Caution! Making changes to your operating system can cause problems. Backing up important data should be done periodically. 5 Steps to a Super Fast Windows 1 Add/Remove Programs Download MyUninstaller. Uninstall any unwanted programs. Check in Google all unknown programs and uninstall the unwanted ones. Now you are left only with programs you want. 2 CCleaner & Adaware It is important to keep your system clean from spyware and excess files. Install CCleaner and run it daily. CCleaner deletes temporary files, empties the recycle bin & removes memory dumps. Install Adaware and run it weekly. Adaware removes spy programs and unhealthy system entries. It is efficient to run CCleaner before Adaware, that way Adaware doesn't have to check all the temporary files. 3 AVG & Kerio Personal Firewall 2.1.5 It is important to have an antivirus and a firewall that don't use up a lot of system resources. Uninstall your current antivirus and firewall. Install AVG which is an extremely powerful free antivirus. Make sure the AVG system tray icon is colorful, at all times . If it is gray, you may need to update by right clicking the icon, or your system date might be set incorrectly. Install Kerio Personal Firewall 2.1.5 Kerio Personal Firewall is a high quality free firewall. Version 2.1.5 is especially good because of the low system resources it uses. Make sure that Kerio Personal Firewall system tray icon is present at all times. If you want to disable the flashing arrows in the Kerio system tray icon, go to Administration > Miscellaneous. After installing Kerio Personal Firewall you will be asked to permit or deny incoming and outgoing alerts. When Kerio asks you to permit or deny: Mark the box on the bottom "create appropriate filter rule and don't ask again". In cases of Outgoing, choose permit, in cases of Incoming look at the details and usually deny. In Administration > Advanced, you can manage the filter rules you have chosen. 4 Internet Optimization & Disk Cache Adjuster EvID4226Patch is an important patch for "Windows XP Service Pack 2". "Service Pack 2" limits the half-open internet connections to ten. EvID4226Patch lets you change that amount (100 half-open connections is best). SpeedGuide TCP Optimizer optimizes the Windows settings to work better with your internet configuration. Tech Republic Disk Cache Adjuster optimizes three main disk cache options. more info Download the zip and extract it. Change the .TXT extension to .HTA and run the HTA file. 5 StartupCpl StartupCpl lets you choose which programs load automatically upon system startup. Remove any unwanted programs from startup. Check in Google all unknown programs and uninstall the unwanted ones. For more Maintenance Freeware click Maintenance on the navigation panel at the top of the page.