PC Upkeep, Maintenance

empiregamer22 · Sep 15, 2015

Hey guys,

I recently built my first PC and everything appears to be going well, thankfully. I would love to take excellent care of the thing and would just like to know any tips you guys might have for doing so. In terms of Windows Update, does that install all necessary drivers for hardware? Or does it simply make amendments to OS related problems? Are there any sort of apps/programs which allow for me to closely monitor my PC's performance in relation to what it ought to perform at? Thanks for any forthcoming help, people on here are great!

why_wolf · Sep 15, 2015

Which version of windows do you have? Regardless windows update will perform bug, security, functionality (more so in win10) and driver updates (slower than straight from manufacturer and only for some things) updates. So yes it will do the job or at least try to. For a first time install you really should get the drivers for your related components straight from the manufacturer.

The only driver you will be updating (with any frequency) post setup will be for your GPU and those both have their own separate programs that will auto update themselves if you install them. Just go the manufactures website and get the latest driver and you will be fine.

As for 3rd party update monitoring programs no, just no. There are many many malware programs that pretend to do this stuff do not install them for the love of god. Same thing with ones claiming to keep your PC in tip-top shape.

boosted1g · Sep 15, 2015

Windows updates simply patches security holes and bug fixes to the operating system.

There are programs out there that can download new drivers, but be weary as a lot of those programs are in fact malware.

CCleaner is the best app for keeping up on Computer Maintenance.
From this software you can clear out all the junk data including internet/program cache, temp internet files, system cache, old restore points, and much more. You can scan and remove unnecessary registry keys (this wont be an issue for a good year or more), and also prevent unneeded programs from startup.
If you have a HDD and not an SSD drive then you will also want to defragment the drive every 6 months to a year.

You can download benchmark software if you want to monitor PC performance but that is taking it a step beyond, just stay on top of maintenance and you will be fine.

Every 4-8 months (really depends on environment) you will want to clean the inside of the PC with a can of compressed air to get all the dust out.
PC needs to be turned off with power disconnected, also use a pencil or other object to prevent fans form moving as you blow them because otherwise it can wear out or even destroy the bearing.

The only other main thing to do as well is keep it virus free with a good program, and you can always scan it with malwarebytes if your antivirus misses anything.

sadab0 · Sep 15, 2015

Instead of using compressed air cans, I use a light duty leaf blower which works pretty well and is also is a lot less expensive in the long run, especially if you have multiple computers. Just make sure you don't touch any of the actual components inside with the leaf blowers tip and if you have a powerful one make sure you dial down the speed or your capacitors will blow off. You will have to buy some compressed air cans though to clean the GPU and CPU heatsinks. Take them out from the motherboard and then clean them or more dust will get in your case.

You should really monitor your hardware, I didn't find out my CPU was overheating until I ran some tests. If I kept it going at the least it would've really degraded the lifespan of the CPU. Use HWInfo and monitor your temps while gaming or using a stress test for a few hours.

I would also download Glary Utlities with CCleaner because sometimes it picks up things that CCleaner doesn't and Revo Uninstaller to uninstall your programs if you don't want them anymore. A lot of programs leave behind folders or registry values in with their default uninstaller that Revo gets rid of. CCleaner and Glary start with Windows by default so you'll have to disable that if you don't want it.

If you have a SSD, "Trim" it every once in a while. It's like defragmenting for a SSD. As for Antivirus there are a lot of threads and articles for good antivirus software, just do a quick google search or you can browse the forums here/somewhere else.

cats_Paw · Sep 17, 2015

Kinda.... nope.
Ok first thing is first:
You want an antivirus, a firewall a temporary and cookie cleaner and a malware searcher.
These are the plain minimums for a PC to be considered remotely safe.

Personally I use Avira free antivirus, Zeone Alarm free firewall, Ccleaner and Malwarebytes.

Thats on the software side.
Second, if you are using a router, Change the password to it. THey are always set as defaults and everyone can access them (I dotn mean wifi, i mean router password).

Third, If you really care about maintenance, you need 3 things:
1. A power surge protector that is actually any good (I use brennensthul but I am not going to tell you what brand you should buy, do your own research).
2. Something to clean the dust. Compressed can air will be good as long as its one moving a lot of air (high pressure one). I use 1 Can per moreless 6 months (but I produce a lot of dust... in case you dont know 90% of dust is dead skin flakes).
3. Thermalpaste replacement. This is a bit subjective. I do it every year when the summer starts. Some say it can be done each 3 years, but I found out it works better done every year. Personally I use Arctic Silver 5. Make sure you learn how to use thermal paste correctly, there is a lot of missinformation about this.

Finally, if you are REALLY paranoid or love your computer with questionable devotion, I suggest running often programs like HWmonitor and Coretemp to keep an eye on your temperatures. (this should be done after each new thermal paste change to make sure everything is set correctly).

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PC Upkeep, Maintenance

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