Diagnostic program for computer. Diagnose and troubleshoot PC problems (best programs)

How to find out what your child or employee is doing on the computer? What sites does he visit, with whom does he communicate, what and to whom does he write?

For this purpose, there are spy programs - a special type of software that, unnoticed by the user, collects information about all his actions. Computer spy software will solve this problem.

Spyware for a computer should not be confused with a Trojan: the first is absolutely legitimate and is installed with the knowledge of the administrator, the second gets onto the PC illegally and carries out hidden malicious activities.

However, hackers can also use legitimate tracking programs.

Spyware applications are most often installed by business managers and system administrators to monitor employees, parents to spy on children, jealous spouses, etc. At the same time, the “victim” may know that she is being monitored, but most often she does not know.

Review and comparison of five popular spyware programs

NeoSpy

NeoSpy is a universal keyboard, screen and user activity spy program. NeoSpy works invisibly and can hide its presence even during installation.

The user who installs the program has the opportunity to choose one of two installation modes - administrator and hidden. In the first mode, the program is installed openly - it creates a shortcut on the desktop and a folder in the Program Files directory, in the second - hidden.

Program processes do not appear in Windows Task Manager or third-party task managers.

The functionality of NeoSpy is quite wide and the program can be used both as home monitoring and in offices to monitor employees.

The spy program is distributed in three versions under a shareware license. The price is 820-1990 rubles, but it can also work for free (even in hidden mode) with restrictions when viewing reports.

What NeoSpy can do:

• monitor the keyboard;
• monitor website visits;
• show the user’s screen in real time via the Internet from another computer or tablet;
• take screenshots and save images from your webcam;
• monitor system events (turning on, shutting down, computer downtime, connecting removable media);
• intercept the contents of the clipboard;
• Monitor the use of Internet instant messengers, record Skype calls;
• intercept data sent for printing and copied to external media;
• keep statistics of computer work;
• send laptop coordinates (calculated over Wi-Fi).

Thanks to the Russian-language interface, a wide range of functions, correct keyboard interception and a completely hidden operating mode in the system, NeoSpy receives the maximum rating when choosing programs for user control.

Real Spy Monitor

The next spy is Real Spy Monitor. This English-language program not only has tracking functions, but can also block certain actions on the computer. Therefore, it is often used as a parental control tool.

For each account in the Real Spy Monitor settings, you can create your own ban policy, for example, for visiting certain sites.

Unfortunately, due to the lack of an English-language interface, it is more difficult to understand the operation of Real Spy Monitor, despite the graphical thumbnails for the buttons.

The program is also paid. The license costs from $39.95.

Real Spy Monitor features:

• interception of keystrokes, clipboard contents, system events, websites, instant messengers, mail;
• work in semi-hidden mode (without an active window, but with the process displayed in the task manager);
• working with multiple accounts;
• selective autostart for different accounts.

In general, many users like Real Spy Monitor; the disadvantages include the high cost, lack of a Russian-language interface, and display of the process in the task manager.

Actual Spy

The developers position Actual Spy as a keylogger (keylogger), although the program can do more than just record keystrokes.

It monitors the contents of the clipboard, takes screenshots, monitors site visits, and other things that are included in the main set of spies we examined.

When installed, Actual Spy creates a shortcut in the Start menu so it can be noticed by the user. The launch also occurs openly - to hide the program window you need to press certain keys.

Actual Spy's capabilities are not much different from those of its competitors. Among the shortcomings, users noted that it correctly records keystrokes only in the English layout.

SpyGo

SpyGo - spy kit for home use. Can also be used in offices to monitor employees.

To start monitoring, just click the “Start” button in SpyGo.

SpyGo is distributed under a shareware license and costs 990-2990 rubles depending on the set of functions.

In trial versions, monitoring duration is limited to 20 minutes per day, and sending reports to email and FTP is not available.

