Computer System: Impact, Design, and Maintenance Report

This report provides a comprehensive overview of computer systems, encompassing their impact on various environments, hardware and software functions, and the comparison of different computer system types. It delves into the process of meeting client needs, specifically for ABC Company, by recommending and justifying a personal computer system. The report outlines the specifications of the system, including the operating system, processor, RAM, and graphics card, and justifies the selection based on the client's requirements for graphic design and video editing training. Furthermore, it describes the process of assembling a personal computer, including health and safety procedures, and the installation of the operating system. Finally, the report addresses routine maintenance tasks and the need for software upgrades in an existing computer system, providing a complete analysis of computer system design, implementation, and management.

Computer System
1

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................5
TASK 1.................................................................................................................................................5
1.1 Impact of computer system (CS) and evaluation it role in different environment....................5
1.2 Functions of computer devices..................................................................................................5
1.3 Comparison of different types of computer systems and suitability of usage in different
environment.....................................................................................................................................6
TASK 2.................................................................................................................................................8
2.1 Specification of system to meet client needs.............................................................................8
2.2 Justification and evaluation of recommended hardware system as per the client needs...........8
TASK 3.................................................................................................................................................9
3.1 Process of assembling the personal computer with health and safety procedures.....................9
3.2 Installation process of OS after the assembly of PC..................................................................9
TASK 4...............................................................................................................................................16
4.1 Routine maintenance tasks on a computer system...................................................................16
4.2 Need and issue of the upgrading the software in existing computer system...........................17
CONCLUSION.................................................................................................................................18
REFERENCES...................................................................................................................................19
2

List of Figures
Figure 1 Installation of Windows XP OS...........................................................................................10
Figure 2 BIOS by CD.........................................................................................................................10
Figure 3 Installation of Windows XP OS...........................................................................................11
Figure 4 Installation of Windows XP OS...........................................................................................11
Figure 5 Installation of Windows XP OS...........................................................................................12
Figure 6 Installation of Windows XP OS...........................................................................................12
Figure 7 Installation of Windows XP OS...........................................................................................13
Figure 8 Installation of Windows XP OS...........................................................................................13
Figure 9 Installation of Windows XP OS...........................................................................................14
Figure 10 Installation of Windows XP OS.........................................................................................15
Figure 11 Installation of Windows XP OS.........................................................................................15
Figure 12 Installation of Windows XP OS.........................................................................................16
3

INTRODUCTION
A computer system includes the computer, software; peripheral devices and hardware which
are require making a system. The ability of computer system is using the data as an input and
processes it to convert it into information in the form of output (Beal, 2015). It is working on the
binary system and use in different types of purpose. The following research has related to the
computer system. This study will explain the different aspects of computer system such as its
functioning, design or architecture, configuration of computer system and routine maintenance of it
(Balter, 2013).
TASK 1
1.1 Impact of computer system (CS) and evaluation it role in different environment
Impact of CS on social and work:
It has seen that from last 30 years, there are dynamic changes in the IT sector and this
revolution help in developing Computer System. The impact of CS can be seen easily on both social
and work. In the work aspect, CS made the every types of work faster, accurate and easier. The
people can share their information with any one in any area of world within a minute (Carpinelli,
2001). For example, in manufacturing industry, it has used to store the inventory level, save various
information, place the orders, making the budget etc. With the help of this, the requirement of
employees becomes decrease, enhance productivity and easy to manage work. Beside this, the
impact of computer system can be seen on society (Flynn and Luk, 2011). It provides the various
ways to the people by connecting to each other and shares the thoughts and views. Along with this,
it helps in increase the knowledge on any subject with the lots of resources.
Role of CS in different environment:
The primary role of computer system is home environment which provides freedom to the
users for sending the emails, using social websites and access the different applications to perform
the various types of tasks (Gunther, 2011). Second role is school environment because in the present
time, many of the schools are using the computer system to provide the education to the students in
most effective manner. The third role is in research areas because many of the researchers are using
the computer system in conducting the research and its analysis.
1.2 Functions of computer devices
Computer system is combination of software and hardware systems. Data processing,
conversion of information into data and displaying output are the common functions of CS. In
addition to this, the major features of it are speed, storage, diligence, automation, versatility and
4

accuracy. The functions of hardware and software devices of computer system are as follows
(Mano, 2007).
Hardware components: It is a physical structure of computer and its parts which can be easily seen
and touch. The hardware of it can be divided into the different sections which are as follows.
Input devices: These are used in giving the commands and input the data into the system. These
devices are pen drives, mouse, keyboards etc (Andrew, 2012).
CPU: It is an inbuilt chip in the computer system which helps the computer to take decisions
according to the given instructions and process the data. There are three sections of CPU: control
unit, ALU (Arithmetic Logical Unit) and main memory.
Output devices: These are used to display the computer results in the different format by using
monitor and printer.
Storage devices: CD ROMS, hard drives, USB, external hard disk, floppy etc are used for store the
information to increase their accessibility (Goodier, 2002).
Software components: It can be categorized into three sections: application, system software and
utility software. Application software is a set of instructions which help the computer system to
perform the different types of tasks. Software section is used to increase the capabilities of the
system such as increase computing time, speed, accuracy etc (Hutton, 2004). Along with this, utility
software is used to increase the effectiveness of the computer system during performing the work.
There are different types of system software which increase the utility of it such as virus protection,
clean up tools etc.
There are various factors which help in determining the computer performance and these are
as follows.
 Speed of CPU
 Speed of motherboard
 OS system
 Size and capacity of RAM
 Better internet connection
 Good virus protection software
 Large capacity of hard disk
 Good response time of software applications (Hutton, 2008)
1.3 Comparison of different types of computer systems and suitability of usage in different
environment
The difference between the various types of computer systems is required to understand
5

