Last week we looked at a few tips on how you can speed up your Windows 10 computer. This week we will continue with that idea, which is how to get a little better speed out of your computer. If it feels like it is running a little slower than you remember from when it was new, do not worry. That is normal, as everything slows down the older it gets. (You and me included.)
Keep in mind each of these settings speed things up slightly. So, if you change only one thing, you may not notice much. But setting up the ones from last week and this week, you may notice an increase in performance.
First, today we will look at Power and Sleep. These are items sometimes overlooked when you set up a computer and can help make it run a little faster. Click on the Windows start menu button and type, “Power & Sleep Settings” then click it when you see it at the top of the list. Scroll down to “Additional power settings” and click the link. Now, click, “Create a power plan.” You can choose any that you see and they give a sentence to explain, but for faster performance choose “High” or “Ultimate,” if the latter is even available. Ultimate is not present on all computers. But High should be on all systems. If you have a battery lasting problem, choose “Power save” but that is your decision you can make with what is important and needed by you.
Next, a possible big speed up from typing “Adjust appearance” again after clicking the start menu and then choose, “Adjust the appearance and performance of Windows.” A screen will pop up allowing to check and uncheck stylish appearances in Windows, which take some speed away from an older computer. You can check and uncheck individual items that suit you or just check “Adjust for best performance” the others are “…for appearance” or “Custom.” They are self explanatory once you are there but the first will give you the best speed. You should leave the other two tabs alone on that window.
Two more things to try for today and then you should have a computer working about as quickly as it is able. First, if you are a user of OneDrive which I know many of my readers are, listen up along with a couple of other items.
Go again to the start menu and type, “Storage settings” and click it when you see it at the top of the list. A window will open that reads, “Storage.” Click the second line of text that reads, “Configure storage sense and run it now.” First, click how often you want to run storage sense which will automatically clean unneeded files on your computer helping with search speed. I set mine to “Every week” but that is just a personal choice, no better or worse than the others. The longer it waits to run the slower it could make your computer. The next two choices are one for Temporary files and the Download folder which can be set for a time limit to remove them. I set mine for “1 day” but again that is my choice not the only one you should decide on. I actually delete my deleted items and download folder before I shut my computer off, every day, since those should be unneeded files for the future.
Well, I am out of room today so next week we pick up and the OneDrive settings and the one I do not like…