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6 tried and tested tricks to speed up a slow Windows laptop
Windows machines degrade in speed because of cumulative background tasks, storage fragmentation, telemetry, and thermal throttling. You do not need to reset or upgrade hardware to restore a usable baseline first. These six interventions are reversible and system-native.
1/6
Trim startup and scheduled background apps
Open Task Manager → Startup apps → Disable anything non-critical. Then in Settings → Apps → Advanced app settings → Background apps, set most to “Never”. This removes hidden wake-ups that consume RAM and I/O.
Open Task Manager → Startup apps → Disable anything non-critical. Then in Settings → Apps → Advanced app settings → Background apps, set most to “Never”. This removes hidden wake-ups that consume RAM and I/O.
2/6
Turn on Storage Sense with aggressive rules
Settings → System → Storage → Storage Sense. Enable and choose “Every day” for cleanup cadence and set Downloads purge window to a short interval if safe for your workflow. This reclaims I/O headroom.
Settings → System → Storage → Storage Sense. Enable and choose “Every day” for cleanup cadence and set Downloads purge window to a short interval if safe for your workflow. This reclaims I/O headroom.
3/6
Move browser tabs to sleep and cap extensions
Modern browsers are the longest-running resident process. Enable tab sleeping and remove heavy extensions. Keeping browsers as the “only heavy thing” often surfaces a visible lift across the system.
Modern browsers are the longest-running resident process. Enable tab sleeping and remove heavy extensions. Keeping browsers as the “only heavy thing” often surfaces a visible lift across the system.
4/6
Use per-app GPU/Power policy to de-stress thermals
Settings → System → Display → Graphics → per-app. Force non-critical apps to the integrated GPU and set their power mode to “Power saving”. Thermals improve, letting bursts clock higher for the foreground task.
Settings → System → Display → Graphics → per-app. Force non-critical apps to the integrated GPU and set their power mode to “Power saving”. Thermals improve, letting bursts clock higher for the foreground task.
5/6
Indexing scope cut and on-demand search
Settings → Privacy & Security → Searching Windows → Advanced indexing. Exclude large folders (Git repos, RAW media) and switch to Classic. This stops the indexer from grinding the disk.
Settings → Privacy & Security → Searching Windows → Advanced indexing. Exclude large folders (Git repos, RAW media) and switch to Classic. This stops the indexer from grinding the disk.
6/6
Reset Windows Update queue without reset
A corrupt update queue slows the servicing stack. Use wuauserv + bits stop, delete SoftwareDistribution + Catroot2, then start services. This clears the spool without reinstall.
A corrupt update queue slows the servicing stack. Use wuauserv + bits stop, delete SoftwareDistribution + Catroot2, then start services. This clears the spool without reinstall.
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