Cleaning up you computer ???

Question

I'm thinking about taking my computer to best buy and haveing it cleaned.... I was wondering if they can really clean my new computer so that its like the day I bought it... Its starting to run slow and I'm about to start using it for business.... Aslo can I clean it myself with something just as easy or do I really have to take it in and spend $150.00 ?

please let me know your source

Answer 1

If you have the restore CD, then just run the Restore CD. If not, make sure to get one this time.

Answer 2

All they can do is reformat the drive and install the operating system all over. You can do that yourself and save the money.

A computer hard drive has all of its memory in the File Allocation Table (FAT). When an entry is erased in the FAT the computer forgets where it is. The data isn't gone, the computer doesn't know where it is. There are computer programs that can find that data, but you don't need it or you wouldn't have erased it.

What your computer probably needs is to be defragmented.
When data is written down it is laid out in stripes on the hard drive in the space that is available. When there is space between files then that data can be continued somewhere else. Do this often enough and it interferes with performance.

Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Defragment.

A dialogue box will pop up that will let you test your hard drive to see if it is fragmented (the more red you see; the worse it is). You can run the defragment program to fix that problem.

AFTER you have defragmented the computer then check its speed and performance. There are programs you can find at CNET.com that will help you optimize your computer; clear out empty registry keys, control what starts when you boot up etc. You should download one of them and run the trial version. Most want you to buy it before they will fix it, but they will tell you if there are any problems.

If you have your data backed up and have a copy of all your programs (and don't mind doing all the work). Then you can just reinstall the operating system (OS) yourself. If you do that then the first thing the computer is told to do is to format the hard drive. Once a hard drive is formatted everything on it is lost and it goes back to the same way it was when you first bought it. When you install a fresh copy of the OS and then update it you are starting from that point with all news things.

You can do all of this yourself from the comfort of your home without having to shell out any money. I do recommend that you find and buy an optimizer program, but that only costs $30-$50. Save the $150, you can do ALL the work yourself.

The computer store will back all of your data onto another hard drive, reformat your computer and install the OS again. Then they will establish an Internet link to install the updates. They will put the data back onto your machine and give it back to you. However, they will NOT install any of your hardware or your programs. You will have to do that or pay extra to have them do it.

I am going to try Advanced Windows Care: http://www.iobit.com/AWC2ProOnePage.html

Answer 3

That price is ridiculous !!!!!!!!. You can easily speed up your computer. You can just tweak your computer and clean it up to get it running correctly.

If your virus/spyware free, there are a couple things you can do get your computer working faster. If you using your laptop for normal stuff and not gaming. You got a good setup. You don't need more RAM you just need to perform a few maintenance task.

Firstly, if you haven't cleaned your registry in a while. This is necessary. Your registry holds all the information regarding updates, installs, un-installs etc. Each one of those events has
a key. That key needs your PC's resources and free space. So, if you clean your registry, you make more resources available for spped. Do a registry scan if you got more than 20 errors you should clean it. This is the single most important software you need.
http://www.delete-computer-history.com/what-is-the-best-registry-cleaner.html

2. Clear your Windows cache files, this is your temporary file. It can grow up to a large volume and stop your computer from using RAM properly. In a sense slow it down by preventing it from using free space.Here is how:

1. Quit Internet Explorer, Firefox, or any other web browser
2. Click Start, click "Control Panel", and then double-click "Internet Options".
3. On the General tab, click "Delete Files" under Temporary Internet Files.
4. In the Delete Files dialog box, click to select the "Delete all offline content" check box , and then click OK.
5. Click OK.

3. Manage your startups. Your excess CPU usage is due to too many programs running in the background. You can cut these to barebones by alter your msconfig. Here is how:

1. Open your Start menu.
2. Click Run
3. In the command screen type "msconfig.exe"
4. In the "system configuration utility",click either "service" or "startup" tab
5. Uncheck all programs that your are no longer using.
6. Click "OK"

Other great tip is increasing your virtual memory to simulate more RAM. This will give you a bit more resources for multiple program use or CPU heavy programs. Check the link to alter your virtual memory spec.

