In this section we guide you through some of the more important maintenance tasks. Good PC maintenance involves a number of different jobs, from keeping your keyboard and mouse clean, to cleaning up your hard drive by removing temporary files. The frequency of the maintenance will depend on how often the computer is used. Basic maintenance, such as wiping over the keyboard and the screen should be done as often as possible, at least once a week for computers that are used daily.
Below are the sections in our PC maintenance guide:
- Back up - A quick guide to backing up
- What is backing up and why should I do it?
- Back-up Devices
- Back-up Software Packages
- Cleaning your Mouse - How to clean your mouse
- Cleaning your Keyboard - How to clean a keyboard
- What you will need:
- lint free cloth.
- dry cloth or duster.
- suitable cleaning fluid (isopropyl alcohol).
- cotton buds.
- Can of compressed air or vacuum cleaner.
- Flat tip screwdriver (optional for thorough clean).
- Moderate cleaning (quick and easy)
- Thorough cleaning (takes longer and requires patience)
- Cleaning your Monitor - How to clean an LCD or CRT Screen
- How to clean an LCD screen (TFT/LCD computer monitor or laptop screen)
- a soft, anti-static cloth (for the plastic casing) (if required).
- microfibre* (lint-free) cloth (similar to eyeglass cloths).
- suitable cleaning fluid for the monitor's plastic case.
- suitable LCD screen cleaning fluid or distilled water.
- If you are going to clean the monitor casing, do it before you clean the screen. Spray the anti-static cloth with a suitable cleaner (don't spray the fluid directly onto the monitor/laptop) and wipe the monitor's casing (be careful not to touch the screen with the cloth or cleaning solution).
- To clean the screen, gently wipe the dry microfibre cloth across the surface of the screen (in straight lines) to remove any dust.
- If there are stubborn marks, put some of the LCD cleaning fluid (or water) onto the microfibre cloth and gently clean the area (never spray fluid directly onto the LCD screen, always spray/apply onto the cloth)
- Ensure the screen/monitor is completely dry before use.
- Cleaning a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) monitor
- a soft, anti-static cloth.
- a lint-free cloth.
- screen cleaning fluid (glass cleaner is usually ok).
- Use the anti-static cloth and a suitable cleaner for the plastic casing of the monitor.
- Spray the screen cleaning fluid onto the lint-free cloth (never spray directly onto the screen) and wipe the monitor's screen in straight lines.
- Ensure the monitor is completely dry before you reconnect the power.
- Hard Drive Maintenance - Defrag utility in Win 98/ME/XP
To back-up is to make spare copies of files and store them separately to the originals.
Computers have a tendency to go wrong from time to time, these days total hard drive failure is rare but it does happen.
One of the more common problems nowadays is the threat from viruses, with some of the more serious infecting the master boot record of a hard drive's file system. If the master boot record is infected with a virus then the Fdisk utility would most likely have to be run, 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.
How frequently you back up will depend on how often you use your PC and what you use it for.
The average home user will probably just have to back up any important files as and when they are changed, and do a full back-up once a week/month (depending on PC use).
When PCs are used in a home office scenario then backing up should be done more frequently.
Floppy Disks
Floppy disks are great for backing up small files. The average 3.5" floppy disk can hold up to 1.44 Mb of data, which is sufficient for any letters or important text documents.
Backing up with floppy disks is as simple as copying the file, or saving the file to the floppy drive. A ZIP program such as Winzip can be useful to compress any files that are too big to fit on a standard floppy disk.
CD Writers
With CD Writers becoming ever more affordable, these are ideal for making back-ups of large amounts of data. A Typical CDR disk holds up to 800Mb of data and costs pennies.
CD Writers are also very easy to use. The software that comes with them is normally very straight forward and can create back-ups in minutes.
ZIP Drives
Zip drives are still a popular media for backing up data. Both internal and external ZIP drives are available and some models can store up to around 750MB of data. These drives normally come with their own special software, which is usually very simple to use.
External Hard Drives
External hard drives are a great way of backing up your data, for more about these devices see our guide to external hard drives.
There are many back-up software packages available, they are reasonably priced (compared to a lot of software) and can be invaluable if you have very important files.
Some back-up software makes it simple to back up whole drives, including operating system files with a few clicks. This means if the worst happened, you could have your PC system up and running again within hours.
As you move the mouse on a flat surface the ball turns the rollers inside and sends signals to the computer, the computer then translates these signals into the movement of the mouse pointer.
For this reason it is important to keep the rollers inside your mouse clean, any piece of dust/debris no matter how small can make your mouse behave abnormally.
Firstly unplug your mouse from the PC and get to hand a soft tissue and suitable cleaning fluid (window cleaner is fine).
Notice the removable cover on the bottom of the mouse.
Turn the mouse cover anti-clockwise to release the ball, remove the cover and take the ball out.
Use the soft tissue to clean the mouse ball, be sure to remove all dust/hair/debris.
