Computer System - Setting up, Installation and Maintenance

This article discusses the process of setting up, installing and maintaining a stand-alone computer system. It covers hardware and software installation, routine maintenance, and possible improvements. The article also includes a test plan for the new stand-alone computer.

Running head: COMPUTER SYSTEM
Computer System
[Name of the Student]
[Name of the University]
[Author note]

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Introduction:
Stand-alone computer or a laptop is associated with the operating by itself without any
kind of connection from the LAN or the local area network or the WAN or the wide area
network. Despite of being connected to the network it still exists as a stand-alone PC and this
would be working as long as the network connection is not mandatory for its general usage
(Batagelj & Solina, 2017). As an ICT technician it is vey important to secure the entire system
along with arranging a routine maintenance plan for the entire system. Some of the essential
security measures have been discussed below. Stored data are very important for any
organization so it is essential to regularly backup the data so as to make sure that the in case if a
data is lost then it can be revived.
Setting up of the Equipment’s:
The first step included in the process of setting up the new standalone computer system is
to become sure about the fact that there exists a clean along with an open workspace where
plenty of room is provided in order to move around. Before touching any of the computer
equipment’s it is necessary to be sure about the fact that the one who is touching the components
is attached to a static mat (Siewiorek & Swarz, 2017). This is to be done because there might
exist some static electricity in the components and when someone touches the components might
get an electric shock. But by having a mat which would be working as a earth plug would assist
the electricity to flow through the body of an individual and into the mat so as to have a
neutralized position. After getting attached to the anti-static mat it is possible to continue with
the work by avoiding any kind of nasty shocks. The RAM and the hard disk present at the side of
the computer is easy to put in or is easy to replace and the reason lying behind this is that there

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exists big open slot which can be easily seen from outside. Besides this the wires that get connect
to the hard drive and to the mother board are distinct in nature and gets connected only to the
hard drive.
The next thing that is to be plugged in the computer is the mouse and the keyboard which
are very easy to plug in and the reason lying behind is that there exist special slots for the mouse
and the keyboard in which these two things are to be plugged (Collberg & Proebsting, 2016).
The modern-day mouse and keyboards can be plugged in the USB slots or are wireless which
have a USB receiver that is plugged into the computer. After the mouse and the keyboard there is
the monitor which is to be attached with the PC. This is generally done by plugging in the power
cable to the mains and the then to the ether along with the HDMI, DIV-I and the VGA. Lastly it
is to be made sure that the computer is turning on.
Fig 1: Usage of the anti static mat

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Fig 2: Keyboard
Fig 3: Port for inserting the Keyboard
Fig 4: Mouse
Fig 5: Port for inserting the Mouse

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Fig 6: Connecting the monitor
Fig 7: Connecting the monitor with the CPU
Installation of the hardware:
At first it is necessary to remove the hard drive in order to check it and to see if it is
working or not. After checking this the hard drive needs to be installed (Debuse & Lawley,
2016). Followed by checking the hard drive it is necessary to check the sound card and once all
this are checked they needs to be tacked in and should be made sure that they been installed in a
correct way so as to make the system function in a proper way.
Then there is a need of installing the graphics card in the computer which would be
greatly improving the image quality which are presented in the screen. There is a specific slot

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where the graphic card is to be fitted. Lastly in the final stage it is to be made sure that all the
components are present in the computer and the are connected with the correct wire.

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Installation of the Software:
Operating system:
When the computer is switched on, the key F12 is to be pressed so as to boot up and open
the BIOS menu. The operating system software package is stored in he USB drive or in the CD.
This USB or the CD is to be connected with the computer so as to install the OS. When this
components consisting of the software package gets connected to the PC a message would
appear that is “Press any key” and once any key is pressed the loading bar would appear. Once
the program gets loaded the OS preference screen would appear and this is to be set to the
keyboard layout and the language as well. Then we have to just click on the install button on the
screen which shows the message “Install now”. But before that it is necessary to click on the
agree terms and condition button so as to proceed with the installation and this is to be to be done
by selecting the check box stating the message “I accept the Terms and conditions”. After this an
option is provided between the upgrade and custom (advanced). The Custom option is to be
chosen as the software is just being installed not upgraded.
While choosing the storage for the operating system we have select the main home folder
of the computer that is the C: drive (Dumais et al., 2016). Once the destination folder is chosen a
checklist would appear and this would eb showing the things that needs to be installed and
completed. After completing the checklist, a new progress bar would eb appearing on the screen
n which would be showing the time left in order to finish the process. After all the installations
gets completed the OS window will popup depicting the home screen.

