TOOLS

The Junk Files Cleaner allows you to find and remove various types of junk and unnecessary files from your computer. Many Windows applications create junk files. Normally, such files are deleted by the application that had created them as soon they become unnecessary. However, sometimes they can remain on your hard drive if the program that created them was terminated unexpectedly, or it was not programed to delete said files, or there was a system crash, etc. The accumulation of such files takes up disk space, and may also sometimes impact system performance.

With the Junk Files Cleaner you can select which of your drives to scan, and what extension of files to scan for. The most common temporary and junk files extensions are built-in, but you can also add whatever extensions you want. It is also possible to manually add a specific folders (in the Options -> Junk Files Cleaner -> Include), whose content will be considered junk and will be emptied at every scan.

If you do not want to scan a whole drive, you can select only a particular folder. To do that, use the Scan Folder… button/text, just above the list of drives, and as soon as you select a folder, the scanning will begin.

Available commands for the Junk Files Cleaner:

• Scan – performs a scan with your current settings. A small window will appear while the scanning is in progress. You can cancel the scan by clicking the Cancel button, and you will be presented with a list of files found up until that point.
• Delete – deletes all found junk files that have a check mark, after the scan is completed or canceled.

Right clicking a junk file will bring up a context menu with the following commands:

• Open – opens the selected file, as if you have double clicked it.
• Search at Google for – use it to search online using Google for name of the selected file. This will open your default web browser and display the results of the search.
• Open containing folder – opens the folder containing the selected item in Windows Explorer.
• Properties – shows the file’s properties in Windows Explorer.
• Check all items – puts a check mark for all files in the list.
• Uncheck all items – removes the check marks for all files in the list.
• Check all selected items – puts a check mark for all selected files in the list.
• Uncheck all selected items – removes the check marks for all selected files in the list.

There are many handy and useful tools and components bundled with every Windows operating system. Some of them have complex command line options; others are difficult to access. The Windows Tools section in Revo Uninstaller Pro gives you a fast – one-click access to more than ten Windows tools, which you can use in your daily routine. Some tools depend on the which version of Windows you are running.

5.3.1. SYSTEM RESTORE

System Restore can be used to restore your computer to a previous state if a problem occurs, without losing your personal data files (such as Microsoft Word documents, browsing history, drawings, favorites, e-mails, etc.). System Restore creates snapshots of the most vital areas of the system, called Restore Points. These Restore Points allow you to revert the system back to a specific state. They are created daily and at significant system events (such as when an application or driver is installed, when Windows updates are installed, etc.). You can also create Restore Points manually.

5.3.2. NETWORK DIAGNOSTICS

Network Diagnostics is used to gather and display information about your computer’s hardware, operating system, Internet configuration and network, etc. With the Network Diagnostics tool, you can perform a scan of your system, test network connectivity, and whether or not your network-related programs and services are functional. The information it gathers can be helpful when given to a support person trying to troubleshoot an issue you are having. This tool is available only on Windows XP.

5.3.3. NETWORK INFORMATION

Network Information is used to display all current TCP/IP network configuration values, refresh Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) and Domain Name System (DNS) settings, Displays the full TCP/IP configuration for all adapters including IP address, MAC address, subnet mask, default gateway, Windows Internet Naming Service (WINS) and DNS configuration. Adapters can represent physical interfaces, such as installed network adapters, or logical interfaces, such as dial-up connections.

5.3.4. SECURITY CENTER

Security Center is used to check the security status of your computer’s firewall, virus protection software, and automatic Windows updates. If a problem is detected with any of them (for example if your antivirus program is out of date), the Security Center alerts you and provides recommendations on how to better protect your computer.

5.3.5. SYSTEM PROPERTIES

System Properties is used for the following:

• View basic information such as your CPU and amount of memory (RAM).
• View and change settings that control how your computer uses memory and finds certain information.
• Find information about hardware and device properties, as well as configure hardware profiles.
• View information about your network connection and logon profile.
• Report system and program errors to Microsoft or your system administrator when they occur.