Hope this link helps. Shows you how to do everything step by step. You should get a least 60% more resources and speed
if you follow the tips.

Answer 4

You can do this on your own.It's something I learnt very quickly.Go to your All Programs which is done by pressing the start icon.Select all programs, select system tools, select Disk cleanup, and Disk Defragmenter.Unless you want heaps of trouble do not select System Restore.otherwise it will cost to get it fixed. The other thing you can do is go to the control panel icon, select Internet Options, select delete temporary browsing programs. Then your computer will clean up all the unneccessary data on your various programs.It takes a little while if your on Dial-Up, but you will find it runs faster after your clean-up.

Answer 5

Depends on what you mean by cleaning.

The simple solution is to backup any data you need or have saved. You can do this by creating a Partition. Copying everything you need to this Partition.

You should have a Restore CD/DVD and/or a Disc that came with your computer. Just re-install using the Disc from scratch.

Remember to install over just the Partition and not the entire disc. Otherwise all the data you backed up will be deleted.

A Windows Install Disc will work just fine for the re-install.

Answer 6

There are two free programs that I recommend. CCleaner that will clear out the clutter: Advanced Windows Care cleans, as well as tunes up and fixes errors in the computer. I brought for $20, Auslogics Boost Speed. It does what Advanced Windows Care does, but runs all the time tuning the computer. Best of luck.

Answer 7

Using a registry cleaner can fix your computer and then make your computer faster,Why?the reason is that there may be some regsitry errors and remnant,corrupt files and temp files in your computer to cause "computer slow".
Everytime you install and uninstall software on your computer and surfing online you create junk in the computer registry.over time, the registry can grow to enormous proportions, especially if the various programs you've installed do not do a good job of deleting and/or updating it's Registry entries.You need to scan and clean your computer with registry cleaner to make it fast.Good Regisry Cleaner will improve your computer and Internet performance dramatically!It even can speed up your computer by 300% or more!
There are some comparison and review of TOP 5 registry cleaners.
http://www.make-pc-fast.info/index.php?t=makepcf
You can download and scan your computer for free.

Answer 8

Yea just get the windows cd that came with it and reinstall windows and reformat during the install.

First save anything you want to keep onto a separate drive/cd/usb stick and then put the cd and restart.

The windows cd should boot, if it doesnt you will have to set the BIOS to boot from CD.

Once it boots from the cd, it will load a bunch of drivers. Then you will eventually get to a screen where you can delete the current partition and then create a new partition. Then format that partition and install windows on it.

this will give you a fresh clean start.

Answer 9

Try pc booster: http://www.pc-booster.info
It contains all the secrets to speeding up and optimizing your PC, without spending a single $ on hardware. It turbo-charges your PC to make it much more stable by preventing system inefficiencies that cause crashes, lockups and slowdowns of your computer. By running PC Booster's Auto Tune, you'll be left with a faster and more responsive system that is less prone to crashes and fatal error messages. So you have no more troubles running important programs or memory consuming multimedia or Internet applications.
pc booster: http://www.pc-booster.info

Answer 10

You can perform the reformatting yourself for free :)

Depending on how old your computer is, you should either have format CD's or you should've burned the discs yourself.

Apparently, your computer didn't BSoD (Blue Screen of Death) on you, so thank god for that.

If you have a CD burner (better if you have a DVD burner), you can still burn yourself the formatting discs.

There should be a manual on how to do it; I can't help you much on that because I don't know your computer specs.

Hopefully this will help anything.

Answer 11

Don't spend money to clean it.

Use Disk Defragmenter and Disk Cleanup

I also use Registry Mechanic (type in google to find this)

I paid 25 bucks but my computer is much faster now