In recent visits to clients, I have discovered that many of them don’t take basic steps to maintain their computers. As a car owner, you know that in addition to putting gas in the tank, periodically you must change the oil, rotate the tires and check the fluids to keep the car in working order. Most people generally are diligent about at least regularly backing up their network server’s hard drive. However, there are a number of other simple tasks you should perform regularly to keep computers running smoothly.

Before explaining these maintenance steps, let me remind you about routine backups. The server’s hard drive or drives should be copied onto tapes nightly. The tapes should be rotated regularly and taken offsite. The purpose of this backup is to have a snapshot of what your network server looked like at the end of the day. In the worst-case scenario, such as a fire, flood or theft, the offsite tape will allow you to restore the data to a new computer. If you think your office is immune to a catastrophe, consider lawyers who had offices in the World Trade Center when it was bombed or attorneys in the Sparta or Bound Brook areas who were hit with major flooding in the past year. Making regular backup tapes is the first step and taking them offsite provides the comfort that you have a copy of critical files should disaster strike.

Make sure you also have a copy of the tape software used to make the backup. You will need this to set up a new computer and restore the software. Be sure you stay relatively current with the model of tape backup so you can purchase a similar one for a new computer if that should become necessary.

Even if you don’t have any critical data on them, laptops and desktops also should have backups performed. Most software today has program files installed locally on each computer with the shared data and documents located on a central server. Often, there are special configuration files also stored on each user’s local computer. While there often is nothing that can’t be recreated on a laptop or workstation, the amount of time required to reinstall and reconfigure each application might justify the purchase and regular use of a portable tape backup for the firm’s workstations and laptops.

Make sure your backup tapes are doing their job. Review the log file to make sure files have been backed up and periodically restore a file to ascertain that the files that have been backed up are really on the tape. Tape drives also can become dirty, so you might purchase a tape-cleaning kit to use once a month to keep the drive working properly. Most tape software also includes utilities for retensioning the tapes. This should be done occasionally to ensure the tape works properly. Tapes also wear out over time, so be sure to replace them at least once a year.

Critical programs such as billing, accounting and case management should be backed up daily through the applications onto either another hard drive, a zip drive or a CD-ROM if you have a CD-ROM writer (also called a burner). Firms buying new computers are advised to purchase at least one computer with a CD-ROM writer since they are quite useful for backups and archives, as well as a more flexible way to transport large databases or copies of documents outside the office.

If your computer has ever crashed, you probably have encountered the Scandisk program. When restarting a computer after a crash, there’s a warning that your computer did not shut down properly and you’re asked to run the Scandisk utility. You also can run this program directly from the system tools group of the accessories section of your programs. As part of its cleanup, Scandisk creates a number of temporary files that usually are stored directly under the C Drive and have names starting with FILECHK.

Even if you’ve never experienced a crash, there may be files in use while programs were running but didn’t delete themselves when you closed the program. For most programs, these temporary files are stored in the C:\WINDOWS\TEMP folder. Before deleting these files, exit all your applications. Open Windows Explorer, either by holding down the Windows logo key (usually to the right or left of the space bar) along with the letter "E" or clicking on Start, Programs, Windows Explorer. Once you’re in Windows Explorer, double-click on the drive icon next to (C:), scroll down until you see the Windows folder, double-click on it, scroll to the Temp folder and double-click.

The fast way to delete these files is to press CTRL+A. This selects all the displayed files. Once they’re highlighted, press Delete. If you have a huge number of files selected, you may receive a warning that there are too many and they won’t go into your Recycle Bin. Say yes to deleting them anyway. It probably has been much too long since you performed this maintenance. If you use McAfee for virus protection, you may get a warning that the WebPoolFile can’t be deleted. This file is used by McAfee behind the scenes. If you get the warning, the files listed alphabetically after the WebPoolFile will remain in your temp folder. You can mark and delete them separately by using your mouse or pressing the shift key and arrow.

The files deleted from your Windows temp folder, or for that matter anywhere on your computer, are placed in your Recycle Bin just in case you change your mind and want to restore the file to its original location. If you’re deleting files to make more room on your hard drive, the act of deleting them does only half of what’s required. The Recycle Bin should be emptied regularly. If you don’t need to review the files in there, you can click the right mouse button on the Recycle Bin icon on your desktop (the screen that comes up when you first start your computer) and choose Empty Recycle Bin with your left mouse button. You also can open the Recycle Bin and empty it from the pull-down menu or from inside Windows Explorer.

The more you surf the Internet, the more clutter you add to your computer. Netscape and Internet Explorer save a copy of the pages you view when you browse websites. These "cache" files let you revisit the same web pages more quickly the next time by starting with the copy of the page stored on your local computer instead of reaching out to the Internet. Each version of the popular browsers locates the menu for deleting Temporary Internet Files or cache files in a different place. Usually under Tools or View then Options, you’ll find a button allowing you to delete these cache files. You also may want to set your browser so it automatically deletes cache files when they become large. The default setting for the cache might surprise you. Microsoft’s Internet Explorer is set to reserve 3 percent of the total hard drive space available.