5.3.6. SYSTEM INFORMATION

System Information collects and displays system configuration information for local and remote computers. This includes information about hardware configurations, computer components, and software, including signed and unsigned drivers.

5.3.7. TCP/IP NETSTAT COMMAND

The TCP/IP Netstat Command displays all active TCP connections and the TCP and UDP ports, on which the computer is listening, and displays the executables involved in creating each connection or listening port. In this case, the executable name is in [ ] at the bottom, on top is the component it called, and so forth until TCP/IP was reached. In other words, this command shows which applications are using which port to connect to the Internet, and which applications are listening for incoming connections.

5.3.8. ON-SCREEN KEYBOARD

On-Screen Keyboard is a virtual keyboard, shown on the screen, allowing users with mobility impairments to type data using a pointing device or joystick. You can also use On-Screen Keyboard if you think that there is a keylogger installed on your computer, and all the keys you type are being recorded, as it eliminates the possibility of recording typed keys. The On-Screen Keyboard can also be used as a temporary/emergency workaround, if you do not have a real keyboard for the moment but you need to be able to type.

5.3.9. DISK DEFRAGMENTER

Disk Defragmenter analyzes local volumes and consolidates fragmented files and folders so that each occupies a single, contiguous space on the volume. As a result, your system can access files and folders and save new ones more efficiently. By consolidating your files and folders, Disk Defragmenter also consolidates a volume’s free space, making it less likely that new files will be fragmented. The process of consolidating fragmented files and folders is called defragmentation. After defragmentation, your hard disk drive will be well arranged and your system will work faster.

5.3.10. SERVICES

A service is a type of application that runs in the background. Services typically provide features such as client/server applications, Web servers, database servers, and other server-based applications to users, both locally and across a network. You can use the Services component to:

• Start, stop, pause, resume, or disable a service on remote and local computers. You must have the appropriate permissions.
• Manage services on local and remote computers.
• Set up recovery actions to take place if a service fails; for example, restarting the service automatically or restarting the computer.
• Enable or disable services for a particular hardware profile.
• View the status and description of each service.

5.3.11. SHARED FOLDERS

Shared Folders is used to manage shared resources over a network, control user access permissions, session activity, shared resource properties, and to view a summary of connections and resources, uses for local and remote computers. With Shared Folders, you can:

• Create, view, and set permissions for shared resources.
• View a list of all users connected over a network to the computer, and disconnect one or all of them.
• View a list of files that have been opened by remote users, and close one or all of the open files.

5.3.12. GROUP POLICY

Group Policy is a component that includes policy settings for user configurations, which affect users, and for computer configurations, which affect computers (all users). Group Policy settings define the various components of the user’s desktop environment that a system administrator needs to manage, for example, the programs that are available to users, the programs that appear on the user’s desktop, and options for the Start menu. To create a specific desktop configuration for a particular group of users, use the Group Policy snap-in.

5.3.13. ADD/REMOVE WINDOWS COMPONENTS (WINDOWS FEATURES)

Add/Remove Windows Components (also known as Windows Feature) helps you manage installed Windows components on your computer. After Windows is installed, you can use the Add/Remove Windows Components (Windows Features) to add a Windows component that was not included in the original installation, or to remove an existing Windows component that you no longer require.

5.3.14. MICROSOFT WINDOWS MALICIOUS SOFTWARE REMOVAL TOOL

The Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool checks your computer for infections by specific, prevalent malicious software, and helps remove any infections found. This malicious software includes viruses, worms, and Trojan horses. When the detection and removal process is complete, the tool displays a report describing the outcome, including, if any malicious software was detected and removed.

