Even with Windows XP’s latest service pack, registry errors are still bound to happen when different programs are installed or new viruses and trojans infect the system. Virus scanners serve as the first line of defense, but only the registry cleaners can undo the damage done by these malware. Registry errors are mainly responsible slow system performance and random hang ups that usually lead to reboots.

Getting Started with Registry Cleaning

In order to find the best reg cleaner for Windows XP, you need to see the available options first and find out what the users prefer the most. If you go around the different registry review websites, you will see  programs like Registry Fix, RegCure, and Registry Easy in the list. These three registry programs are among the top rated and each have their own strengths and weaknesses. Give each software a try as they allow free scans to be made on your computer.

Safety First

If you are having a hard time in deciding which registry cleaner is best for you, choose the one that has been rated as the safest to use. Some of the poorly made registry cleaners mark the wrong entries as errors and proceed in taking action by removing these false positives leading to more problems. The problem worsens when there is no option to restore the previous changes. To avoid this problem look for registry cleaners that have a backup feature so you can make full use of them without any risk.

Easier is Better

Registry Fix, RegCure, and Registry Easy all have backup functions so you shouldn’t have to worry too much about safety if you plan on purchasing any of the three programs listed. Focus should shift on the user interface because that is where you can really differentiate the programs. The program that you are most comfortable with will always be the program of choice.

Keep it Automated

Once you are finally settled with the best reg cleaner for Windows XP, stick with it and use it whenever you feel that repairs are needed in your system.  No need to stick with the traditional manual editing of the registry because the process takes much longer and there is a possibility of making mistakes. Using a registry cleaner fixes more errors and that translates to improved system performance and stability.

In an average hard disk, there is always data that is being added and removed even if you try to keep your files as clean as possible. As data is written onto your hard disk, it randomly fills up any open spaces. If you let this happen too often without defragging, your computer performance will degrade.

Concept of Defragmentation

What defragmentation does is it tries to assemble all the fragments of files into one continuous stream so that whenever the file needs to be accessed, the hard disk doesn’t have to do much work scanning through the different areas just to load the file. Every individual file in the drive is included so the ideal result is that accessing all files are generally faster. Depending on how fragmented the drive really is, the performance boost varies.

How to Defrag

Defragging can be done in all operating systems starting from Windows 95 and beyond without any need of external software. You should be able to find the “Disk Defragmenter” on your Start Menu in the “System Tools” folder which is located in the “Accessories” folder. From there, you can choose what drive you wish to defragment first and then let the program do its work. For best results, make sure no other programs are running and leave the computer idle so the process finishes faster.

Other Methods

The Windows method of defragging your computer happens to be the most basic. There are a number of freeware and commercial programs that support more features such as simultaneous defragment of multiple drives and scheduled defragging to ensure that your system stays defragmented. Paid solutions are often better and are ideal for businesses and power home users that want to maximize the performance of their system. Diskeeper is one of the most popular and has a free trial available on their website so you can give it a test run.

Most users should be contented with the default defragging tool that comes with Windows. But if you are tired of running the defragging tool every now and then, it is better to get a paid solution so you can concentrate on more important things while the program takes care of the maintenance for you.