[DarkMuse]

So I've had an itch lately to "tune up" my computer. So I've done some research and I've found only the same crap:
Clean Registry with this tool
Clean Temp Files with this tool
Reduce Startup Programs
Flush Dns
etc etc.

Do you guys know of any decent ways to optimize your computer for speed/cleanliness that is not the same crap that every website I've found recycles?

[Skullmeat]

None of those will do anything to help, aside from reducing startup programs. The best way to keep your PC as fast as possible is to eliminate any background programs you don't need, defrag your disk regularly, and run antivirus software to keep your system malware free. It's also helpful to regularly dust your machine and keep it in a cool environment.

[DarkMuse]

None of those will do anything to help, aside from reducing startup programs. The best way to keep your PC as fast as possible is to eliminate any background programs you don't need, defrag your disk regularly, and run antivirus software to keep your system malware free. It's also helpful to regularly dust your machine and keep it in a cool environment.

I want more though. There has to be other things that could be done? Anyone?

[pvnk]

None of those will do anything to help, aside from reducing startup programs. The best way to keep your PC as fast as possible is to eliminate any background programs you don't need, defrag your disk regularly, and run antivirus software to keep your system malware free. It's also helpful to regularly dust your machine and keep it in a cool environment.

You don't need antivirus software to keep your system malware free if you're not downloading child porn off the deep web. Furthermore, antivirus is a system process and it will inherently slow down your system.

[Blink]

None of those will do anything to help, aside from reducing startup programs. The best way to keep your PC as fast as possible is to eliminate any background programs you don't need, defrag your disk regularly, and run antivirus software to keep your system malware free. It's also helpful to regularly dust your machine and keep it in a cool environment.

I want more though. There has to be other things that could be done? Anyone?

Get Linux. Any distro is faster than Windoze.

[DarkMuse]

None of those will do anything to help, aside from reducing startup programs. The best way to keep your PC as fast as possible is to eliminate any background programs you don't need, defrag your disk regularly, and run antivirus software to keep your system malware free. It's also helpful to regularly dust your machine and keep it in a cool environment.

You don't need antivirus software to keep your system malware free if you're not downloading child porn off the deep web. Furthermore, antivirus is a system process and it will inherently slow down your system.

I've definitely seen this with certain AV but not all (I'm looking at you McAffe, Malwarebytes, AVG). Webroot and BitDefender have some of the best detection and removal scores within the industry and take up very little memory with an active scan module as well as browser monitoring. I mainly use it when using something that might potentially dangerous as I'm not too trusting of sandboxes (not all that trusting of AV either but more than sandboxes).

[pvnk]

None of those will do anything to help, aside from reducing startup programs. The best way to keep your PC as fast as possible is to eliminate any background programs you don't need, defrag your disk regularly, and run antivirus software to keep your system malware free. It's also helpful to regularly dust your machine and keep it in a cool environment.

You don't need antivirus software to keep your system malware free if you're not downloading child porn off the deep web. Furthermore, antivirus is a system process and it will inherently slow down your system.

I've definitely seen this with certain AV but not all (I'm looking at you McAffe, Malwarebytes, AVG).  Webroot and BitDefender have some of the best detection and removal scores within the industry and take up very little memory with an active scan module as well as browser monitoring.  I mainly use it when using something that might potentially dangerous as I'm not too trusting of sandboxes (not all that trusting of AV either but more than sandboxes).

By the way, I have been meaning to ask.

Do you only browse siniterly when you're od'ing on heroin"?

[DarkMuse]

You don't need antivirus software to keep your system malware free if you're not downloading child porn off the deep web. Furthermore, antivirus is a system process and it will inherently slow down your system.

I've definitely seen this with certain AV but not all (I'm looking at you McAffe, Malwarebytes, AVG).  Webroot and BitDefender have some of the best detection and removal scores within the industry and take up very little memory with an active scan module as well as browser monitoring.  I mainly use it when using something that might potentially dangerous as I'm not too trusting of sandboxes (not all that trusting of AV either but more than sandboxes).

By the way, I have been meaning to ask.

Do you only browse siniterly when you're od'ing on heroin"?

AbsoFUCKINGlutely. It's how I deal with the cancer

[Inori]

Regular defrags are a must, as @Skullmeat mentioned. Obviously, make sure your CPU is adequately cooled, your RAM is in the right memory channels (otherwise it might not be getting used optimally, if at all), and your case has good, low-pressure airflow (also prevents dust from building up, so you need to clean less).

I remember reading something on the Arch or XFCE wiki that went along the lines of "disabling any integrated graphics in the system's BIOS can boost performance by forcing the window manager to use only dedicated cards."
Given that it's a firmware/hardware optimization method, I would assume it works on Windows, but I wouldn't put it past Microsoft to fuck that up, too.

[Hoss]

lol, this is what I do for a living. My standard regiment is:

Run MalwareBytes

Pretty simple, I usually just Google "mwb download" and download the latest version. I also carry it on a USB because sometimes people's internet is too slow to download.

Run CCleaner

Just the disk cleanup part, not the registry cleaner. Never run registry cleaners, tisk tisk.

Remove Startup Items

The Windows 8/10 task manager has a tab for this which makes it a bit easier, but if you need to do it manually:

1. Check the "%appdata%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup" folder.
   
2. Check the registry:
   • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
     
   • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
     
   • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
     
   • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
     
3. Check Scheduled Tasks
   

Check Browser Links for Adware Command-line Args

This is common for things like Conduit.

• Right click on shortcut -> Properties -> Make sure "Target" is just to the browser exe and doesn't have a bunch of other shit on it.
  
• Remove browser shortcuts from taskbar and re-add them to make sure they are clean.
  

Run SFC

Just run "sfc /scannow"

Defrag (if HDD)

Run Windows disk defrag.