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Installation of the office:
Firstly, we have to click on the install icon and once the install icon is pressed a dialog
box would appear which would ask for the product key which is provided in the box in which the
disk is kept. After entering the correct product key, we have to click on the install now button so
as to start the installation process. After installation we have to click on the “Go to Office
Online” so as to start the program. However, before it is to eb made sure that the computer is
connected to the internet.
Installation of the Antivirus:

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Firstly, it is to be made sure that the installer is opened and when it is opened it would eb
depicting a message box which would be saying this would be making some changes to your
computer then we have to click on the yes button so as to allow the process as it needs
permission for starting the installation of the antivirus (Van Ark et al., 2016). After this, a
progress bar would appear showing the progress of the installation process. Then the language
preference needs to be set and after this a dialog box would appear asking for agreeing with the
terms and condition and there we have to click on the check box so as to proceed with the
installation. Followed by this we have to click on the full protection button so as to activate the
full usage of the new antivirus software that is installed in the computer. In case of express
installation and custom installation we have to choose the express installation as this is done
automatically without any kind of effort and also does the setting automatically as well. After
this the anti-virus would be updated to the latest version from the internet. Once the update is
completed a fully operational antivirus system would be obtained.
Possible improvements:
Routine maintenance in stand-alone computer i9ns very important and this can be done
by the following ways:
Organisation and Naming of Files:
It is necessary to make sure that navigating to the virtual space is easy along with making
sure that the file and folders are provided with names which are suitable and are extremely
helpful while working with the computers.

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Back-up Procedures:
Backing up of the files in some other disks or in some virtual space like the clouds is very
helpful in cases when the data gets lot. Physical storage space might be consisting of external
Hard Drive, USB Flash Drive or other forms of media. Loss of data might be occurring due to
numerous reasons and some of eth most common reasons due to which data is lost includes the
following: something as simple as a coffee spill, virus, Natural disasters and Malware, and many
more.
Automatic Scheduling and Deletion of unwanted data:
Automatic scheduling is possible which would be helping in deleting of files within a
specified folder and this is to be set up by the user (Collberg, Proebsting & Warren, 2015). This
type of automatic scheduling of the deleting process is done for the temporary folders and this is
generally done so as to make sure that all this type of folders is not having masses of data which
are unnecessary. Deleting of the unwanted data is mainly aimed towards the recycle bin which
means once the file is deleted it means that the file is not probably needed for any further usage.
In order to delete any file permanently, firstly the file needs to be deleted from the folder and
then from the recycle bin. The recycle bin is present in the desktop and would be depicted as
such that it has files inside it and would appear to be empty in cases when there are no files.
Archiving, Defragmentation:
Defragmentation is the process which is generally considered to be a good process of
keeping the computer performing at a good speed. Which means that defragmentation helps in

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fastening the performance of the computer and the major reason lying behind is that
defragmentation helps in finding the data present in the hard drive at a much faster rate than the
cases where the data is stored in a scattered form all across the hard drive. This is generally done
by moving of each and every data pointers in a sequential way which means that there is no need
of searching each and every position of the hardware by the computer. This is mainly done in
this way because locating a file amongst all the file stored in a single area of the hard disk, is
very time consuming.
Deleting Temporary Files:
Deleting the temporary files generally refers to the temporary files that gets into the
computer due to the usage of the internet and this also includes the cookies and many more.
Deleting of all this type of files is very easy and is generally done by going to the option menu
present in the browser which is being used (Fayer, Lacey & Watson, 2017). Changing of certain
settings also helps in removing these files and this removal of the temporary files is done as soon
as the browser is closed or whenever the computer is booting up. The usage of cookies helps in
making the process of internet browsing much easier and the major reason lying behind this is
that the Cookies saves the login information of the user in to small text files, and when these
cookies storing the small texts are not removed for years of internet surfing would lead to taking
up of lot of space in the hard disk.
Evaluation of the System:
The components included in the stand-alone system is to be constructed at a decent
price along with most of the components includes have also worked out in a proper way. The
results obtained from the tests consisted of no failure and it is likely expected that sufficient
risks and damages are likely to be faced by the entire system. The hard and the software chosen
is considered to be the ideal range of packages that is associated with direct dealing with the

