp.html
As those articles point out, it can take hours to run chkdsk and there are few things worse than sitting around waiting for a computer to compile or whatever the heck it is it is doing.
I typically run stuff like that at night and just pick back up in the morning with every all done and the computer rebooted.
Just be sure to set a restore point before you install "clean up" type programs.MikeHoncho and brandon27 like this. -
I paid $30 for Ace Utilities and it worked wonders.
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System Mechanic is really effective.
BTW B27, how are things going with the cleanup?
And sometimes there is no extra "disk" with WinXp on it, the hard drive will have a partition containing the XP installation that you just access and it reformats the HD and installs a XP on the primary partition. -
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No Ammonia , no bleach. Billy approves. -
:cry: