Understanding and Troubleshooting Your PC

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals2 Chapter Objectives  In this chapter, you will learn: –About maintaining your PC, including how to make backups –How to protect against viruses, Trojan horses, and worms –About approaches for troubleshooting a PC

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals3 Maintaining Your PC

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals4 Performing Routine Maintenance Tasks  Organize the hard drive root directory –Organizing the files and folders on your hard drive makes it easier to find files and can help you back up and recover files more easily –Keep all of your documents and other files in your My Documents folder –Do not store files on the desktop –Keep application software files and their data in separate directories –The root directory of the hard drive should contain only folders and system startup files or initialization files for software

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals5 Performing Routine Maintenance Tasks  Create rescue disks  Document all setup changes, problems, and solutions  Record setup data  Take practical precautions to protect software and data –Backup the system state and create a restore point before installing a new software package –Do not store data files in the same directory as the software –Enable settings to hide protected files from the user –Back up original software –Back up data on the hard drive

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals6 Backup Approaches  A full backup backs up all data from the hard drive or a directory or folder of the hard drive  An incremental backup backs up only files that have changed or been created since the last backup  Differential backups backs up files that have changed or been created since the last full backup

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals7 Creating a Backup Plan and Schedule

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals8 Creating a Backup Plan and Schedule

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals9 Disk Cloning Software  Disk cloning is the creation of a complete image or copy of a computer’s hard drive, usually used to deploy a new operating system with application software on multiple computers in a corporate network or educational computer lab –Norton Ghost –Drive Image –ImageCast

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals10 Creating a Preventative Maintenance Plan

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals11 Protecting against Viruses, Trojan Horses, and Worms  A malicious logic program is any program that acts without a user’s knowledge, deliberately changes the computer’s operations, and does varying degrees of damage to data and software  Antivirus software protects a computer against infection by identifying and removing any malicious logic programs in memory, in storage, or on files coming in as attachments

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals12 Computer Viruses  A computer virus is a program designed to infect a computer and replicate itself by attaching itself to other programs  The payload is the destructive event or prank the virus was created to deliver  All viruses have three characteristics: –Has an incubation period –Performs an unwanted function –Replicates itself

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals13 Types of Viruses  A file virus inserts virus code into program files or executable files  A macro virus uses the macro language of an application to hide virus code  A boot sector virus replaces the boot program used to start the computer system with a modified, infected version of the boot program  Master Boot Record (MBR) viruses attack disks in the same manner as boot sector viruses –MBR viruses typically save a legitimate copy of the master boot record in a different location on the hard disk

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals14 Types of Viruses  A multipartite virus has characteristics of a boot sector virus and a file virus  A logic bomb is a program that is activated when a certain condition is detected  A time bomb is a type of logic bomb that is activated on a particular date

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals15 How Viruses Hide  Antivirus software detects a known virus by looking for distinguishing characteristics called a virus signature, which is a known pattern of virus code  A polymorphic virus changes its distinguishing characteristics as it replicates  An encrypting virus can transform itself into a nonreplicating program to avoid destruction by antivirus program  A stealth virus actively conceals itself

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals16 How a Virus Replicates

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals17 Trojan Horses  A Trojan horse is a destructive program disguised as a real application, such as a screen saver  Trojan horses can delete files, capture information from your system, or open up a back door that allows a hacker to control your computer remotely –AOL4FREE

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals18 Worms  A worm is a malicious logic program that replicates by creating copies of itself, either on one computer or any number of computers on a network  Eventually, no memory or disk space remains because the worm is using up all system resources  Worms on the Internet routinely perform port scanning

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals19 Worms

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals20 Hoaxes  A virus hoax is an message that spreads a false virus warning, usually in chain letter fashion, from person to person  Before ignoring a virus warning, you should check with reputable references to determine if a virus warning is legitimate or a hoax

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals21 Hoaxes

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals22 Protecting against Computer Viruses

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals23 Using Antivirus Software  Install an antivirus program on your computer and update it frequently  Perform routine system scans on your computer  Most antivirus programs contain an auto- update feature that regularly prompts users to download the new virus signature or definition files

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals24 Handling an Infection  Run a virus scan using your antivirus software to detect and delete the malicious logic program  If the antivirus program cannot remove the infection, it often quarantines the infected file  Using a recovery disk, the antivirus program can attempt to repair damaged files  In extreme cases, you may need to reformat the hard disk to remove a virus

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals25 Troubleshooting Tools: Building a PC Toolkit

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals26 Troubleshooting Tools: Building a PC Toolkit  Other tools that are helpful to have in a PC toolkit include: –Antistatic bags –Needle-nose pliers –Flashlight –AC outlet ground tester and multimeter –Small cups, bags, or plastic containers –Pen and paper –Utility software

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals27 Utility and Diagnostic Software  Utility software is a program that performs a specific task, usually related to managing system resources or identifying a problem with a PC  Diagnostic software generally is used to identify hardware problems

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals28 Utility and Diagnostic Software

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals29 Utility and Diagnostic Software

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals30 Approaches for Troubleshooting a PC: Fundamental Rules  Make backups before making changes  Follow the important safety precautions  Approach the problem systematically  Isolate the problem

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals31 Approaches for Troubleshooting a PC: Fundamental Rules  Do not assume the worst  Check simple things first  Become a researcher  Know your starting point

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals32 Approaches for Troubleshooting a PC: Fundamental Rules  Establish your priorities  Do not rush  Write things down  Take a break

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals33 Gathering Information: Investigating the Problem  What operating system is installed?  What physical components are installed?  What is the nature of the problem?  Can you duplicate the problem?

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals34 Gathering Information: Isolating the Problem  Consider the possibilities  Eliminate simple things first  Eliminate the unnecessary  Trade good for suspected bad  Trade suspected bad for good

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals35 Gathering Information: Intermittent Problems  The trick in diagnosing problems that come and go is to look for patterns or clues as to when the problems occur  If you cannot reproduce the problem, keep a log of when the problems occur and exactly what messages appear –Take a screen capture

Chapter 12: Maintenance and Troubleshooting Fundamentals36 Chapter Summary  In this chapter, you learned: –About maintaining your PC, including how to make backups –How to protect against viruses, Trojan horses, and worms –About approaches for troubleshooting a PC

Understanding and Troubleshooting Your PC Chapter 12 Complete