I get this question a lot and much of my time is spent fixing slow computers, so here are a few things that cause your computer to run slow and ways to correct this.

Processor

The first thing I do when I work on a slow computer is look at the processor type and processor speed.  If your processor type is “Pentium” or “Centrino”, your computer will never be a speed demon.  The i3, i5 and i7 processors are much faster and better equipped to handle today’s computing needs.  If you have an AMD processor, it is harder to figure out the processor, but there is a website that compares many CPU’s and this can help gauge your AMD processor speed.  https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_list.php  Processor speed is listed in gigahertz (GHz).  The higher the number, the better.  If your speed is less than 2.0 GHz, your computer is running the minimum requirement for Windows to run.  The processor is the heart of the computer.  If your processor is slow, consider getting a new computer.

Memory

The next thing to check is the amount of memory installed in the computer.  Windows 10 has memory requirements of 2 GB minimum.  Your computer will run with 2 GB, but it will not run well.  If that is what you have, you can easily upgrade to improve performance on your computer.  All motherboards have a maximum amount of memory they can support, but all of them can support at least 4 GB.  I recommend 8 GB for normal usage.

Task Manager

If your processor type and speed seem adequate and you have enough memory, your computer can still be slow.  This is when you check the task manager to determine if you are using all your processor or memory on unnecessary tasks.  If you look at the performance tab and neither the CPU or memory is running at or near 100%, you might have a failing hard drive.  I will talk more about this later in the article.  If one or the other is at or near 100% it is time to find what is slowing you down.

The processes tab will list everything that is using processor units and memory.  You can click at the top of any column and it will sort by that column.  This will easily show you what is using the most.  It may be that an anti-virus scan is running in the background and that is using all your resources.  If this is the case, you might try scheduling your scans at a time when you are not usually on your computer.  Sometimes, you might not know what the item using your resources is.  You can google “what is (item) in processes?”  to find out what it is.  Sometimes there is nothing you can do about the process, but you can look at the next item and maybe make a difference with that.  Be very careful when working with processes, disabling the wrong items could cause Windows to fail.

In Windows 10, you can open the startup tab and see what is loading into memory when your computer starts.  Many new computers come with Dropbox preinstalled.  If you don’t use Dropbox, it doesn’t need to be in the startup.  From there, you can easily disable this from starting up when Windows starts. Once again, some of these items must be in the startup for Windows to load properly, so be very careful.  If you are not certain about an item, it is best to leave it alone.

Viruses and Malware

If you still cannot find what is causing the slow down, you should check for viruses and malware.  Run a scan with your anti-virus software and download Malwarebytes and run it.  Hopefully these will root out any hidden malware processes that can slow your computer.

Hard Drive

If your computer’s performance is still not acceptable after checking these things, you might have a failing hard drive.  Some signs of this are performance that is sporadic, taking a long time to load an application then working fine, and very long startup or sometimes not starting up.  Typically, a hard drive will continue to get worse and will eventually freeze up or crash.  This is a part that can be replaced inexpensively.

As you can see there is no short answer to “Why is my computer so slow?”  Some of the items listed above are advanced and you should only attempt them if you have some knowledge of computers.  I offer this service, and I can even help you shop for a new computer to help you avoid these issues in the future.

Contact me

Back to Blog