Your D: drive does not effect the speed of your computer, You did not tell us how much memory the computer has, but i would say if you have less than 2 gigs of ram, you could probably use more. However there are some other things you can do to speed up your computer. Listed below are some things to do.
Ever notice how your computer starts to drag slower and slower the longer you have it? Ever wonder why? Just like a car you have to do some maintenance to keep it running smooth. Installing software, removing it, surfing the Internet, and many other things over time can bring your computer to the pace of a snail if you do not do a little maintenance now and then. I am going to give you some links for software that I use, all are freeware and work great. You should already be running spyware and anti-virus protection, you can read my article "Ways to remove spyware from your computer" if you need help on this subject. This article is written for Windows XP.
1. First we want to get rid of any programs you are not using, and cleaning up the hard drive.
a. Click on start then control panel, then add remove programs.
b. Look for programs you no longer use, investigate programs you are not familiar with, if you do not need them remove them. Be sure you do a search on the program to be sure all files are truly removed. (Start, search, files/folders)
c. Now click start, programs, accessories, system tools, disk cleanup
d. Select drive C: and click OK and follow the directions, be sure that the check boxes are checked on Downloaded program files, Temporary Internet files, Recycle Bin, Temporary files, WebClient/Publisher Temporary Files.
2. The next step is to check your hard drive for errors, and defrag it if necessary.
a. Go to my computer
b. Right click on your drive C:
c. Left click on properties
d. Left click on the Tools tab at the top
e. Where it shows error checking click on Check Now
f. Make sure both check boxes are checked for "auto fix errors" and "fix bad sectors"
g. Click start
h. It will state it needs to do the procedure during next boot up, click yes.
i. Now click start and then turn off computer button, restart computer.
This step can take some time to complete the error checking. Once this is done proceed to step 3 defraging and how to auto set up defrag.
3. How to defrag your hard drive and set up auto defrag.
a. Go to my computer
b. Right click on your drive C:
c. Left click on properties
d. Left click on the Tools tab at the top
e. Left click on the Defrag button
f. Left click your C: drive in the top portion window pane.
g. Left click on analyze
h. If it tells you that you should defrag the drive do so at this time.
The defraging can take some time if it is badly fragmented. Once this is done you can set up your computer to auto defrag if you leave your computer running all the time like I do.
4. Auto defrag set up (you need to be logged in as an Administrator)
a. Click on start, then control panel
b. In control panel double click on Scheduled Tasks
c. Click on file, new, scheduled task
d. Name the task Defrag C:
e. Right click your task then left click on properties
f. In the Run box cut and paste this C:\\WINDOWS\system32\defrag.exe c:
g. In the Start in: box enter C:\WINDOWS\system32
h. Click the Schedule tab at the top
i. Schedule a time that you normally are not using your computer (mine is 3am) and runs everyday.
j. Click the Settings tab, I have mine to stop running if it runs for more than 2 hours. You can set to however you like.
k. Click on OK it will ask you for the admin password to apply.
5. Next you will want to check to see what programs are starting when you boot your computer, look for things that you do not need to run at boot up. Removing these items can speed up the boot up process. You can do this very easily if you have already checked out my
article "Ways to remove spyware from your computer", it talks about a great Microsoft utility called Windows defender. It has a Software Explorer utility that shows you what programs are set to run at boot up and you can remove them from that list.
Here are some more utilities that you can run on your computer that will clean up temp files, deleted links, missing links, and things that will just slow your computer down. Both of these programs are FREE of course. I use them both and again recommend for keeping your computer running at the optimal performance that you originally purchased it for.
CCleaner - http://www.ccleaner.com/
CCleaner is a freeware system optimization and privacy tool. It removes unused files from your system - allowing Windows to run faster and freeing up valuable hard disk space. It also cleans traces of your online activities such as your Internet history. But the best part is that it's fast (normally taking less than a second to run) and contains NO Spyware or Adware! :)
Free Window Registry Repair - http://www.regsofts.com/free_registry_repair/registr y_repair.htm
Why do you need Free Window Registry Repair?
The registry is a heart and soul of any Windows system. It contains information that controls how your system appears and how it behaves. Almost all Windows users gradually experiences the downfall in their PC's performance. Much of it can be attributed to Windows Registry Errors.
By using Free Window Registry Repair regularly and repairing your registry your system should not only be more stable but it will also help Windows run faster. Within few minutes and fewer mouse clicks, you can easily attain maximum optimization of your windows registry with Free Window Registry Repair. It will scan your complete registry and fix the registry problems.
For your convenience and for insuring maximum protection Free Window Registry Repair automatically makes a backup of any repairs made. So you always can restore Windows registry to the original state using restore button