Tips to Clean Computer Files

Over time you will probably accumulate computer files that you don’t use on a regular basis. This often happens because new versions of software become available, so you start to use them instead of the older ones. Unused files can also pile up as you discover new interests and software. A lot of times, we simply forget that the old ones are sitting on the hard drive, taking up space and causing the computer to work more slowly. Knowing how to clean computer files off of your computer can solve this problem.

Clean Computer Files That You Don’t Use Anymore

If you download a lot of media, such as movies and music, to your hard drive then you probably have a lot of files that haven’t been used in a long time. If you want to delete these files permanently, then you can open their locations and drag them into the recycling bin. If you want to keep them, but you don’t want them taking up space on your hard drive, then you can burn them to a CD or DVD. You can also use an external hard drive to store media files. That way you can clean computer files off of your system without losing them permanently.

Clean Computer Files by Uninstalling Them

Software is a little more difficult to get rid of than media files. As long as you follow a few simple directions, though, you shouldn’t have any serious problems cleaning them from your computer permanently.

First, click your “Start” button and the “Control Panel.” When you open the control panel you will see lots of icons that help you control the way that your operating system works. Many of these files are important to your computer’s operating system, so resist the temptation to tinker with them too much.

Locate the icon labeled as “Programs and Features.” When you double-click the icon, it will give you a list of all the programs on your computer. You can clean computer files from your PC by locating them in this list and selecting uninstall.

Why You Should Clean Computer Files by Uninstalling

Some people try to clean computer files from their hard drives by simply dragging the program’s icon into the recycling bin. This technique, however, does not usually get rid of all the files that you want to eliminate from the hard drive. When you drag the icon into the recycling bin, it just gets rid of that portion of the program. In order to clean computer files permanently to prevent the program from trying to run, you have to delete all of the files associated with that piece of software.

When you uninstall the software, it locates all of the files that are used by the program, including those that are kept in your PC registry. This is the best way to clean computer files. Other methods simply will not eliminate every piece of information, which means your computer will still have lots of files that prevent it from working as efficiently as possible.