How to Speed Up Windows Startup

There is nothing more annoying than slow computer startup. It’s just so frustrating to keep waiting for ages for your PC to finally wake up and load the desktop screen. There are many things that make your computer slow on startup, from your installed software to internal Windows services. But there is a way to speed up Windows startup. Here are a few useful tips.

1. Disable unnecessary startup programs
Even though you have a brand new computer, chances are that there are a lot of unnecessary programs loading on Windows boot. The more startup programs there are, the longer Windows needs to process them all before it can load your desktop. That’s why disabling unnecessary startup items, like IM programs, video players, etc., can speed up Windows boot a great deal. Here is how you can disable a startup program:

1. Click on Start and type msconfig in the Search bar. Windows XP users will need to click on Start – Run, type msconfig there and hit Enter
2. The System Configuration Utility will open
3. Navigate to the Startup tab
4. Review the list of all applications running on startup and uncheck the ones you don’t need
5. If you don’t know what a startup program is or does, better leave it alone. It can be an important Windows component
6. When all is done, click OK and reboot your computer to apply the changes

2. Clean your desktop
Another way to make your PC start faster is to keep your desktop screen clean. If your desktop is cluttered with files and icons, it can make your computer slow. You see, the desktop is fully kept in computer RAM, which means that the more files there are, the more memory the desktop takes up. And this memory could be used more effectively and speed up Windows boot.
Cleaning your desktop is easy. All you need to do is move files to ordinary folders and run the Desktop Cleanup Wizard. This tool will identify unused icons and will let you remove them. To run the Desktop Cleanup Wizard, simply right-click on an empty space of your desktop, select Arrange Icons By and click on Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard.

3. Change desktop background
Now, people who like fancy wallpapers for the desktop won’t think much of this tip. But the truth is that having a fancy wallpaper can slow down Windows startup. If your wallpaper is really large, it will take quite a long time to load because loading it will require more RAM. That’s why it’s best to select a plain background if your computer is not the newest nor the fastest one. Here is how you can select a plain background:

1. Right-click somewhere on the empty desktop space and go to Properties
2. Go to the Desktop tab
3. Select “No wallpaper”, then select a color from the dropdown menu on the right
4. Click Apply and click OK

These tips will help you speed up Windows startup quite a lot. Don’t forget to keep your computer cleaned up and defragmented, and it will run fast and smooth.