List of unnecessary programs for Windows 7. General cleaning... on the computer

You are probably familiar with the situation when it suddenly turns out that there is too little free space on the system disk. Or you suddenly notice that your computer has become noticeably slower compared to how it worked before. And when you bought a new laptop, you probably saw a huge list of installed demo versions of programs that you clearly don’t need. To solve all the problems described above, you just need to remove all the “junk” from the system. But how do you know which programs are really not needed and which ones should be left on the computer? The free Should I Remove It? utility will give us the answer to this question.

How to find unnecessary programs on your PC

When you launch the program, you will see a list of installed programs, sorted by the frequency of removal by other users (the “Removal%” column). The higher the program is at the top of the list, the higher its uninstallation percentage (the more often other users deleted this application).

If the program's uninstall percentage is in the green area, this means that other users hardly uninstall this application and it can be left on the computer. If the program's uninstall percentage is displayed in red, it means that it is recommended to uninstall the application (other users very often uninstall this application).

Ideally, you should strive to ensure that all programs in the list have a green scale - this will mean that there are no unnecessary programs on the computer.

In addition, you can look at the “Rating” column, in which the ratings of programs given by other users are marked with stars. Based on this assessment, you can also evaluate how good or bad the chosen program is.

To remove a program, select it in the list and click on the “Uninstall” button. In this case, after deletion, the data will be sent to the server, adding to the overall application statistics in the program.

To find out details about the selected program, you need to click on the “What is it?” button. and the program will send you to its website, opening the description of the selected application.

How Should I Remove It?

While using the program, statistical information about uninstalled applications is automatically collected. This data is sent to the server of the utility manufacturer, where it is combined with data from other users. All this allows you to build a list of programs in descending order by the number of deletions.

Who is in the lead for removal?

If you look at the Should I Remove It? statistics, you can immediately notice that many users remove pre-installed programs from computer manufacturers and their partners, annoying panels (toolbars) and other unnecessary applications.

For example, 81% of users uninstall Ask Toolbar. 57% decide to destroy the program for purchasing original HP cartridges. Then in a dense crowd follow little-known safe searches from services of very different authority, many toolbars with extremely convenient buttons, which in fact turn out to be simple links to some dubious sites.

In the Russian part of the Internet, everything is also very clear. When installing various domestic programs, it is suggested to install, for example, Yandex.Bar. Only some crazy fan of Yandex and its services can use it constantly.

Conclusion

When removing unnecessary programs, you need to understand which programs are really needed and which can be removed. The Should I Remove It? service will help you with this; it will not only report useless applications, but also recommend removing low-quality programs. The most interesting thing is that users themselves help each other by collecting a large amount of statistical information, which underlies the operation of the service.

Unfortunately, the service only works on English language, no Russian support was found in it. But even in this case, it can help you find unnecessary programs - you just need to look for applications with a red rating in the list - they can definitely be deleted.

If you have a computer, then you inevitably have so-called computer junk - files and system registry entries that clutter up the disk. Less active users have much less garbage, more active ones have more, but it is always there, no matter how hard you try to work carefully. As a matter of fact, little depends on the accuracy of the user here, since the main thing is how often and how much different software is installed, what specific software is used, how often program failures are, etc.

computer garbage accumulates gradually and completely unnoticed after all, these are not mountains of papers, dust, various necessary and unnecessary things on your computer desk, and therefore many users begin to think about getting rid of garbage after, for example, when they try to save a file, the program reports about a lack of disk space or when the system stops working stably. And this is not the most best time to carry out “spring cleaning” and time is running out, and there is a risk of removing something valuable. It is much better to carry out such cleaning regularly, for example once a week or once a month; the frequency here is determined individually and depends on the speed of formation of computer debris.

Don’t think that only pedants who like everything on their computer to be sorted into shelves are concerned about the fight against garbage. Periodically getting rid of computer junk is a necessity, unless, of course, you want to rearrange the operating system and all the applications you use every couple of months and endlessly increase the size of your hard drive. The fact is that regular disk cleaning provides additional megabytes of disk space and speeds up the computer by reducing occupied disk space, page file size, number of temporary files, data search time and, as a result, reducing the total search volume. In addition, cleaning the disk is one of the conditions for ensuring the safety of the user, because during cleaning, various personal information accumulated by applications, primarily the Internet browser, can be deleted, which as a result will be inaccessible to others. Neglecting disk cleaning can not only lead to a gradual slowdown of the computer and shrinking of free disk space, but also cause a variety of problems, including sometimes even causing the system to become completely inoperable.

