There are various different utilities which can scan your hard drive for problems and then attempt to correct those problems. Some of the most used applications with windows XP include1. Disk defragmenter 2.Disc cleanup. 3.Error checker Tool.

1. As you use the computer over a period of time the files stored on the hard drive tend to become fragmented with parts of a file written to different areas of the drive.

Dic Defragmenter takes all of the file fragments and positions them together so that the complete file is located as one unit. This greatly speeds up access to the file.

The fragmented and split up files increase the work which the drive has to do and increase the load on the drive. This can sometimes cause serious and permanent damage.

To correct file fragmentation and to keep it at a minimum DISC DEFRAGMENTER should be run regularly so that the hard drive will remain in good operating order. To locate Disc Defragmenter click on START->ALL PROGRAMS->ACESSORIES->SYSTEM TOOLS->DISC DEFRAGMENT.

2.The Disc Cleanup application allows you to erase unwanted temporary internet files and program setup files from your hard drive. This clears out some space on the hard drive and definitely helps the machine to run better.

You can find DISC CLEANUP by clicking on START->ALL PROGRAMS->ACCESSORIES->SYSTEM TOOLS->DISC CLEANUP. This application should be run regularly in order to keep the computer running efficiently and smoothly.

3.Error Checker will scan your hard drive for errors in the file system and bad sectors on the hard drive. To locate ERROR CHECKER bring up your Start Menu by clicking on START then click on MY COMPUTER, next RIGHT click on the hard disc volume you want to run error checker on and then click on PROPERTIES.

Go to the TOOLS tab and click on CHECK NOW in the ERROR CHECKING section. Next in the CHECK DISC dialog box click on SCAN FOR AND ATTEMPT RECOVERY OF BAD SECTORS and click START. Checking a big hard drive for bad sectors will take some time.

Finally find the maker of your hard drive from the user manual or by looking inside the computer. Hard drive makers usually offer free downloads of tools to test the hard drive.

If your computer runs slow after completing all these tasks you should look elsewhere for the problem. One of the most common reasons for a slow running computer is a bloated corrupt registry.

The registry is a massive info data bank which stores all of the data needed by the operating system to run rthe computer and much more.

As the computer is used over a period of time a large volume of data fragments will accumulate in the registry. This is a problem with all windows operated computers unfortunately and there is no way to prevent it.

The operating system encounters difficulty in locating the data it requires to run the machine when the registry is bloated. This greatly slows down operation of the machine and can also cause freezing and crashing.

Windows XP registry repair software can be downloaded from the internet to solve this problem. The top registry cleaners will first offer to give you a free scan to determine if you have registry problems. You can check the results of this scan before deciding to repair your registry.

We ran tests on a number of Windows XP registry repair tools and found that some were clearly better than others. One in particluar found up to 50% more errors than some other registry repair tools and was clearly superior.

We recommend that you do not attempt to manually edit the registry and that you use a windows reg cleaner. There are many essential entries in the registry and if you mistakenly remove even one of them you can completely disable your computer. Use one of the top registry cleaners which will quickly and safely do your registry repair the safe way.