What is the important thing needed for a slow desktop computer to become faster?
I have a Dell Desktop Home Computer but it’s starting to become slow…people always told me that the memory is what is needed to make a computer faster but is it really true? or is it something else?
i have a dell dimension 2400 but it’s starting to get slow…i got this computer around 2004…it doesn’t have 1GB of memory…it has like 250MB…so what should i do? get more memory or should i do something else?
October 25th, 2010 at 7:30 pm
It depends. Sometimes adding memory will help, sometimes it won’t. Your computer will only be as fast as it’s slowest part. So if you’ve got great processor but not enough memory, then adding memory will help, but upgrading to a faster processor won’t.
Memory is cheap and pretty easy to install so it’s a common suggestion. But if you already have 2GB, it probably won’t help a slower computer. If you’ve got less then 1GB an upgrade will probably improve preformance. But it depends on your computer’s specs.
October 25th, 2010 at 7:32 pm
DON’T use VISTA!!!
October 25th, 2010 at 7:40 pm
can u give us the specs of your computer if u can that would really help on figuring out whats slowing down your computer it could be many things 1.cpu 2.lack of memory 3.lack of hard drive space you may need to just run a utility like this one http://download.cnet.com/Glary-Utilities/3000-2094_4-10508531.html which is free it could be that u have something running in the back ground a slow computer can be many things but without really know whats in it we have know way of seeing what it may be
October 25th, 2010 at 8:20 pm
Defragment. Check your HDD free space. The built in defragger needs atleast 15% free space. The best defragger I have tried is Diskeeper, it defrags in low free space. Whats more, it can be set to run in the background automatically. You can download the free 30 day trial version here-
http://www.diskeeper.com/defrag.aspx
October 25th, 2010 at 8:30 pm
Some folks would recommend you go out and buy upgrades or a completely new system. If you have the money then go for it. If you don’t, then why not try to fully optimize your current system? Often times this will solve the problem and turbo charge your system. Scan your computer for free and get a full diagnosis at:
http://www.registry-clean-up.net
October 25th, 2010 at 9:05 pm
Memory will always speed a computer up, but if your computer was fast and is now getting slower it is probably not because of the memory.
Most slowing of computers is caused by the registry and can be fixed by cleaning the windows registry. I do this about every two months or so. I use three different software packages to clean mine, I read in an article that this does a better job.
You should also defrag your HD and uninstall any software that you are not using. If your HD is full that can slow down your computer as well.
Here are two good articles on the windows registry.
http://ezinearticles.com/?Registry-Repair—A-Basic-How-To&id=2415209
http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Windows-Registry-and-You&id=2357982
Good luck
October 25th, 2010 at 9:49 pm
First, backup all your data to an external medium.
Then, if you have no hardware problems, do this:
(1) Run a FULL anti-virus scan with a good virus scanner. Get free editions of Avast or Antivir. Use the latest virus definitions file. But don’t install or run more than one anti-virus at the same time.
http://www.avast.com
http://www.avira.com
(2) Run anti-spyware scans with Super Anti-spyware and malwarebytes free editions.
http://malwarebytes.org/
http://www.superantispyware.com/
(3) Ensure all Microsoft security updates are applied.
(4) Run disk cleanup to delete old temp files and other junk
(5a) Run chkdsk once to scan for file system errors. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315265
(5b) Run a thorough disk defrag. Use a good defragmenter for this, and also run a boot-time defrag to fix the MFT and page file if they are fragmented. Check out Diskeeper 2009, which is widely acknowledged to be the best defragger around. Their website has free 30-day trial versions. http://www.diskeeper.com
(6) Disable unnecessary background processes and services that take up memory.
You do not need to clean out the registry or mess with the registry in ANY way whatsoever. Deleting a wrong key from the registry can damage your operating system.
Good Luck!
October 25th, 2010 at 10:36 pm
You will have several options to check before you can know for sure, what is causing the problem.
Here are a few suggestions:
1. If you have over 1GB of RAM, you are probably ok.
2. Do a Disk Cleanup to rid your system of old files that may be
clutter your system. Go to Program files, accessories, system tools to do this.
3. If your hard disk is over 90% full, you page files are restricted and cannot be made any bigger. That can be a problem too. The best solution for that is to delete some files from the hard drive or move them to other devices, such as CD-ROM or DVD’s.
4. Finally, your problem may be a cluttered registry. This is a tricky one to fix because if you don’t know what your are doing, you could cause your PC to become un-bootable (it won’t start).
For Registry issues, I suggest that you use automated software that
will remain on your computer, and constantly update and clean your computer every time you start it up.
I find that a good pc diagnostic software will take care of at least 5 – 8 different problems automatically, leaving you free to really enjoy your computer.
The resource below should could be helpful.
All the best,
October 25th, 2010 at 10:47 pm
A Dimension 2400 is a socket 478 Pentium 4 Celeron running at 2.4Ghz. It wouldn’t be that fast even when new. Most came with at least 512MB of memory (which is the BARE minimum for XP with all the recent updates and drivers installed).
If you have only 256MB, you either got a really cheap computer when new, or one of the sticks of RAM may have gone bad or got dislodged from the motherboard. Check this first.
1GB of RAM should be plenty enough for doing everyday things, and some light gaming. That would be the only upgrade I would do on an older Dell. The motherboard is the main limiting factor – support for older CPU’s and memory, plus crappy on-board video. Hell, even today’s cheapest motherboard will usually have an nVidia 6100 onboard video, and that would run circles around the Intel graphics you’re stuck with.
If it’s gaming you’re interested in (newer games), don’t bother upgrading anything – it won’t do much good. You could build a new computer that’s much faster and better equipped for less than it would take to upgrade yours. The 2400 was never meant to be fast – that’s why they were cheap, you get what you pay for.
Doesn’t help that Microsoft has added so much to XP since it’s inception. XP originally would run on a Celeron with 256MB of RAM pretty well when it first came out. Windows has grown (bloated) since then.
Either way, a GB of RAM for that will cost you $25-40 online somewhere. Make sure you get a dual kit (2 x 512MB, not a single 1GB). This way the memory will at least run in dual channel mode.
Some other things to check out:
Make sure the CPU fan and heatsink are free of dust build-up. Dust lowers airflow, which heats up the CPU, which can cause it to run slower. Clean is good 🙂
In the BIOS Setup for that model, there is usually two settings that can help with speed a little. Set the hard drive acoustic mode to performance, and set the CPU to run in HyperThreaded mode. Might help.
Scan you computer for virus’s, spyware etc. SpyBot S+D is a great free tool for cleaning a PC up a bit. AVG Free is also very good. Make sure you only have 1 antivirus installed on the PC. 2 won’t do much but slow the computer to a crawl. Install one, run it, uninstall it, install the next, repeat….
Seriously though, even the cheapest $300 off the WalMart shelf PC is going to be WAY better than the setup you have now. Get one, put Linux on your old one and make it a good little Internet PC or something.
Hope that helps,
Jason
http://www.shopforlinux.com
October 25th, 2010 at 11:27 pm
I agree with the poster who suggested you run a full scan using your antivirus software. If you do not have any antivirus software then your computer _may_ be infected. And if you do have antivirus software, be sure that your virus definitions are up-to-date, and then scan the entire hard drive.
If there is no virus on your computer, I suggest getting more RAM. When your computer runs out of RAM it typically will access the hard drive as if it were memory (assuming that virtual memory is turned on, which it usually is). The more this happens, the slower the computer will be.