Cleaning the system registry is no less important, since the gradually accumulating dead entries clutter the registry, which grows to incredible sizes, and the system spends more and more time looking at it, and therefore begins to work slowly and unstable.

Types of computer garbage and reasons for its appearance

Disk junk

There are a great many reasons why unnecessary data appears on a disk, but most of the time, unnecessary files are the result of various programs not always working correctly, as well as actions programmed in applications to remember some information. Sometimes such information is useful for subsequently speeding up the system when launching applications, and sometimes it simply reflects the progress of the program and is of interest only to specialists. Listing the principles for forming names and types of extensions for these types of files is a thankless task, since there are a lot of them, and it is not at all necessary for the average user to know them thoroughly. Nevertheless, let us dwell on some of the main components of disk computer garbage.

Many programs use temporary files to save intermediate data. Such files should be deleted when applications stop running, but this does not always happen, which is why the number of temporary files remaining on disks is steadily growing. For example, temporary files very often remain after various installation applications are running or in the event of an emergency termination of various programs, even such as the widely used Word editor.

Some programs can be configured to automatically create backup files of edited documents, which is a plus in case of possible problems with saving files when the program crashes (therefore, it is sometimes worth resorting to this feature), however, constant work in this mode will significantly increase the amount of unnecessary data. Sometimes programs create many log files (report files), where they record all their actions step by step, but for a large number of users these files are of no interest and only clutter up the computer.

All sites visited by the user are saved on disk in the Internet Temporary Files folder. On the one hand, this is good, since on subsequent visits to the site, its loading speed will increase, and on the other hand, the OS equally remembers information about both regularly visited sites and those that are visited occasionally. As a result, the volume of the Internet Temporary Files folder grows very quickly due to filling it with information that is not always useful for the user.

A number of applications save their work history in files, for example, the history of visiting web pages, the history of downloading files, etc. For some users, this information is of interest, for example, in terms of quickly loading the latest files in some applications; for others, this information is completely uninteresting, and the corresponding files still take up disk space.

When surfing the Internet, special text files called cookies record some information regarding the settings of the sites visited, as well as personal data such as passwords, username, credit card number, etc. In principle, this is convenient, since on subsequent visits to the corresponding site you will not have to enter registration information. However, it is worth keeping in mind that cookies are a very valuable source of information for an attacker, so it is better to delete them. However, you should act with caution here, because if you delete all cookies, you risk losing all your user settings.

Garbage in the system registry

The Windows system registry, which stores all software and hardware configuration settings, over time becomes filled with outdated data: incorrect keys in the registry, incorrect file and class extensions left over from incorrectly uninstalled programs, incorrect uninstallation information, links to non-existent files, missing device drivers , fonts, DLLs, broken shortcuts, etc. Outdated data appears for various reasons, but the main ones are the following:

• when installing applications, new entries are created in the system registry, which, after uninstalling the program, are not deleted in full and often remain as dead weight;
• if the program was not removed during uninstallation, but simply by deleting the corresponding folder from the disk, then in this case all links to it will be saved in the registry in full;
• when editing the Start menu incorrectly, moving programs, etc.;
• in case of incomplete installation of programs, when links to files are already included in the system registry, but the files themselves have not yet been created, as well as incomplete installation or removal of device drivers.

Gradually, such entries clutter up the registry, which grows to incredible sizes, and the system, spending more and more time viewing it, becomes unstable and slow.