If you use Windows 98, it includes several utilities that can help clean and maintain your computer. For eliminating Temporary Internet Files and other temporary files, you should look at the Disk Cleanup Tool located under System Tools in the Accessories program group under the Start menu. At minimum, this will permit you to eliminate Temporary Internet Files, Downloaded Program Files, temporary files and empty your Recycle Bin. There may be other boxes on your screen depending on your version of Windows 98 and choices added by your hardware manufacturer.

This utility also can be used, with caution, to remove unneeded Windows components or applications no longer necessary. If you’re unsure whether to remove something, check with an expert or forget about it. There also is a Disk Defragmenter utility in the System Tools group. This program will look at your hard drive and reshuffle files to place their components nearer one another after you’ve extensively deleted and moved files. The hard drive is essentially a cylinder with a table of contents pointing to specific locations on its surface. The particular pieces of programming code to make your word processor run can be scattered all over the drive. Defrag will do its best to move these pieces near each other so that the eye that reads the drive doesn’t have to travel back and forth as much to perform the tasks you request.

There are a number of very useful utilities buried in the System Tools group under Accessories. The System Information program will provide detailed information about what’s inside your computer. Under the Tools menu of the System Information program are a wide variety of additional applications for checking your computer’s health and well-being.

If you’re encountering problems, you may want to check the System File Checker, the Registry Checker or the Version Conflict Manager. The System File Checker looks at the files that make up Windows and verifies they’re in working order; if not, it will guide you through restoring the original. The Registry Checker will check for problems in the System Registry, which is a sort of table of contents of critical settings for all the applications and provides a chance to repair them as well as back up the current registry settings. The Version Conflict Manager is useful if you’ve installed updated versions of programs and are getting .DLL errors or version-related errors. In total, there are 10 separate utilities within the System Information program that can be extremely helpful when encountering computer problems.

There are many software-related components that should be monitored and updated regularly as well. Printer drivers, video drivers and .DAT files for virus software should be checked and updated. Programs also have regular maintenance or service releases that fix known glitches. Most companies have these files available to be downloaded or copied onto your computer at no additional cost. For example, if you use Microsoft’s Outlook Express, you’ll find an update to the software that better protects your computer from viruses, worms and other infections. Billing programs, case management programs, word processors and virtually every application used also will produce updates that should be monitored and installed to keep current. Depending on the product and reputation of the vendor, you should use your own judgment about when or whether to install maintenance releases. My general rule of thumb on these is to wait a few weeks after a new maintenance release is available to ensure it does what it’s supposed to. Review what changes are being made to determine whether the changes are needed in your office before you decide to install new service patches.

The physical equipment also requires periodic maintenance. If you eat at your desk or have a dusty location (you’ll know by the number of times each week you need to dust your desk), your keyboard and mouse may be dirty. If you’ve had your computer for more than a year and have never cleaned the innards of your mouse, you’re overdue. You may even think you have a defective or unresponsive mouse when in fact, the culprit is dirt!

With the computer off, turn your mouse over and you’ll find a ball inside a ring that can be spun counter clockwise and removed. Flip the mouse again and the ring and ball will fall into your hand. Clean the ball by blowing any lint off it and gently wiping it with a lint-free cloth if you see any oil or residue on the ball. There are three rollers inside the mouse. Blow out the dust and remove any visible dust bunnies. If you can’t remove all the gunk by blowing, take a pair of tweezers to pull any stubborn pieces off the rollers. When finished, put the ball back in, place the ring on top and turn it clockwise until it’s snug. Using a mouse pad rather than your desk will result in better traction and response when you click. The easiest way to clean your keyboard is to turn it upside down and shake it out. If you’ve never done this before, you will be amazed at the amount of debris that falls from your keyboard.

The inside of the computer box — where circuit boards, the hard drive, CD-ROM drive and other components connect to the motherboard — also can benefit from periodic maintenance. Make sure the computer is off and to be safe, unplug it from the wall. There probably will be an accumulation of dust that should be carefully removed. While the case is open, it’s a good opportunity to reseat all the cables. Over time, connections between the components and the motherboard can loosen and cause all sorts of unexplained problems that can be difficult to troubleshoot. Erratic symptoms can sometimes be traced to cables that loosen occasionally.

The individual computer components should be cleaned periodically. There are CD-ROM cleaners, floppy drive cleaners and tape drive cleaners that can remove the gunk and make these parts run smoother. There are instructions with every printer cartridge about how to perform basic maintenance on critical components. These often are the same steps as on fax machines and photocopiers. You’ll get crisper copies if you maintain your output devices.

If you’re looking at fingerprints and dust all the time, your eyes will become tired. Don’t forget to clean your monitor regularly. Manufacturers recommend that you not use industrial strength cleaners or petroleum based solvents. Window cleaners can be used if you spray it onto a soft cloth until it’s slightly moist and then wipe the screen. It’s best to turn off the monitor. You can use a soft cloth lightly moistened with water or special wipes specifically designed for monitors. According to Dell, a major computer manufacturer, "Many products designed specifically for cleaning the screen of monitors may actually cause damage to the screen or leave undesirable residue behind."