How To Perform A Proper System Cleanup
Let’s talk about System Cleanups. Here’s a review of the steps I take during those Cleanups. In my experience over the years, most System Cleanups are done poorly, so I wanted to clarify what I consider a proper System Cleanup.
This is a general overview of how I do System Cleanups. You can skip to the parts of the blog post you care about.
I go into more detail about each of these steps and apps in subscriber-only posts. Please consider subscribing to those for as little as $5 per month.
Please Note: I can perform a System Cleanup for you remotely. For more information, please visit my Remote Support page.
CCleaner
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One of my go-to programs to tidy things up is CCleaner. See my brief free How To Guide HERE. It happens to be FREE, but not all programs I recommend are. I can clear up things like temporary internet files, internet cache, internet browsing history. All of which are optional. However, I won’t clear the cookies unless I have a specific reason to do so.
See my more detailed subscriber-only blog post about using CCleaner.
IOBit Advanced SystemCare
I also use IOBit’s Advanced SystemCare. [See my brief How To guide HERE] The FREE version does quite a bit, but I prefer and recommend the Pro version, as it’s more thorough.
It clears up junk files but looks in places CCleaner doesn’t (and vise versa). It also checks for various other issues, including System Optimizations, Spyware, Security holes, disk errors, and privacy traces, and performs other performance checks and takes care of that.
See my more detailed subscriber-only blog post about using Advanced SystemCare.
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Checking Your Antivirus
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I will also check the status of the antivirus software. Check out my Quick Tip about that.
My first antivirus recommendation is Windows Defender, built into Windows 10 and 11. Stick with that unless you have specific reasons to purchase a paid third-party antivirus.
The ONLY paid antivirus I recommend is ESET Internet Security.
Removing Unwanted Programs
Another important step is to remove unwanted software you either no longer want or came pre-installed with the computer and is just taking up space and potentially causing frustration.
Some of these are very obvious, but if you may have to Google others.
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See my more detailed subscriber-only blog post about Removing Apps and Programs, or check out my free blog post.
Updating Programs
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Keeping your installed programs up to date is also very important in an always-connected internet world. Any vulnerabilities could potentially be exploited to do other things as well.
I generally update programs using PatchMyPC, which updates over 300 of the most commonly used FREE programs.
Check out my FREE blog post about PatchMyPC, or my more detailed post exclusive to paid subscribers.
Windows Update
New Windows Updates are generally released the second Tuesday of each month (Patch Tuesday). On Windows 10 (or 11) Home Edition computers, these updates and usually downloaded and installed automatically, but sometimes not.
On Pro versions of Windows, you may or may not be given the choice when to download updates, install them, and restart your computer.
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See my more detailed subscriber-only blog post about using Windows Update, or check out my FREE blog post.
Windows Startup
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Even if you have a lot of RAM (memory) in your computer, the more programs that are running at any given time WILL affect performance, though it won’t be as noticeable if you use a Solid State Drive (SSD).
Disable anything you don’t need running all the time by selecting the item and clicking the "disable" button. You can always open anything manually when you need it.
See my more detailed subscriber-only blog post, or check out my FREE blog post about Startup items.
Updating Drivers
The hardware in your computer talks to Windows and the programs you have installed using what are called “drivers”. Having updated versions of those drivers installed improves performance and reliability.
Doing this manually by going to each company's website and hunting for the specific driver you need can be a huge pain, so I prefer a program like Driver Booster (blog post and subscriber-only posts coming soon)
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See my more detailed subscriber-only blog post about using Driver Booster, or check out my FREE blog post.
There may be more steps involved, depending on your computer’s needs, but this should give a rough idea of what to expect. If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know!
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