How to rid your computer of unnecessary information

In the fight for computer cleanliness, you can limit yourself to standard configuration tools for the Windows operating system, provided for this purpose by the developers. However, this is ineffective, although if absolutely necessary, the situation can be improved to some extent in this way. For example, Internet Explorer 6 built into Windows XP can be configured to automatically delete temporary files by enabling the checkbox Delete all files from the Temporary Internet Files folder when closing the browser in the window Internet Options on the tab Additionally. You can erase the swap file when you log out, which will prevent the possibility of extracting, for example, data about the last edited documents, passwords, etc. from it. To do this, in the system registry you need to set the value of the ClearPageFileAtShutdown parameter (dword type) to 1 in the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management branch. You can periodically search for temporary and a number of other unnecessary files manually by their extensions and delete them at the end of the search. As a matter of fact, not so long ago this was the only way to deal with computer junk, and all this in practice resulted in hours of tedious but necessary work.

Today there is no longer any need to clean in such a painstaking way, since purchasing a simple and convenient utility that will allow you to carry out general cleaning in one fell swoop is not a problem. The problem is different: you need to choose exactly the one that is most suitable in your particular case, since more and more similar utilities are appearing.

Quite conventionally, the corresponding utilities can be divided into four groups:

• programs designed to clean the disk from unnecessary information cluttering it: temporary and log files, zero-length files, empty folders, MRU data for various applications, data on autofilling forms, files like index.dat, as well as various traces of Internet surfing . Sometimes such utilities contain some additional system features, such as managing startup, uninstalling programs, etc.;
• applications responsible for cleaning the system registry; Typically, such programs can identify all errors in the system registry and clean and optimize it by removing dead entries, searching and fixing broken shortcuts, detecting incorrect keys in the registry, non-existent dynamic link libraries (DLLs), etc.;
• applications that, to one degree or another, combine the capabilities of disk cleaning with cleaning and optimizing the system registry;
• utility packages that combine programs to solve a variety of problems configuring and optimizing the operating system. Among other tasks, they allow you to clear the disk of debris cluttering it and restore order in the system registry.

We have talked about the utilities of the last group many times, and therefore we will not repeat ourselves. But let’s focus on no less interesting and useful software products designed specifically for cleaning your computer from unnecessary information. In comparison with applications for setting up and optimizing the system, these products are cheaper (there are also free options), easier to use and more effective in terms of cleaning, since they can find much more various information garbage, and they work much faster that is why the program is “ cleaner" will be appropriate on the computer of any user. If such a cleaner is used regularly, then computer general cleaning will take very little time from the user (and when setting up work on a schedule, it will not even require the user’s presence at the computer). In this case, there will be no unnecessary files on the disk, no outdated data in the registry, and the speed of the computer will be stable.

Utilities for comprehensive cleaning

Developer: Pointstone Software

Distribution size: 2.39 MB

Distribution method: shareware (15-day demo http://dl1.pointstone.com/download/systemcleaner/SystemCleanerSetup.a1000.exe)

Price:$34.95

Work under control: Windows 98/Me/2000/XP/2003

System Cleaner a comprehensive solution for quickly cleaning both the hard drive from unnecessary information cluttering it, and the system registry from unused entries, incorrect keys, etc. The data found by the program is not deleted immediately, but after providing a detailed report to the user, viewing which he has the right to refuse from deleting individual data. And even deleted information, if necessary, can still be restored using the Restore Wizard, which replaces the Windows Recycle Bin.

In terms of cleaning file garbage, the program is configured to search for and remove more than 100 types of unnecessary, outdated and temporary files and shortcuts remaining after uninstalled applications (this is much more than in analogue programs), which allows you to clean the disk faster and better. When cleaning the system registry, the program will scan all installed and virtual disks for errors and identify dead entries, detect incorrect keys, non-existent dynamic link libraries (DLLs), check fonts and system configuration files, etc.

In addition to cleaning, System Cleaner provides users with a number of additional features this is uninstalling programs, managing the list of automatically downloaded applications, searching for duplicate files, deleting files and folders with secret documents so that they cannot be restored. Like many other utilities of this class, System Cleaner (for Internet Explorer, Netscape, Mozilla and Firefox browsers) will help to destroy all traces of Internet activity in the system, remove unnecessary addresses in the URLs database, protect with passwords any personal data entered, for example, when registration on websites, etc.

