PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE OF THE COMPUTER - …



PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE OF THE COMPUTERComputer maintenance is the practice of keeping computers in a good state of repair. This means that the computer is checked at regular intervals in an effort to forestall components failure which will cause the machines’ operation to be interrupted.Some of the maintenance guides include:BACK UP To back-up is to make spare copies of files and store them separately to the originals. - This is done because at certain times the hard disk may crash and one loses data completely.The threat from viruses, with some of the more serious infecting the master boot record of a hard drive's file system the chances are the data on the drive would be lost, or at least costly to recover. Operating system failure and bad software installation are other things that can cause problems when it comes to recovering files. CLEANING YOUR MOUSE When an optical mouse needs cleaning, the mouse pointer's movement will be limited, it may also jump across the screen for no reason. When a mechanical mouse (ball mouse) needs cleaning, you will notice the mouse pointer sticking in one position while you are moving it. The sensor can removed and cleaned with a dumb cloth.To clean a mouse is fairly straight forward, it only takes 10 minutes for a ball mouse, and even less time to clean an optical mouse.CLEANING YOUR KEYBOARD Use the cleaning brush to make sure that all the dust has been put off.CLEANING YOUR MONITOR Use a dumb cloth to clean the monitor. HARD DRIVE MAINTENANCE - DEFRAG UTILITY HARD DISK MAINTENANCEDisk storage, such as your hard drive, fills up with unwanted files over time. Disk cleanup may be performed as regular maintenance to remove these. Files may become fragmented and so slow the performance of the computer. Disk defragmentation may be performed to combine these fragments and so improve performanceDefragmenting your hard drive is an integral part of keeping your PC healthy, the defrag utility which can give support to the performance of the computer.Before you start ensure you have enough time to complete the defragmentation process, `To start the defrag utility, click on the Start button, then hover your mouse over Programs, then hover over Accessories, then hover over System Tools, then click on Disk Defragmenter.Maintianing the disk drivesKeep it away from dustPlace it in a location which will minimize electrical noise interference. Incase of a problem seek services of a support engineerWhen these disks gibve problems they often have to be replaced therefore make sure that a full backup copy with all data is mainted at all times.POWER RELATED PROBLEMSSpike catcherThis one prevents transients and spikes from reaching the equipment. It can also prevent lightening from destroying the machines most especially the most expensive spike catchersUNINTTERUPTABLE POWER SUPPLY (UPS)It has a large battery which is automatically switched into the power circuit if the main supply fails. The battery is recharged when the main supply is operating correctly therefore it should not need any special maintenance replacing or manual recharging. There are various types of UPS depending on their rates in terms of watts and voltage that some can work for 15 minutes, 30 minutes or more when power has gone.ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE These are programs that clean the computer when it has been attacked by a virus. Examples include: Quick Heal Antivirus Pro, Norton Antivirus, Dr. Solomon and others. blished developers: PC Tools AntiVirus Kaspersky Anti-Virus Products McAfee VirusScan Norton AntivirusA Worm refers to a virus that can replicate and spread by itself over a network (the internet for instance). Worms are getting very common and are among the biggest troublemakers on the internet. DELETING TEMPORARY FILESTemporary files are created on your PC for numerous reasons, including when you browse the internet, install programs, and by the operating system itself during normal use. Deleting the temporary files from your computer can help keep it running smoothly as well, as speeding your computer up. DELETE TEMPORARY FILES WITH THE DISK CLEANUP UTILITY To open the Disk Cleanup utility: click on the START then either PROGRAMS or ALL PROGRAMS then hover over ACCESSORIES, SYSTEM TOOLS and then click on DISK CLEANUP Tick the boxes of all the different types of temporary files that you would like to cleanup. In most cases you would tick all of the boxes, you can view the associated files by clicking the VIEW FILES button.. When you have finished with your selections, click the OK button.Service intervalsDepending on your environment computers should be serviced at least once per quarter, though monthly service is optimal. This will ensure your computers run at their peak performance.Software updatesSoftware packages and operating systems may require regular updates to correct software bugs and address security weaknesses. An automated or semi-automated program such as Windows update may be used for this.DustDust and other cruft may accumulate as a result of air cooling. If filters are used to prevent this then they will need regular service and changes. If the cooling system is not filtered then regular Computer cleaning may be required to prevent short circuits and overheating.TURNING ON AND OFFEnsure proper turning on and off the computer to prevent the damage of the computer and its software.SOFTWARE INSTALLATIONThis is the putting of software on the computer. There are different forms of software that can be put onto the computer e.g.system software: operating systems, antivirusesapplication software: databases, wordprocessors, spreadsheets, etc.hardware (software installation)This can be done by first checking the following:Operating system in use.The amount of space required by the computerThe amount of space to be consumed by the hardware being installed.If you are installing a program, game, or utility that does not contain this feature or you are installing a program from a floppy diskette, follow the below steps.Open My Computer.Within the My Computer window, open the drive that contains the installation files. For example, if the files are on a floppy diskette, open the A: drive. If they're on a CD or DVD open the D: drive or the letter of the disc drive.Within the drive that contains your files, locate either a setup or install file. Double-clicking on this file should start the installation for the program, game, or utility. If you see multiple setups or install files, try to locate the Application file or double-click each of setup or install files until you find the file that starts the installation. Many times the icons associated with the installation files have the same name. ................
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