Your computer is very slow lately and that program you uninstalled days ago wants to disappear from the list of programs on your computer. Every time you turn it on, it overheats tremendously and strange icons appear on the screen. Let me get this straight; you’re telling me that your PC is in bad shape and has a lot of problems? I see, I understand, I’m sure I have the solution at hand: all I have to do is say “Abracadabra” and your PC problems have been magically solved.
Seriously, while I don’t have a magic wand, I do have some advice for you and I can help you get your PC back in shape like it was when you bought it, or almost. Wondering what’s the magic formula that can solve PC problems? Well, the answer is very simple; there are tools and software that can make your computer shine again.
In this tutorial, I’m going to tell you about some free tools that play the role of “fix it at home”: these are pre-installed tools that come pre-installed in Windows computers and also third-party solutions that can analyze your computer to find its problems, allowing you to fix them with one click. Curious to find out more about how they work? I wish you a good read
How to fix PC problems using default tools
A computer periodically needs some tricks to make sure that everything works correctly, without problems ever occurring. Therefore, on your computer, whether it has a macOS operating system or especially one with Windows, it is necessary to run some tools that might help it work better.
One example would be to periodically defragment the partitions on your PC which can help speed up data access for your operating system and software. Another example, still on the subject of speeding up your computer, can be to disable software and applications that run automatically when the operating system starts up.
In these cases, then I recommend you to read my guide on how to optimize your PC and the one on how to speed up your PC, where I covered the topic talking about some pre-installed tools that can help you with the purpose.
Of course, problems cannot be related to this alone; there are different types of problems that can affect a PC. For example, that of infections, malfunctions and slowdowns caused by malware on your computer.
In this case you should take care of their removal and prevention with a good antivirus. In the first case, I recommend you to read my guide on how to remove viruses from your PC, while in the second case, I can recommend you some guides, such as the one on the best paid antivirus, light free antivirus or the one on the best antivirus, in which I have recommended some free antivirus and not that you can install on your PC.
Another problem you may experience with your computer is the lack of updates to your operating system or drivers installed. Updates to the operating system are important as they can fix bugs or problems, thanks to the fixes that are distributed.
The same thing applies to drivers, which, if not updated, can create problems in the long run with new software that you install, as they may be partially incompatible. For this reason I recommend you to see my guide on how to perform Windows updates or the one in which I talk about how to update the drivers on your PC.
In the next few paragraphs, however, I will focus on software that can help you solve these problems, automating a bit those processes that you would have to perform manually from time to time. What I recommend you to do is to install few softwares, to avoid conflicts or, in general, slow down the performance of your PC.
How to solve PC problems using software
Defraggler (Windows)
Although defragmentation is a useful process for your hard drive and, in general, for your computer, it is also true that many users often desist from activating this feature or performing it manually because it requires time, which you often do not have available.
Defraggler is a free software that meets this need with a tool that allows you to defragment a PC partition or just the files that require it. In this way, defragmentation times will be faster and you can forget about it if you have also set a schedule.
If you are interested in downloading this software to your Windows-based PC, you can download it from the official website. Once you reach the website from the link I have provided, click on the Download Free Version button and then on Free Download. Then choose the mirror from where you want to download, such as CCleaner.com.
After downloading the file, double-click on it and then click on the Yes button in the User Account Control window. After selecting the language, click the Next button and then Next. Uncheck the boxes for the features you do not want to enable and click Install and then Finish.
Once the installation is complete, launch the program and select one of the partitions you see on the screen at the top of Defraggler’s interface. Then click on the Analyze button to start analyzing the partition’s state.
When the process is complete, you will be shown the results of the analysis, indicating the percentage of fragmented files. Then click on the Defragment button at the bottom to start defragmenting the partition. You can also start a faster process (Quick Defragment) that will allow you to perform this procedure according to some preset rules, such as the one that ignores large files.
If you only want to defragment the files that need defragmenting, you can click on the File List tab and select the files you want to defragment, place a check mark next to the files you want to defragment and click the Defragment selected files button.
CCleaner (Windows/MacOS)
When the problems concern a failure to clean your computer from temporary and obsolete files, then CCleaner comes into play.
This free software can be downloaded on both Windows and macOS operating systems. To download it you’ll simply have to go to its official website and then click on the Download button under the Free column.
After downloading the installation file, double-click on it and then click on the Yes button in the Windows User Control window. After launching the installation interface, click on the Customize item and uncheck all the items you want to remove. Then click on Install button to start the installation.
After starting the program, you’ll immediately see the CCleaner home screen. You’ll then have to evaluate what operation to carry out according to the problem that is currently affecting your PC.
Below I will summarize the major features of this software:
Cleaning: allows you to carry out the removal of temporary and obsolete files on your PC, whether they are generated by your operating system or by the supported software installed on your computer.
Registry: if the Windows Registry contains obsolete entries, CCleaner will clean it.
Tools: in this section of CCleaner you’ll find some features that aim to solve some common PC problems. Thus, you’ll be able to carry out the removal of software and applications, disable programs that run automatically, carry out an analysis of the hard disk to detect large files.
Whatever procedure you want to perform, I recommend that you carefully follow the on-screen instructions so that you’re not sure of running into any problems. In any case, I refer you to my guide where I explain how to best use CCleaner.
Glary Utilities (Windows)
A solution that encompasses all of the above, with the addition of some very useful ones, is the one offered by Glary Utilities. This free software is a suite of tools designed to solve the most common problems that can occur in a PC. You can download it directly from the official website via this link.
After you get to the website I’ve pointed you to, click on the Download now button. The installation file will then be downloaded to your PC, ready for installation. Then double-click on it and then click on the Yes button in the User Account Control window.
Then click Next, Agree, and then Next again. If you wish, you can disable some of the boxes that appear on the screen, such as Quick launch or Join the customer experience improvement program. Confirm your choice by clicking the Install button and then Finish.
After launching Glary Utilities, you will be directed to its main screen. You’ll be able to use the tools at the bottom to quickly launch some tools, such as checking programs running automatically when Windows starts, cleaning temporary files, checking for software and driver updates, managing background processes and many more.
On the other hand, you can view a complete list of tools provided by Glary Utilities by clicking the Advanced Tools tab. In this section you’ll find all the tools sorted by category, according to the problem you want to solve.