It is worth noting that System Cleaner, despite its multifunctional capabilities, is aimed at all categories of users. Thus, the average user does not necessarily need to be aware of the types of files interpreted as computer junk and go into detail about setting up the program, since the default settings will satisfy his needs and allow him to easily maintain the optimal state of the hard drive and OS. At the same time, trained users, if necessary, can adjust the list of relevant extensions by deleting or, conversely, adding some of them, since it is possible to search and delete files with any other extensions. You can clearly define not only which files should be searched, but also which of them should always be ignored, and you can also specify which folders to search and which ones not. More complex search restrictions are also possible: you can, in particular, set time intervals for those files that should be checked for garbage, take into account the file attributes, their sizes, and the key text they contain when searching. An equally large number of possible adjustments can be made in relation to cleaning the system registry: for example, you can not only determine what exactly needs to be looked for, but also set a whole series of restrictions (search the registry only from a certain system date or completely ignore certain keys, etc.).

Developer: Abelssoft

Distribution size: 2.03 MB

Distribution method: shareware (30-day demo version of the program http://www.abelssoft.com/washandgo.exe)

Price:$19

Work under control: Windows 95/98/Me/2000/XP

WashAndGo has long been a well-proven convenient and reliable tool for quickly cleaning your hard drive from unnecessary files and the system registry from outdated information. The program has a very impressive interface (including in Russian) and is designed for a wide range of users, and the presence of support for several levels of security allows you to clean up the disk without the slightest risk, even with a minimal level of knowledge about the operating system in general and the file structure in particular. True, advanced users may not like the principle of step-by-step cleaning implemented in the program, which involves sequential selection of searching and deleting the first type of unnecessary files, the second, etc., which requires appropriate actions on the part of the user, as well as his presence at the computer. But for beginners this best choice, because by periodically cleaning the disk, they, willy-nilly, simultaneously get an idea of ​​the types of computer garbage, which is quite good. Therefore, WashAndGo is very convenient to use when learning the operating system.

The main cleaning tools are concentrated in the program in two modules: “Clean” and “Clean up”. The first one is responsible for deleting unnecessary (files with extensions .bak, .tmp, .$$$, etc.) and null files, duplicate dll libraries, for cleaning folders with temporary files, for deleting unnecessary prefetch files, for freeing disk space from old installation programs and for deleting those Service Pack files that are not needed after installation. The second module allows you to scan the system registry, find and remove incorrect links or links to already deleted programs, find unused shortcuts, check the system registry for errors and correct incorrect entries, delete the list of recently opened documents, clear the cache and history of the Internet browser (Internet Explorer , Mozilla, Netscape, Opera and Firefox), delete cookies. The additional module “Miscellaneous” allows you to empty the recycle bin, uninstall programs (though only through Windows system capabilities) and add personal folders, which will also be cleared.

As noted above, WashAndGo provides several levels of security to ensure that during the deletion process the user cannot accidentally delete the desired information. All files found in accordance with the selected cleaning procedure are not deleted immediately, but are displayed in a list from which the user himself determines what can be deleted and what cannot. In this list, the program marks with special icons the degree of danger from data deletion: a green icon means that the data can be deleted without the slightest risk, yellow indicates that the risk is almost zero, and red warns against deletion, since the corresponding files can, for example, , refer to open applications. Deleted data is not actually deleted, but is temporarily stored in a special folder, from where it can be restored within 14 days if problems arise, but after this period, the data from the temporary folder is deleted automatically.

Developer: CCleaner.com

Distribution size: 1.24 MB

Distribution method: freeware (http://download.ccleaner.com/ccsetup127.exe)

Price: for free

Work under control:

The recently released free operating system cleaning utility CCleaner is quickly gaining popularity, and at the end of 2005 it became one of the most downloaded programs on http://cws.internet.com/ along with such popular applications as, for example, Norton AntiVirus and Paint Shop Pro.

The program has a simple and convenient Russian-language interface, is very fast and allows you to quickly get rid of a wide variety of garbage. CCleaner can find and remove a fairly wide range of unused and temporary system files that clutter up the disk, Windows Explorer, Internet Explorer and various applications, as well as personal information. And at the same time, the program is easily customized to the needs and tasks of a specific user, and the default disk cleaning principle it sets is well organized and perfectly suited for a wide category of insufficiently competent users. Experienced users should still adjust their wipe settings to prevent the possibility of deleting information that may be needed later. It may be worth excluding some cookies from the list of deleted ones so as not to lose information about logins, or prohibit deleting recently created temp files, since they may be needed when restoring, for example, Word files if the program freezes. If you wish, you can configure the program to automatically clean up the disk according to a predefined algorithm when Windows starts.

