What is Computer RAID? – RAID Levels. 
Computer circuit board or Motherboard. 
Computer security – mobile and computer safety. 
Computer storage – What is the difference between SSD and HDD 
Computer hardware maintenance – Improve performance. 
What are mobile phones about? 
What is computer mediated communication – How does it help? 
How to create a bootable USB drive. 
What are the pros and cons of digitalization? – Is it worth it? 
The most prominent aspect of all computers is maintenance, as this does not only depend on the usage. But also how we manage and maintain our machinery to prevent damage and down time. It plays an important part on computer performance too. And if ignored, it can truly cost you more than what you would have actually paid for.
Computer hardware maintenance.
It consists of two part which are software and hardware maintenance. This is mainly used to reduce the possibility of hardware and software problems, by systematically and periodically checking hardware and software to enable proper work-ship. Replacing and repairing components that may show signs of wear and abuse. By checking the condition of components, cables, power supply and peripherals. This involves the removing of dust from the power supply, components within the computer, from the fan intake and also the heat sink. Cleaning of both the keyboard and the mouse are also important. Securing and checking of loose cables are also vital.
A good preventive maintenance done on a regular basis helps to minimize failure and also the time and money an individual or Organization would actually spend, when computer machines are down due to lack of proper maintenance. By upgrading hardware or software, memory that may also be insufficient for great computer performance. And installing or upgrading software’s for reliability and security. It also involves the checking that installed software’s are up to date or current and upgrading were software or hardware updates maybe needed. But before you upgrade software’s, make sure you run some testing to see if the upgrade won’t affect your work or anyone within the organization.
Software Maintenance
Reviews on security, software and drivers updates are most recommended on a regular basis. And if they are not updated, make sure that you upgrade them, as the most recent your software updates are, the more secure you are from hackers and malware’s. Scan for viruses and spyware at all times and always update virus definition file or anti-virus, at most twice a week on minimum standards. Removing unwanted program and scanning the hard drives for errors helps protect you from losing your data and prevent your hard drive from crashing too. It helps in managing your data by preventing you being caught unaware. Defragmentation also helps most of the times as it rearranges your hard drive to reduces the degree of fragmentation, by physically organizing the contents of the mass storage device used to store files into the smallest number of contiguous regions.
Troubleshooting
This is often the form of problem solving, that’s applied to repair failed products or processes on a machine or a system. It is a logical, systematic search for the source of a problem in order to solve it, and make the product or process operational again. This approach allows you to eliminate variables in a systematic order, by asking the right questions, testing the right hardware, and examining the right data to help you understand the problem and form a proposed solution. This is a skill that you polish over time, the more you expose yourself to trouble shooting, the more adequate and better experienced you become over time. It’s mainly divided into six steps that is:
- Gathering data from a client, customer, user or yourself about the obvious causes.
- Verifying if the obvious causes are true or false.
- Try quick solutions first before intensive solutions are done.
- Gather data from the computer after quick solutions have been applied.
- Implement the solution after evaluating the problem
- Last but not the least close with the client or the customer
Note that before any of the procedures are done, please backup your data or your clients information at all cost. Verify if a backup was recently done and if not, then backup the data.
Cleaning up a CPU
After disconnecting and disassembling your desktop computer or laptop, place your motherboard containing the CPU on an area that does not have electrostatic discharge as both are sensitive to static discharge. This is done by placing them on a grounded anti-static mat and you should wear a static wrist strap while working with these component. Gentle detach the CPU and the heat sink from the motherboard and use cotton wool and alcohol (the more concentrated the alcohol the better) to clean them. Place back the CPU into the socket after cleaning and secure it using a locking assembly. Apply thermal compound on top of the CPU which helps keep the CPU cool. Then place back the heat sink after clean the base with alcohol. Keep in mind that as you clean the CPU, it should be held by the edges and not by the base surface that fits on the motherboard. Be extra careful while handling a CPU.
Improve computer performance
Just by doing the listed out procedures of computer maintenance and troubleshooting on a regular basis, you will never experience frequent computer failure that can become too expensive and may cost you a lot of time if you are running a big company, internet café or just your own small business. Keep in mind that troubleshooting processes are not all the same and may differ from time to time. But all the same a good maintenance helps to keep computer machines healthy. And if you are running an infrastructure or software or even platform as a service, you might want to keep maintenance as priority number one as you don’t want to lose out on customers due to Hardware or software failure.
Final thoughts
So, for peace of mind, you might want to handle these maintenance tasks yourself. And also do a deep research about a software program before you actually purchase it for your upgrades, as it may prevent you from having down time due to wrong purchase. It may sound boring to do, but believe me its worth it. Feel free to leave a comment in the comment section below and also check out one of our article about “computer mediated communication” you may find it useful.
Yes, this process sounds a bit boring, I need to admit. But once we take out our calculator and estimate how much it costs us if our computer malfunctions and we’re in the middle of production, then we won’t view this process as a boring one. I am particularly thankful for the tips you gave us concerning cleaning up a CPU.
You are most welcome Paolo, please feel free to stick around you might find some more articles useful too. Like the prons and cons of computer mediated communication, and its usefulness.
This is a very practical and useful post.
Unfortunately we expect our computer to just keep on performing and never think that we have any need to carry out any maintenance. And the thing is you have just shown how a few basic things which are easily to carry out can make such a difference and extend your computers life.
It is good that you have covered both hardware and software, so it is a comprehensive guide.
Thanks for sharing.
Hello Geoff, many are times, we just tend to ignore maintenance. Thinking our computer will go on and on without crashing. And quite unfortunately that maintenance becomes vital when that happens. A good practice would ensure that you don’t experience such, feel free to check out how to compare CPU’s you might find it useful.
