Some Mental Gymnastics

Posted on June 24, 2010 by David Rier

It’s been a long morning of putting out one IT fire after another.  Usually, lunch at your desk might be the time to catch up on what’s happening in the world of technology.  However, that just feels too much like more work.

Just staring off into space as you eat your lunch doesn’t seem like the way to go.  After all, people might notice … and wonder.  You don’t want to play Microsoft’s Solitaire game (no imagination and too trivial).  So what are you to do?

My suggestion would be to visit the USA Today game page: http://puzzles.usatoday.com/ .  This site is an electronic version of the games that appear in the ‘Living’ section of the USA Today newspaper.  You’ve got 2 different kinds of Su Doku, a crossword, a word-find game, “up and down” words, a word-cross game, etc.

Have some fun while you take a little time to stretch your mind.

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All Work and No Play …

Posted on June 18, 2010 by David Rier

The world of PCs and technology is constantly changing.  Recently, it was Windows 7, then the iPad and then Skype for the BlackBerry.  It’s one thing after the other in an unending progression.  You can spend all your time following technologies just to stay “current”.

So what are you to do?

Keep up on things, but don’t let the process take all of your time.  Have some fun, too! So, in that spirit, I’ll occasionally talk about some web sites and pastimes that might provide you with ways to take your mind off work.  Some involve fun technologies and some are just interesting or fun.

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My PC is So Slow Today!

Posted on June 16, 2010 by David Rier

Once in a while, it seems like your PC is taking forever to start up.  This does not mean that there is something wrong with your PC.  In fact, it may mean that your PC is working correctly and trying to keep it that way.

It may have to do with the people that Apple and conspiracy theorists sometimes refer to as the “evil empire”.  That’s right; Microsoft may be slowing down your PC.

Here’s what I mean.  On the second Tuesday of every month, Microsoft releases all the patches to Windows and its components that they have been collecting since the previous month’s release.  This is sometimes called “Patch Tuesday”.

If you have “automatic updates” turned on for your Windows system, your PC will start downloading all of the patches as soon as it has an Internet connection.  There may be many patches and/or they may be large in size.  The download activity occupies a good portion of your PC’s electronic attention and slows down the rest of the system – making your startup slow.

There are positives to this occasional slow startup.  You can have a cup of coffee before getting to work on your PC.  As well, your PC is being protected from errors and attacks.

If you have a once-a-month slow startup, just grin and bear it.  Microsoft is trying to help keep you running and safe.  If your PC starts up slowly every day, you may want to check out the tune-up tips on my blog.

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Backup Your Data – Step 2

Posted on June 11, 2010 by David Rier

So you’re backing up your data every day and sending backups off-site.  Good for you!  That’s a good first step.

What else should you do?  Test your backups!

Just because you are making backups, don’t assume that everything is OK.  Lots of “bad” things could affect your backups.  Things like a) a tape drive not working correctly, b) bad tape media, or c) the backup software not working as you expect.  If you need backup data and the restoration process does not work, you are in the same situation as if you had never done any backups at all.

To protect yourself and your data, test your backups.  Make sure to:

  • Review some backups to make sure you are actually making backups of the data files you chose to back up.  (I.e. make sure the backup tape has files on it and they are the correct dates and sizes.)
  • Try to restore a few files.  Erase the original files from your servers and then attempt to restore the files.  Note: Do this on files that you can afford to lose if the test fails.
  • After the files have been restored, test to make sure that they can be used normally (I.e. they open up, print, etc.)

If your tests succeed, you can sleep a little easier – your data is safe.

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Backup Your Data!

Posted on June 8, 2010 by David Rier

As an IT Manager, one of your prime duties (if not the prime duty of your job) is to protect the data on your systems.  If company data is lost, the cost in time, money, lost business, etc. could be huge.

I am guessing that your data is stored on hard drives (unless your company has incredibly deep pockets and you only save your data on solid-state drives).  A simple fact of life is that hard drives break down over time.  If the only copy of your data is on a hard drive that fails, you may well be out of luck.

So what do you do (as a good IT Manager)?  Backup your files! Do this on a regular basis and make sure that your backups get stored off-site.  (After all, a backup isn’t any good if your data and its backups all disappear in a fire or flood).