CCleaner can delete cookies, browsing history and clear the Internet browser cache (though only for Internet Explorer and Firefox). Additionally, data about autofilling forms and various files like index.dat can be deleted. The program easily finds and deletes log files and temporary files created by a wide variety of applications, also cleans the Windows Recycle Bin and can delete MRU data for various applications and utilities, including Quicktime, WinZIP, Adobe Acrobat, Google Toolbar and even Microsoft Office XP and etc.

The program can scan the system registry and remove outdated registration entries corresponding to missing fonts, libraries and applications, incorrect file extensions, ActiveX and Class errors, etc. However, it should be noted that its capabilities in terms of cleaning the system registry are still somewhat limited. Additionally, the program provides a very convenient tool for uninstalling applications and removing program launches from startup.

Disk Cleanup Utilities

Developer: Topdownloads.net

Distribution size: 4.81 MB

Distribution method: shareware (15-day demo available at: http://www.webroot.com/consumer/downloads/)

Price:$18.95

Work under control: Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP

All Cleaner one of the best solutions for disk cleaning. The program allows you to delete almost any data related to computer junk, clearing disk resources of cluttered information, as well as ensuring security and privacy by removing any traces of user activity both on the Internet and on the computer in general.

With All Cleaner, you can quickly get rid of useless and cluttering disk temporary and log files, empty folders, data on recently used documents, files remaining after uninstalling programs, empty the recycle bin and clipboard. You can just as easily clear your Internet browser cache (Internet Explorer and Mozilla are supported), cookies, files like index.dat, delete information about pages visited and downloaded files, and much more. In addition, unlike similar programs, All Cleaner can automate the cleaning of various email data for Outlook Express, ICQ, MSN Messenger, etc. (for example, in Outlook Express you can automate the process of deleting letters from the “Deleted Items” folder).

Working with the program is easy and convenient, and the intuitive interface, the presence of a beautifully illustrated help file and well-thought-out default cleaning settings allow beginners to use it without any problems. Experienced users will be interested in the presence of a built-in scheduler, thanks to which it is easy to organize automatic disk cleaning on a schedule in accordance with specified conditions (you can, in particular, carry out this operation once a week or once a month, or even daily when loading the OS). Moreover, the program can constantly reside in the system tray and delete (for example, every hour) all information about the user’s movements on the World Wide Web. In addition, the ability to fully customize the features of disk cleaning is very attractive, including the ability to define any types of files that should be deleted from any types of folders of any applications; Plugins are provided to implement this. In total, the program includes about 20 plugins that determine the nuances of clearing temporary data for such popular programs as ACDSee, Adobe Acrobat, Winzip, Paint Shop Pro, etc. If necessary, you can change the settings of any plugin or additionally create a new plugin that determines clearing temporary data from any other program.

Developer: SBMAV Software

Distribution size: 1.78 MB

Distribution method: http://www.sbmav.com/files/dcleaner.zip)

Price: personal license 255 rub., business license 425 rub.

Work under control: Windows 98/Me/NT 3.5x/NT 4.0/2000/XP/2003

This is effective and inexpensive program is designed to clean the disk from various information garbage that does not contain any important information and only clutters the disks. SBMAV Disk Cleaner has a user-friendly interface and is easy to use, which makes it recommended even to inexperienced users. The cleaning process is implemented in the program in two stages to prevent accidental deletion of necessary data. First, SBMAV Disk CLeaner displays all found unnecessary files in the form of a convenient list, which allows the user to look carefully at the files again and finally tell the program which of them need to be deleted.

The list of main features of SBMAV Disk Cleaner includes: searching and deleting temporary files and empty folders, cleaning unnecessary cookies, disabling or deleting unused fonts, as well as scanning user folders in order to clean the disk from documents and duplicate files that are unnecessary, from the user’s point of view, including duplicate mp3 files. It is possible to configure the program to operate automatically and control the search parameters for deleted files, which allows the user to configure SBMAV Disk Cleaner in accordance with the characteristics of their work and personal preferences.