Very useful post, hardware maintenance. Especially with children using the computer with you, You really need to know all this maintenance. I have learnt a lot from your post. Is very informative and educative which many people will also find very interesting. Thanks for sharing these great tips, I am really going to apply them.
Thank you Dozzy for taking time reading though this article and find it useful, plus practical too.
Hey. Thank you for this enlightening article. Most computer users including me need to get the lessons you provided here before running into serious trouble that can results in wasting time or even money. I have been a victim of not maintaining my desktop. I have lost tons of information when my computer crashed. Thank you for the reminder, I will start to backup my information right away/
You are most welcome Bogadi, and please do a regular maintenance on your computer. Cause i wouldn’t love to see you losing your information. You will find how to create a bootable USB useful, when doing you maintenance and backup.
I found a wealth of information on how to clean my computer, especially the CPU. It’s an old Windows desktop and it’s been going off suddenly. I guess it must be dust. When we cleaned it, I guess we blew out a pound of dust.
Surprisingly, we never even think of maintaining our computers at all. It’s just a switch-on-and-forget thing nowadays.
Thank u for the good advice on maintenance issues.
Regards,
Aps
You are most welcome Aparna, dust does really affect the performance of a computer. Cleaning and maintenance helps in most cases.
This is a very helpful post on doing maintenance on your computer to improve the performance, but also to prevent malfunction. This has really reminded me how important it is to clean your computer on a regular basis, specially to clean away any dust that could be affecting the running of the fan and other components. It is also reassuring to find that many of the maintenance can be done by oneself.
True, many of the maintenance can be done by oneself, but please keep in mind to backup your data as you do so.
Kudos great article!
PC maintenance is such an easy thing, unfortunately, many people don’t know this and instead, have to rely on experts that usually will overcharge on simple things like software configuration i.e remove unnecessary features or hardware changes so that the PC can be better.
But when it comes to everything, deep down it comes down to how much research and knowledge you have on handling PC maintenance. Great job on informing people like me on this, I have had my own array of problems, and I have also helped other people with their problems as well. Some PC issues can easily be handled without an expert.
Its not entirely everything that has to be handled by an expert, they are small things that can be handled by oneself, even without deeper knowledge of computers. And prevent the obvious overcharge that can be done by some experts.
Hi,thank you for sharing this .I just realized i should get a new cable power for my laptop .I recently changed the battery but still the laptop doesn’t hold the power for a very long time .Now ,I think I am going to do also the CPU cleaning to see how it improves the performance.It is better I do it myself ,it can be very costly to take it to a shop .The last time I was there ,I had to pay almost $200 while the problem was just something I could have fixed myself.It really opened my eyes .Thank you for this post ,keep posting more of these , they are very helpful!
Hello Jim-Kelly, somethings maybe overcharged by experts that can be easy be repaired by oneself. Without you doing much of work or you having prior knowledge about computers, and keep in mind as you are doing so to backup your data, as this is the first step of every maintenance.
I don’t know about everyone else, but I would never dare to open up my computer for any reason! That is what computer techs are for. You make it sound so easy but I did not grow up with computers so I have almost a fear when it comes to how they work and that I will do something to erase everything from the hard drive. (My son actually did that!) We had to use the disc that came with it to reinstall everything. So you see my hesitation on working on my own computer!
Hello Kay, mostly you don’t really have to be a tech savvy to conduct computer maintenance. Some of the maintenance might only need you to do updates. Its quiet unfortunate that you had to lose your information, the good part is we all learn from our mistakes and am sure next time you encounter the same problem you will do better.
Hello there! This is an interesting read. I’ve had my share of opening my computer and seeing the many different parts. While reading your article, you brought up handling a CPU and I definitely recall my experiences with it. An old one of mine that I was planning to throw away became my practice unit. While messing with it, the pins got bent and that was when I learned how fragile that piece is. Although fragile, it is such a powerful computer part. I definitely need an expert if I ever do mess around with one now.
Hello mike, thank you for taking time in stopping by and leaving behind a comment. True a CPU maybe all that powerful but it also has its weakness of being fragile. Which may require an expert to handle it, if you are not much into computer maintenance nor are you a tech savvy. But regular software updates can still be conducted.
Your website was very informative. Computers are confusing to me but you explained what to do in a comprehensive way. Yes, it is important to back up everything you do before working on the computer. So many times I thought I lost things but thankfully was able to find it….however, not after a lot of angst and anxiety. Thanks for sharing this information. It’s a little dry like you said but oh so worth it!
You are most welcome Nina, and am glad you found this article resourceful. Well when it comes to anxiety everybody gets that when they lose important documents or photos. And you just have to always or frequently backup your data in order to avoid that.
This is amazing. I must admit the world is moving a lot faster than I was thinking that it would move. Everything is becoming digital and thus becoming the digital era. Thus, We must move forward in the digital era and no end acknowledge that to make money now we must do it in a digital way. I really appreciate this article and everything you’ve shared
Thank you for taking time reading this article and leaving a comment behind.
I have done a TAFE Course in Information Technology and am very interested in computers and how they work.
It is good to know how to clean and service computers instead of just buying a new one.
I service my computer regularly to keep it in tip-top condition and it is amazing how much dust can get into the computer.
I have bought a hard case for my laptop to keep it from getting scratched and have a keyboard cover to keep it clean.
I have actually put in an extra memory chip to increase the memory of my laptop and it works fine and I have more memory instead of buying a new computer.
I learned a lot from your article
Elke
The best part of hands on is that you get to see the major problems or issues that are causing your computer to lag and implement solutions to it. In this cause dust is the main problem that normally reduces the performance of computers. That’s the reason why regular checks and maintenance are recommended to reduce down time, which is bad for business.