How to Keep your Computer Running
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1) Open a Windows File Explorer window. (Not sure what a File Explorer window is or how to open one? Right click the Start button in the bottom-left of your screen and then left click Explore.) 2) Right click on your C: drive, and click Properties.
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5) We'd recommend you select both checkboxes (fix file system errors and recover bad sectors). 6) Click Start and sit back and wait while Windows scans your PC's hard drive for errors which could be hindering it and fix them. (If you’ve checked the boxes like we recommended above.) |
Your hard drive should now be free of any errors. The next step is to
defragment your hard drive.
What is defragmentation and why do you need to do it?
Windows isn't very efficient at storing your files and over time, they become fragmented. Fragmented files are files that are broken up across your hard drive. That is, parts of the same file are stored in various locations around your hard drive rather than all together. See the bits of red in the diagram to the right? Those are fragments of files. The blue sections show areas of the drive with files that aren’t broken up. The more fragmented files are, the longer it will take Windows to open, update and close them. |
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Defragmenting your drive will improve its efficiency and as a consequence, it's speed. We'd recommend you defrag all of your drives regularly. (Once a month for the average user.)
To defrag your drive, go back to the Properties window shown on the previous page.
Then click the Defragment Now button in the Defragmentation section. In the list of drives, select your C: drive by clicking on it once and then click on the Defragment button. Sit back and grab a cup of your favourite drink as it will generally take a while to defrag your whole drive.
We’d recommend you do this for each of your drives. You might want
to stock up on your favourite drink or snack first...
