| Windows 7: What should I uninstall from my laptop? |
15 Dec 2012
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#1 | | Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 7601 Multiprocessor Free Service Pack 1 Winnipeg |
What should I uninstall from my laptop? (Note: If it turns out that I posted this in the wrong place, then I apologize in advanced).
So I've been looking through my Uninstall Programs list and I realized that I have a ton of stuff on my laptop that I have no idea what they actually do. Not only that, I have no idea if I actually need half the stuff that is on it.
So I took some screen caps of the list and put them together so that maybe someone can tell me what stuff is safe to remove from my laptop.
Just some thing about myself in case that helps:
-I am a university student majoring in English, so I use Microsoft Word and PowerPoint.
-I am a gamer, so anything game-related does need to stay.
-I also like to do digital art from time-to-time.
Thanks. : D | My System Specs |
| System Manufacturer/Model Number Toshiba Notebook OS Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 7601 Multiprocessor Free Service Pack 1 CPU Pentium(R) Dual-Core CPU T4500 @ 2.30GHz Motherboard TOSHIBA Portable PC Memory 4.00 GB Graphics Card (1) Mobile Intel(R) 4 Series Express Chipset Family (2) Mo Sound Card Conexant CX20671 SmartAudio HD Screen Resolution 1366 x 768 |
15 Dec 2012
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#2 | | Win 7 Pro 64-bit 7601 Italy |
you can remove very little. A couple older Java installations can go away, and maybe some of the crapware that Toshiba installed in that, like the "service station" or the "value added package" or "reeltime", check what they are and if you like them.
I mean ok you can nuke more or less everything, but it's either irrelevant (has no impact whatsoever and could be still needed) or something game-related.
I'd personally ditch Norton and use a free antivirus like say Avira (the one I use and install on all PCs I sell), it's pretty light and works well, while I had all kinds of issues and slowdowns with Norton in the past. | My System Specs | | Computer type PC/Desktop System Manufacturer/Model Number custom built OS Win 7 Pro 64-bit 7601 CPU AMD Phenom 9650 Quad-Core (a revision without the bug) Motherboard ASUS M4A78 Memory 4,00 GB Graphics Card NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GT Sound Card Realtek High Definition Audio Monitor(s) Displays Fujitsu Siemens P19-3P Screen Resolution 1280 x 1024 x 32 bits @ 60 Hz Oh yeah, 4:3 rocks! Keyboard Microsoft, whatever. Mouse Optical, logitec. PSU whatever, around 450w Case Scavenged from old company PC, 10+ years old Cooling CPU fan, GPU fan, case fan, nothing fancy Hard Drives (1) MAXTOR S TM3320613AS SATA Disk Device (2) STM35004 18AS SATA Disk Device (3) TOSHIBA USB 2.5"-HDD Internet Speed effective max speeds: 70-ish kB/s down 30-ish kB/s up Antivirus Avira, free endition. Browser Firefox with FXChrome to make it look like Google Chrome Other Info Was discarded by previous owner due to "horrible performance".
Was running Win Xp from a IDE drive. Yeah. Was a pain.
SATA II drive and Win7 and it zips away! Yay! |
15 Dec 2012
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#3 | | Windows 7 Pro X64 Space Coast of Florida |
Instead of uninstalling anything, use msconfig Startup and Services tabs to stop programs from loading at boot. That will leave them there if you still need them but they won't take up any resources every time you boot.
Something like this: Advanced startup options - Windows 7 How to use msconfig in Windows 7
Click on Start then Run, type msconfig and press Enter.
Click on the Startup tab, record what is currently starting then click the Disable All button. Go back and enable your anti-virus and firewall.
Click on the Services tab.
Check the Hide All Microsoft Services box, record what is currently starting then click the Disable All button. Again, go back and enable your anti-virus and firewall.
Reboot and see how your computer runs. Make sure everything you need is there. If not, you can use msconfig to enable the ones that are absolutely needed.
