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ComputeRx Laptop & Desktop Repair and Sales

Computer Software Maintenance

 

You get a brand spanking new computer, outfitted with the latest and greatest cpu, 8gb of ram, 2TB of hard drive storage, and within a couple of months it is as slow as the computer you replaced. ComputeRx has the answers for you on how and why this may happen. Also, your 8 year old computer that you replaced could probably easily be salvaged, fixed and perform even faster than that new "out of the box" experience. Below are the software services we offer:

  • System Speed-UP
  • System Tune-UP
  • Virus Removal
  • System Backup & Restore
  • Operating System Upgrades / Downgrade (Windows 10 & Mac OS X)

Click the Orange Arrow to find out more specifics, and when you might just need ComputeRx's software services!

 

System Speed-UP

The screenshot to the left shows this particular system running 104 processes and a cpu usage of 42% WITHOUT having any active windows open associated with any applications. Needless to say, this system took about a full 8 minutes to come to a usable state after starting up! Some pointers on having a fast/responsive system include:

  • A new computer out of the box will probably come with software that you would never use, also called bloatware. Even if you don't use this software there may be processes running in the background associated with that software that are still actively using system resources.
  • Software that you do actually use will also have processes that run in the background, without you actually actively using it, and will still get loaded when you go to boot your computer. Most of these can be disabled from starting up every time you boot your computer, and the program will still run correctly when you go to run the program.
  • By default, with Windows, there are a good amount of services that can be turned off. Some are for networked/business environments that have an on site dedicated server. Others may be just features that you do not use.
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    System Speed-UP

  • Some applications are inherently system intensive, these applications are known to have what is called a "large footprint". An autocad application will have a large footprint, because of the number of calculations, and graphics that are involved. However a lot of poor antivirus systems fall under this category, and can bring a decent equipped system to a crawl.
  • You can see what is running in the background by a simple control alt delete (then click Task Manger for vista & 7),  and to see how your system is handling running processes, click the processes and  performance tabs. Three main things to look for are:
  • How many processes are running? A typical Windows XP machine should have about 42, for Vista & 7 about 50. This is with active antivirus running, updates and the necessary windows processes.
  • How much ram is free?   This  will vary with how much total system ram there is. In a system with  2gb of ram, with no active application windows open, if less than half of that is showing up as available, then the amount of processes running should be dealt with. Also, it could be that only one large footprint, poorly written, or not running correctly application is utilizing most of the ram.
  • What is the total CPU usage? If the cpu usage is constantly pegged at 50% or more then those processes that are constantly using the cpu should be looked into as they may not be running correctly.
  • A working knowledge of what to turn off and what not to is needed; not all services can be disabled. ComputeRx provides this for its Speed-UP service.
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    System Tune-UP

    Annoying white/red X's and exclamation point dialog boxes that pop-up can be a sign of something minor that is wrong with a program, something wrong with the registry, or a more serious problem with windows or hardware. Typical issues that ComputeRx can address include:


    • Corrupt files on the hard drive
    • Corrupt Windows registry
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    • Hardware driver issues
    • Operating system file system optimization
    • Windows registry optimization

    There are many tools and "magic" services out there that promise to fix and deal with all these common issues. I would advise against most of them as many of them leave your system in a worse state. They will either not address the underlying problem at all, or actually delete too much from your system making it in an unstable/unusable state. I would instead advise to bring it in to a reputable computer service company such as ComputeRx.

    Typical Speed-UP/Tune-UP Service Cost: $30 - $45

     

    Virus pop-up with fake windows explorer scan / security alerts

     

    Virus Removal

    Computer viruses are no doubt the most widespread, problematic issue dealing with pc's today . Viruses can range from simple annoying pop-ups to more serious ones that involve key loggers. As my rough estimate from what I have encountered over the years, 90% of the systems that were infected were not running an adequate antivirus system and/or the software that was on the system was out of date. The other 10% involved more with the user just not being precautious and careful with downloads, clickable links from emails and from social media sites, and websites they visited. Typical tell tale signs that your computer is infected with a virus include:



    • Annoying pop-ups that usually come up as soon as you boot up, telling you that you have viruses, or that there are hardware issues (if read carefully they will usually have incorrect grammar mistakes)
    • Website redirects (clicking on a link takes you to a completely different/unexpected website) / internet access issues (server not found / can not display webpage errors)
    • Missing files/icons, wallpaper being changed, homepage being changed
    • Programs that were once working refusing to run with a pop-up saying it is infected
    • Very noticeable slow downs, Windows not being able to boot at all

           XP Recovery Virus with fake hardware errors

    A good website that depicts many of the scareware viruses can be found HERE. An excellent tool that can help to get rid of Scareware is called Malwarebytes AntiMalware & it can be found HERE .

    Virus Removal

    The new "trend" with computer viruses can be grouped into a category called Scareware.The first signs that your computer is infected with Scareware are annoying , persistent pop-ups that are telling you that you have viruses or hardware errors. They usually will have a fake scanner that is no more than a video of sorts that looks like it is actually scanning your system in real-time, "finding" thousands of viruses or issues with your computer. They then present themselves with some way to pay for the program that pretends to get rid of the viruses or fix your system via a credit card or going to a specific website. This Scareware is a virus in itself, do not ever give out your credit card info and fall for the scam !

     Some of the nastier viruses out there can make it near impossible to run tools such as Malwarebytes, as they will block your internet access, hide everything on your computer, and make it very hard to run any program at all. Also, some are very well hidden and their goal is to remain undetectable such as the case with root kits. Most times the best remedy will be to backup everything, wipe and then restore the system ,and finally set it up so such viruses do not infect the system again (in addition to the user being informed of the importance of keeping things up to date and to be careful with where they are downloading from and links/sites they click on). This is explained in ComputeRx's System Backup and Restore service in the next section.

    System BEFORE ComputeRx's Backup & Restore service

    System AFTER ComputeRx's Backup & Restore service

    System Backup & Restore

    As mentioned, if a system is badly infected with a virus or severely outdated & with a numerous amount of issues, usually it is more beneficial for a complete backup and restore process. Over the years ComputeRx has worked to perfect this process and the end result is a nice clean, up to date system (and usually faster then when bought new) & and without losing any critical data and settings. All backed up data is also scanned to make sure viruses do not get put back on the system. What is backed up and restored includes:



    • Pictures, Documents, Music, Videos
    • Favorites, Bookmarks, Wireless settings
    • Outlook, Outlook Express, Thunderbird, AOL email & settings
    • Major Applications: Office,Quickbooks,Quicken,Itunes
    • Windows with latest service pack & hotfixes, antivirus, up to date web applications
     Once the system is restored it is still crucially important to keep your system up to date with Windows,Antivirus,& Adobe Reader. Adobe Flash, and Java Runtime should only be installed if needed. If you see that one of those in particular needs updates (usually by a pop-up by the system time), don't ignore them,these updates are usually security reason based. The rest includes scanning any downloads BEFORE opening them, and being very careful with clicking through links from emails and social networking sites.
    Virus Removal(without full backup&restore): $30-$45
    System Backup & Restore: $75 - $105