Computer maintenance is not as intimidating as it may seem at first. Maintenance activities are mostly repetitive, and they tend to fall into two broad categories: regular cleaning and patching. Let's take a look at what each of these mean, and how you can keep your computer running smoothly with regular maintenance.
Regular computer maintenance is essential for keeping your system running efficiently. Regular cleaning and patching will also help keep your system up-to-date with the latest patches and fixes. Follow these steps explained by FS Tech to keep your computer running smoothly with regular maintenance:
Define Your Maintenance Needs
Before you begin your regular maintenance routine, it's a good idea to define your computer maintenance needs. This will help you identify what else needs to be done, and will also help you plan your maintenance routine.
HDD (Hard disk drive): The most important component in a computer
Although the floppy disk was the original “hard drive,” a hard drive is actually a type of storage that interrelates with the computer’s main processor in a more direct way. Hard drives use the same type of interface as the CPU, and they store data in the same way. But the main difference between a hard drive and a floppy disk is that a hard drive can be programmed to operate at a higher speed — up to 566MHz, or 5 times the speed of an average floppy diskette! With this kind of speed and power, hard drives are actually better for running high-end software (think Adobe Photoshop or Premiere Pro) as opposed to gaming or other casual applications. This is because the slower platters and spindle speeds used by hard drives allow applications to “catch up,” meaning application performance suffers during a power outage or disk failure.
Optical Drive: Something to play videos with
Video games are a tremendously popular form of entertainment, and their popularity can be attributed to one major factor: graphics cards. The more advanced the graphics card, the better the game. And with the growing popularity of 4K (4,000 pixels per inch) resolution monitors, video game publishers have begun to invest more and more in high-quality graphics cards. The good news is that optical drives aren’t going away any time soon. But technology has come a long way, and optical drives are much less common now than they were a decade ago. One downside to optical drives is that they are more expensive than old-fashioned magnetic drives — that is, until you factor in the cost of an optical driveless computer.
Establishing a routine
When it comes to regular maintenance, setting a routine is key. Establishing a routine has multiple benefits, including reducing the amount of guesswork involved with maintenance. If you have regular maintenance of your computer system scheduled, you'll know exactly what to expect and can better focus on other priorities. You can also avoid stress, as there will be fewer unknowns while performing maintenance.
It's also a good idea to have a routine in place before going on vacation. If you're leaving the country for a long period of time, have a pre-existing routine you can use to keep your computer system up and running.
Plan your routine
After you've established a routine, it's time to plan your routine. This will help you avoid performing maintenance that you don't need to, and will also help you decide what to do first. Let's take a look at some of the most common maintenance tasks:
Clean - Cleaning is probably the number one reason computers fail. It's important to clean your computer regularly to help prevent build-up of malware and parasites. A build-up of malware or parasites can also impact your computer's performance, so it's important to clean as you go.
Check for Interference - Many computers experience interference from external sources, including other computers on the same network. A good way to check for interference is to move your computer's communication cable away from other computers on the network. These sources of interference could be computers on the same network, a modem/router,or a phone line.
Wipe the Hard Drive - Like the built-in drive on mobile devices, the hard drive on your computer is a permanent part of your computer. It can wear out over time, so it's important to regularly clean it.
Refresh the Monitor - It's not a good idea to leave your computer on for long periods of time. Over time, the monitor will wear out, and it'll be harder to read texts and images. Refreshing the monitor every month or so is enough to keep your system running smoothly.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help!
It's important to remember that regular computer maintenance is a task that anyone can perform. Whether you're the one performing the maintenance or someone is helping you out, it's important to have a systems maintenance checklist in place.
This will help you identify what needs to be done, and will also help you know whom to call if you have questions or problems.
If you're unsure how to proceed, or have a specific question about how to perform a task, it's best to ask. If you're unsure how to clean a drive, ask an expert. If you're unsure how to refresh a monitor, ask an expert. If you're unsure how to find the right on a website, ask an expert.
Conclusion
Maintaining your computer system will help it run more efficiently and effectively. Regularly cleaning your computer system will help remove any build-up of dust and dust-like particles that can affect the computer's operation. Regularly applying updates and patches to your computer system will also help it stay up-to-date with new security patches and updates.
What's important is to keep your computer system clean, and to have a regular maintenance schedule that you adhere to. These steps will help you keep your computer system running smoothly with regular maintenance:
Define your maintenance needs. Establish a routine. Plan your routine. Don’t be afraid to ask for help!