Main features of SpyGo:

• keystroke monitoring;
• recording all actions on the computer (launching programs, operations with files, etc.);
• control of visits to web resources (history, search queries, frequently visited sites, duration of stay on the site);
• recording what is happening on the screen;
• saving the contents of the clipboard;
• listening to the environment (if there is a microphone);
• monitoring of system events (times of turning on and off the computer, downtime, connecting flash drives, disks, etc.).

Important! The disadvantages of SpyGo, according to users, include the fact that it does not support all versions of Windows, when sending reports it often throws errors and is quite easily unmasked.

Snitch

Snitch - the name of this program translates as “snitch”, and is very unfriendly towards the user. Snitch spies on computer activities. It works hidden, does not require complex settings and has little effect on system performance.

The program is released in a single version.

Features and Features of Snitch:

• monitoring of the keyboard, clipboard, system events, web surfing and communication in instant messengers;
• compilation of summary reports and graphs of monitored events;
• undemanding network configuration;
• protection against unauthorized termination of the program process;
• surveillance is carried out even in the absence of access to the network.

Among the shortcomings, you can notice conflicts with antiviruses

How to detect a spy on your computer?

Finding spyware on a computer that doesn’t show itself outwardly is difficult, but not impossible.

So, despite their legitimacy, the applications we reviewed can be recognized by special antiviruses,“tailored” for searching for spyware (Trojans with spying functions), so we recommend adding the installed program to the exclusion list of such antiviruses.

And if you do not need to remove the spy, but only need to disguise your actions from it, you can use anti-spying tools that, despite actively spying on you, will prevent the interception of keyboard events and screenshots.

Then your correspondence and passwords will not fall into the wrong hands.

Every year, an increasing number of computer diagnostic programs are released. But an even greater number of users are purchasing PCs and want to make sure that the components, painstakingly found on the dusty shelves of online stores, fully satisfy all their requirements. It is no less difficult to manage without programs of this kind in everyday use of a computer. Many of them allow you not only to diagnose problems, but also to keep your PC’s health under control.

There are a number of programs, the capabilities of which are expanding from year to year, while the product becomes complex for an inexperienced user, and the price increases several times. There are also analog programs that have a slightly less meager arsenal of capabilities, but are worth nothing. We will get acquainted with the most polar representatives of both categories among users in this review.

AIDA64, without exaggeration, is the most popular product for review, as well as diagnostics of a personal computer in general. The program can provide the most complete information about any component of a working machine: components, programs, operating system, network connections and external devices. Over many years of excellence in the market, it acquired AIDA64 and a whole range of utilities for diagnosing PC stability and testing its performance. Easy to learn thanks to a simple and friendly interface.

Everest was once a very popular analyzer of computer hardware and software components. Allows you to find out comprehensive data about the system, which would be very difficult to obtain otherwise. Developed by Lavalys, the program was a follower of AIDA32. In 2010, the rights to develop this product were purchased by another company. In the same year, the development of Everest itself was stopped, and AIDA64 was eventually introduced on its basis. But even after so many years, Everest is still a relevant and beloved product by many users.

S.I.W.

System Info For Windows is a utility that provides the user with an easy-to-setup and easy-to-use tool that allows you to view detailed data on the configuration of PC hardware and hardware, installed software, system components, and network elements. With its functionality, the SIW product is in close competition with AIDA64. However, there are also differences between them. Although System Info For Windows cannot boast such powerful resources for PC diagnostics, it has a number of its own, no less useful tools.

System Explorer

The System Explorer utility is completely free and in its likeness is an analogue of the classic Windows OS task manager. It helps monitor computer operation in real time and manage its processes. The utility has a built-in database that can be used to check any of the processes running on the user’s computer for malicious information. The interface is correctly translated into Russian, divided into tabs, each of them is responsible for specific tasks. Understanding the operation of the System Explorer utility is not difficult even for an inexperienced user.

