In this tip, I’ll show you how to automatically update your computer, clean your and defrag your hard drive, reboot your computer and open your browser. You can set this all up to run in the middle of the night, staggering each step, and your machine will be fresh for you when you’re ready to work in the morning! This isn’t a difficult process, but I had to separate each step as the entire post was way too long for a single one. I’ll post a new step each day, so stay tuned!

Why Do I Need A “Fresh Computer”?

Some people just don’t shutdown their computers – and that’s fine. The Windows code seems to have been optimized not slow down the longer it’s running, but there are some applications that are resource hogs, ie, bit torrent.

Table Of Contents

This is the First Step in the Fresh Computer Series.

Step One-A: Folder Setup

We need to create a folder for a few files. Create a new folder titled “Clean Machine” (or whatever you wish) under Program Files:
C:\Program Files\Clean Machine
This is where you will save, and later call, all of the little “programs” that we’ll create.

Step One-B: Update Windows (Optional)

It really is essential that you keep Windows updated – the only reason that I say this is an optional step is because some Windows update require a restart and if you’re rendering video or something else over night, this will prevent that from finishing. A way around this is to have your computer download the updates and you can choose to install them when you wish.

  1. Open the Automatic Updates dialog by pressing the Windows Key+R and type:
    wuaucpl.cpl
  2. Choose the first radio button “Automatic (Recommended)“. Have Windows automatically download and install the recommend updates for your computer “Every day” at “3:00 AM”
    Automatic Updates Settings

Next, we can proceed to Fresh Computer Series Step Two: Automate Hard Drive Cleaning.