Like the old saying about the three most important things in real estate … the three most important things in data protection are: Backup … Backup … Backup

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Tune Up (6) – Check Your System Files

Posted on June 4, 2010 by David Rier

Your operating system files control how your PC runs.  If any of those (hundreds) of files becomes corrupted, your PC could start acting strangely.  Fortunately, Microsoft has provided a program that inspects all of your system files and restores damaged files to the most up-to-date version for your system.

The program that I am talking about is called SFC (System File Checker).  To run the program (usually a 5 to 10-minute process), do the following:

  1. Open the command prompt.  (To do this, click on the Start button, choose “Run”, enter “cmd” (without the quotation marks) in the box and click the “OK button.  Note: You must the run command prompt as a user that is an administrator of your PC.
  2. Once command prompt is open, type the following command and then press the Enter key:

sfc /scannow

Notes: Once operating, System File Checker verifies the integrity of every protected operating system file on your computer.    In some situations, you may also need access to your original Windows installation CD or DVD.

    Restart your computer after running System File Checker (even if you are not prompted to do so).

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    Tune Up (5) – Check Your Disk

    Posted on June 1, 2010 by David Rier

    As a mechanical device, your hard drive develops imperfections over time.  Problems that can develop include bad sectors, directory errors, cross-linked files and lost clusters.

    Microsoft has provided a utility called CHKDSK (short for “check disk”) that can detect and repair the errors listed above.  Below, I have provided links to CHKDSK instructions for Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7.

    Windows XP: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315265

    Windows Vista: http://www.winvistatips.com/vista-chkdsk-t126028.html

    Windows 7: http://www.w7forums.com/use-chkdsk-check-disk-t448.html

    A couple of caveats:

    1. It may take a while for CHKDSK to run … just be patient.
    2. You will not notice that your PC is working any faster after the utility is run.  However, your drive will be in better shape because current or developing errors will have been repaired.
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    Tune Up (4) – Defragmentation

    Posted on May 27, 2010 by David Rier

    When your hard disk is first formatted, all the system files and program files are recorded in contiguous tracks.  This helps your computer to access and read the files quickly.

    Over time, files are added to, modified and deleted from the disk drive.  Over time, tracks are used and then freed up for re-use, new files and programs become split up into non-contiguous pieces. Reading such split-up files, it takes longer than reading files that in one piece.  As a result, your computer seems to slow down over time.

    You can reorganize your disk so that files are put back into contiguous tracks.  This is done using a process called defragmentation.  To defragment your hard drive, do the following:

    • Click on the start program,
    • Click the “All Programs” choice,
    • In sequence, choose “Accessories”, “System Tools” and “Disk Defragmenter”
    • Choose the drive to defragment (usually the C: drive)
    • Click the “Defragment” button

    The process takes a while, so just let it run to completion.  Note: If your drive is very full, the process takes longer.

    Once your drive is defragmented, you should notice that programs and files (especially larger ones) will load more quickly.

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    Tune Up (3) – Malware

    Posted on May 26, 2010 by David Rier

    Malware is the shortened term for “malicious software”.  It denotes any software that installs itself on a computer without the owner’s permission.  Two types of malware are adware and spyware.

    Note: Computer viruses are another type of malware.  It is suicidal (in a computer sense) to run a PC that is not protected from viruses.  As a result, I’m assuming that you have anti-virus installed on your computer and you keep the virus software and definitions “current”.

    Are you free of malware if you have removed adware, spyware and protect yourself from viruses?  Maybe.

    Recently, I started to use a program called Malwarebytes (available for free download at http://www.malwarebytes.org/).  I use the program as a malware safety net.  Occasionally, it will find and remove malware (even some viruses) that the other programs had not.   It’s worth the time for the increased peace of mind.

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    Tune Up (2) – Spyware

    Posted on May 20, 2010 by David Rier

    A spyware program is a piece of software that sits I memory and monitors what you are doing on your computer.  They can record web sites that you have visited as well as your account numbers and passwords.

    The dangerous thing about spyware is that the programs “phone home”.  They contact their writers and send the stolen data to them.  That can lead to theft of your identity, pilferage from your company accounts, industrial espionage, etc.  As a result, spyware elimination and prevention is an important function.

    The anti-spyware program that I use is called Spybot Search & Destroy.  To download it, go to http://www.safer-networking.org/en/download/.  Install the software and run it to eliminate the spyware that it finds.  You can also “immunize” your PC from getting spyware infections.  The software maintains a list of sites that infect people with spyware and keeps your browser from going to those sites.

    Once you have protected yourself from spyware, you’ve finished the second step in tuning up your PC.

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