Computer Repair Experts in Phoenix, Arizona. my PC Techs Presents:

We always ask new clients if they would like us to come out on a regular basis to perform routine computer maintenance. Regular maintenance on your computer systems can extend the life of your machines by many years, and in many cases will help prevent catastrophic failure. As an example, we recently came upon a laptop that was given to us for repair. The system hadn’t been maintained in over three years, and in this case the system fan had stopped spinning. The fan was locked up as a result of dust buildup.

All kinds of bad things happen to a laptop or desktop when a system fan stops spinning. Here, without air circulation the CPU (processor) became so hot that the CPU’s metal fused to the metal on the heat sink. As you can see in the image below, there’s actually a strip of metal from the CPU melted on to the heat sink itself.

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Unfortunately, this is a costly repair requiring a replacement of the fan, heat sink, and CPU. It’s not as bad as it could be, however. The system board itself didn’t melt. We’ve seen that happen on some systems in a similar situation where the system fan had failed.

This failure could have been prevented with regular maintenance. Dusting out your laptop and desktop fans and cases with compressed air will prevent heat and dust from killing them. Heat and dust are the #1 killers of computer systems and electronics! Just like your car, your computers need regular care too if you want them to last longer. Extend the life of your computers, let my PC Techs help you maintain them with regular visits. Give us a call, (602) 456-0150.

How does your office connect to the internet? Many small offices today utilize at least one form of traffic filtering, a router that sits between their internal network and their connection to the internet. The router employed is most likely a simple NAT device, allowing traffic out of the network while protecting the internal network from outside visibility and direct attempts to hack the computers and servers inside.

However, most routers in this category don’t do enough to protect the users in the office from virus attacks, spyware, or hackers. Malicious web pages and emails bypass basic protections offered by a router, and the majority of virus infected computers we have repaired were infected by one of these two methods. A user either used a browser to visit an innocent looking website that was infected, or they clicked on an email that contained a malicious file.

The negative effects shared by all when an office machine becomes infected include loss of work, slow computers, infection of servers and critical company files, and in worst case scenarios theft of company data. Consider the installation of additional security on your network to help guard against these types of attacks. An inexpensive server, often purchased and installed for less than $1,500, can be configured and placed between the internet and the internal network. This server, with the proper software installed and maintained, will filter out malicious emails and web pages and block them before they reach computers in your office.

The server can perform additional roles as well. From allowing VPN access, to remote desktop, centralization of files, and simplifying the management of all computers in the office. Consult with our expert team today to learn the many ways a server solution can benefit your office, including the protection of your network and company data. Call my PC Techs at (602) 456-0150 for a free consultation.

Can anyone name a small business, or any business for that matter, that doesn’t rely upon technology for day to day operations? Computers play such an integrated role in our lives. Much like automobiles, it is important to maintain your computers and run periodic checks on them to avoid failure.

When doing routine system maintenance, there are several different areas of the computer that should be checked for potential problems. The operating system itself, installed software, updates and patches, anti-virus definitions, the network settings, the system fans, dust levels, hard disk drives, backups, and external devices! Some are more important than others. For example, if your hard drive fails, you could face some very costly data recovery issues. Dust is another one, dust and heat are the biggest killers of electronic components. A competent computer repair firm will have a checklist of items that a technician will run through, the hard drive and dust levels being just one of those, to ensure optimal performance.

Not to get stuck on the automobile analogy, but it’s so easy to do comparisons between that and computer repair. If you forget to change your oil, over time your engine suffers. If you go long enough, eventually your engine will fail. Computer maintenance is the same way. A lot of clients have come to us with failed hard drives. Sometimes we can get their data off pretty easily and recover their systems. In the worst cases, those hard drives need to be sent off to a lab where data recovery becomes extremely costly. Client with crashed hard drives are usually surprised when we tell them that the crash could have been avoided. There are warning signs that most equipment will give when things go bad, and the signs usually begin a while before the actual crash takes place. For hard drives, it could be slow performance, errors while working, errors in system logs, or even clicking or grinding sounds. Most computer fans make noises too when they are about to fail.

Our experts service and repair machines and are experienced in the different ways you can identify computer problems. If you hire a team of professionals that know how to keep your computers working, and have them come out monthly for a quick checkup, you too will be able to keep working. For most people, computer failures usually happen at the worst possible time. Like, right before an important project deadline. If your computer suddenly crashes or the network is not working you may lose work and income. All of this could be avoided with just a couple hours of preventative maintenance per month.

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