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Is you notebook running as well as if could be? HP recommends that the following steps to tune up your notebook be taken four times a year.

Step 1: Preparation

Make sure your backups are stored in a safe place in case any problems occur. You should be backing up weekly if you can not manage it daily. You may also wish to check the free space on your hard drive, which you can do through My Computer by right clicking on the hard drive icon (usually c) and selecting Properties.

Step 2: Scan disk

The scan disk checks the hard disk for errors and should be preformed before defragging. To do this go through My Computer, right click on the hard drive icon, select Properties, then Tools, then Check Now and place ticks in all the boxes. Then click OK and Yes to ‘Schedule a full disk scan when the computer reboots’. Now restart the computer.

Step 3: Defragment

Disk Defragmenter consolidates fragmented files and then rearranges them to increase available space. Depending on your computer, it may take more than an hour to complete. To do this close all programs then click on Start / Programs / Accessories / System Tools / Disk Defragmenter and the follow instructions.

Step 4: Create a system restore point

A restore point is a ‘memory’ of system files and settings at a particular point in time. System Restore can automatically create a restore points or you can create restore points yourself when you need them. To do this Click Start / Programs / Accessories / System Tools / System Restore and follow instructions on the System Restore window.

Step 5: Deleting temporary files and directories

These files can build up and cause problems. To delete them, close all running programs and Select Start / Programs / Accessories / System Tool / Disk Cleanup. Place a check next to the type of files you want to delete (temporary files) and select OK.

Step 6: Remove unused programs

This frees up space for caching and virtual memory and is a critical step if the free space has dropped to below 5%. To do this click Start / Settings / Control Panel. Then open Add / Remove Programs. Click the Install / Uninstall tab and select the program to be deleted. Then click the Add / Remove or Change / Remove and OK buttons.

Step 7: Prevent memory leaks

Memory leaks are unused memory that Windows thinks is still valid. You can tell if you have one if your computer runs well when first turned on, but performs slower after several programs are opened and closed. For a permanent fix, isolate the program causing the leak by starting with a fresh session of Windows. Then press Ctrl+ Alt + Delete and select Task Manager. Review the CPU Usage % and the Available Physical Memory under the Performance tab. Open a suspect program then view the System Resources % again and write it down. Close and re-open the suspected program repeatedly, comparing the number to the ones you recorded. Each time, wait ten seconds before opening again. If the System Resources % or the Available Physical Memory continues to decrease, then a memory leak is occurring. You can then contact the program vendor for patches or fixes.

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