How to Clean the Prefetch Cache in Windows XP
Windows XP has a nice feature called "prefetch" installed as part of the operating system. Prefetch remembers software programs that you use on a regular basis, and keeps parts of those programs in memory so they'll load faster when you start them. Although this is a nice feature, having many programs in your prefetch folder can cause significant performance losses. Clearing out your prefetch folder is something that you can do on a regular basis.
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Instructions
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Navigate to the prefetch folder. It's located at c:\windows\prefetch, or on whatever drive letter your Windows XP is installed.
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Assess the folder size. If you've never cleaned your system, and you've had it for a while, the size of the folder is likely to be quite large. If you have a good-sized hard drive, the size of the folder shouldn't be an issue. However, the number of programs that are preloaded into memory can adversely affect your computer's performance.
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Delete the files you don't need. You have two options: delete only the programs that you don't use regularly, or delete them all. There are most likely programs in the folder that you've only used once or twice. Deleting these may be all you need to do.
On the other hand, you can delete all of the files in the folder. This will simply clear the cache, and the next time you open a program, XP will replace what it needs to into the folder. Deleting all of the files will not harm anything.
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Change your registry settings. If clearing your prefetch folder is not something you'd like to do often, you can change XP's settings in the registry. Click "Start" > "Run" and type "regedit."
Navigate to the value: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management\PrefetchParameters. Double-click the "Enable Prefetcher" key in the right window pane. You can change this value to: 0 (Disable), 1 (Application Launch Prefetch), 2 (Boot Prefetch) or 3 (Prefetch Everything). Once you've changed the value, click "OK" and exit the Registry Editor. Reboot, and the settings will take effect.
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Tips & Warnings
Editing the registry is an inherently dangerous activity; if you don't feel comfortable with it, don't do it. Mistakes made in the Registry Editor can turn your computer into a nice, high-tech doorstop.
References
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Comments
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Million thanks! It took ages for a large program to be loaded in Vista. I have emptied the prefetch folder, and disabled it. Now, it is a breeze! I hope this will help others who have been experiencing extremely slow loading problem in Vista.
