• sugar_in_your_tea
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    11
    ·
    3 days ago

    Free:

    • clean fans and heatsink - others mentioned, and the reason is better cooling so it doesn’t throttle
    • kill unnecessary services - that’s why reinstalling works
    • install Linux - not reasonable for everyone, but Linux uses far fewer resources
    • delete old files - as disks get full, it takes longer to find somewhere for files to go; try to leave 10-20% free
    • try a small overclock - many older CPUs can give a little more without upgrading cooling; only do it if temps look good

    Relatively cheap (<$200 each):

    • upgrade drive to NVMe - huge difference if running an HDD, still noticeable of running a SATA SSD
    • add more RAM (only if you’re constantly running out)
    • upgrade CPU - esp if AMD since they release lots of CPUs for the same socket

    It really depends on what’s making it slow though.