None of this is permanent so if things seem wonky simply use msconfig to put things back as they were. | My System Specs | | System Manufacturer/Model Number Dell Precision 370 OS Windows 7 Pro X64 CPU Intel Pentium 4 Dual LP 3.4Ghz Memory 4GB DDR PC2-5200 ECC Graphics Card NVIDIA Quadro FX 3400/4400 Sound Card SoundMAX Integrated Digital Audio Monitor(s) Displays HP 22" w2207 LCD Screen Resolution 1680 x 1050 Hard Drives 300GB Maxtor 6L300RD PATA
128GB Kingston SV200S3128G SSD (boot)
1.5TB Seagate ST3150041AS SATA Internet Speed Cable via Road Runner 2MB Upload, 20MB Download |
15 Dec 2012
|
#4 | | Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8 Florida in winter, Black Forest/Germany |
I always uninstall Works because I have the MS Office package.
I also uninstall the Adobe PDF reader because it is a pain in the neck. I use Foxit instead. That is a nice reader.
I definitely would not have any of those games - but I don't game - a waste of time.
Norton I use. It is the best AV program on the market.
I also have one Toshiba with all those Toshiba programs. I kept them because they may be useful at times. Some are needed to manage special features on yout PC. | My System Specs | | System Manufacturer/Model Number HP, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba - 4 laptops and 2 desktops OS Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8 CPU from 1.6GHz Duo to i7 Monitor(s) Displays 2x HP w2207 Keyboard with trackball - no mices Mouse Trackball mice Hard Drives 5x HDD, 7x SSD, 12x Externals Internet Speed DSL 6000 |
16 Dec 2012
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#5 | | Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 7601 Multiprocessor Free Service Pack 1 Winnipeg |
Thanks for all your suggestions guys. It was really helpful.
This might not be related but when I've been uninstalling stuff, I've actually been losing space on my computer. I started off with 306/435 GB, but when I began uninstalling stuff it dropped to 301/435 GB. Shouldn't I be gaining more space since I removed a bunch of content from my laptop?
Last edited by LiliumSnow; 16 Dec 2012 at 07:01 PM..
| My System Specs | | System Manufacturer/Model Number Toshiba Notebook OS Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 7601 Multiprocessor Free Service Pack 1 CPU Pentium(R) Dual-Core CPU T4500 @ 2.30GHz Motherboard TOSHIBA Portable PC Memory 4.00 GB Graphics Card (1) Mobile Intel(R) 4 Series Express Chipset Family (2) Mo Sound Card Conexant CX20671 SmartAudio HD Screen Resolution 1366 x 768 |
16 Dec 2012
|
#6 | | |

Quote: Originally Posted by whs
I definitely would not have any of those games - but I don't game - a waste of time. That is merely a non constructive comment.
It's clear that the OP enjoys them and hence, are not a waste of time. | My System Specs | | Computer type PC/Desktop System Manufacturer/Model Number SmartEyeball Custom Systems OS 8 Pro x64 CPU i7 3770K 4.6GHz Motherboard ASUS P8Z77 WS (great board good slot placement) Memory 16GB G.Skill Trident X 2400mhz Graphics Card 2x Gigabyte GTX 670 OC WindForce SLI Sound Card X-FI Forte 7.1 + ATH-AD900 Headphones Monitor(s) Displays x3 Dell U2410 / 58" Samsung / "40 Sony Screen Resolution 1920*1200 / 1920*1080 Keyboard Topre Realforce // Ducky Shine MX Black // Filco Ninja TKL Mouse Razer Imperator + Thermaltake Theron PSU Corsair AX1200W Case Thermaltake Level 10 GT Snow Edition Cooling Noctua NH-D14 Hard Drives 2x Intel 520 240GB (RAID 0) * 2x WD Caviar Blacks 2TB (RAID 0) * 2TB WD Caviar Black Antivirus MSE Browser Opera, Chrome, FF Other Info GT Extreme V2 Sim Racing Cockpit + 40" LCD and K/B Mouse stand ▼
Fanatec CSR Elite Wheel + Clubsport Pedals + CSR shifter/7GS ▼
Buttkicker v2 Seat Rumbler with Dedicated 5.1 and Sub Woofer attached to frame ▼
=
Bloody Big Grin |
16 Dec 2012
|
#7 | | Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8 Florida in winter, Black Forest/Germany |

Quote: Originally Posted by LiliumSnow Thanks for you all your suggestions guys. It was really helpful.
