PC REPAIR AND CLEAN SOFTWARE EVALUATION

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I use a few programs that are supposedly to clean and repair my PC. For instance I have installed CCleaner and Malwarebytes. But I would appreciate an independant review of whether these programs are doing what they say they are completing, as I have no way of verifying their claims. Also the difference between the Free and Premier versions.

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The first rule is you should not run more than one anti-virus/antimalware program in the background at once. They can conflict with each other and, at best, slow down your computer. So you should pick your primary protection and install it to be your ongoing protection. Any other should be manual on-demand.
Usually, the paid version runs in the background by default. An Internet Security Suite usually will provide anti-virus, firewall, and maybe some other functions such password manager,  anti-ransomware protection, etc. Free versions may provide one type of protection, so you may have to have an anti-virus program and a separate firewall program, for example.

So look at the ratings for the various vendors, both paid and free. See what options they offer and how well they protect against different types of vulnerabilities. AV-Test and AV-Comparatives are two references.

Once you pick your primary protection, any others should be set to manual on-demand. Malwarebytes Free is an example. By default it comes set to start when Windows starts. For that reason, many Internet Security Suites try to block its use. For example, I use TrendMicro Max Security and it makes you uninstall Malwarebytes before installation. However, MB can be set (Settings\Protection – uncheck “Start when Win starts”) not to run in the background. That way you use it as a second check for CYA purposes.
I find Malwarebytes to be one of the best for rooting out adware/malware.

I have used CCleaner-slim (Free) for years to remove garbage (browser caches, cookies, history, temporary files. etc). You can even choose the cookies you want to keep. In my opinion, it does a good job.
It has a Registry cleaner, BUT, I never let any program blindly touch (much less wholesale clean) the Registry. I do use it to clean the Registry, but item by item that I choose to remove. I am EXTREMELY cautious about Registry editing, in spite of the fact that I have been doing it for years.

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