Next, notice the 3 rollers within the mouse casing, these are what we need to clean.
You can improvise on how to clean the rollers, using your fingernail gets good results, if the mouse hasn't been cleaned before then you will see lots of dust on the rollers, whichever way you choose to clean them make sure you remove all traces of dust/debris as the smallest piece can cause the mouse to behave erratically.
When you have removed all traces of dust/dirt from the rollers and the ball is nice and clean, simply put the ball back in and replace the cover turning clockwise to lock it in place.
Plug the mouse back into your machine and turn the machine on, now your mouse should be as good as new.
First, shutdown your PC and remove the mains plug, unplug the keyboard (remember which socket) and hold it upside down to release any debris from inbetween the keys (pressing the keys is a good way to release it).
If you have a can of compressed air then use it to blow any debris from around and under the keys, if not then use the hose of a vacuum cleaner to remove it.
Now take one of the cotton buds and put a couple of drops of the cleaning fluid on it, use the cotton bud to clean the sides of the keys.
After cleaning the sides of the keys take your lint free cloth and dampen it with your cleaning fluid (don't put the liquid directly on the keyboard), give the surface of the keyboard a good wipe over using the cloth to trace the contours of the keys.
When you have finished give the keyboard a wipe over with the dry cloth/duster, you should now have a nice clean keyboard, to clean it more thoroughly follow the guide below.
Standard membrane keyboards only (not laptops or non-membrane keyboards)
Shutdown your PC and remove the mains plug, unplug the keyboard (remember where it was plugged in) and hold it upside down to release any debris from inbetween the keys.
This is where the patience comes in, make a note of the position of all the keys or you will have trouble putting them back correctly, alternatively just remove the letter keys A - Z from the keyboard (which is where the most of the dust/debris will be).
All the keys can be removed although the larger keys (space bar, enter key, shift keys, backspace, caps lock, etc) can be difficult to put back so you might avoid removing them.
Remove the keys using the screwdriver, ease the screwdriver under the key and gently lift the key top off.
note: don't forget to make a note of their position !!
When you have removed all the keys (except any keys you wish to avoid) use the compressed air (or vacuum cleaner) to remove any dust and debris from inside the keyboard.
Now is a good time to give the keys a proper clean, for best results clean each one individually (the patience thing again) with the cloth and cleaning fluid, when clean, wipe them over with the dry cloth.
Before replacing the keys, take your lint free cloth and dampen it with your cleaning fluid (don't put the liquid directly on the keyboard), give the surface of the keyboard a good wipe over ensuring to clean as much as possible any keys that you haven't removed.
When the keyboard is nice and clean replace the keys according to your notes or if you have just removed the letter keys use fig 1.4 as a guide, to put the keys back on position the key in place and press gently but firmly until it clicks home.
After replacing all the keys give the keyboard a quick wipe over with your dry cloth and you have a nice clean keyboard.
Safety First Before cleaning your monitor, disconnect the monitor from the power supply and the computer. In the case of a laptop/notebook screen, ensure the system is turned off. If possible remove the battery.
What you will need:
microfibre cloths can be found in automotive and electronic stores. A good substitute would be the soft cloth used to clean eyeglasses, or in an emergency a very clean old pure cotton t-shirt. Never use paper products like tissue!
for some screens the water may be mixed with isopropyl alchohol for stubborn marks, BUT always check the manufacturers instructions for your particular model. If in doubt and suitable LCD screen cleaner is not obtainable, use just water (preferably distilled).
What you will need:
CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) monitors can be cleaned in much the same way as conventional tube televisions.
What is defragmenting and why should I do it
Fragmentation is caused when an operating system breaks a file into pieces because there is not enough space on the storage device where the file was originally saved.
One example of this would be where a file was originally saved, then modified causing the file to be larger in physical space than first anticipated, the operating system will then break the file into 2 or more pieces and store them in different parts of the storage area.
The system would then keep a record of where the different parts of the file are stored, this is achieved through the use of a File Allocation Table (FAT) or similar file system such as NTFS.
Then, when the operating system requires the file again, it will query the file system (FAT/NTFS/or other) to find out where the different parts of the file are located on the partition (drive).
Defragmentation is the term given to the process of scanning the file system and rejoining the split files back into consecutive pieces.
The process of defragmenting can be time consuming, but it is one of the easiest ways to increase the performance of your PC, the frequency of which a PC should be defragmented will directly depend on the amount of usage.
Defragmenting in Windows 98/ME
Before you start ensure you have enough time to complete the defragmentation process, it can be anything from 30 mins up to several hours depending on how much use the PC has had since the last defrag was completed.
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.
Windows 98/ME will now ask you which drive you wish to defrag, select the drive you want to defrag (usually C:) from the pull down menu and then click the OK button.
