Over the years, people have discovered a collection of free Windows tools that can help diagnose what's causing their system to slow down. These tools can save you a ton of time and help you avoid costly computer repairs from certified technicians.
6. Windows Device Performance & Health
Let’s start with the simplest way to check the overall health of your computer. The Windows Device Performance & Health feature is a common first check. Whenever you feel like something isn’t working properly, open this tool and quickly look for yellow warning icons. It lets you review your storage capacity, battery health, potential application issues, and whether your system time is properly synchronized.
To access it, press the Windows key , type "Windows Security," and press Enter . When Windows Security opens, click Device performance & health . The interface shows a simple dashboard with green checkmarks when everything is working properly, or yellow warning icons when there are issues that need attention.
5. Windows Resource Monitor
Windows Resource Monitor is a go-to tool when you need to diagnose a family member's slow computer. It's free and comes pre-installed in the operating system, making it easy to use. It allows you to get real-time data on everything that's consuming system resources.
To access Resource Monitor, press the Windows key , type "resmon" and press Enter . You can also access it through Task Manager ( Ctrl + Shift + Esc ) by clicking on the Performance tab and then selecting Open Resource Monitor at the bottom.
The Overview tab gives you a complete picture of your system's health. With this tool, you can see which processes are consuming your system's CPU, memory, disk, and network resources in one place. This allows you to quickly identify the cause of the problem.
4. Windows Memory Diagnostic
RAM problems can cause your computer to behave erratically. Systems may randomly freeze, experience blue screens, or run extremely slowly due to memory errors. Windows Memory Diagnostic helps you test your RAM without any third-party software.
Open this tool by pressing Win + R , then type "mdsched.exe" and press Enter . The Windows Memory Diagnostic window appears with two options. People often choose Restart now and check for problems because they want immediate results.
3. HWiNFO
While Windows has great built-in tools, sometimes you need more detailed information about your hardware. HWiNFO gives you incredibly detailed information about every component in your computer, along with the ability to monitor temperatures, voltages, and fan speeds in real time.
First, download HWiNFO using the Installer option . Unzip the contents of the file and run the standard 64-bit installer. You can then launch HWiNFO by searching for it like any other application; click Run to open both the Summary and Sensors windows .
The program also tracks long-term statistics and can log data to a file, which helps you identify patterns and diagnose intermittent problems. You can customize which sensors are displayed and hide unnecessary ones.
2. Wintoys
For everyday system diagnostics without the technical complexity, Wintoys consolidates many scattered Windows settings and tools into one neat interface. It is so well designed that it is one of those apps that should be pre-installed on all Windows computers. After downloading Wintoys from the Microsoft Store, it has become my first choice when I need a quick system check instead of in-depth hardware monitoring.
There are a number of ways you can use Wintoys to optimize your computer's performance; for diagnostics, the main dashboard shows live graphs of CPU, GPU, and memory usage. This means you can immediately see if something is consuming too many resources. Then, go to the Health section in the sidebar, and select Repair .
1. CrystalDiskInfo
Storage drive health deserves special attention, and that’s where CrystalDiskInfo comes in. While both HWiNFO and Wintoys can display basic drive information, neither software focuses specifically on predicting drive failures like CrystalDiskInfo.
You can download CystalDiskInfo on SourceForge; the CystalDiskInfo website has anime-themed versions that you may not want. Once downloaded, unzip the file and open DiskInfo64.exe to open the 64-bit version of the application. Once opened, CrystalDiskInfo will immediately scan all of your storage devices and display their health status.
The main window displays the overall health status of each drive in simple terms like Good , Caution , or Bad with color coding. Green means good, yellow means caution , and red means a problem has been detected. You can see the current temperature, total power-on hours, and power cycle count for each drive.
Pay special attention to the Reallocated Sectors Count in the detailed SMART data. As the hard drive begins to develop bad sectors, it moves data to spare areas. Some reallocated sectors are normal over time, but a rapidly increasing number of sectors indicates that the hard drive is starting to fail.
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Internet Explorer was removed from Windows computers in 2022, replaced by Microsoft Edge. While Edge is far superior, Internet Explorer still comes pre-installed on Windows 11 — and it's incredibly easy to access.
Over the years, people have discovered a collection of free Windows tools that help diagnose what's causing their system to slow down.
When you're having audio problems or want to improve your PC's audio levels, it's time to dive into your Windows sound settings and make some tweaks. But did you know there are shortcuts and tricks to quickly get where you need to go?
Errors related to webcams on laptops will affect users when they want to communicate directly via webcam.
Virtual Machine on Windows 11 will support users to run an operating system other than Windows right on your computer.
In case you need to free up urgent storage space, you can temporarily turn off Reserved Storage Windows, according to the article below.
Windows today is much better at protecting your security than it used to be, but Windows Security and its associated tools are still not perfect. You need to be on the lookout for threats that computer security doesn't have a solution for.
Windows PCs can sometimes feel slow, but Task Manager doesn't show anything suspicious. At this stage, most people check for malware or storage issues, but outdated drivers can also cause performance issues.
A bunch of unwanted software can make your computer slow and cluttered. But cleaning it up isn't always easy. So check out these 10 ways to cleanly uninstall apps, remove old software in batches, uninstall items that can't be uninstalled, and even remove pre-installed Windows programs.
In newer versions of Windows, you'll find a folder called ProgramData on your system drive (usually C:\). However, this folder is hidden, so you can only see it if you enable displaying folders and files in File Explorer.
Microsoft's new Chromium-based Edge browser drops support for EPUB eBook files. You'll need a third-party EPUB reader app to view EPUB files on Windows 10. Here are some good free options to choose from.
Language bar disappeared on Windows 10? Follow these solutions.
Pooling multiple drives with Storage Spaces in Windows 11 allows users to protect files from drive failure while consolidating storage into a single, easy-to-manage virtual drive.
To prevent users from locking their Windows 10 computer, follow the steps below to disable the Lock Screen in Windows 10.