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various and of issues and users who are capable of doing all type of works from the designing
process to the spread sheet, to addition of any kind of other personal software applications in
order to conduct further works like financing and many more. Updated versions have been
included in the machine acts as a standing tower for the computer and this includes the
addition of a powerful fan and many more. Besides this the machine is entirely silent while
operating with no noise at all. All the tests have been listed below:
Test plan for the new stand-alone computer
Type of Test Expected Result Actual Result
Opening of the
various Software
applications and their
working as
Opening of Microsoft
Word without any kind of
errors, along with opening of
Google Chrome without any
kind of errors.
The Word launches as
desired, Google Chrome
launches as desired
Testing if the setting
of the Default folder is done
in a correct way
Checking of the fact
that if the default folder in
word is in the correct
location
The words default
folder is correct and the files
gats saved in the correct
location
Checking if the
Desktop shortcuts are going
to the right place or not
The shortcut of
Google Chrome helps in
opening the Google Chrome
application, shortcut of the
Microsoft Word helping in
opening the Microsoft Word,
The shortcuts tested
and the shortcut helps in
opening the correct
application
Testing if the correct
device drivers have been
Absence of any kind
of errors in the Device
In the device manager
there is no occurrence of any

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installed or not Manager kind of errors
Testing if the correct
date and time are being
shown
Checking the time
and date shown in the task
bar, which is to be followed
by comparing this with a
reliable source of the time
The date and time
shown in the task bar is
absolutely correct as it shows
the same time and date
shown by the clock on the
internet
Working of the Start
menu options as intended
Log Off: checking if
the system logs off in a
proper way, Shut Down:
checking if the system shuts
down in a proper way,
Restart: checking if the
system restarts in a proper
way
The Log off worked
in a proper way, shut down
option was also successful as
it turned off the computer in
a proper way, restart was also
successful as the PC restarted
in a proper way.
Test 1: Software applications open and work as intended
Opening Google Chrome

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Google Chrome opened without any problems
Opening Microsoft Word

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Microsoft Word opened without any problems
Test 2: Default folder settings are correct
Default folder settings in word are correct
Test 3: Desktop shortcuts go to the right place

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Fig : Google Chrome desktop shortcut
Google Chrome opened without any problems
Microsoft Word desktop shortcut

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Microsoft Word opened without any problems
Test 4: The correct drivers are installed
Device Manager opened with no errors
Test 5: The correct date and time are set

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Time and date on my PC
The time according to google
Test 6: Start menu options work as intended
Shut down button the the start menu worked properly

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Log off button on the start menu worked properly
Securing the standalone computer:
This are the type of computers which are not connected with any other computer or any
kind of networked devices and this mainly includes the switches, hub or a router. They are also
not connected to the internet or a local area network or a LAN. These computers are capable of
running various type of operating systems like the windows, Linux or MAC (White, Fisch &
Pooch, 2017). Stand alone computers specially emphasize upon the process of securing the data
that is kept inside the physical security of the computer along with controlling the access of eth
data as well. Some minimum steps to be taken in order to secure the stand-alone computer have
been listed below:
Providing Physical security to the stand-alone computer:
This can be done by several ways one of which is configuring the BIOS to booting of the
computer only from the hard drive and this in turn do not allow the computer to get booted from
any other diskette or CD ROM drive (Le Blanc, Spielman & Rice, 2016). Besides this providing
of pass protection to the BIOS is also one of eth security measure as this does not allow anyone
to change the BIOS setting without authorization. Securing the computer that consists of the
data existing in the locked room. Besides this the network interfaces are to be removed and
disabled so as to make it non-useable.
Justification for Controlling access to the data:

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The access to the data is to eb restricted by the various security features that are available
in the operating system. Along with this there is need of strong password. There should also
exists a password protect screen saver which would be activated after each three minutes of
inactivity. Encryption is to eb enabled for the various directories which consists of secure data.
“Windows Encrypting File System” is present in the OS and, this works in a very well way.
Along with this there also exists additional encryption software applications as well. Besides all
this installation and periodic running of the secure erasure program also needs to be conducted.
This is to be done on a monthly basis or on a weekly basis. It should be made sure that o copying
of moving of the data is being done from the secured directory for any kind of reason.
Conclusion:
Computers connected or not there is always a need of securing them as they contain very
essential and important data which are very often confidential in nature. It is often seen that the
users are not aware of the sensitivity of the data and so proper security measures are not put in
place. So it is very essential to enforce certain policies which would be having internal controls
in order to authorize the user so as help them in having the access to certain sensitive data and
this would eb helping in preventing any kind of confidentiality breach along with ensuring
integrity and availability of the data to the authorized users. It is also essential to back up the day
on a regular basis and keep a copy of the entire system in some secure place off-site so that in
case if any of the on-site backups are destroyed in some emergency can still be restored from the
data stored off-site.

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Collberg, C., & Proebsting, T. A. (2016). Repeatability in computer systems
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