Best Cleanup Tools for Windows - CCleaner

One of the screw up things in windows is the registry key because it always keeps hanging around especially when you uninstall the software. So, I recently find out this CCleaner tool (free) to clean up the registry and it turns out to be pretty good and reliable.

Another thing that I use for this CCleaner tool is to remove all those useless applications that come by default with Windows 10. It improves my laptop performance significantly after that.

Unfortunately, you can NOT uninstall these applications with the "Add & Remove Programs" that you can find in the normal control panel. So the best method is to use the CCleaner tool to remove them.


Download free CCleaner here.

Using MSconfig for Selective Startup in Your Windows

One of the key reasons why your windows is running extremely slow is because you load too many programs during your windows startup that you may not aware at all. MSconfig or System Configuration tool is the most useful software that comes together with windows that allows you to choose what startup programs that you would like to run.


Steps to Run System Configuration Tool

(1) Click “Start” and key in the “msconfig” to run program directly or go to “Start” –> “Control Panel” –> “System and Maitenance” –> “Administrative Tools” –>  “System Configuration”. You will see the following screen:

(2) Click on the ‘Services” tab and disable the services that you do not like to run in your PC. You need to look at each services and understand the purpose of this services. You can “Google them” to find out more about their purpuse to run at the background. For myself, I list down some examples of services that I disable:

• AVG Free E-mail Scanner (Since I don’t use external email programs 

• AMD External Events Utility (For Hotkeys which is not necessary)

Note: This is the advanced usage. Please make sure you restart your PC to make sure you don’t screw up everything. If really so, load the windows in safe mode and enable back the services. 

 
(3) Click on the “Startup” tab and disable the startup programs that you do not like to run. Again, you need to look at each start up programs and decide whether you really still need them in startup. This is some examples of the startup programs that I disable:

• Adobe Reader and Acrobat Manager (it is usually no needed – same to MS office startup programs that usually is useless to put them into the startup) 

• Adobe Acrobat (Same with the reason above - it usually loads in startup for loading the application faster later on) 

• Dell Support Center Updates, Google Update, Java Platform SE Auto Updater (any auto update programs that you think are not needed) 

• Catalyst Control Center (graphic configuration that I think I can load it manually if I want to)

• GoogleToolbarNotifier (a program that run all the time to make sure you Google is always your default search engine which is not needed at all) 

• Synaptics Pointing Device Driver (It is my touch pad driver and I don’t feel any different if I disable it)

Note: Of course you will find more startup programs to disable but please make sure you restart your PC to make sure you don’t screw up everything. If really so, load the windows in safe mode and enable back the startup programs.

P/S: By the way this is the advance usage to selective disable the services and startup programs. The simple way before you start doing this is, you should uninstall any unnecessary programs in your system. For example, your laptop which comes together with those trail version of application or pre-install useless application from the vendor (e.g. Dell) and if you don’t need them, you should uninstall all of them. Good luck!