PC Wizard

PC Wizard is a powerful program that provides information about the operation of the motherboard, processor, video card and a number of other computer components. What sets this product apart from a number of similar products is a series of tests that allow you to determine the performance and overall performance of the system. PC Wizard's interface is minimalistic and it's very easy to understand. The program is widely known among users due to its free distribution. And although the developer stopped supporting it in 2014, even today it can be a good assistant in assessing the potential of a PC.

SisSoftware Sandra

The SisSoftware Sandra program is a collection of useful utilities that will assist in diagnosing the system, installed programs, codecs and drivers. Sandra also has the functionality of providing information about various system components. You can even perform diagnostic operations on devices remotely. The software product, with such a large functionality, is completely easy to use, which was achieved thanks to an intuitive interface, as well as high-quality Russian translation. SisSoftware Sandra is distributed according to a paid model, but you can evaluate all its advantages during the trial period.

The 3DMark product belongs to Futuremark, one of the main players in the testing package market. They are not only visually very attractive and varied, but also always give a stable, repeatable result. The company's close cooperation with global manufacturers of processors and graphics cards allows it to competently improve its product. The tests included in the 3DMark package are used both to test the strength of weak machines, such as laptops, and the most advanced and powerful PCs. There are a number of tests for mobile platforms, for example, and, which allows you to compare the real graphics or processing power of a particular smartphone.

No matter how powerful and advanced the components of modern computers are, their owners still try to improve, strengthen or overclock something. A good assistant for them in this will be the SpeedFan program, which, in addition to providing information about the entire system, will also allow you to edit some characteristics. By skillfully using this product, you can optimally configure the operation of coolers if they do not cope with their task of cooling the processor and motherboard, or, on the contrary, they begin to work actively when the temperature of the components is still in an optimal state. Only experienced users will be able to fully work with the program.

OCCT

Even an experienced Windows OS user may sooner or later encounter an unexpected problem that causes the computer to malfunction. The cause of the problem may be overheating, overload or mismatch of components. To identify them, you need to use specialized software. OCCT belongs to the category of such products. Thanks to a series of tests of PC components, the program can detect sources of malfunctions or prevent their occurrence. There are also real-time monitoring capabilities of the system. The interface is non-standard, but convenient, and also Russified.

S&M

A small and completely free program from a domestic developer is a set of tests for loading computer components. The ability to monitor the testing process allows you to track in real time possible problems with overheating or insufficient power of the power supply, as well as determine the overall performance of the processor, RAM and the speed of hard drives. The program's simple interface and detailed description of test settings will allow even a beginner to test the PC's strength.

In order for the computer to function reliably and smoothly, it is necessary to diagnose all possible failures and malfunctions in its operation in a timely manner. The programs presented in this review can help with this. It is difficult to choose one product for yourself, even one that tries to be as universal as possible. Each tool has both its advantages and disadvantages, but they all cope equally well with their priority tasks.

In the previous article, a list of 80 tools for monitoring Linux systems was compiled. It also made sense to make a selection of tools for the Windows system. The following is a list that serves as a starting point only, there is no ranking.

1.Task Manager

The well-known Windows Task Manager is a utility for displaying a list of running processes and the resources they consume. But do you know how to use its full potential? As a rule, it is used to monitor the state of the processor and memory, but you can go much further. This application is pre-installed on all Microsoft operating systems.

2. Resource Monitor

A great tool to estimate CPU, RAM, network and disk usage in Windows. It allows you to quickly obtain all the necessary information about the status of critical servers.

3.Performance Monitor

The main tool for managing performance counters in Windows. Performance Monitor, known to us as System Monitor in earlier versions of Windows. The utility has several display modes, displays performance counters in real time, and saves data to log files for later study.

