Keep things running smoothly
Ensure that your computer is operating at its best
Just like your car, Windows 7 needs regular TLC to keep things running smoothly and efficiently. There are a few built in tools that you can use to make sure Windows is running at its best. We'll talk you through these in the article below.
Action Center
Action Center is new in Windows 7 and is a welcome relief from all those annoying pop up messages that have plagued computer users across the world. Alerts and notifications are now housed in the Action Center which you can access at any time by clicking on the flag icon in the notification area.
You can also click 'Open Action Center' to view key security and maintenance information for your computer.
Disk Cleanup
Our hard drives become a breeding ground for old and unused files over time. They serve no other purpose than to hog space and slow our computers down. Disk Cleanup scans your hard drives and identifies these pesky files allowing you to blitz them with a mouse click.
- Click the Start button and type Cleanup in the search box, then click 'Disk Cleanup' in the search results.
- Disk Cleanup will run a quick scan of your hard drive to identify files that can be safely removed.
- Tick the box next to the sections you'd like to clear up, for example, 'Temporary Internet Files' and 'Recycle Bin'.
- Click 'OK' and follow the on-screen instructions to clean your hard drive.
Disk Defragmenter
Your files can become scattered across different parts of your hard drive, which means that Windows has to work harder to access what you need. Disk Defragmenter looks at your files and re-organises them so that similar files are stored together. This can help speed things up.
- Click the Start button and type Defragmenter into the search box, then choose 'Disk Defragmenter' from the results.
- Select the '(C:)' hard drive and then click 'Analyze disk'. You hard drive will be checked to see if a defragment is required.
- If you are advised to run a disk defragment you need to click the 'Defragment disk' button and follow the on-screen instructions. This could take a few hours so it's best to wait for a time when you won't need to use the PC.
