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Troubleshooting and Maintenance Fundamentals

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About your role as a PC technician in troubleshooting and ... Data Lifeguard Tools by Western Digital. Programs that test memory. Memtest 86 by Chris Brady ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Troubleshooting and Maintenance Fundamentals


1
Chapter 24
  • Troubleshooting and Maintenance Fundamentals

2
You Will Learn
  • About your role as a PC technician in
    troubleshooting and maintenance, and tools
    available to help you in those roles
  • How to approach a troubleshooting problem
  • How to develop a preventive maintenance plan and
    what to include in it

3
Troubleshooting Perspectives
  • PC support technician
  • PC service technician
  • Bench technician
  • Help-desk technician

4
Essential Troubleshooting Tools
  • Bootable rescue disks
  • Ground bracelet and/ground mat
  • Screwdrivers (flat-head, Phillips-head or
    cross-head, Torx set, particularly size T15)
  • Tweezers, preferably insulated
  • Chip extractor and extractor

5
Useful Troubleshooting Tools
  • Multimeter
  • Needle-nose pliers
  • Flashlight
  • AC outlet ground tester
  • Small cups or bags

6
Useful Troubleshooting Tools (continued)
  • Antistatic bags
  • Pen and paper
  • Diagnostic cards and software
  • Utility software, virus detection, and diagnostic
    software on disks

7
Bootable Rescue Disk
  • Enables booting of PC even when hard drive fails
  • Ensures cleanest boot possible

8
POST Diagnostic Cards
  • Monitor boot process and report errors and
    conflicts at POST, usually as coded numbers on an
    LED panel on the card

9
Examples of POST Diagnostic Cards
  • Amber Debug Card by Phoenix Technologies
  • PCI Error Testing/Debug Card by Trigen Industries
  • POSTcard V3 by Unicore Software, Inc.

10
Diagnostic Software
  • Identifies hardware problems
  • Most effective diagnostic software does not run
    from the Windows OS
  • Windows might mask a hardware problem

11
Examples of Diagnostic Software
  • PC-Technician by Windsor Technologies, Inc.
  • PC-Diagnosys by Windsor Technologies, Inc.
  • Data Lifeguard Tools by Western Digital
  • Programs that test memory
  • Memtest 86 by Chris Brady
  • Windows Memory Diagnostic by Microsoft
  • DocMemory by CST Inc.

12
General-Purpose Utility Software
  • Diagnoses problems
  • Repairs and maintains software on a PC
  • Recovers corrupted or deleted data on hard drive
    or floppy disks
  • Provides security
  • Monitors system performance

13
General-Purpose Utility Software (continued)
  • Downloads software updates from Internet
  • Might use installed OS or provide its own
  • Do not run it continuously in the background
  • Slows down system

14
Examples of General-Purpose Utility Software
15
Examples of General-Purpose Utility Software
(continued)
16
Fundamental Rules of Troubleshooting
  • Make backups before making changes
  • Approach problem systematically
  • Isolate problem
  • Remove memory-resident programs
  • Boot from disk to eliminate the OS and startup
    files on the hard drive
  • Remove unnecessary hardware devices

17
Fundamental Rules of Troubleshooting (continued)
  • Dont overlook the obvious
  • Check simple things first
  • Make no assumptions
  • Become a researcher
  • Write things down

18
Fundamental Rules of Troubleshooting (continued)
  • Reboot and start over
  • Establish priorities
  • Keep your cool and dont rush
  • Dont assume the worst
  • Know your starting point

19
Gathering Information
  • Interact with user
  • Investigate problem on computer
  • Isolate the problem

20
Interacting with the User
  • Use good manners and diplomacy
  • Dont take drastic action before asking about
    important data that may not be backed up
  • Provide alternatives before making decisions for
    users
  • Protect confidentiality of data
  • Dont disparage users choice of hardware or
    software

21
Investigating the Problem
  • What OS is installed?
  • What physical components are installed
    processor, expansion cards, drives, peripheral
    devices? PC connected to network?
  • What is the nature of the problem before or
    after boot, error message, etc?
  • Can you duplicate the problem? Intermittent or
    consistent problem?

22
Isolating the Problem
  • Consider the possibilities
  • Eliminate simple things first
  • Eliminate the unnecessary
  • Trade good for suspected bad
  • Trade suspected bad for good

23
Intermittent Problems
  • Hardest to solve
  • Look for patterns or clues
  • Ask user to keep a log of when problems occur and
    exactly what error messages appear

24
Goals of Preventive Maintenance
  • Reduce likelihood that events that cause PC
    failures will occur
  • Preventive maintenance plan
  • Lessen the damage if they do occur
  • Disaster recovery plan

25
When a PC Is Your Permanent Responsibility
  • Organize hard drive boot directory
  • Create rescue disks
  • Document setup changes, problems, and solutions
  • Record setup data
  • Take practical precautions to protect software
    and data (eg, back up original software and back
    up data on the hard drive)

26
Preventive Maintenance Plan Guidelines
27
Preventive Maintenance Plan Guidelines (continued)
28
Preventive Maintenance Plan Guidelines (continued)
29
Preventive Maintenance Plan Guidelines (continued)
30
Preventive Maintenance Plan Guidelines (continued)
31
Guidelines for Moving Equipment
  • Back up hard drive
  • Remove removable disks, tape cartridges, or CDs
    from drives
  • Turn off power to PC and devices
  • Disconnect power cords and external devices
  • Label cable connections

32
Guidelines for Moving Equipment (continued)
  • Coil all cords and secure them
  • Pack in original shipping cartons
  • Purchase insurance

33
Disposing of Used Equipment
34
Disposing of Used Equipment (continued)
35
Fire Extinguishers
  • Mount a fire extinguisher for Class C fires
    (ignited and heated by electricity) near but
    not directly over the workbench

36
Summary
  • Common-sense guidelines to solving computer
    problems
  • Avoid making situation worse by damaging
    equipment, software, or data, or by placing undue
    stress on users
  • Follow safety precautions
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