Optimize for Performance

Remove temp files

Windows uses temp files to perform various tasks, but many remain long after they're necessary. Deleting them makes more space available on your hard drive. Follow these steps to free up the space:

1. Click on My Computer, then right-click on the hard drive and select Properties.
2. In the General tab, click on Disk Cleanup. A new window will open with check marks next to various sections including Temporary Internet Files, Temporary Files and Recycle Bin.
3. You can check all of these, but we recommend that any options to compress files should be unchecked. Compressing files may save some space, but it will slow your computer down significantly.
4. Click OK, then confirm that you want to delete them.

Recycling bin

By default, the Recycling Bin can be up to 10 percent of your available hard drive space. With the size of today's hard drives, this is far more than necessary. Follow the steps below to resize your Recycling Bin.

1. Right-click on the Recycle Bin on your desktop.
2. Select Properties.
3. Drag the slider to 2 percent.
4. Click Apply.
5. Click OK.

Internet Explorer optimization

Decreasing the size of your Internet Explorer cache will help keep it from becoming a problem if you don't frequently clean it out manually. We recommend setting it to around 50 Mb, but you can set it as high or low as you like. To change the size, follow these steps:

1. Open Internet Explorer.
2. Click on the Tools menu and select Internet Options.
3. Under Temporary Internet Files click Settings.
4. Adjust the slider or manually enter a size in megabytes.
5. Click OK.

Mozilla Firefox optimization

Decreasing the size of your Firefox cache will help keep it from becoming a problem if you do not frequently clean it out manually. We recommend setting it to around 50 Mb, but you can set it as high or low as you like. To change the size, follow these steps:

1. Open Firefox.
2. Click on the Tools menu and Options.
3. Select the Privacy section and click on the Cache tab.
4. Enter a size in megabytes.
5. Click OK.

Simplify Windows GUI settings

Aesthetic features such as shadowed folders, fade effects and animations are unnecessary and can slow your computer. Follow the steps below to turn off these settings.

1. Right-click on My Computer and select Properties.
2. Select the Advanced tab.
3. In the Performance section, click Settings.
4. Uncheck all boxes except the bottom three. Note: We recommend leaving only the bottom three options checked, but you can change this to suit your needs.
5. Click Apply.
6. Click OK.

Tuneup complete! Enjoy your faster, more organized computer.