Cleaning up your computer can make it run more efficiently and prolong the life of your system. There are a few simple ways that you can do this at no cost and it only takes a few minutes of your time.

Cleaning out programs that you no longer need or use can drastically help your computer run faster. Simply open the “add or remove programs” utility by clicking your control panel. Once the programs load, you can search by name, date, etc. and choose the ones that you no longer have use for. Some of these programs are pre-installed with your computer and may be programs you have never needed. Simply highlight the program and click the uninstall button. If you are not sure if a program is needed simply do an online search to see if it is a useful program that you need or if it can be removed.

A disk cleanup can remove unnecessary files and clean out the clutter in your computer. This option is found by clicking your start button to show the programs you have, then accessories. Disk cleanup is found in the accessories file and once you pull it up just click your C drive or any other drives you want to clean. The C drive is the one that will typically be the most cluttered. This only takes moments to do and can help your computer run faster. In fact, you should do it on a regular basis or have it scheduled to perform automatically.

A defragment takes longer but helps clean out files and junk that can’t be simply tossed away. These are files that are no longer in use but still remain on your system. Files get stored in the order they are used and this is where a defragment comes in handy. It rearranges the files so that they are in the correct place, making your computer run faster. This can be also found in the accessories file after you click the start button and then view your program files.