HARDWARE

MAINTENANCE
CLEANING THE HARDWARE
CLEANING OF THE HARDWARE
COMPONENTS
Proper cleaning and maintenance of a computer ensures its smooth functioning.
An unattended computer can accumulate dust and may result in its poor performance.
You can follow the given practices to clean the various hardware components:
oMonitor
o Use a soft, cotton cloth to clean the computer monitor with a mild liquid or plain water.
o Do not spray the liquid directly on the computer screen.
o Make sure not to touch the computer screen with your hands or fingers.
o Use a pointer or stylus instead.
oKeyboard
o You can use a blower (compressed air), a soft brush, or an anti-static vacuum cleaner to blow out the dust from the keyboard.
o Avoid eating while working on the computer as the tit-bits of food may enter in the gaps between the keys of the keyboard
and damage it.
o You may need to physically remove the keys of a severely dirty keyboard to clean it.
o Use a soft, damp cloth to clean the oil and dirt from the top surface of the keys.
oMouse
o If you are using a mechanical mouse having a ball under its body, then the chances of accumulating dust on it are higher.
o You may need to open the cover of the mouse and remove the ball.
o Dip the ball in isopropyl alcohol to remove dust,oil or grease.
o If you are using an optical mouse, then simply wipe the mouse from above and below with a clean cotton cloth.

oCDs and DVDs

o Always keep the CDs and DVDs in their proper cases to protect them from scratches.
o Avoid touching the surface of the CDs and DVDs with hands.
o For cleaning the surface of the CDs, you can use a special cleaning liquid.
o Use a few drops of the liquid on the cotton cloth and gently wipe the CD.

oCPU Cabinet
o Always clean the CPU cabinets from outside as well as inside.
o Wipe the outer surface of the CPU cabinet with a soft cotton cloth.
o Clean the backside of the cabinet as well.
o It is important to clean the CPU cabinet from inside also.
o Always use a blower to remove the dust.
o Do not touch the tiny parts installed on the motherboard.

oDigital Camera
o Avoid touching the lens of the camera.
o Use a soft brush or dry cotton cloth to remove the dust.
o You can also use a special cleaning fluid to clean the lens.
o Do not put the cleaning fluid directly on the lens.
SOFTWARE
MAINTENANCE
SOFTWARE MAINTENANCE
It refers to the cleaning of the software installed on the computer.
It involves the scheduled disk cleanup tasks, protection against viruses, deleting the temporary
and unwanted files, etc.
Taking regular backup, updating the software, and checking for any security risks, are also a part
of software maintenance.
VIRUS
A computer virus is a program or a set of programs that disrupts the normal operation of a computer.
Virus infects or destroys the data.
It enters the computer without the permission or knowledge of the user.
Normally, it enters through infected storage devices, like CD, pen drives, etc.
Virus can also enter into a computer while surfing the Internet.
To avoid detection, they are secretly hidden.
Virus programs can remain undetected and inactive for a long period of time, waiting for a particular
signal or an event to trigger them.
For example, some virus programs monitor the clock in the host computer and trigger on a certain day,
like Friday the 13th.
Signs of Virus Attack
A virus can cause problems in a computer in many ways, such as:
Reduce the speed of a computer by decreasing the memory.
Cause strange movements or patterns on the screen.
Display unusual messages like "Your PC is stoned", etc.
Increase the use of disk space and growth in file size as the virus attaches itself to many files.
Frequent hanging of the system.
Shows abnormal write protect error.
Display a change in data against the filename in the directory, when a virus modifies the file.
Reformat the hard disk.
Delete or damage the files.
PROTECTING COMPUTER AGAINST VIRUS
VIRUS attacks not only lead to data confidentiality loss, but they also affect the way in which a
computer system functions.
Modified files and processes, frequent functionality disruptions, modified speed, etc. are some of
the other harmful effects of malware attacks.
Security programs: Installing reliable anti-virus software is a must. The antivirus should be
regularly updated. It should also be programmed to regularly scan and quarantine the system.
Installation of firewalls: Restricting access to unwanted sites through appropriate settings in the
browsers should also be done as a mandatory act.
Secure internet access:
◦ Be vigilant when accessing or uploading information on the Internet.
◦ Only secure sites should be used for financial transactions and no personal information should be shared or saved
(even accidentally) on any website.
◦ Installation and download from un-authorised sources should be avoided.
Regular security updates:
◦ Keep your applications and operating system updated at all times.
Avoid spams:
◦ Mails from un-wanted and un-warranted sources should be deleted without reading or downloading.
◦ Any attachments in such mails should never be downloaded or installed onto the system.
Backups:
◦ Taking backups regularly is a good practice.
◦ This not only protects us against data loss but also helps to restore the integrity of the data.
◦ Make sure that the data is encrypted by using encryption software to protect from unauthorized access.
Scanning all portable devices:
◦ Scan all portable storage devices, such as pen drive etc., before use as these are the most common sources of
infection in computers.
Disable cookies, if possible:
◦ For the safety of our personal information, we must disable cookies in our browser.
ANTIVIRUS SOFTWARE
Antivirus software are computer programs, which are designed to identify, prevent, and remove
viruses from a Computer.
They perform the following tasks in a computer:
◦ Scan the computer files to look for known viruses, matching definitions from the virus dictionary.
◦ ldentify suspicious behaviour from any computer program that might indicate infection

Simply installing an antivirus software in our computer does not guarantee 100% protection, as
the installed antivirus program would not be able to detect new virus programs.
We should keep on updating our computer with the latest versions of the antivirus programs.
Most of the antivirus software companies provide the facility to download the latest updates
from their websites. Some of the popular antivirus programs are: Norton Antivirus, McAfree
Virus Scan, AVG Antivirus. QuickHeal etc.
PREPARING A MAINTENANCE SCHEDULE
The maintenance of computer system is often overlooked. It may result in damaging the
equipment and can also become the cause of an accident.
We should plan a maintenance schedule on a daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly basis, to prevent
such
Disk Defragmentation
When you save a file on your computer, it may not be saved in a contiguous location in the
actual memory space.
This leads to creating empty fragments on the disk.
These fragments cause the computer system to slow down when you want to open the file
again.
To avoid this, you should run the Disk Defragmenter utility program on a regular basis.
Removing Temporary Files:
◦ Sometimes your computer may be very slow and you might be getting disk errors.
◦ It can happen due to the temporary Internet files that need to be deleted from your computer regularly.

Removing Spam From An E-mail account

◦ Spam refers to the unwanted e-mails that you get from unknown senders.
◦ These e-mails are sent for the purpose of advertising, spreading malware, phishing, and often containing
inappropriate content.
◦ If you open a spam mail there is a chance that a virus may attack you system or your personal details may be
at a risk.
◦ To protect the user, almost all thee-mail clients provide the Filter feature to prevent spam messages from
being delivered to your inbox.