5 Reasons Your Computer is Loading Slowly

Most computers are neglected. This is due to a lack of computer knowhow—and just like cars, computers need consistent upkeep. To that end, you can probably sustain the health of your vehicle by taking it in for an inspection and an oil change once a year—but a computer, generally speaking, needs monthly maintenance.

If your computer is loading slowly, this is commonly due to a lack of maintenance. Rest assured that your slow-loading machine probably doesn’t require a hardware overhaul or replacement, just a bit of time on your end to oil the engine. If you’re trying to use your computer for business, recreation, or personal reasons, read on to discover the common reasons that can affect loading speed.

Background Programs

Every computer has a host of programs that run in the background. Some of these are defaulted to boot simultaneously with the computer, meaning that although you don’t know they’re there, every time your computer turns on they activate. It’s important to identify these programs so you can remove or deactivate them—background programs drain your computers processing speed and slow it down. On a Windows machine, Task Manager can be used to locate background programs. However, programs like Resmon can execute a deeper dive. From booting up, to simply loading a webpage, background programs can slow everything down.

Your Hard Drive is Full

When walking around a room filled with too much stuff, your space is limited, correct? The same phenomenon occurs with computers. If your hard drive (the hardware responsible for storing files and programs on your computer) is too full, it’ll slow your loading speed. That’s why it’s important you know how to free up disk space, or upgrade it. An external drive is also an option—where you’d use it to offload files from your computer you do not need to constantly reference. Also, it’s important to mention that even though your hard drive may not be at capacity, it could be fragmented, broken, or failing.

A Virus

Unfortunately, like humans, your computer can get sick. The difference is, when your computer catches a virus, it’s manmade. A virus is a malicious program that infects your software and, usually, works to achieve some nefarious purpose (like stealing your private information). Some viruses crash computers without fail. Others slow them down to a crawl. By running a virus protection program, you might find that your computer is infected. Once the virus is removed, this could rectify your loading speed issue.

Overheating

It’s not uncommon for a computer to overheat. Afterall, the circuit board is pushing electricity out to all of its hardware counterparts. When it comes to loading speed, it’s actually your CPU (central processing unit) that’s responsible for your systems loading process. And, coincidentally, your CPU often generates the most heat because it’s constantly in overdrive—like the heart of the human body. This is amplified if your computer is smaller, as there’s minimal breathing room and often the fan isn’t working properly. With that being said, overheating is typically a problem that, if not for a fluke incident in which the fan breaks, occurs to graphic designers and PC gamers.

Browser Extensions

Most of use, even if we don’t realize it, browser extensions. Be it on Safari, Microsoft Explorer, Chrome, or whatever web browser of your preference, these extensions are used to optimize your browser’s performance. It’s entirely possible that your issue is centralized on loading different websites. In which case, too much of a good thing can, in life, turn out to be negative. The same goes for these extensions. When too many are running simultaneously, they can counteract each other and slow down your browser. Be sure to check how many extensions you’re running on your specific platform (many of these ghost download, meaning you don’t know they’re there) and remove the ones you don’t use consistently.

A slow loading speed can be indicative of a plethora of things. From hardware failure, viruses, overstuffed memory space, to simply having too many programs in the background, the range of causes is vast. Thankfully, most times a bit of upkeep, diligence, and maintenance can rectify your loading speed problem and optimize your computer’s performance.