The Defrag utility will then start defragmenting the selected drive. Once it is complete simply close the defrag utility.
note: Sometimes the defrag utility will report that it can't defrag the selected drive because the drive has errors, if this is the case then run the Scandisk utility first, to start the Scandisk utility, click on the Start button, then hover your mouse over Programs, then hover over Accessories, then hover over System Tools, then click on Scandisk
Defragmenting in Windows XP
First of all make sure you have enough time to complete the defragmentation, the amount of time will depend on how much use your PC has had since the last defragmentation.
To start the defrag utility, click on the Start button, then hover your mouse over all programs, then hover over Accessories, then hover over System Tools, then click on Disk Defragmenter.
This will start the defrag utility, you will see the defrag dialogue box.
The next step is to highlight the drive you wish to defragment (one left click on the drive), then click on the Analyze button, this will check the selected drive for fragmentation, the utility will then tell you whether the drive needs defragmenting or not.
If the drive needs defragmenting simply click the Defragment button, once clicked the utility will begin defragmentation of the drive, it may take a few hours depending on the size of the drive.
Once it is complete simply close the defrag utility.
- Surge Protection - A guide to Surge suppressors
- Surges/Spikes are bursts of electricity up to 3,000 volts caused by electrical load switching and the on/off action of equipment.
- Noise can enter power lines from nearby electrical equipment, such as vending machines and heavy industrial equipment.
- A single brief surge/spike of electricity could render your machine useless and/or destroy the Power Supply Unit.
- Electrical noise can corrupt data.
- The cost of a surge protection unit is a lot cheaper than the repair bill for a new Power Supply Unit.
- Surges are common in power cuts (which we all have from time to time) when power is restored.
- Anti-virus software - An overview
- PC Tools AntiVirus (highly recommended)
- Kaspersky Anti-Virus Products
- McAfee VirusScan
- Norton Antivirus
- Deleting temporary files
- click on the START
- then either PROGRAMS (WIN 98/2000/Millennium) or ALL PROGRAMS (WINDOWS XP)
- then hover over ACCESSORIES, SYSTEM TOOLS and then click on DISK CLEANUP
Do you need surge protection?
Most people don't even think about surge protection when they buy a PC, but when you go out and spend a lot of money on a machine it is wise to think about protection.
Below are some of the reasons why :
Surge protection units come in various shapes and sizes, the most common is similar to an extension lead, some have built-in protection for data lines too.
When you choose one take into account the amount of outputs you will need and if you want any data protection as well, some of them boast certain specifications, but the cheaper ones barely live up to it.
The virus
The internet is an excellent tool, and no doubt has changed the way most people communicate. Unfortunately the internet, email in particular, has created an easy to target medium for the spread of computer viruses. As you have probably heard these viruses can cause absolute chaos to whole networks of computers at a time.
A virus is basically a malicious computer program. The effect (payload) of viruses differ, some either modify, delete or steal data and others may give control of your PC over to their creators via the internet. One thing they all have in common is that if you get infected and you don't have antivirus software, you might not know you have it until it is too late.
A 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 trouble makers on the internet.
A virus/worm can sit on your machine for months (potentially even years) without doing anything and then be triggered by a certain date/time to do what it has been designed to do, this is referred to as its payload.
As these viruses/worms become ever more advanced, the need for antivirus software has never been so great.
Antivirus software
Antivirus software is designed to keep your PC free of these computer viruses & worms. It does so by scanning your PC's file system looking for known viruses, if a virus is found it will inform you and then take steps to remove the virus threat.
Good antivirus software will automatically check any files being transferred to and from your computer. Any antivirus software should at least scan attachments of incoming emails automatically (even if the option can be turned off).
Virus definition files
Antivirus software usually works by checking a file for certain patterns of binary code. The patterns which it uses to identify viruses are stored in what is known as a virus definition file, when a new virus comes out, the virus definition file needs to be updated to include the new virus' pattern.
The importance of keeping these definition files updated cannot be overstated, basically antivirus software without updated definition files is useless.
Most good antivirus software will update these files automatically (or at least have the option to do so). The update of the definition files is usually achieved by having the software connect via the internet to the vendors website (server), and then downloading and installing the latest virus patterns.
This is why it is important to purchase antivirus software from an established company. Imagine you bought antivirus protection and then 6 months later the company went bankrupt, where would you get your virus definition updates from?
If you don't have antivirus software then check out these antivirus products from established developers:
Deleting the temporary files from your computer can help keep it running smoothly as well as speeding your computer up.
Temporary 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.
In this tutorial we show you how to use the Disk Cleanup utility that comes as part of the Windows 98/Millennium and XP/2000 versions of the Windows operating system to remove the files.
Delete temporary files with the Disk Cleanup Utility
To open the Disk Cleanup utility:
(NON-XP users may be prompted to select the drive that you wish to cleanup. In most cases it will be the C: drive that you need to select)
You will then see the following dialogue box appear:
Once the utility has finished analyzing your hard drive the following screen will appear:
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.
You will then see a dialogue box similar to that shown below:
Once the dialogue box has closed your temporary files have been removed.
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