Take-care-computer-computer-hardware-maintenance
Computers, like any other electronic device, need regular maintenance. Just like your annual medical check-up program, your computer also needs a scheduled maintenance of computer hardware to ensure that you extend its lifespan. This is what many people call preventative maintenance.
But, before we dwell on the purpose of preventative maintenance let us first consider the basic question of what is computer hardware and what is in the preventative maintenance program.
WHAT IS COMPUTER HARDWARE?
All the physical components of the computer are hardware. This will include your keyboard, hard drives, internal CD or DVD drive, fans, etc. All of these components are included in computer hardware maintenance.
WHAT IS INCLUDED IN PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE?
Most people believe that preventative maintenance programs are only for the visible components of the computer. That is not true. Computer hardware maintenance also includes the not-so-visible components of the computer.
Typically, you perform preventative maintenance at the system level and physical level.
PHYSICAL LEVEL MAINTENANCE:
This is where you clean the physical components of the computer. Clean the keyboard to ensure that you remove the dust sitting between the keys. It’s important to remove and clean the fans that help maintain CPU temperature. Also, wipe off the monitor and blow out the dust sitting inside the CPU.
Make sure you complete this entire cleaning process carefully. Using any type of liquid or solvent can cause damage to the physical parts. Instead, it is important to use a soft cloth and right type of solvent. During the maintenance process, do not expose the physical components to extreme temperature changes.
SYSTEM LEVEL MAINTENANCE:
System-level maintenance ensures that your operating system runs in an optimized manner. Check your hardware drivers and download and install their latest versions. If you’re using any software, then it is best to have the upgraded and latest versions. There are also a lot of programs in your system that you do not use. Remove these programs and clean up the disk space so you can install more useful programs.
Most of the computers today have anti-virus and anti-malware protection installed. However, these are often outdated and do not have the updated security patches. This can pose a substantial threat to your operating system. Hence, they are also updated to the latest versions.
A lot of people make the mistake of not fragmenting their hard drive. This can cause a major data loss in adverse situations and even cause system slowdown. So, defragment your hard disk and create multiple drives.
4 REASONS HARDWARE MAINTENANCE IS IMPORTANT
Now that we have seen how to take care of your computer, let us see why it important to have a periodic maintenance program.
ADDRESS ISSUES BEFORE THEY BECOME PROBLEMS
Maintenance activity helps you detect latent issues with your computer that can grow into major problems if not addressed in a timely manner. It can also impact the performance of your computer and give you sub-optimal output. Periodic maintenance helps you detect these problems at a system and physical level and address them immediately.
PREVENT SECURITY THREATS
Anti-virus and anti-malware software undergo an update process that ensures your computer has the highest level of protection against security threats. You don’t want to fall prey to a security vulnerability that can lead to business loss.
IMPROVE SPEED
Defragmenting the hard drive, removing unnecessary programs, and updating system drivers improve the operating speed of your computer.
OPTIMIZE EFFICIENCY
With time, computers tend to slow down and become sluggish. It’s inevitable that software slows down and gives sub-optimal output. Therefore, periodic maintenance can help address this and optimize the efficiency of the computer.
Designing a hardware maintenance calendar can depend on multiple things like the extent of the use of a computer, the type of process performed on the computer, etc. It can be complicated and overwhelming.
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