4.Reliability Monitor

Reliability Monitor - System stability monitor, allows you to monitor any changes in computer performance, you can find the stability monitor in Windows 7, in Windows 8: Control Panel > System and Security > Action Center. Using Reliability Monitor, you can keep a record of changes and failures on your computer, the data will be displayed in a convenient graphical form, which will allow you to track which application and when caused an error or froze, track the appearance of the Windows blue screen of death, the reason for its appearance (the next Windows update or program installation).

5.Microsoft SysInternals

SysInternals is a complete set of programs for administering and monitoring computers running Windows OS. You can download them for yourself for free on the Microsoft website. Sysinternals utilities help manage, troubleshoot, and diagnose Windows applications and operating systems.

6. SCOM (part of Microsoft System Center)

System Center is a complete set of tools for managing IT infrastructure, with which you can manage, deploy, monitor, configure Microsoft software (Windows, IIS, SQLServer, Exchange, and so on). Unfortunately, MSC is not free. SCOM is used for proactive monitoring of key IT infrastructure objects.

Monitoring Windows servers using the Nagios family

7. Nagios

Nagios has been the most popular infrastructure monitoring tool for several years (for Linux and Windows). If you are considering Nagios for Windows, then install and configure the agent on the Windows server. NSClient++ monitors the system in real time and provides outputs from a remote monitoring server and more.

8. Cacti

Typically used in conjunction with Nagios, it provides the user with a convenient web interface to the RRDTool utility, designed to work with Round Robin Databases, which are used to store information about changes in one or more quantities over a certain period of time. Statistics on network devices are presented in the form of a tree, the structure of which is specified by the user; you can plot channel usage, HDD partition usage, display resource latency, etc.

9. Shinken

A flexible, scalable, open source monitoring system based on the Nagios core written in Python. It is 5 times faster than Nagios. Shinken is compatible with Nagios, you can use its plugins and configurations without making adjustments or additional configuration.

10. Icinga

Another popular open monitoring system that checks hosts and services and reports their status to the administrator. As a fork of Nagios, Icinga is compatible with it and they have a lot in common.

11. OpsView

OpsView was originally free. Now, unfortunately, users of this monitoring system have to shell out money.

Op5 is another open source monitoring system. Plotting, storing and collecting data.

Alternatives to Nagios

Open source software for monitoring and tracking the status of various computer network services, servers and network equipment, used to obtain data on processor load, network usage, disk space and the like.

14. Munin

A good monitoring system that collects data from several servers simultaneously and displays everything in the form of graphs, with which you can track all past events on the server.

15.Zenoss

Written in Python using the Zope application server, data is stored in MySQL. With Zenoss you can
monitor network services, system resources, device performance, the Zenoss kernel analyzes the environment. This makes it possible to quickly understand a large number of specific devices.

16. Observium

A monitoring and surveillance system for network devices and servers, although the list of supported devices is huge and is not limited to network devices; the device must support SNMP.

17. Centreon

A comprehensive monitoring system allows you to monitor the entire infrastructure and applications containing system information. Free alternative to Nagios.

18. Ganglia

Ganglia is a scalable distributed monitoring system used in high-performance computing systems such as clusters and grids. Monitors statistics and computation history in real time for each of the monitored nodes.

19. Pandora FMS

Monitoring system, good productivity and scalability, one monitoring server can monitor the work of several thousand hosts.

20. NetXMS

Open source software for monitoring computer systems and networks.

21.OpenNMS

OpenNMS monitoring platform. Unlike Nagios, it supports SNMP, WMI and JMX.

22. HypericHQ

A component of the VMware vRealize Operations suite, it is used to monitor OS, middleware and applications in physical, virtual and cloud environments. Displays availability, performance, usage, events, logs, and changes at every level of the virtualization stack (from the vSphere hypervisor to guest OSes).

23. Bosun

Open source monitoring and alert system from StackExchange. Bosun has a well-thought-out data design, as well as a powerful language for processing it.

24. Sensu

Sensu is an open source alert system similar to Nagios. There is a simple dashboard, you can see a list of clients, checks and triggered alerts. The framework provides the mechanisms needed to collect and accumulate server operation statistics. Each server runs a Sensu agent (client) that uses a set of scripts to check the functionality of services, their status and collect any other information.

25. CollectM

CollectM collects statistics about system resource usage every 10 seconds. It can collect statistics for several hosts and send it to the server, the information is displayed using graphs.

28. Performance Analysis of Logs (PAL) Tool

34. Total Network Monitor

This is a program for constantly monitoring the operation of a local network of individual computers, network and system services. Total Network Monitor generates a report and notifies you about errors that have occurred. You can check any aspect of the operation of a service, server or file system: FTP, POP/SMTP, HTTP, IMAP, Registry, Event Log, Service State and others.

35. PRTG

38.Idera

Supports multiple operating systems and virtualization technologies. There are many free tools that you can use to monitor your system.

39. PowerAdmin

PowerAdmin is a commercial monitoring solution.

40. ELM Enterprise Manager

ELM Enterprise Manager - complete monitoring from “what happened” to “what is happening” in real time. Monitoring tools in ELM include - Event Collector, Performance Monitor, Service Monitor, Process Monitor, File Monitor, PING Monitor.

41.EventsEntry

42. Veeam ONE

An effective solution for monitoring, reporting and scheduling resources in VMware, Hyper-V and Veeam Backup & Replication infrastructure, monitors the health of your IT infrastructure and diagnoses problems before they interfere with user experience.

43. CA Unified Infrastructure Management (formerly CA Nimsoft Monitor, Unicenter)

Monitors the performance and availability of Windows server resources.

44. HP Operations Manager

This infrastructure monitoring software performs proactive root cause analysis, reducing recovery time and reducing operations management costs. The solution is ideal for automated monitoring.

45.Dell OpenManage

OpenManage (now Dell Enterprise Systems Management) is an all-in-one monitoring product.

46. ​​Halcyon Windows Server Manager

Management and monitoring of networks, applications and infrastructure.

Below is a list of (most popular) network monitoring tools

55.NeDi

Nedi is an open source network monitoring tool.

54. The Dude

The Dude monitoring system, although free, according to experts, is in no way inferior to commercial products; it monitors individual servers, networks and network services.

55.BandwidthD

Open source program.

56. NagVis

An extension for Nagios that allows you to create infrastructure maps and display their status. NagVis supports a large number of different widgets and icon sets.

57. Proc Net Monitor

A free monitoring application that allows you to track all active processes and, if necessary, quickly stop them to reduce the load on the processor.

58. PingPlotter

Used to diagnose IP networks, it allows you to determine where losses and delays of network packets occur.

Small but useful tools

60. Glint Computer Activity Monitor

61.RealTemp

A utility for monitoring temperatures of Intel processors, it does not require installation; it tracks the current, minimum and maximum temperature values ​​for each core and the start of throttling.

62. SpeedFan

A utility that allows you to control the temperature and fan speeds in the system, monitors the performance of sensors on the motherboard, video card and hard drives.

63.OpenHardwareMonitor

No matter how carefully you treat your computer or laptop, at some point it may start to slow down. The reasons for this malfunction can be very different, ranging from virus infection to overheating of the processor or video card. In general, there are a lot of options.

Fortunately, there are special programs that allow you to monitor your computer and determine what is causing problems in its operation. And the best of these utilities will be discussed in the article.

Standard utility

This will sound strange, but in many cases you won't even need to install additional software. The standard Windows utility will help you carry out monitoring, which even users who have only recently begun their acquaintance with a PC probably know about. Of course, we are talking about the “Task Manager”.

In order to launch this program, just press the “magic” key combination - “Ctrl+Alt+Del”. After this, a window will open in which you can get information about how heavily loaded the important components of your computer are: processor, video card, RAM and hard drive. In addition, you will be able to identify the applications that consume the most resources on your PC.

