News

10 PC maintenance tasks before going back to school

The well-deserved summer holidays are coming to an end and in a few days most users, students and employees will have to return to the routine in what we know as ‘Back to School’. We already know how much it costs…

Many of us have the PC as the main work tool and we must have a specific maintenance schedule with tasks that contribute numerous benefits in terms of efficiency, performance, safety and use, in addition to lengthening its useful life. Or that’s the theory. Engrossed in the daily battle, perhaps we have not been able to dedicate the necessary time to it. If you have a few days before returning to work, it is a good time to do some tasks that will avoid problems in the future.

We remind you of them by putting the main focus on Windows personal computers, although most of them can be extrapolated to any operating system.

1.- Make data backups

The tasks of backup they are one of the preferred actions in the maintenance of a PC and must be carried out (or better automated) by any professional or consumer to safeguard their data. A computer equipment can fail at any time, due to a hardware problem in one of its components such as the storage unit or memories, in the system software and applications, or due to a virus that deletes files or prevents access to the equipment, such as Ransomware.

The loss of our professional or personal files can have a great cost and sometimes without possible recovery, hence its importance. We recommend you start the technical stop here before you have to repent. System, applications and hardware itself can be recovered, but data cannot and sometimes losing it can be a tragedy.

10 maintenance tasks to prepare your PC before going back to school

2.- Update the operating system

The operating system is the software base of our equipment and we must ensure that it is updated to the most recent stable build or at least that it has the latest security patches published. If we use older versions, we run a higher risk of being attacked through unpatched vulnerabilities.

All operating systems can be updated automatically or manually. Microsoft systems use Windows Update as an internal tool. If you prefer, and the Microsoft Update Catalog for manual installation of specific security updates or rollups.

3.- Check and increase security

Other tasks included in the maintenance of a PC involves the search for malware and disinfection where appropriate. Start by scanning the computer with the security application you have installed, including external hard drives or pen drives that you also use regularly in the operation because they are often a route of infection.

For persistent malware, hidden in the system, nothing better than using “Live CD/USB” solutions, created on removable drives and capable of booting without interfering with the installed operating system. They are what we know as “rescue antivirus” and they work on any computer. These external means are excellent, since they do not penalize performance and allow them to anticipate the loading of viruses or Trojans in memory, making them difficult to eliminate. All providers offer free solutions of this type and we expressly recommend them to you, in addition to having a security solution loaded on the system.

4.- Change your passwords

Completing the security section, you can take the opportunity to renew the access passwords to your equipment and services, an important matter that should be done regularly and that we do not do. We continue to break all the basic rules for their creation and maintenance and all reports reveal that the most used passwords are old acquaintances and a bargain for cybercriminals.

In recent years, the industry has proposed biometric systems and functions such as double factor that we must activate in all compatible services. But until they are fully extended, passwords will continue to be the most used method and for their creation we have to look for long and complex keys, and combine non-alphanumeric, uppercase and lowercase characters. Another recommended option is to use password managers that do the work for you, protect your identity and save you from having to create and remember multiple passwords.

5.- Update applications and drivers

Just as important as updating the operating system is doing the same with the applications. The new versions that we have installed will offer more performance and stability in most cases. Furthermore, the malware has a preferred infection method by exploiting software vulnerabilities. We must pay special attention to that group of critical applications that we use on a daily basis and that are the most attacked, such as web browsers and their extensions and plug-ins, office automation applications or others such as Java or Adobe’s Flash that have been attacked during two decades and it is still running on the Internet.

The same can be said for driver updates. In addition to the security section, we will gain stability, compatibility and also performance, especially with graphics card drivers that are updated almost for every great new game that is published.

6.- Delete programs that you do not use

You probably have a good number of applications that you no longer use. And if you use Windows and you didn’t clean up your day, you will have a good amount of junk applications from the Bloatware with which Microsoft and the manufacturers “punish” us. All of them together penalize performance, stability, user experience and even security.

Before ‘back to school’ is a good time to remove these programs that are taking up memory and storage and probably slowing down your operation. All operating systems include a program uninstall feature. In Windows 10 or 11 from the control panel or the general Settings tool.

7. Reduce Startup Load

Windows operating systems have a system configuration function called “msconfig”, which, in addition to advanced services, allows us to select the applications that are loaded when the computer starts up, reducing its load and improving its performance. You can access it with the command name, “msconfig”, from the run function. In Windows 10 and 11, you can use “task manager” to manage startup items.

8.- Activate system restore

Windows has a system recovery tool that can “save our lives” in the event of a software error, a virus entering our computer or the simple installation of drivers or an application that does not work correctly and that sometimes destabilizes the operating system .

This utility saves the files and main configuration of the operating system, settings, drivers, registry keys or installed programs, and in case of errors it allows you to revert the changes made and return to a previous state where the system worked correctly. The operation and management of this feature is basically the same in all Windows systems (7, 8.1 and 10) and it is very useful for any user when the system does not work well or works erratically.

9.- In Windows 10 and Windows 11 monitor privacy

The privacy of Windows 10 remains one of the most controversial issues of this operating system, although Microsoft has been improving transparency and control in successive updates since a terrifying initial configuration that sparked a barrage of criticism for massive data collection. Windows 11, in this field, points in the same way.

The privacy options of Windows 10 have improved substantially since the first versions and start from the same installation, but there is still room for improvement. If you are looking for more control than what is offered by in-house tools, you can use third-party applications like DoNotSpy11 (free and open source) which, in addition to managing the typical privacy components, also offers options against Bloatware.

10.- Clean the registry (carefully)

Advanced users can perform tasks that go beyond regular maintenance, but – knowing what is being done – can offer us advantages. The registry is a database where Windows stores software, hardware, settings, and user information, and completely controls a PC’s operation, appearance, behavior of components, or access to features. The registry grows in size with the mere use of the operating system, the installation/uninstallation of applications or any hardware component that we add or replace.

It is not unusual for all this to slow down the use of the equipment or leave traces of faulty or corrupted entries, and inconsistencies that harm the user experience and cause everything from small errors to serious failures. The industry offers free applications to “clean” this registry. You have to be very careful with them, but they can be effective in the right hands, after backing them up in case something goes wrong.

Don’t leave it for later. These maintenance tasks to tune up your PC are a great investment to avoid headaches and loss of time and money in the future, with direct benefits in performance, stability and security. If you complete it with a physical cleaning and eventually with the improvement of some of its components, you can increase its useful life and prepare it for the harsh autumn that awaits us.

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *