A slow PC isn’t an annoyance, it’s an affliction. The upgrade to Windows 10 has been simple for some, but for others, the upgrade has led to serious problems. Some even report the upgrade to Windows 10 has slowed down their computer.
A slow computer is also a tough problem to troubleshoot. Many websites that claim to have the “best trick” or “top tips” to speed up your computer are peddling registry tweaks or cleaners that have no real effect. Instead, use these tried-and-true methods to instantly speed up your Windows 10 PC.
1. Windows Boot
No one should suffer from a slow startup. Now, you don’t have to. Windows 10 has a Fast Startup feature, which reduces the Windows boot time. It functions in a similar manner as Hibernation. In Hibernation mode, Windows saves the state of your computer, open programs and all, to the hiberfile. Then, it activates that state again when you power on. Fast Startup works by pre-loading your Windows kernel and installed drivers before your computer turns off. Powering on your PC normally reloads your Windows kernel, taking a longer time to start your computer.
To activate Fast Startup, you first have to enable hibernation mode. To do so, right-click the Start Menu or press Windows key + X to launch the Power User Menu, select Command Prompt (Admin), and copy and paste the following line into the command prompt:
powercfg /hibernate on
Return to the Power User Menu (Windows key + X) and go to Control Panel > (System and Security >) Power Options > Choose what the power button does > Change settings that are currently unavailable. Here set a checkmark for Turn on fast startup and click Save changes. Fast Startup should now be activated on your computer.
Warning: When Fast Startup is enabled on your PC, your computer will not shut down as it normally does. This may lead to update issues. If you want to update your PC, or need to shut down your PC entirely, turn off Fast Startup, manually shut down the computer via the Start or Power User Menu (Shut down or sign out > Shut down), or perform a common restart. Restart is unaffected by the Fast Startup feature.
2. Boot Performance
Configuring which programs start up with your computer is a vital step in speeding up your PC. You can configure boot in many different ways. One is through yourWindows 10 Task Manager. Right-click on your Taskbar and select Task Manager. You can also reach Task Manager using the keyboard command CTRL + SHIFT + ESC. Head to the Startup section and check to see which programs you’d like to activate or deactivate.
The rule of thumb with startup programs is simple. If the program isn’t used every day, disable it. If the program is not for a hardware component like a keyboard or printer, disable it. Third-party software like CCleaner also features a startup configuration option. Open CCleaner and head to Tools > Startup. This feature will also allow you to enable or disable various startup programs.
Most users stop their startup configuration at these two programs. Some tools, however, reveal additional startup programs. Microsoft’s Autoruns program — part of their official Sysinternals toolkit — does just this. Autoruns’ Logon tab showed double the startup programs as CCleaner’s startup feature. To disable a startup program in Autoruns, uncheck it. It’s that simple, and controlling your startup programs will undoubtedly speed up your computer.
To finish optimizing your startup, make sure you disable the Background Applications present on Windows 10. You can access these settings in your Privacy window. Press Windows key + I to launch the Settings app and head toPrivacy > Background apps (at the very bottom).
Turn all of these applications off, except for your Settings.
3. Optimize CPU Usage
Certain programs love to hog your CPU power. These programs slow down others, or may prevent them from working altogether. It’s difficult to troubleshoot every single program that may hinder processor usage. A few, however, are readily avoidable.
Certain unnecessary system processes hinder CPU performance. One such process is OneDrive. OneDrive syncs in your background, which is an issue when you’re not a OneDrive user. To disable it, open your Local Group Policy Editor. Press Windows key + R to open the Run menu, enter gpedit.msc and hit Enter. Head to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > All Settings > Prevent the Usage of OneDrive for file storage > Enable.
Show me tips about Windows is another Windows process to avoid. It may seem harmless, but this process scans your computer to give your tailor-made Windows tips at the cost of performance. To disable, head to Start > Settings > Notifications & actions > Show me tips about Windows > Off.
This small tweak offers a surprising performance boost for some users.
4. Optimize RAM Usage
RAM is a large factor in computer speed. Unfortunately, certain system processes hog RAM speeds and increase the amount of time it takes to open files. Such processes, like your default Windows 10 appearance settings, may have been dragging you down since installation.
You can optimize your RAM usage by lowering the visual quality of Windows. Access this option under Windows key + X > Control Panel > System and Security > System > Advanced system settings > Advanced > Performance > Visual Effects. Click on Adjust for best performance.
Switch to the Advanced tab. Under Adjust for best performance of selectPrograms. After that, click Change… under Virtual memory. In the Virtual Memory window, uncheck Automatically manage paging file size for all drivers. Select Custom size and enter the Recommended number in the Initialand Maximum size entries.
Click OK and your programs should open and run much faster.
5. Explore Files Faster
For the average user, the default Windows File Explorer works fine. For the power user, the Windows 10 File Explorer simply doesn’t cut it. Even more so with work that requires modifying multiple file types in multiple folders.
You can use a custom file explorer to speed up the amount of time it takes to explore and manage your files. My personal favorite is Clover — a Chrome-like file explorer that allows you to open folders in tabs, rather than using multiple windows, or middle-click a folder to open it in a new tab. This tip won’t turn your computer into a speed demon, but I don’t know how I managed files without it.
6. Delete Bloatware
Congratulations, your new Windows 10 operating system is ready to go. Wait, what’s this?
Unfortunately, Windows 10 is not free of bloatware. The issue with these types of programs isn’t just that they take up drive space. They also update on a regular basis. Some may run in the background, hindering your computer’s performance.
You can use the default uninstall program on Windows 10 to remove these programs. To open the default uninstall program, Windows key + X > Control Panel > Programs > Uninstall a program. If you see a toolbar or widget program, uninstall it immediately. If you don’t know what a program does, research it online to confirm or rule out its necessity.
I would recommend Revo Uninstaller as a third party option, which does a thorough job of uninstalling programs. It also has a Hunter Mode feature. If you have an annoying popup on your computer, activate Hunter Mode and click on the icon. Revo Uninstaller will find the program and uninstall it within seconds.
Don’t downplay the importance of uninstalling bloatware because those programs are a potential source of malware.
7. Faster Shut Down
There’s no end to speeding up Windows 10, including shutdown and hibernate speeds. Some PCs take a while to shut down because the running processes close slowly. To fix this issue, create a shortcut to quickly shut down your computer. These shortcuts not only allow for quick access to the shut down function, but hibernate, restart, and advanced startup as well.
If your computer is taking too long to shut down, right-click on your desktop and select New > Shortcut. Choose an action from the list below, copy and past the respective command (excluding the hyphen) in the following prompt, and name the shortcut after its corresponding action.
Shutdown - %windir%\System32\shutdown.exe /s /t 0 Hibernate - %windir%\System32\shutdown.exe -h Restart - Shutdown -r -t 00 Advanced Startup - %windir%\system32\shutdown.exe /r /o /f /t 00
Would you like to access these commands even faster? Create keyboard commands to activate these programs. Right-click your file, select Properties, and place your cursor in the Shortcut key field. After clicking the entry, tap a key on your keyboard and Windows will create a CTRL + ALT + [Letter] command. I’ve chosen CTRL + ALT + H to activate the Hibernate feature, but you can use whatever key you’d like. You can also hide these programs so they don’t clutter your desktop: Right-click on Desktop, choose View, and uncheck Show desktop icons.
8. Consider an SSD / SSHD
No tweak you find on the internet will match the speed gained by switching from a hard disk drive (HDD) to a solid state drive (SSD), period. SSDs takes full advantage of a faster type of memory called flash memory, similar to random access memory (RAM).
Samsung 850 EVO - 250GB - 2.5-Inch SATA III Internal SSD (MZ-75E250B/AM)
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Price: $82.88
Price: $82.88
Unfortunately, SSDs cost three times more on average — per gigabyte of storage — than HDDs. If the high price is an issue and you’d only like to run a couple of gigabytes on your lightning-fast SSD, solid state hybrid drives (SSHDs) allow for a large amount of HDD space and a smaller amount of SSD space in a single package.
Seagate 1TB Gaming SSHD SATA 8GB NAND SATA 6Gb/s 2.5-Inch Internal Bare Drive (ST1000LM014)
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Price: $84.99
Price: $84.99
Transferring your files or an entire Windows installation from an HDD to an SSD is a simple process as well. If you doubt it would make a difference, let me tell you — as a recent convert from HDD to SSD, I haven’t had a startup that took longer than a couple of seconds in months.
Don’t Settle for a Slow Windows 10 Experience
You shouldn’t have to settle for a slow Windows 10 experience, ever. Although there are certain habits you can pick up which ensure your computer is running optimally, implement the tips above for a drastic, one-time performance boost.
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