How Do I Fix Slow Booting?
An extremely slow computer boot time can be extremely annoying. Luckily, there are numerous solutions you can implement in order to rectify it.
Before setting out on your journey, check for updates. It could be that some drivers require upgrading.
Unnecessary programs that load at startup can significantly slow boot times. Disabling processes with high impact may help address this issue.
Table of Contents
1. Check for Updates
If your boot times are slowing, the first thing to check for are updates pending from Microsoft. They are constantly working on bettering Windows 10, and this could be the answer to your problem.
Unfortunately, updating can take time and may cause issues on your system, making it important to approach it carefully. To do this, press F8 repeatedly prior to Windows logo appearing to access Advanced Boot Options menu and select System Restore option there – this will restore your PC back to an earlier point in time, potentially solving your issue.
As part of your routine maintenance tasks, it is a good idea to regularly check for driver updates. Drivers are an integral component of operating systems; they allow hardware such as your graphics card to communicate with each other. Updating these drivers can speed up boot times; to do so, open Device Manager and expand Display Devices before visiting the manufacturer’s website to download and install their latest version.
Sound card drivers could also be outdated. In such a scenario, download Auslogics Driver Updater for assistance; it scans your system for outdated or corrupted drivers and updates them automatically.
One way to reduce boot times is to uninstall programs that begin running when you turn on your computer, as these programs often use up valuable resources and add time-consuming delays when they load automatically at startup. If there are many programs loading at start up, consider unloading some to speed up your computer.
2. Disable Unnecessary Startup Items
Automatic programs that run when you turn on your computer can be one of the leading causes of slow boot times. They consume memory resources, increase internet traffic and require lots of processing power just to keep running in the background – ultimately slowing your computer and leading to much frustration for users.
Disabling startup programs is an easy and effective way to decrease boot times. Similar to disabling services in Windows, the steps are fairly straightforward. First, launch Task Manager by pressing Ctrl+Shift+Enter and navigate to Startup tab; once there, highlight any non-essential program and right click it for removal if applicable; after making all adjustments necessary, reboot and check if boot times have improved!
If your computer is booting slowly, this could be indicative of corrupted files that need fixing. Use SFC (System File Checker) to attempt repairs before considering reinstalling your OS as a solution if this issue still persists.
Glarysoft CCleaner can also be a useful free utility for clearing away temporary files, installers and any other items causing your PC to take longer to start up, which will clear disk space and speed up startup times significantly. Doing this with just a click can help speed up Windows 10 startup times significantly and is another possible method of fixing slow boot problems in Windows 10. Furthermore, Easy Recovery Essentials’ Disk and Hard Drive Diagnostics may help detect hardware problems before reinstalling an operating system.
3. Check for Malware
Malware can lead to numerous computer issues, from slow bootup times and power drain to taking control of an individual computer and redirecting system resources away from important programs causing them to run more slowly. Some types of malware even take control of computers by redirecting functions of key programs toward serving remote networks in what’s known as a botnet attack, which consumes both bandwidth and power supplies from one’s machine.
To detect malware infections on Windows computers, the Task Manager provides an effective method for checking whether there is any software consuming system resources like CPU, memory and disk space that may be suspicious. An unfamiliar piece of software which consumes significant resources could be malicious; other indicators of infection could include pop-ups, redirections and loss of functionality in web browsers or excessive lag time as possible telltale signs.
Malicious software programs are intended to perform various functions, including deleting, encrypting or altering files; stealing data without consent of their owners; monitoring users without their knowledge and hijacking core computing systems. They fall under various categories including viruses, worms, spyware, adware trojan horses keyloggers rootkits and grayware.
Another method for checking for malware is using a free, lightweight program such as Easy Recovery Essentials (EasyRE). This tool can scan and repair corrupted files that could be slowing the booting process as well as detect and remove malicious programs preventing Windows from opening properly. EasyRE can be downloaded here from both Mac and Windows computers; click here if interested. Alternatively, run a hardware diagnostic test to identify what may be causing slow boot times; if faulty hardware is identified as being the source, reset it before restarting PC to resume normal performance.
4. Check for Corrupted Files
Experiencing issues when booting up your computer? Corrupted files could be to blame. Files play an essential part in how computers function and can become damaged for many reasons – for instance:
Corrupted files typically occur when incorrect information is written to them; this could occur after installing an incomplete program or when malware infiltrates your files. Furthermore, hard drive issues can lead to corrupted files; physical damage to the hard drive itself or power surges can disrupt logical data on it and result in corruption of files.
There are various strategies you can use to restore corrupted files. One is using System Restore, which restores previous versions of files and folders. Another way is running Chkdsk which scans for disk errors and repairs them automatically as needed. Lastly, third-party tools may also help recover corrupted files.
If your files have become corrupt, reformatting and reinstalling Windows might be necessary to resolve them. While this can be cumbersome and time-consuming, sometimes this is the best solution when nothing else works.
5. Run a Hardware Diagnostic
When all else fails, it may be worth investigating the hardware in your system. A slow boot could be caused by an issue with one or more hardware components like your hard drive; when this occurs, OS boot-up may become noticeably slower as OS attempts to access bad sectors of your drive. If this appears to be the case for you, using an application like Check Disk could help isolate bad sectors so they can be relocated, potentially fixing and prolonging its life span.
To gain an accurate picture of what programs are running at startup and cause a slow start-up time, open Windows Search and type ‘details” into the search bar – this will bring up the System Information window where you can see which ones are loading at bootup. If your processor or memory usage exceeds 80% at all times (or your processor and memory use consistently stays above that mark), this may indicate some software running that shouldn’t. Try disabling certain startup processes to see if that solves the issue.
If, after following all the tips above and still experiencing slow startup times, an in-depth hardware diagnostic may be required to ascertain its cause. Automated Repair from Easy Recovery Essentials offers this capability; it scans your PC for any OS or driver-related problems before fixing them to alleviate slow boot times.