CleanMyPC

Without regular maintenance, a computer's performance will drop significantly over time and errors or crashes will occur more frequently. With the operating system's built-in disk cleanup utility, the results won't be as satisfying as you would expect. A better solution is to use a third party cleaner. Instead of being limited to emptying the recycle bin or clearing Windows temp files, CleanMyPC can remove junk data that was left behind by external applications, clean up the registry and much more. The software comes with a wide range of features, which can restore your computer to a good working condition.

CleanMyPC is free to try, with a few limitations. Although some of its features are restricted, you can unlock them by liking the product on Facebook. Installing the software is a simple operation, which you can complete in under a minute. Its hardware requirements are modest and you don't have to install any prerequisite tools.

The user interface is quite comfortable, due to its modern and elegant design. The available maintenance utilities can be accessed in separate sections, via navigation tabs, located on the left side of the window. Besides the registry and disk cleaners, you can also find a startup manager, an advanced uninstaller, a cleanup feature for browser gadgets and extensions and others. Hard drive and registry cleanup operations involve scanning these elements, reviewing and selecting the results and performing the actual cleanup process. The software is capable of scanning and cleaning quite fast, so you don't have to wait for too long or leave your computer unattended.

If you wish to save more disk space, you can disable the system's hibernation file, where temporary data is stored while the computer is in sleep mode. The advanced uninstaller is another excellent solution for keeping a computer in good working condition. Besides removing a program's core components, this utility will also scan for any remnants, left behind by that program and you can remove them right away, with a single click.

A few privacy tools are available as well. The software can identify and remove cache and history files, cookies and saved login credentials from your installed web browsers. Deleting Windows Explorer's history is another possibility. Sensitive documents, which you don't need anymore, can be securely deleted with the program's file shredder. Instead of simply deleting files, this utility can also overwrite the physical information on the hard drive, with zeros, multiple times.