Developer: PC Tools Pty Ltd

Distribution size: 3.78 MB

Distribution method: shareware (30-day demo http://www.pctools.com/mirror/rminstall.exe)

Price:$29.95

Work under control: Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP/2003 Server

One of the most popular applications in its class, the Registry Mechanic package is designed to clean and optimize the system registry and allows you to correct incorrect values ​​of keys, keys and other parameters in the registry with a few clicks of the mouse and thereby increase the stability and performance of your computer.

The program has an extremely clear and very attractive interface, does not require complex setup, works quickly and provides any user with an easy way to clean the Windows system registry. Depending on the situation, Registry Mechanic allows you to choose either a Quick Scan, which excludes analysis of the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT section, or a Full Scan of the system registry.

Registry Mechanic uses a highly effective algorithm for quickly detecting erroneous registry lines, recording a wide range of defects that appeared after uninstalling programs, incorrectly uninstalling software, installing and changing drivers, removing links to programs from the Start menu, etc. With its help, you can quickly clean up junk the Start menu and the Add/Remove Programs window, get rid of broken shortcuts, check the compatibility of libraries, view all installed and virtual disks for errors, check fonts and system configuration files, etc. In addition, each time the registry is cleaned, the program first creates a backup copy of it, from which, if necessary, it can then be restored.

Developer: TweakNow

Distribution size: 1.62 MB

Distribution method: shareware (30-day demo http://dl.filekicker.com/send/file/154120-4823/RegCleanerPro-t.exe)

Price:$24.95

Work under control: Windows 98/Me/2000/XP/XP x64/2003

TweakNow RegCleaner Pro is the easiest to use and fastest utility for cleaning the system registry from outdated data. The program provides three registry scanning modes: Quick Scan, in which the program selectively scans the registry branches that are most important for system stability, Full Scan, which scans the registry in its entirety, and Custom. , in which the list of sections viewed can be limited by the user.

The program is distinguished by a very high speed of scanning the registry, and the unique search algorithm implemented here allows it to absolutely accurately identify all outdated entries. For all outdated data found in the registry, a detailed report is issued, which not only records the found incorrect entry indicating its location, but also displays the degree of security of deletion. The final decision regarding deletion or saving of found records remains with the user. It is worth noting that deleting data selected by the program from the registry is quite safe, since before each deletion the program automatically creates a backup file with the previous data, from which you can restore the original values ​​if the result of the program is not entirely successful.

There is a free simplified version of the program called TweakNow RegCleaner Standard (it can be downloaded from: http://www.download.com/TweakNow-RegCleaner/3000-2094-10262639.html?part=dl-TweakNowR&subj=dl&tag=button), characterized by the absence of a full scan mode (Full Scan).

Developer: InfoWorks Technology

Distribution size: 2.177 MB

Distribution method: shareware (30-day demo http://www.itcompany.com/regsetup.exe)

Price:$29.95

Work under control: Windows 95/98/Me/2000/XP

Relatively new program System registry cleaner RegDoctor has already gained some popularity. According to the developers, it is able to help users even with very serious problems with the registry and prevent a possible system crash. We were not able to check how the program behaves in such a situation, but it really quickly scans the registry and finds outdated data in it. RegDoctor accurately identifies invalid links and detects incorrect file extensions and broken shortcuts, finds records of missing applications and help files, eliminates the consequences of incorrect uninstallation of programs and registration integrity, etc. The program is fast and has an easy and user-friendly interface.

Found problems are displayed in the form of a report in which each of the entries is color-coded and assessed by the level of risk if it is eliminated. Further actions are determined by the user: depending on the situation, you can either eliminate all problems at once, or approach the matter selectively and indicate to the system only those records that you are 100% confident in the safety of eliminating. Before deleting outdated data, the program creates a backup copy, which allows you to restore information if necessary.

RegDoctor provides two scanning modes: Quick Scan and Deep Scan. The first mode is limited to viewing sections: Registry Integrity, ActiveX/COM, ActiveX/COM Subsections, File Extensions, Application Paths, Help Files, Microsoft Shared and Uninstall, and the second allows you to scan the entire system registry.

