Some Useful Windows Utilities

The utilities we'll describe help you diagnose your computer and configure its components for optimization. Using them will save you time searching for and downloading software from the web.

System Configuration (Win+R — msconfig)

This tool allows you to configure system booting. There are several tabs in the window that opens:

• «General» allows you to select how the computer will start (selective and diagnostic start is available to detect causes of problems);
• «Boot» is used to select the system and components (e.g. graphics card) to be started by default;
• «Services» tab allows you to disable third-party services for a «clean boot»;
• «Startup» helps to disable unnecessary programs that slow down system startup;
• «Tools» tab is for quick start-up of system utilities.

Computer Management (Win+R — compmgmt.msc)

This section contains a set of system utilities:

• in the «Task Scheduler» you can configure certain operations to run on a schedule (e.g. scheduled defragmentation of disks);
• «Event Viewer» to trace the causes of problems by looking at the time and information about system errors;
• to partition or delete a drive you don't need, you can use«Disk Management».

System Information (Win+R — msinfo32)

The utility shows full details of the computer, its characteristics and component versions. There are many «system analysers» available online today that perform similar tasks. If you need to view a particular characteristic urgently, it is more convenient to use the built-in tool.

Troubleshoot computer problems

You can also diagnose and rectify problems with system components, updates and other faults without the use of external programmes.

The software generates a list of components and analyses the status of each, prompting the user to correct any problems found. The tool successfully handles common types of problems and errors.

To access all of the available Windows 10 troubleshooting tools, follow these steps:

1. in the taskbar search, type «Control Panel» and click on the item found;
2. in the window that opens, in the «View» field on the top right, select the large or small icons and click on «Troubleshoot»;
3. in the menu on the left click on «View all categories».

Windows Memory Diagnostic (Win+R — mdsched.exe)

This tool is useful if RAM problems are suspected. It reboots the computer, analyses the state of RAM and gives a result when the boot is complete.

Reliability Monitor (Win+R — perfmon /rel)

The utility illustrates the functioning of the system by categorising the events that have occurred and briefly describing them.

Disk Cleanup (Win+R — cleanmgr)

The utility can be used to start a safe clean-up of unused files on your computer.

System administration

A useful feature for those who use a computer with children or elderly people. Create more than one account and leave only your own administrator rights. A user without such rights will simply not be able to harm the system, even if they accidentally download viruses. Malicious files will not be able to access personal/system folders or affect the security of your computer.

To set up your accounts, go to «Control Panel» and go to «Accounts».

Using the utilities described will allow you to get to know your computer better, discover its hidden features and configure it to suit you.