{"id":104,"date":"2011-05-04T15:11:39","date_gmt":"2011-05-04T19:11:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.heliotropicsystems.com\/blog\/?p=104"},"modified":"2011-05-04T15:11:39","modified_gmt":"2011-05-04T19:11:39","slug":"preventative-maintenance-is-the-key-to-a-healthy-computer-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.heliotropicsystems.com\/blog\/index.php\/preventative-maintenance-is-the-key-to-a-healthy-computer-system\/","title":{"rendered":"Preventative maintenance is the key to a healthy computer system"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the March\/April 2011 issue of the AAA North Jersey Traveler<\/em> magazine, author Jim Grey wrote an article entitled, \u201cPreventative maintenance helps the life of your vehicle.\u201d\u00a0 While I won\u2019t reprint the article in its entirety, I do want to highlight a few of the statements he uses to describe how to take care of your car, and apply them to the care of your computer network.<\/p>\n

\u201cConsumers may think it\u2019s the luck of the draw when a car reaches 200,000 miles and another bites the dust at 100,000, [while] it really comes down to preventative maintenance.<\/p>\n

Scheduling regular trips to your mechanic can mean the difference in tens of thousands of miles in your car\u2019s life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Well, most small business owners know that their computer networks can last anywhere from two years to ten.\u00a0 But very few of them contact a technician to take care of them until something breaks.\u00a0 Most people don\u2019t know (and even fewer even care) about the common maintenance techniques necessary to keep their computer networks running properly.
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\n\u201cMost secrets to extending the life of your vehicle can be found in your glove box.\u00a0 Manufacturers outline the correct service intervals for your vehicle in the owner\u2019s manual.\u201d<\/p>\n

While computers used to come with an owner\u2019s manual, nowadays, manufacturers provide this information on their web sites under the support link.\u00a0 This places a burden on the computer owner to go to the site, download the file, and read it.\u00a0 However, I don\u2019t think there is any manufacturer that details \u201cservice intervals\u201d for a computer.<\/p>\n

\u201cYour owner\u2019s manual will outline service schedules for oil changes, tire rotation, fluid flushes, etc.\u00a0 It also tells you when to replace items like the timing belt and water pump before a problem occurs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s where the analogy between cars and computers falls apart.\u00a0 There simply is no universally agreed upon schedule of services for computers.\u00a0 Just the same, there are common tasks that are required, for example:<\/p>\n