Over the last couple of weeks, I have had a few customers ask about PC Maintenance Programs.  Programs that scan the registry, temp folders/files and clean your system so it may boot faster or run faster all around. As there are many of these types of programs around, research should be done before choosing one.  Like many "system scanning" programs, it will usually take more than one to completely "clean" your system.

I will recommend a few of these programs for you, but I do encourage you to do a little research before just downloading and running these programs.  I would read some of the user reviews to see the pros and cons of each program to decide if a particular program is right for you and your system.

Most of the Maintenance Programs do pretty much the same thing you can do manually, with the exception of registry "cleaning". They will do things like clean out your temporary Internet files, your cookies, and check for broken shortcuts that were not deleted during an uninstall of a program.  They will scan the registry for broken links. 

You must be careful when messing around with the registry. One wrong move, whether done manually or with a program, can render your system unbootable or unusable. Back in Windows 95/98, registry cleaning was more of an issue.  Microsoft has come a long way since then. Although there still is a registry, it has less of an effect on boot times than it did a few years ago.

I'm one of those type of people who believes if it is not broke, don't fix it when it comes to registry "cleaning". Because of the damage that can be done, I'm not trying to scare anyone into not using these programs, I just want to be sure you understand what they do.

If you don't want to use a program to "clean" your PC, there are some things that can be done by you with just a few minutes of your time.  Internet Explorer has tools that allow you to delete cookies, temp files, and history.  They can be found in the Internet Options Properties by clicking the Tools settings with Internet Explorer open.

If you have Windows XP, or newer, you can run a defrag on your hard drive using the disk management snap-in. Defraging will "re-align" the files and folders for faster access.  You should uninstall any programs you no longer need, using the add/remove program option in your control panel.  A Google search on the programs you have installed can help you decide whether you still need the software on not.  It is best to do all the removals and cleanups before defragging your system to get the most value from it..

If you are interested in programs to do much of the above tasks for you, here are some recommended software you can take a look at.  These come in shareware or commercial professional versions.

·         Glary Utilities: http://www.glaryutilities.com/gu.html 

·         Innovative Solutions: http://www.innovative-sol.com/products.htm

·         Ccleaner: http://www.piriform.com/ccleaner/download

If you have any experience with any of these or other programs, I'm sure CCS and our other customers would like to hear about them.  Register for free at www.ccscentral.com and write a review or your experience with these tools in the CCS website blog area.

As always, if you have any questions, send me an email or call the CCS Support Department at 800-672-4806.

-Bryan