I 2nd the SSD recommendation. Cinematics plays much smoother and load super fast compared to a HDD.

Wow, you did a lot! I hope it works better too.

I optimized my drives today but it only took a couple seconds which surprised me. I was thinking it wasn't working right. I did a search and a SSD doesn't need to be defragmented because it writes files back to the same location, whereas a HDD doesn't. The only thing that optimizing a SSD does is consolidate free space.

If you don't have a second drive in your computer, then you can get a 1 TB internal SSD for as low as $39.99 at Best Buy. Make sure to get the correct interface (SATA or PCIe). You can get an external 1 TB SSD for as low as $54.99 (USB-A or USB-C). Some have both connectors. I''ll never go back to HDD after switching to SSD. It makes a big difference for gaming.

I spent some time today cleaning up my computer. Below are the steps I took

disabled fast startup. Apparently this can cause the startup to be slower than normal for some reason
defragged the hard drive. Only 4% was fragmented before and after
Adjusted the paging file settings. They were higher than recommended before
updated the graphics drivers. There was a new update from 9/12/2023
Disabled a couple of startup programs
Uninstalled some software and games I haven't used for a while
Cleared the cache from all web browsers
Ran "CHKDSK c:" found no errors
Ran "SFC /SCANNOW" found some errors and fixed some system files

So far, it seems to be running a better. I'll keep my fingers crossed that it works better next Saturday

Glad you figured that out. Hope it helps

I had something strange happen with my internet for 2 days. At first I thought it was Comcast, then I thought it was my modem. It was connecting to the internet for 10 seconds and disconnecting for 2 minutes. It kept repeating this pattern. The problem was I used a splitter to connect both my cable box and modem to the same wall outlet. I didn't have a problem with this setup for 5 1/2 years. I moved my modem and router to an outlet next to my computer. My computer has a much better signal now. Maybe the splitter and modem/router location was causing the lag in Space Hulk: Deathwing because I was the host.

That's good. I hope it's fixed. Lag and stutter are annoying.