Windows 7: Why does any windows get slow over time?

Hey all,

I'm actually running Windows 7 RC, but have found it to be the case with this also.

Always after a few weeks/months, Windows slows down considerably from when you first installed it. This is despite my having auto defrag on every week, cleaning up temp files etc.

I know more services might be installed with programs, but other than this what do people think is the reason for this 'bit rot' of sorts?

When I was testing out drivers I installed Win7RC on another partition of a different hard drive, and that was super fact and responsive as this was when first installed. Obviously the slow down isn't huge, but it is definitely noticeable.

Consider an operating system like a car.

Both start out brand new, nothing wrong, fast as heck (ahem.. except for some Operating Systems/Cars).

Over time both the car and OS receive wear and tear, both lose performance, noticeably as you stated, but nothing HUGE if you keep it maintained. Sure there are tools to help kick up the performance a tad bit though, those usually do not help that long.

Nothing stays the same as when you first got it, its physically and digitally impossible. There is ALWAYS something changing whether it is visibly noticeable or not.

I have always thought that Windows is like a fresh sandwich that you would eat immediately or would spoil over time. Due to temp files gathering up, freagmentation, startup programs (some add themselves....)services, and registry clutter....things go the way of the tortoise rea fast. My only reccomendation is to check your startup list and consult with others for a reg cleaner safe for Windows 7 (if you say ccleaner don't use it right now....kills 7 because of what it gets rid of)

Good ole Smilies to compare Windows too

lol, I'm not sure if comparing an OS to a car is exactly suitable! Cars wear down because parts and components wear down from repeated use, whereas assuming other things identical - if you opened and closed a program 1000 times, it won't 'wear' down just for that act. If you sat and revved the engine continually or went over the same bumpy road repeatedly, you'd wear down the engine and suspension. But I get the general gist

I guess I'm just wondering exactly what areas would cause slow downs. As I said, I auto defrag each week so their is no real significant fragmentation to speak of. I know some programs add services that will start on boot etc and cause slowdowns, but what else? Registry fills with some incorrect entries etc (Boostspeed cleans this up, and deletes temporary files from installs etc)... just wondering what other things would cause this pronounced slowing down?

When I said wear and tear I ment from everyday use.

Car - Driving to work, running errands, misc.
OS - Working with files, browsing online, listening to music, etc.

Is it really slowing down (it probably is), or is it as you get used to it you are getting used to the speed of the machine. My machine is fast (Gateway FX-7026 Intel Core2 Quad with 16 Gb of memory), and when it was new a year ago (damn time flies) it was fast. Now a year later it seems a little slower; is that because of the O/S or just something that is perceived.

It is inevitible that windows will get slower. think of all the application we install, and all the ways we adjust thins. they have to be stored in registry. as registry grows it takes longer to read it (not much if it only had to be read once) and the number of files grow.

Its also not like you can shrink windows by removing apps. there is a folder in windows called winsxs that grows huge. When 32 bit win is frehly installed that winsxs file is abt 4 gigs by the time its through its 10, or 15, 0r 30gigs.

Windows slowdown is both software related (user profile, apps, winsxs) and hardware related disk drives run slowly and so it takes longer to find things

If you want to keep you system as fast as possible install as few apps as you can anddefrag the HD, clean the registry, and dont modify tons of things in your user profile

Hope this helps

Ken

+1 Ken, the more the registry gets 'crowded' the more is read when accessing certain parts. It may only be a fraction of a second but if you're anything like me then you notice it. Unfortunately there's not much that can be done
I wouldn't trust a registry cleaner though, they can pick up on things that are needed e.g. Ccleaner tells me there's errors on a 100% clean install, just IMO




Jeff

I find I don't have any issues with CCleaner if I Uncheck Missing Shared DLLs, Active X and Class Issues. I use Acronis True Image Home and it has a great build in System Cleaner.

the reasons for slowing down have been put well in the above posts.

The best way of keeping things running slowly is to keep the machine fresh to start with...my golden rule is - dont load unecessary apps

I use Total uninstall (TU) to take snapshots before/after a normal install. then when you decide you no longer need the app, TU will remove all registrty entries/dll/services etc that may not be totally removed. Most apps will leave behind various bits of clutter, particularly in the registry

Also, it has the benefit of allowing you to see what an app installs, in case you think there may be virus/malware etc in an install (torrents anyone?!)


I havent seen much real world evidence of registry cleaners speeding things up - they give you a "feel good" factor of believing your machine is less cluttered, but I personally havent noticed any speed boosts. Plus in the wrong hands they can be dangerous if you dont understand what you are removing


martin