Personal Computer Solutions - Maintenance
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Every computer needs some TLC. Like us humans, without regular maintenance, they get tired, slow done, and some times stop functioning all together. When you purchased your computer system, I would bet that no-one took the time to tell you what you would have to do to keep it running in tip top shape. There are some very basic tasks that you need to know about to keep computer files in order so they can be accessed quickly. Some other maintenance issues involve the security of your computer. Every day there are thousand of computer viruses and spy-ware programs created to infest our computers. You need to be prepared. The following should cover the basics needed to keep your system running at it's best.
Windows 98 computer
computer maintenance
Windows Millennium (ME)
computer maintenance
Windows XP computer maintenance
Win98 & WinME Computer Maintenance Wizard
Overview
Most computer users are unaware that there are a couple of built in maintenance jobs that need to be run periodically to keep their system running at peak performance. This presentation will outline a basic maintenance routine that will insure peak performance provided you haven't run out of hard drive space.
Features & Benefits
The jobs we will use are called "scandisk" and "disk defragmenter" otherwise known as "defrag". "Disk cleanup" is another function we will group in with the above tasks to maximize space on your hard drive. We will however use one program to execute all 3 of these programs.
Application & Scheduling
"Maintenance Wizard" is the program which includes the before mentioned tasks and will run them one after the other at the push of a button or automatically provided your computer is left on at the scheduled time. How often should I run this program? I suggest monthly at the very least. If you do a lot of downloading and use heavy games and programs daily, then weekly might be better for you.
Automated Maintenance
You also have the ability to have these tasks run automatically while the computer is idle, perhaps in the middle of the night if you leave your computer on all the time. For some people, it may be better to start up the computer in the morning and schedule it to run while everyone is away at work or school.
Maintenance Wizard - Step by Step
Assuming your computer is off, please power it up the. (Speeding up this process will be covered in another presentation) Now click the start button, go to programs, then accessories, then system tools, and finally "maintenance wizard". Whew, that was a long trail. Now let us begin configuring your settings. The program box is asking what you want to do. Click the lower choice (change my maintenance settings or schedule) and then click OK. Next, I want you to click "custom" settings and click "next". The next screen asks when you would like Windows to run maintenance tasks.
Select a Maintenance Schedule
Pick a time frame that fits your schedule the best. Realize that this program can also be run manually, and I highly suggest doing that monthly to insure you had at least one run of maintenance performed monthly. Picking a schedule will run this series of tasks once a week. Once you pick your preferred scheduling time frame, click next.
Start Windows More Quickly
Usually there is no need to start a program when you boot up Windows. Uncheck any of the programs in this window that may be checked. This will allow Windows to start without using resources to pre-start unnecessary programs. Once these are unchecked, click next to continue down the road of a healthier computer.
Speed Up Programs
Here is "disk defragmenter" where we have your computer organize how programs are stored on your hard drive. At this time all you need to do is click "next". Defragmenter’s default settings are fine for all levels of users.
Scan Hard Disk for Errors
At this point I would like you to click on the settings button. Another window with your hard drive(s) listed will appear. If you have more than 1 hard drive, be sure they are all checked off. Next near the bottom left of the box, I want you to click "Automatically fix errors). Here I will try to not lose you. Please click the button labeled "Advanced".
ScanDisk Advanced Options
Here I will list each box shown, and after it I list what to click.
Display summary – "Never" Log file – "Replace log" Cross-linked files – "Delete" Lost file fragments – "Free" Check files for – "Invalid file names & Invalid dates and times"That’s all the checking for this page. Click OK to close the window, and click ok again to continue.
Delete Unnecessary Files
Click "next" and we are at a window where we tell the computer to delete unnecessary files. Click on "settings" to open another window. Check off everything in this window, possibly with one exception, Recycle Bin. You may want to empty this manually every so often rather than risk losing something that shouldn’t have been deleted. Click "OK" to close this window, then next to the final page.
Summary Page
This last window shows a listing of the 3 jobs we set up and the times at which they will run.
Rescheduling
If you want to reschedule the tasks, please follow this order if you want to have them run the same day. Default settings have each task running on separate days to avoid conflict.
1st task to run is Disk Cleanup 2nd should be Scan Disk 3rd and final Disk Defragmenter When setting the times, please leave 30 minutes between each task.
Finished!!!!
The first time you run this, it could take hours if none of these have ever been run.
Now tell the computer to run the scheduled tasks and see how much quicker programs perform when completed.
Although this will help to some degree, there are other avenues we can look at to find CPU hogging programs.
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