Maintenance is necessary to make anything last. The average lifespan of a computer workstation is 3-5 years. Unmaintained devices have a shorter life. Computers, laptops, tablets and other devices that aren’t kept up tend to slow down, freeze or glitch with frequency. Many users have no idea what to do when this begins to happen. Here are some quick tips to keep all of your devices functioning with ease and extend their usable life.
Do your updates
Just like an oil change for your car or a good multivitamin, updates keep your business technology running smoothly. Computers and devices that are out of date tend to drag, glitch or freeze…or all of these. From operating systems and applications to firewalls and cameras, it’s important to keep them all up to date. Why?? Users uncover bugs and/or vulnerabilities in the programs as they use the applications. Developers are constantly finding better ways to do things. With each new update you get a more secure and feature rich application. Be sure that you finish off your update with a reboot. This ensures that all of your updates are in place.
Clear your cache
Cache are pieces of information that are stored on your computer and are designed to make applications work faster. For instance, if you have logged into a particular website lately, your browser will remember and auto populate the screen with the most recent information you viewed. The trouble with cache is that it requires storage space to keep all of this information. If you notice that things are running slowly, clearing your cache is a quick and easy way to free up storage and speed up your processing ability.
Close out programs you aren’t using right now
When you close a program on most devices, many times the program will minimize and not close completely. Since the program is only minimized and not closed, the device works hard to refresh the application and keep it ready for you to access whenever you need the program again. If too many applications are running, the device has to work overtime refreshing the data. This slows down the processing ability on the apps you are actually trying to use. If your app is acting funny, take a look at what you have open. Be sure to close out the apps you aren’t actively using.
Delete unused applications
Most computers or devices you purchase today come with bloatware. Bloatware is applications that you don’t need. For example, you purchase a laptop for work but it’s auto loaded with pc cleaners, games, and other applications that you will likely never use. While most bloatware is not harmful, it takes up space on your device. Other things to consider are applications that you downloaded that you haven’t used in a long time. While a “long time” is relative, you should decide for yourself that if you haven’t used an app in an time frame that you choose, then it comes off of your device. That number could be 3 months, 6, 9 or even 12 months. Regardless of the term you choose, it’s important to do this regularly. This will keep things running efficiently.
Stop auto syncing
If you are using cloud-based applications like One Drive, iCloud, Dropbox, etc. you are likely sending your data to “the cloud” with frequency. By storing your information in applications like these, you are ensuring that you have access to these documents wherever you are and from whatever device you are on. The trade off to this ease of access is that you constantly send your information to the cloud. Auto syncing your data causes your computer or device to slow down while it processes your information. If this is the case, you can pause the sync and restart the sync at a time when you won’t be using the device like overnight or early morning.
With proper maintenance you can keep things running efficiently for the life of your computer, laptop, tablet or other device. While this isn’t an exhaustive list of things you can do to help, it is a great starting point. If you have computers, or mobile devices that are giving you a hard time, your help desk team can help. If your organization needs help, give us a call. We would love to help you figure it out.
Who is IT Enabled?
IT Enabled?is?a managed IT service provider. ?We help organizations with 5-500 employees tackle technology?issues by providing comprehensive?IT?including network and tech support, computer, laptop and server support, cybersecurity, disaster recovery options and business phone systems. ?Our business?is?keeping you focused on your business.