If you want to conduct more detailed monitoring of your computer’s parameters, you need to go to the “Performance” tab. Next, you should use the “Resource Monitor” module, which will allow you to find out in detail about the load on individual components.

Unfortunately, you cannot view the temperature of the processor and video card in the Task Manager. To do this, you will have to use special utilities, which will be discussed below.

Real Temp

A small but very useful program, using which you can see the processor temperature both at the current moment and over a certain period of time. Real Temp's main interface consists of just one tab, but that's enough. So, in addition to temperature data, information about the processor operating frequency is presented here, as well as an important Thermal Status column. If it says "OK", then you don't have to worry about overheating.

Another feature of the utility is the ability to test CPU sensors and its overall performance. This way you can monitor how the processor behaves under load. Well, yes, Real Temp is a portable program and does not require installation.

System Explorer

And this utility is an excellent replacement for the standard Task Manager. It allows you to conduct detailed monitoring of your computer and identify processes that interfere with its normal functioning.

After installing System Explorer, you will have a huge set of tools at your disposal that will help you carefully monitor each of the running applications. This way, you can find out how a particular program behaves, how it uses system resources, and how the computer reacts when it stops. In particular, this will be very useful if your PC is infected with a miner virus.

In addition, System Explorer includes modules for checking the relevance of drivers, detecting malware, monitoring browser add-ons, and much more. In addition, the utility supports the Russian language, so it won’t be difficult for you to understand all this variety of possibilities.

CPU-Z

Free utility for diagnosing computer hardware. Using this program, you can get comprehensive information about the processor, motherboard, video card and RAM. In particular, you will find out the manufacturer of your equipment, CPU and GPU frequency, number of cores, cache size at all levels and many other parameters.

Unfortunately, you cannot view it in CPU-Z. However, the utility allows you to test the CPU for stress resistance and check the performance of your PC under high loads. For this reason, it is recommended to use CPU-Z in conjunction with other computer programs.

Core Temp

An excellent tool for monitoring the characteristics and current state of the processor. The utility has a single-window interface, in which you can nevertheless view all the necessary information. So, Core Temp shows information about the CPU manufacturer, frequency, power consumption, as well as the current and limit temperature.

Separately, it is worth mentioning the overheat protection system present in the program. You can independently set the CPU temperature values, upon reaching which the utility will either send a notification or automatically restart the computer. This is a very useful feature. Especially for those users who have just begun to master the PC and would not like to take risks by subjecting it to unnecessary loads.

GPU-Z

An excellent free program for monitoring your computer. The utility is a powerful tool for analyzing a video card. GPU-Z displays information about the video adapter model, its operating and maximum frequency, memory size and type, number of transistors, bus bandwidth and many other parameters.

In addition, the program is also an excellent tool for monitoring GPU temperatures. By going to the Sensors tab, you can find out all the important data about your video adapter, which is also displayed in real time. This provides information about the current and maximum temperature, core load percentage, cooler rotation speed as a percentage, and the amount of memory used.

In addition, GPU-Z has a built-in graphics card testing tool. Thanks to it, you can easily check the stability of your system under high loads.

RivaTuner

It was once a very popular computer health monitoring program, but after 2009 it stopped receiving updates. However, this utility is perfect for owners of old laptops and PCs.

Initially, RivaTuner was developed as a tool for overclocking a video card by increasing operating frequencies. Therefore, it is not surprising that the utility can read temperature data from GPU sensors. In addition, in the program settings you can manually set the rotation speed of the video card cooler, thereby protecting your system from unwanted overheating.

MSI Afterburner

Perhaps one of the most famous programs for monitoring the computer system in games. Of course, MSI Afterburner is primarily intended for overclocking a video card, but this does not prevent the utility from simultaneously being an excellent tool for monitoring the state of the PC.

By going to the program settings, you can independently enable those parameters that will be displayed on the screen directly during the gameplay. For example, you can monitor the CPU and video card load, temperature, amount of RAM used, cooler rotation speed, current frame rate and many other indicators. With MSI Afterburner, you can quickly and accurately identify the weak part of your computer.

PC Wizard

A powerful software package designed for computer monitoring. PC Wizard allows you to obtain complete reliable information about the system and diagnose almost any components.

The utility displays information about the video card, printers, motherboard, RAM and hard drive. Don't know how to view the processor temperature? Again, PC Wizard can easily cope with this task.

It is also worth noting that when minimized, the utility can display all the main system parameters in the form of a small display located on top of the other windows. This way, for example, you can monitor the temperature of the video card and processor in games, thereby protecting these components from overheating.

This program provides the user with comprehensive information about the current state of the system, and also allows you to conduct various stress tests. Here you will find complete information about the processor, RAM, video card, hard drive and motherboard. Of course, the utility can also read temperature sensor readings.

At the same time, AIDA64 Extreme Edition allows you to obtain data not only about the hardware component of the system, but also about the software. Simply put, you can easily see what driver versions are installed on your computer, what OS you have, what DirectX, and so on.

Please note that the utility is distributed on a paid basis. However, this does not prevent it from being rightfully considered the best program for monitoring a computer.

HWiNFO

Another free utility that allows you to test the performance of your processor, video card, RAM and hard drive. At the same time, HWiNFO is a powerful tool for general computer monitoring.

The program, among other things, can read data from sensors. Thus, you can at any time find out the current temperature of the processor or video card, the rotation speed of various coolers, the power consumption of individual components, and so on.

HWiNFO also has a built-in tool to compare your computer against benchmarks. With its help, you can understand which direction you should move if you want to improve overall system performance.

CAM

A newcomer to the market of programs for monitoring computer load. The utility interface consists of several blocks, each of which contains relevant information. So, you can determine the current temperature of the processor and video card, their load, frequency and data processing speed. In addition, the program provides information about the maximum and available amount of RAM and hard drive.

Separately, it is worth highlighting the presence of an overlay designed for monitoring performance in games. Using it, you can determine the load on the video card and processor, as well as the current FPS value.

CrystalDiskInfo

This utility is designed for monitoring and provides comprehensive information about the HDD, such as firmware, total operating time, interface, and so on. In addition, CrystalDiskInfo notifies the user about read/write errors, performance, presence of bad sectors and disk surface temperature.

Among the interesting features are the presence of extensive settings for noise and HDD performance, as well as support for external media. The good news is that the utility is free. Moreover, it is made so well that it can easily compete with paid analogues.

SpeedFan

Initially, this utility was positioned as a tool for controlling the rotation speed of coolers. Now SpeedFan has grown into a powerful tool for general system diagnostics. So, with the help of this program you can quickly read data from any temperature sensor, adjust the system bus frequency, check the condition of the hard drive surface and much more. In addition, the utility provides the opportunity to compare the results obtained with benchmark indicators.

Please note that all changes made using the program should be approached very responsibly. For example, if you reduce the rotation speed of a particular cooler, you will automatically encounter an increase in the overall system temperature.

S.I.W.

A compact utility that provides complete information about the components of your computer. In addition, the program allows you to obtain information about the software and all installed updates.

SIW differs from its analogues in its very simple interface, in which there is nothing superfluous. Even an inexperienced user who is getting acquainted with this utility for the first time will not get confused in the numerous windows and tabs.

In addition, the advantages of the program include support for the Russian language. In addition, SIW is distributed free of charge, so you can easily download it from the official website of the developers.

3DMark

This utility allows you to test the performance of your PC hardware and system stability under high load. In this case, most attention is paid to the video card.

The test is carried out in the form of an imitation of the game process, consisting of four parts. While various 3D models appear on the screen, the program closely monitors the behavior of your equipment. When testing comes to an end, you receive a detailed report on the frame rate at each stage, as well as the load and temperature of the video card and processor. All this will allow you to determine which of the components of your system is the weak link.