This might not be related but when I've been uninstalling stuff, I've actually been losing space on my computer. I started off with 306/435 GB, but when I began uninstalling stuff it dropped to 301/435 GB. Shouldn't I be gaining more space since I removed a bunch of content from my laptop? Reason is because every time you install or uninstall a program, the system makes a restore point. And those restore points are 500MB to 1GB each. You can check your shadowstorage (that's where the restore points reside) with this command in elevated Command Prompt: vssadmin list shadowstorage
The Allocated number is what the system currently has grabbed and the Maximum number is what will ultimately be used.
Last edited by whs; 16 Dec 2012 at 07:38 PM..
Reason: Amplification
| My System Specs | | System Manufacturer/Model Number HP, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba - 4 laptops and 2 desktops OS Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8 CPU from 1.6GHz Duo to i7 Monitor(s) Displays 2x HP w2207 Keyboard with trackball - no mices Mouse Trackball mice Hard Drives 5x HDD, 7x SSD, 12x Externals Internet Speed DSL 6000 |
16 Dec 2012
|
#8 | | Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8 Florida in winter, Black Forest/Germany |

Quote: Originally Posted by smarteyeball 
Quote: Originally Posted by whs
I definitely would not have any of those games - but I don't game - a waste of time. That is merely a non constructive comment.
It's clear that the OP enjoys them and hence, are not a waste of time. I mix constructive with non-constructive comments as I like. Comments on my postings are only welcome when they are constructive. | My System Specs | | System Manufacturer/Model Number HP, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba - 4 laptops and 2 desktops OS Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8 CPU from 1.6GHz Duo to i7 Monitor(s) Displays 2x HP w2207 Keyboard with trackball - no mices Mouse Trackball mice Hard Drives 5x HDD, 7x SSD, 12x Externals Internet Speed DSL 6000 |
16 Dec 2012
|
#9 | | Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 7601 Multiprocessor Free Service Pack 1 Winnipeg |

Quote: Originally Posted by whs 
Quote: Originally Posted by LiliumSnow Thanks for you all your suggestions guys. It was really helpful.
This might not be related but when I've been uninstalling stuff, I've actually been losing space on my computer. I started off with 306/435 GB, but when I began uninstalling stuff it dropped to 301/435 GB. Shouldn't I be gaining more space since I removed a bunch of content from my laptop? Reason is because every time you install or uninstall a program, the system makes a restore point. And those restore points are 500MB to 1GB each. You can check your shadowstorage (that's where the restore points reside) with this command in elevated Command Prompt: vssadmin list shadowstorage
The Allocated number is what the system currently has grabbed and the Maximum number is what will ultimately be used. I tried that, but I got an error that said:
"Error: You don't have the correct permissions to run this command. Please run this utility from a command window that has elevated administrator privileges." | My System Specs | | System Manufacturer/Model Number Toshiba Notebook OS Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 7601 Multiprocessor Free Service Pack 1 CPU Pentium(R) Dual-Core CPU T4500 @ 2.30GHz Motherboard TOSHIBA Portable PC Memory 4.00 GB Graphics Card (1) Mobile Intel(R) 4 Series Express Chipset Family (2) Mo Sound Card Conexant CX20671 SmartAudio HD Screen Resolution 1366 x 768 |
16 Dec 2012
|
#10 | | Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8 Florida in winter, Black Forest/Germany |
That's because you did not run it in elevated mode - as I said in my posting. Go to All Programs > Accessories > Right click on Command Prompt > Click on 'Run as Admin'. Then the vssadmin command will be accepted. | My System Specs | | System Manufacturer/Model Number HP, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba - 4 laptops and 2 desktops OS Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8 CPU from 1.6GHz Duo to i7 Monitor(s) Displays 2x HP w2207 Keyboard with trackball - no mices Mouse Trackball mice Hard Drives 5x HDD, 7x SSD, 12x Externals Internet Speed DSL 6000 What should I uninstall from my laptop? problems? All times are GMT -5. The time now is 10:51 PM. | |