How can I keep my computer clean and tidy?
When friends and family ask us how they can keep their computer clean, the one tool we always recommend is CCleaner. CCleaner differs from antivirus tools in that it is designed to keep your computer tidy. Think of Jacques from Finding Nemo!
CCleaner will search your computer and delete all the files that have been created when you browse the Internet or install software. Most of these files are benign and pose no threat to you, but they do take up space on your computer, so let CCleaner remove them for you. CCleaner will not remove documents and photos from your desktop from common document folders.
CCleaner will work on Windows; IOS (Apple) and Android phones.
Tell me more about CCleaner and what it can do for me!
When you open CCleaner, you will immediately see an ‘Analyze’ button which, when pressed, will calculate how much space can be recovered by deleting temporary system files. Once you’re satisfied, hit the ‘Run Cleaner’ button and everything will be removed from your system. NOTE: If you have an Internet browser such as Internet Explorer or Chrome open while running the CCleaner tool, you will be prompted to close the browser to allow the files to be removed.
Beneath the ‘Tools’ button (the wrench icon), you’ll find some very useful tools that you can, depending on your technical knowledge or confidence,
Uninstall – Click Uninstall and CCleaner will show you all the different programs that have been installed on your machine and when it was installed. Some of the very common names that you may want to look for and remove include:
delta search
MyWebSearch Toolbar
If you come across the name of a program that you would like to remove, click on the program name and select the ‘Uninstall’ button at the top right of the CCleaner screen.
Home – This is a great feature, but you’ll need to understand what you’re doing before you press any buttons here. Startup, as the name suggests, will list all the software that will launch when the computer starts up; web browser(s) and scheduled tasks. Chances are good that when you click on the Windows tab, you’ll see a substantial list of software names that launch every time your Windows computer starts up. You can disable the software by selecting it and pressing the ‘Disable’ button. We won’t advise you which one you should or shouldn’t disable, as every computer is very different.
When you click ‘Scheduled Tasks’ within Start, this is where you’ll get a good idea of whether or not your computer is running malware. People or organizations that produce malware often use your computer to schedule the infection to run at certain times, and CCleaner will help you see this. Again, we can’t recommend which one to disable, as every computer will have different tasks running depending on what software you’re running. However, one to note will be listed simply as “At1”, even though the numeric digit may differ from one; If you have this, please backup all your valuable documents and photos and then run antivirus.
We strongly suggest that you do not use the ‘Registry Fix’ tool with the CCleaner software unless you are a very proficient system user and have a complete backup of your data.
Like most software tools, CCleaner also offers a ‘Pro’ version of the software which comes with a charge. The Pro version will offer you support through Piriform (the people behind CCleaner) and the software will update automatically. The free version will notify you when an update is released, but you will need to visit their website and download the latest version.
BIG NOTE: CCleaner is proven software that is a must have, but I would like to say that we cannot be held responsible for any system issues or data loss as a result of running this or any other software we recommend.