Preventive maintenance is the regular and systematic inspection, cleaning, and replacement of worn parts, materials, and systems. Effective preventive maintenance reduces part, material, and system faults, and keeps hardware and software in good working condition.

Troubleshooting is the systematic process used to locate the cause of a fault in a computer system and correct the relevant hardware and software issues.

In this chapter, you will learn general guidelines for troubleshooting procedures and creating preventive maintenance programs. These guidelines are a starting point to help you develop your preventive maintenance and troubleshooting skills.

• Regular preventive maintenance reduces hardware and software problems.

• Before beginning any repair, back up the data on a computer.

• The troubleshooting process is a guideline to help you solve computer problems in an efficient manner.

• Document everything that you try, even if it fails. The documentation that you create is a useful resource for you and other technicians.

Activity

Identify the Problem

Additional Resources

Defining Preventative Maintenance (guide)

Complete PC Preventative Maintenance Guide (PC World)