Your system is stable and you have two forms of backup
at your disposal: an actual backup and a system restore point. The
next step is to apply all required patches to your system. Simply
use the Start > Windows Update command to get a list of patches
from the Windows Update site. (Executing this command will connect
you to the Internet, should you need to make the connection.) Make
sure you also look for application updates. For example, visiting
Windows Update doesn’t update any Office products installed on your
machine. To perform this update, select the Help > Check for Updates
command in an Office application such as Word. There are three reasons
to patch your system before you do anything else.
* Patches can cause operating system problems that you want to know
about before you begin cleaning Windows so that you don’t accidentally
confuse the source of an error.
* Sometimes patches make settings changes and start unnecessary
services. Part of the cleanup process is to shut unnecessary services
and background applications down, so installing a patch after you
change the Windows settings is counterproductive.
* Installing patches not only fixes application errors and improves
security, but can also correct known performance problems.
After you install the patches, wait a day or two to ensure the patches
don’t create problems. You might want to make another backup and create
a second system restore point before you start cleaning Windows.
The idea is to ensure your system is as stable and up-to-date as possible
before you start making changes to it. A stable system with the most
current patches and adequate backup is far less likely to cause problems
and is easier to repair should you make a mistake.
TIP Always allow plenty of time to perform tasks such as installing
a patch or update. Depending on what the patch or update does, you
might end up waiting anywhere from a few minutes to several hours
for the patch or update to complete. A good rule of thumb is that
larger patch or update files require more time to install, but this
isn’t always the case. Always assume that cleanup tasks will require
several hours to complete. For example, a hard drive backup requires
more time when you have a lot of data to backup and you use a slower
device such as a tape drive. A typical 8GB backup on my system requires
around 4 hours using a DAT drive. Once you perform these tasks several
times, you’ll develop a “feel” for the time they require on your system
and you can plan the required time better.