5.3.15. WINDOWS BACKUP AND RESTORE

Windows Backup and Restore allows you to make copies of data files for all people who use the computer, and provides you with the ability to create a system image. You can let Windows choose what to back up or you can select the individual folders, libraries, and drives you want to back up. A system image includes Windows and your system settings, programs, and files. You can use a system image to restore the contents of your computer if your hard drive or computer ever stops working.

5.3.16. TASK SCHEDULER

Task Scheduler helps you schedule automated tasks that perform actions at a specific time, or when a certain event occurs. It provides the ability to schedule the launch of programs or scripts at pre-defined times, or after specified time intervals. Task Scheduler maintains a library of all scheduled tasks, providing an organized view of the tasks and a convenient way to manage them.

5.3.17. CHECK DISK

Check Disk opens a command prompt window to execute the chkdsk.exe Windows command. Check Disk verifies the logical integrity of the file system on the Windows volume. Check Disk checks for problems related to bad sectors, lost clusters, cross-linked files, and directory errors. These types of problems can be caused by system crashes or freezes, power glitches, incorrectly turning off a computer, etc.

5.3.18. SYSTEM FILE CHECKER

System File Checker allows you to scan for and restore corruptions in Windows system files, verifying their versions. If it finds a problem, it will attempt to replace the problematic files from the Windows DLL Cache. If the file is not in the Windows DLL Cache or the DLL Cache is corrupted, you may be prompted to insert the Windows installation disk.

5.3.19. DISK CLEANUP

System File Checker allows you to scan for and restore corruptions in Windows system files, verifying their versions. If it finds a problem, it will attempt to replace the problematic files from the Windows DLL Cache. If the file is not in the Windows DLL Cache or the DLL Cache is corrupted, you may be prompted to insert the Windows installation disk.

5.3.20. RESOURCE MONITOR

Resource Monitor displays information about the use of hardware (CPU, memory, disk, and network) and software (file handles and modules) resources in real time. This tool helps you find how much of resources are being put to use at the moment or used over time through a graphical representation. This way, you can check the performance counters of specific resource and decide a course of action to improve the performance of the computer.

The History Cleaner tool combines three other cleaning tools – Browsers Cleaner, Windows Cleaner, and Microsoft Office Cleaner. Each of them is accessible from a tab located on the top of the main window of the History Cleaner. They can be used separately using the Clear button when a cleaner is active, or the history of all cleaners can be cleared at once if you click the Clear All button.

• Browsers Cleaner – Your browser makes a detailed record of every web site you have ever visited. It is easily accessible from your browser window, and simply by pressing a button anyone can see what you have been browsing on the web. Revo Uninstaller Pro erases web site history of the following web browsers: Edge, Internet Explorer, Firefox, Google Chrome, and Opera. With the Browsers Cleaner, you can also delete temporary Internet files, which include images, videos, audio files, etc., all the web pages you have visited. Deleting temporary Internet files will also free a disk space on your hard disk.Depending on the history setting, you want to clean, and the browser you have, you have to check the desired options, and click the Clear or Clear All buttons in the Commands Panel. You can also quickly check or uncheck all options for one or all browsers by right clicking, and selecting the appropriate option.
• Windows Cleaner – Microsoft Windows keeps tracks of many things you do, like file search history when you search for file and folders; recently opened document history; open/save history used in standard open/save dialogs; start menu clicks history; last opened Registry key history, and more. Windows Cleaner allows you to remove all of this history and temporary files quickly and easily. You can also empty your Recycle Bin, and delete temporary files, freeing more disk space.Available options for Windows Cleaner are:
  • Clear Recent Documents History
  • Clear Start Menu Run History
  • Clear Find File History
  • Clear Printers, Computers and People Find History
  • Empty Clipboard
  • Clear “MS Paint” Recent Files History
  • Clear “MS WordPad” Recent Files History
  • Clear “Regedit” Last Opened Key History
  • Clear Common Dialog Open Save Recent Histry
  • Clear Common Dialog Last Visited Folder History
  • Empty Recycle Bin
  • Delete Windows Temporary Files
  • Delete Start Menu Click Logs
  • Delete crash memory dump files
  • Delete Chkdsk (Check Disk) recovered file fragments
  • Delete Thumbnail Cache.

