ReBoost
Instant Windows Technician

Version 1.3.2 (build 6)
Copyright (c) 2026 John Carlo Amog. All rights reserved.


WHAT IS ReBoost?

ReBoost is a Windows maintenance program that works like an automated
computer technician. It checks your computer, works out what needs
attention, safely repairs the Windows problems it can fix, cleans
unnecessary files, applies maintenance where the evidence supports it,
checks that its work actually helped, and explains everything in plain
language.

It was built for computers that have become slow, cluttered or
unreliable over time, especially older machines or machines that have
never been properly maintained. You do not need to know anything about
how Windows works to use it.

ReBoost follows one rule, always:

Diagnose first. Fix second. Verify third. Explain everything.

It is not a "PC booster". It never claims your computer became faster
without evidence, never disables security software, never deletes your
documents, photos, bookmarks, saved passwords or cookies, and never
sends any information about you or your computer anywhere. It has no
telemetry. The only time it goes online is to ask filtalk.org whether a
newer version of ReBoost exists (see UPDATES below); you can turn that
off in Settings.


WHO IS IT FOR?

Anyone whose Windows computer feels slow, full or unstable, and who
would rather have a careful automated tool do the maintenance than
learn to do it by hand. It is also designed from the start to be used
with the keyboard alone and with screen readers such as NVDA.


HOW TO LAUNCH IT

1. Find ReBoost.exe in this folder.
2. Double-click it (or select it and press Enter).
3. The main window opens. On the left is a list of sections; the page
   for the chosen section appears on the right.

ReBoost does not need to be installed. Keep this folder together: the
program needs the files that came with it.


THE THREE MODES: CHECK, FIX, ADVANCED

Check My PC is for "my PC has a problem and I do not know what it
is". It looks over the whole computer (storage, Windows, updates,
drivers, network, security, services, startup, scheduled tasks,
errors and crashes, hardware, ownership) and explains what it finds
in plain language. It changes nothing.

Fix My PC is the full visit. After diagnosis it repairs what it can
safely fix, cleans, applies maintenance where the evidence supports
it, verifies each fix, and writes a report:

1. Open the Instant Technician section and choose "Fix My PC".
2. ReBoost asks Windows for administrator permission. Windows shows
   its standard permission prompt. This is normal and safe: repairs
   and some cleaning touch parts of Windows that ordinary programs are
   not allowed to change. Windows itself controls this prompt, not
   ReBoost.
3. After you approve once, ReBoost restarts with administrator rights
   and starts the technician by itself. This is the only permission
   prompt you will see for the whole visit.
4. From then on you can leave the computer alone. It can take from a
   few minutes to over an hour if repairs or updates are needed. You
   do not need to watch or press anything.
5. When it finishes, the results are shown and saved as a report
   written in plain language.

Advanced Technician runs the same visit including the capabilities
that are normally left out of the automatic run. Choose it when you
want the most thorough pass. It asks the same single permission
prompt.

You can decline the permission prompt. ReBoost then does not start the
technician, and nothing on your computer is changed. The rest of
ReBoost still works without administrator rights.


WHAT HAPPENS DURING A TECHNICIAN VISIT

The visit follows a fixed, safe order:

1. Preparing. ReBoost reads basic information about the computer.
2. Inspecting. Read-only checks look at temporary data, memory, the
   power plan, security (antivirus and firewall state), required
   Windows services, startup programs, storage and the file system,
   Windows Update, device drivers, the network, recent errors and
   crashes, hardware health, scheduled tasks, and ownership and
   management state. Expensive checks run only when cheaper evidence
   justifies them.
3. Working out what needs attention. Real problems are separated from
   normal Windows behaviour, and each finding is classified: fix
   automatically, ask you first, diagnose only, or needs hardware
   service.
4. Repairing. Only if Windows reports actual damage does ReBoost run
   its repair tools (the component store scan, repair and system file
   check). On a healthy computer this step honestly does nothing.
5. Updating. If updates have not been checked for a long time, ReBoost
   asks Windows to check and can install applicable updates through
   the supported Windows Update mechanisms. If the computer is managed
   by an organization, ReBoost reports that instead of bypassing it.
6. Cleaning. Temporary files and caches are removed from whitelisted
   locations. Files in use are skipped. Nothing of yours is touched.
7. Applying maintenance. If the power plan is Power saver, it is
   switched to Balanced (the previous plan is remembered). A stopped
   required Windows service is restarted only if it is on ReBoost's
   internal safe list. The drive gets the maintenance Windows
   recommends for its type: trim for solid state drives,
   defragmentation only for spinning disks.
8. Checking its work. Every fix is verified with real re-reads and
   measurements. ReBoost never reports "fixed" just because a command
   ran; what it could not verify, it says so.
9. Final health check. The checks run once more against the fixed
   computer.
10. Report. A plain-language report is shown and saved, listing what
   was found, what was fixed, updated and cleaned, what was verified,
   what remains, and whether a restart, a decision from you, or
   hardware service is needed. A detailed technical record is saved
   alongside it.

ReBoost never does the following automatically: it does not disable
startup programs, delete scheduled tasks, change security settings,
or remove work or school accounts. ReBoost never restarts the
computer by itself. When a repair genuinely needs a restart, ReBoost
asks you first; if you choose Restart, Windows restarts after a
two-minute delay that you can stop with the Cancel the scheduled
restart button. Where a step is your decision, the report says so
plainly.

If a visit needs a restart, or is interrupted before it finishes,
the visit is saved. The next time you open ReBoost it offers to
check the computer again. That check changes nothing; it confirms
whether the repairs that waited for the restart completed and adds
the result to the report. If you choose Not now, the old visit is
closed and is not offered again.

While the technician runs, the Cancel button in the progress window
stops it at the next safe point.


WHY ADMINISTRATOR PERMISSION IS REQUESTED

Repairs and drive maintenance change parts of Windows that normal
programs are not allowed to touch. Windows requires its administrator
prompt (UAC) for those. This is a safety feature of Windows, not an
obstacle created by ReBoost. After you approve once for the technician
visit, Windows is not asked again during that visit.

Do you need to watch the computer while it works? No. Once you have
approved the permission prompt, the technician runs on its own. It
pauses only if it finds something that truly needs your decision, and
it explains that in the report.


WHAT THE SECTION LIST OFFERS

The Instant Technician is the Check My PC / Fix My PC / Advanced
Technician page, described above.

Ownership / New Owner shows whether this computer is still connected
to a company or school (domain, work or school account, device
management, leftover update policies). Inspect is read-only. Prepare
This PC for a New Owner applies the changes Windows supports for a
legitimately transferred computer: it backs up and removes stale
management policies, resumes updates that were paused indefinitely,
and restores User Account Control if it was disabled, then re-checks
everything and tells you honestly what still remains and what only
the organization can release. These changes need administrator
permission: if ReBoost is not already running as an administrator,
it asks Windows once and reopens on the Ownership page, where you
start the step again.

Dashboard gives an overview of the computer and its overall condition.

System Check runs the same ten read-only checks by themselves and
lists what was found. Nothing is changed.

Cleanup removes temporary and cache data. You choose the categories,
preview what would be cleaned, and confirm. Files in use are skipped
safely. Repeating a cleanup does no harm. Browser caches are cleaned
only for browsers that are not running, and never include bookmarks,
passwords, cookies or profiles.

Maintenance lists the actions suggested by the last System Check, with
a plain explanation and a risk level for each. Nothing runs without
your confirmation.

Repair runs the Windows repair tools one at a time if you want them
individually: the quick component store check, the deep scan, the
repair, System File Check, and the read-only file system scan. These
take minutes and cannot be safely interrupted once started.

Storage analyzes and optimizes drives. The operation follows the drive
type: spinning disks are defragmented, solid state drives only receive
a trim command. ReBoost never defragments an SSD.

Startup & Background lists what starts with Windows: registry entries,
Startup-folder shortcuts, logon scheduled tasks and a services
summary. ReBoost never changes anything by itself. If you disable an
entry, it is only moved aside into a ReBoost backup and can be
re-enabled at any time.

Performance explains what affects responsiveness on this computer and
offers only reversible, verified changes, such as switching from the
Power saver plan to Balanced.

Reports shows the current session report and all saved reports. Reports
are plain text.

Settings controls confirmations, how many saved reports are kept,
how much detail the technical log records, and whether ReBoost checks
for updates when it starts. The confirmation
choice Ask only for actions marked Advanced also skips the
confirmation for actions marked Caution.

Help / About has product information and buttons that open the log and
report folders. The Help menu opens this guide.


WHAT THE OVERALL STATUS MEANS

Healthy: nothing found needing attention.

Good: only minor "worth doing" suggestions.

Needs Maintenance: one or more findings should be addressed.

Attention Required: something important was found, for example disk
errors in the system log.

Critical: a serious problem was found, such as a nearly full system
drive.

Assessment incomplete: no check has run yet, or not enough data was
gathered. ReBoost refuses to guess.

The status is decided by fixed rules from the actual findings; the
most serious finding decides it. ReBoost does not invent scores or
percentages.


WHAT ReBoost CANNOT FIX

ReBoost works with software, not hardware. It cannot make a failing
disk healthy, add memory, or make an old processor faster. If the
system log shows disk errors, ReBoost tells you to back up your files
and have the hardware checked; software cannot repair hardware. That
advice is a feature, not a failure.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN FILES ARE LOCKED

Files that a program is currently using are skipped, counted, and
reported. ReBoost never force-closes another program to delete its
files.

WHAT ReBoost REPORTS

Results use consistent statuses: Success, Partial Success, Skipped,
Failed, Not Applicable, Unsupported, Requires Administrator, Requires
Restart. The technician additionally reports Fixed, Partially fixed,
Verification failed, Needs your decision, and Needs hardware service.
ReBoost never pretends a failed, skipped or unverifiable step
succeeded. If a measurement cannot be taken, the report says so.


ACCESSIBILITY

ReBoost was designed for keyboard and screen-reader use from the
start:

1. Every control has a spoken name. Every section is reachable with
   the arrow keys; Enter opens the selected section; Control plus 1
   through 9 jumps to a section.
2. The status bar announces where you are. Progress is described in
   words, such as "Step 3 of 10. Checking memory.", not just drawn.
3. Reports and explanations are plain text, readable line by line.
4. Nothing important is conveyed by colour alone.

Tested with the NVDA screen reader and Windows UI Automation.

TROUBLESHOOTING

Nothing happens when I start ReBoost.exe: make sure the whole folder
was copied together. The program needs the files that came with it.

Fix My PC says permission was not granted: the Windows prompt was
declined or unavailable. Start Fix My PC again and approve it. Without
administrator rights, repairs and some maintenance cannot run; System
Check and cleanup still work.

A repair says "Requires Administrator": the prompt was declined or
unavailable at that moment. Run the step again and approve it.

The scan finds less than I expected: files in use are skipped and
Windows cleans some things itself. This is normal.

I disabled a startup program by mistake: open Startup & Background
and choose "Re-enable a ReBoost-disabled entry". Nothing was deleted.

Where are the technical details? Help / About has buttons that open
the log and report folders.

UPDATES

ReBoost updates itself from filtalk.org. When it starts, it asks
filtalk.org quietly whether a newer version exists; you only hear about
it when there is one. Help, Check for updates asks at any time and
tells you if you already have the latest version. Nothing about you or
your computer is sent: ReBoost only reads the version number published
on the website.

When a new version is found, ReBoost tells you what is new and asks
whether to install it. If you choose Yes, it downloads the update,
checks that the download is complete and undamaged, closes, replaces
its files and opens again by itself. Your settings and reports are kept.
ReBoost never installs an update while a repair, cleanup or technician
visit is running; finish it first.

To stop the automatic check, clear "Check for updates on filtalk.org
when ReBoost starts" in Settings and press Save settings. You can also
download the newest ReBoost from the Software section of filtalk.org.


HOW TO EXIT

Press Alt+F4, or choose Exit from the File menu, or close the window.
ReBoost runs nothing in the background after it closes.

KNOWN LIMITATIONS

Developed and tested on Windows 11; other Windows versions were not
available for testing here. Drive type detection depends on the
Windows storage stack; unusual controllers may show "Unknown". ReBoost
is a maintenance tool, not a miracle: real limits such as hardware age
or very little RAM are reported honestly, not hidden.


ReBoost is Copyright (c) 2026 John Carlo Amog. All rights reserved.
This copy of ReBoost is proprietary software; see LICENSE.txt next to
the program. Third-party components remain under their own licenses:
see THIRD-PARTY-LICENSES.txt. ReBoost is independent software, not
affiliated with or endorsed by Microsoft.
