Top 5 Reasons Your Computer Is Slow

A slow computer can put a stop to productivity and be extremely frustrating. There are a lot of reasons that a computer may be running slow. Here are the top five reasons why your computer is slow.

1. Your computer has not had a reboot in a long time. Many updates and software installations require a reboot, or a restart, in order to take effect. If you do not manually turn your computer off and back on every so often you will likely be running out-of-date programs. These outdated programs can drastically slow things down.

2. The hard drive is full. If there is not enough available hard drive space the computer will scramble to run. As a general rule you should keep at least 20 percent of your hard drive available. If your hard drive is maxed you need to either cleanup your existing hard drive, or upgrade to something more spacious.

3. Too much going on in the background. Some programs may automatically come on when the computer is turned on, or boots up. If it is a program you use all the time this can be very helpful. If it is not a useful or frequently used program it is just in the way and slowing everything down. In this instance the settings should be changed so the program does not automatically come on. Security and antivirus programs often run in the background, but these are necessary. Schedule any anti-virus scans to run during a time when you are not using your computer, so the scan does not interfere with your productivity.

4. Out of memory. Just about everything you do on a computer requires memory, and if you do not have enough it can slow everything down. You can check through Task Manager to determine what resources you have and how you use them. If not enough memory appears to be the culprit for your computer slow down you can add more. Before adding memory check to make sure your computer has available memory slots on the motherboard.

5. Your computer has a virus. This is the reason no one wants to hear, but an infected computer will run much more slowly. If you have reason to believe your computer has been infected run a scan to check for a virus and malware. Also consider upgrading your protection to prevent this from happening again in the future.

It is possible there could be another reason your computer is running slow. If you need help identifying why your computer is slow we can help diagnosis the problem and figure out a solution that will get your computer back up to speed in no time.