  Depending on the history setting, you want to clean, and the browser you have, you have to check the desired options, and click the Clear or Clear All buttons in the Commands Panel. You can also quickly check or uncheck all options by right clicking, and selecting the appropriate option.

• Microsoft Office Cleaner – allows you to remove history of most recently used files in Microsoft Word, Excel, Access, and PowerPoint. If you do not want somebody else to see your last opened or edited documents, spreadsheets, or other files created using Microsoft Office, just select those, and click the Clear or Clear All button on the Commands Panel. Your most recently used files will no longer be listed. Windows also keeps a record of your recent files. Use Microsoft Windows Cleaner to clear them too. You can also quickly check or uncheck all options by right clicking, and selecting the appropriate option.

Deleting your files and folders does not mean that they are gone forever. When you empty the Recycle Bin, your files and folders are just marked as deleted but they are not physically erased. There is a chance to recover deleted data from 10 years or older computers, and this data may be very important or confidential. You can easily get back your important documents and other files that you have deleted using any recovery tool or un-delete program. This is where the Evidence Remover comes in. The Evidence Remover will eliminate all chances to get data back from your hard drive(s). It will forever erase files and folders that are already deleted, but left physically on your hard disk. No matter what tool you or somebody else uses to recover data, including professional and expensive recovery tools, the result will always be the same — the data erased with Evidence Remover is impossible to recover. To erase already deleted files and folders, you have to check the drive from which those files were deleted, then you have to click the Execute button in the Commands Panel. Once you start the procedure, you will see a window with a progress bar and the estimated remaining time of the operation. You will also have the option to Pause/Resume the process. The process can be slow, because the data is overwritten randomly three times. The overall speed depends on:

• your computer’s processor (CPU);
• the size of the selected drive;
• any running programs;
• any running security software – antivirus, Internet Security, etc.

During the process, the free disk space decreases because Evidence Remover creates a huge file, and writes random data in it. That huge file is deleted at the end of the process – the free disk space is restored.

If you want to securely delete a file or folder, and to be sure that no one, with any tool, could be able to recover that file or folder, then use Unrecoverable Delete. Deleting files and emptying Windows Recycle Bin does not mean they are gone forever. They are still on your hard drive, but marked as deleted. Anyone with a file recovery tool (free or commercial), could recover deleted data easily. Revo Uninstaller Pro’s Unrecoverable Delete tool makes this impossible, even if you try to do that with the most advanced and expensive tool on the market. Deleting files in Windows means that they are marked as deleted, and the space they allocated up until that point is free to use. This is because if Windows has to physically erase all deleted files, it will take time and will slow down your computer. There is also a lot of system, temporary, and other files which are a unimportant so making them unrecoverable would be waste of resources. Unrecoverable Delete physically erases all files and folders that you choose, which is why it takes more time than simple deletion. Unrecoverable Delete has the following commands:

• Add File(s) – use it to add a file or files that you want to erase forever.
• Add Folder – use it to add a folder that you want to erase forever. All files and sub-folders of the selected folder will be erased.
• Delete Forever – starts the erasing process. You can cancel it but the files erased before the cancellation will be unrecoverable, so please be careful when selecting the files and folders you want to erase. Once you start the procedure, you will see a window with a progress bar and the estimated remaining time of the operation. You will also have the option to Pause/Resume the process.

The window of the Unrecoverable delete tool supports drag and drop of files and folders. Because Revo Uninstaller has administrative privileges, programs with lower privileges cannot drop files and folders in it. For example, if you run Windows explorer or any other file manager with a standard user account (not as administrator), you will not be able to drag and drop files in Unrecoverable delete tool.