What Makes Your Computer Run Slow

Computer Runs Slow? As it gets older, you may find your computer runs slow. This happens to every computer user and is quite common. However how much your computer slows down and what point it becomes intolerable might vary.

Every computer is different. Some are slower than others. Some may not respond to external stimulus at all where as some might still respond quickly enough. Everybody should have a computer that works effectively and properly. When a computer runs slow, it can make it hard to get things accomplished. If this is happening to you, keep reading.

Apart from aging and general wear there are a few reasons why your computer could run slow. Many times, problems with the hard drive cause a computer to slow down. The hard disk might be in a fragmented state, which means that the files on the hard disk might no longer be stored in contiguous locations and there might be some time lag before files are accessed.

Another reason of hard disk problem can be lack of free disk space, which may lead to memory and swap file related issues. Sometimes computer data becomes corrupt and all it does is sit around wasting precious space on the hard disk.

In order to avoid these issues you should de-fragment the hard disk and clean up unnecessary data on a regular schedule. Windows has two tools known as Disk Cleanup and Disk Degragmenter that can easily do this for you.

Your computer runs slow when it’s overheated as well. Overheating can be caused by a number of things. Dust deposits on computer components and malfunctioning CPU or SMPS fan are two of the main causes of PC overheating. That’s why you should clean the dust from within your computer every 3 or 4 months. Make sure to get any non-working fans replaced as soon as you can.

Corruption in operating system data and the drivers that control your devices can also make a computer run slow. You can utilize the “sfc” command to locate and replace any corrupt data files associated with Windows in your computer. You can also use the Windows installation to replace any corrupt system data in Windows. In order to repair drivers you might be required to uninstall the driver and then reinstall it. At times, updating the corrupt drive may also resolve the issue.

One major reason why computers run slow is virus and malware infections. A virus can enter into your system through something you connect to your computer or through something you’ve downloaded from the internet. Viruses run rampant on the Web. They can attach to email messages, ActiveX scripts and fake files. It is therefore, advisable that you install a good anti-virus application that offers real time protection against threats and at the same time can also remove threats encountered in the computer it’s installed in. It is important that these programs and particularly their virus definitions are regularly updated.

Another reason your computer can run slow is because the system registry is full of unnecessary data. Your computer’s registry can become overrun with keys and files that have long since been made obsolete. Registries contain mostly data on the various settings you’ve defined on your computer. Sometimes, when a program is uninstalled or other changes are made, the files that saved these settings just sit there as junk. Registry values and entries can also be corrupted by malware.

All these issues may slowdown your registry and as a result your computer. This is why if your computer runs slow, it is recommended that you use a reliable registry tool to perform a thorough registry scan and get rid of all junk accumulated within it.

By: David W McKellop

About the Author: