Now there is a portable version of the Windows-only software called WinPatrolToGo and this is good news for me.   I am increasingly using more portable USB software as I jump from computer to computer and I am also getting asked a lot to help fix peoples computers.   In these situations, apps like WinPatrol are your best friend.

This single exe portable version of WinPatrol is designed to run from a USB flash drive or other portable device without leaving any left over files or registry entries on the computer being optimized.

If you’re someone who frequently needs to help family and friends, this program is for you! Just download directly to your USB Flash or other portable device.

Here are brief summaries of WinPatrol’s other features :

ActiveX – shows a complete list of all the Internet Explorer ActiveX controls on your computer with the ability to disable any of them if there is a security vulnerability but no patch. You can also filter out all the non-Microsoft entries for easier reading.

IE Helpers – some programs, when installed on your computer, also install “helper” buttons on your Internet Explorer toolbar. You can use the IE Helpers section of WinPatrol to remove any of these buttons.

Scheduled Tasks – as the name suggests, it lists all the tasks currently scheduled by Windows Task Scheduler. Using WinPatrol, you can get details about each one as well as cancel and remove them if necessary.

Services & Active Tasks – these tabs show you all the running services on your computer and again, you can filter out all the non-Microsoft ones for easier reading and navigation. You can close any of these services from these WinPatrol tabs but again, exercise extreme caution. It may look like a lot of programs but each one (at least the Microsoft ones) probably have a very important function to play in the running of your computer.

Hidden Files – again as the name suggests, this tab shows all the files marked as “hidden” on your Windows system. Again, use extreme caution deleting any of these files as a lot of them are probably needed by Windows in order to function properly.

If you combine WinPatrol Portable with CCleaner Portable, then you will have two powerful tools to keep your Windows system clean and tidy.   WinPatrol should be on everyone’s computer.