Are you frustrated that the computer you just purchased is running very slowly?

You can be sure that the problem is not with the system configuration.

Additional applications that are installed in Windows by the computer manufacturer can significantly reduce performance.

Therefore, we recommend that you use special utilities, built-in system capabilities and your own intelligence in order to find and remove applications from your new computer that are consuming system resources without your knowledge.

But be careful, some of them may perform important system functions. For example, if you uninstall an anti-malware app, be sure to replace it with another proven solution.

Pre-installed software package

Retailers and computer manufacturers enter into agreements with software companies to provide software for new computers for demonstration purposes. For example, many computers come bundled with games, many of which are free to use for a limited amount of time before you must purchase the game. For retailers and manufacturers, this approach is critical to increasing profits in an industry that has very low revenue percentages. The list of such demo applications (trial versions) includes products such as antivirus software, games, utilities for instant messaging and working with media resources. These applications can interfere with your computer in two ways. First, when you turn on your computer, they can significantly increase the system boot time. Secondly, even when the system is fully loaded, unnecessary applications activated at boot can reduce the amount of free resources that are so necessary for performing important tasks.

Uninstalling specific programs

If you are simply going to remove an application that is bothering you, we recommend using standard Windows tools for this. Open the start menu of the operating system, find the “Control Panel” section in it, and in it the utility for removing installed programs. In order not to search for a utility, type “uninstall” in the search bar of the start menu and run the required utility through the search results. After launching the utility, strictly follow the prompts of the Uninstall a Program Wizard. This solution can be called ideal for uninstalling specific programs. Please note that if your computer is part of a local network, you may not be able to uninstall programs, as this operation will only be available to the network administrator.

System cleaning software

For a comprehensive solution to problems, it is recommended to use third-party developments that are aimed at removing unnecessary applications. Programs such as PC Decrapifier and Revo Uninstaller are used to effectively uninstall programs. Applications like CCleaner, RegSeeker and IObit allow, among other things, to remove the remains of entries created in the system registry by unnecessary programs. Such programs are especially useful in the case of cleaning the system from an antivirus program that has a built-in uninstallation protection system.

Reinstalling Windows

If you see that to speed up your computer you need to remove too many a large number of programs imposed on you by the manufacturer, it is best to decide to completely format the system partition of the hard drive and install Windows on it from scratch. This approach to solving the problem guarantees that there will be no trace left of unnecessary programs. Note that very often computer manufacturers install software to restore the system from a backup that is stored on a hidden partition of the hard drive. Before reinstalling the operating system, you can delete this partition.

Tip: We recommend that you use a legal copy of Windows, purchased on an optical disc or other media. You should also download the driver for your video adapter or network card if it is not detected correctly in Windows. Burn it to a CD or USB drive to use to update the driver. Without the correct driver, you may lose a normal desktop picture or Internet connection.

Note that reinstalling the system allows you to use the same license key that came with the new computer. Usually this key is printed on a special sticker glued to the body of the system unit or laptop. Moreover, you can use this key to install a licensed version of Windows on any computer that belongs to you.

Conclusion

Another way to increase computer speed is to reduce the list of programs that automatically start when the system boots. Many unnecessary programs slow down the speed of operation and loading of the computer precisely because they are scheduled to launch simultaneously with the loading of system services. If you do not want to uninstall programs, but want to speed up your computer, run the “msconfig” utility, which in the “Startup” tab allows you to disable applications that are scheduled to start automatically.

When unnecessary programs are removed, they often leave behind files, directories, and registry keys. You can, of course, remove them manually - they usually do not affect the operation of the computer after the program has been removed.

Be careful - some programs that look like useless products are actually utilities that provide operation of one or another computer function. Sometimes the computer manufacturer uses programs that interact with the hardware driver of important system components. Such a driver can be installed simultaneously with a program from the same distribution. A good clue in this case can be the coincidence of the name of the application and the name of the manufacturer of the computer component - in this case, before uninstalling the program, be sure to examine whether it ensures the operation of critical elements of the computer configuration.