Open Hardware Monitor

An excellent free utility for general system monitoring. The program allows you to monitor information coming from all sensors in real time. At the same time, the readings are grouped in the form of a “tree”, so it is very convenient to work with them.

In addition to Open Hardware Monitor being free, one can also note the program’s portability. This means that you do not have to install the utility in order to monitor the system.

HD_Speed

A very useful program designed for testing the read/write speed of various media. This information will help you not only compare devices with each other, but also determine in advance the presence of so-called BAD sectors on the HDD or USB drive. This, in turn, will allow you to prevent equipment breakdown.

HD_Speed ​​is also notable for the fact that it does not require installation. In addition, the program is quite optimized, so you can run it even on a weak computer.

HWMonitor

This utility is designed to monitor the temperature of the processor and video card, as well as monitor other data received from sensors. Externally, the program is very similar to Open Hardware Monitor, which, in principle, is not surprising. The fact is that both of these applications are developed on the same platform.

The basic version of HWMonitor is distributed free of charge. At the same time, it is possible to purchase the PRO version of the program, the main difference of which is the presence of a remote access function.

Speccy

A universal utility, thanks to which you can find information about each of the components of your PC, as well as monitor them. The program allows you to obtain data on the characteristics of devices, as well as read readings from various sensors.

In addition, Speccy has the ability to publish monitoring reports. Based on them, more experienced users will be able to tell you what is wrong with your computer.

The computer tracking program that I will talk about in this article is unique in its kind, as it has many advantages that competitors do not have. It's called Expert Home 4. Here's what's special about this tool:

• The program is completely free and works without any restrictions.
• Interface, help and support in Russian.
• Combines many tracking functions.
• It works in invisible mode and is launched using a password and a secret key combination.
• Allows you to encrypt received reports and send them over the Internet.
• The antivirus will not complain.

This computer tracking program is really very interesting and worthy of attention. So, fewer words, let's get down to business!

Expert Home 4 - computer monitoring program

After downloading the installation file, run it. In the first window you need to select a language and click “Next”.

Then agree to the license and click Next.

Now comes the fun part. The computer tracking program will open using a secret key combination consisting of four keys. The first three are Ctrl + Shift + Alt, and the fourth you set yourself. This can be any letter that can be selected from the list.

In the same window there is a field in which you need to enter a password, which will be requested after entering the secret key combination.

After selecting a letter and entering a password, click Next.

Check that all data is correct and click “Install”.

Wait until the installation of Expert Home 4 is completed, and in the last window, click the “Close” button. All! The program has already started working and monitors all user actions. As you will notice, there are no traces of the program running.

To launch a computer monitoring program and view its report, you need to enter a secret key combination. After this, a window will appear in which you should write down the password you created during installation. And then you will see the program interface - the Expert Home 4 control center. It consists of two sections - “Reports” and “Advanced”.

Let me first look at the “Reports” section:

Keyboard. This is a keylogger, that is, here is a report of every key pressed on the keyboard. You can see what the user wrote and in what program. It is possible to choose the date of the report.

Screenshots. The computer tracking program periodically takes hidden screenshots of the screen and you can view them here. It is also possible to select the archive date. In addition, you can manage screenshots using the buttons below.

Programs. Displays which programs were launched and when. You can see the program title, the name of the executable file and other data useful for analysis.

Nutrition. Here you can analyze when the computer was turned on and off.

Activity. The activity of computer users is displayed.

Now I’ll look at the “Advanced” block, which also consists of several important sections.

Internet monitoring. Computer tracking software allows you to transfer report files over the Internet in encrypted form. They can be viewed in the Softex (program developer) file storage. That is, reports can be viewed remotely. To get started, click the “Allow remote tracking” button.

In addition, reports can be sent by email. To do this, you need to click on the link that I showed in the screenshot and enter the required email.