Ask a Tech: How can I Speed up my computers boot time?
This question comes to us from Mary Jo Manzaneres from Fly Away Cafe.
Why does it take so long to start up my system, and what can I do about it?
Mary Jo–
Some basic cleanup will go a long way to booting up your system. Often a defrag and removing unnecessary startup items in your Start > All Programs > Startup menu.
You could also use the msconfig tool that was included in Windows XP. Just launch the msconfig program by typing msconfig in Start > Run… This will open a dialog and you can sift through the items in the startup tab. Many you need to leave in place. Others you can probably get rid of.
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4 opinions for Ask a Tech: How can I Speed up my computers boot time?
Mary Jo
Aug 5, 2006 at 12:22 pm
Hey Aaron — Thanks for answering my question. I just wonder if I’m the only one who has no idea what your answer means, or how to do the “fix” that you suggest. . . .
I’m a non-techie!
Aaron
Aug 5, 2006 at 12:24 pm
Sorry you misunderstood, Mary Jo. You need to go to your Start menu, go to Run… and type msconfig in the blank.
Mary Jo
Aug 5, 2006 at 12:42 pm
And then. . . .
Sorry to be so obtuse Aaron, but when you talk about getting rid of stuff that I don’t need, how to I know what I need and what I don’t. I’m sure this makes perfect sense to someone who understands this already, but coming from a non-techie background it just doesn’t register in my brain.
TheBizofKnowledge
Aug 9, 2006 at 9:44 pm
I’d also appreciate a bit of clarification. I can identify some of the programs that are in the Start Menu, but a lot of them are unrecognizable. Is there any way to determine what all these programs are, what they’re supposed to do, and whether or not they’re essential?
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