because in the present time, they are come in the market with numerous size and shapes as well as
different processing capabilities. The types of computer system can be divided into four kinds by
considering the seven factors which are type of CPU, cost, size of main memory of CPU, storage
capacity, speed of output generation, number of users can access system in a single time and
processing speed (Four types of computers. 2015).
Supercomputer: It is specifically used for scientific calculations and required a special air
conditioned rooms to operate. The cost of this system is about $20 million and 50,000 times much
faster as compare to microcomputer. These types of systems are specialized in to perform the
difficult task such as earthquake studies, weather forecasting, testing of nuclear weapons and used
by the large organizations. These are also used in the work of research and exploration. For
example, NASA has used supercomputer for the purpose of launching of space shuttles, controlling
functions and space exploration work. Some examples of supercomputers are IBM's Sequoia,
Fujitsu's K, NUDT Tianhe etc (Four types of computers. 2015).
Mainframe computer: It is not faster as compare to supercomputer but equal in cost. It is used by
the many large companies and various government bodies to perform different types of operations.
This type of system is also required a large sized and air conditioned rooms because of its huge size.
It can store large amount of data. The most common application areas of mainframe computers are
banks, educational institutions, and insurance companies etc to store the huge data of variety of
service users. The popular mainframe computers are Fujitsu's ICL VME and Hitachi's Z800 (Four
types of computers. 2015).
Minicomputer: This type of computer system is using by the small sized firms and it is also called
Midrange Computers. It is a small machine which is only having a disk but not having the
capabilities of data processing and storage like Mainframes and Super Computers. Minicomputers
are developed not only for single users. For example, in manufacturing organization, this type of
system is particularly used for monitoring production process. K-202, SDS-92 and IBM Midrange
computers are the common examples of minicomputers (Four types of computers. 2015).
Microcomputer: It is a fastest growing computer system series in the world which includes
desktop, personal computers, laptops, tablets and smartphones. This type of system is cheaper as
compare to the above stated three computer systems. It is design for general purpose like education,
entertainment, work purpose etc. Dell, Sony, Apple, Samsung etc are the well-known
microcomputer system manufactures (Four types of computers. 2015).
6

TASK 2
2.1 Specification of system to meet client needs
A computer system specification is writing for that person who will use it in future and
written by that person who will develop a code, has a clear picture about the working of system.
The given case study is related to ABC Company which is planning to open a small branch in
London and wants to train the employees in the area of graphic design and video editing. In this
context, the different software has selected and wants to develop a class room with 20 computers
(Johnson and Kleiner, 2002). So, to recommend the appropriate system with final specifications,
some assessment should be needed which is as follows.
Understand the client business purpose: The first objective of meeting with the ABC Company is
to determine their purpose of business and needs. In the meeting, the unique characteristics and
business operations have to know because these are the major factors of competitive advantages
(Garner, 2012).
Listen to client: It cannot be said that every client has same business need and their requirements
are always same. So, it is important to listen ABC Company needs better than assuming their
requirements.
Invest time of develop clear specifications: It is a time to develop clear specifications of hardware
as per the need of ABC Company. With continuous discussion with the clients, the modifications
will be made according suggestions (Garner, 2012).
Review of specifications: Under this stage, the review of prepared specifications has conducted. If
there is any change has required then it can be done before buying or establishing the computer
systems in the class room for training purpose (Garner, 2012).
As per the analysis of the needs of ABC Company, the recommended computer system is
Personal Computer. The specifications of the following hardware system are as follows.
Operating system: Windows 8.0 or 8.1
Processor: 1 GHz
RAM: 1 GB for 32 bit OS and 2 GB for 64 bit
Hard disk space: 16 GB for 32 bit OS
Graphics card: DirectX 9
Display: 800x600 (System requirements. 2015)
2.2 Justification and evaluation of recommended hardware system as per the client needs
The recommended Personal Computer system is appropriate for ABC Company because firm
wants to give the training to its employees on graphic design and video editing. The following
7

recommended system will help the company to install the software applications such as Adobe
Photoshop CC 2014, Adobe Premiere Pro CC (2014) and PaintShop Pro X7 Ultimate. The high
speed RAM and processor will increase the performance of the system. The update OS will reduce
the issues and errors during installing the software.
TASK 3
3.1 Process of assembling the personal computer with health and safety procedures
As per the given case scenario, ABC Company wants to build microcomputer system in their
organization. Suppose firm wants to install Lenovo Personal Computer. During the assembling of
PC, some steps should be followed by considering health and safety process which are as follows.
Step 1: Open the empty case of computer with the help of tools for removing the top and side
panels (Mann, 2007).
Step 2: Install the power supply by inserting into the case and align it with the holes of case. Now
attach the power supply by using screws with case.
Step 3: Now, different components of the motherboard and it installation is taking place. The
components of it are CPU, heat sink, fan and RAM. After attaching all these components with the
motherboard, then it has attached with the case and connects it with screws.
Step 4: Here, the internal drivers are installing which are Hard Disk Drive. It is set in the given
place of case and tight with the screws (RAO, 2008).
Step 5: Under this stage, the external drivers are install which are CD driver, USB ports, optical
divers etc. These all are attach with the case according to their given place.
Step 6: Now, an adapter care had installed in the slot and the name of these cards are network
interface card (NIC), wireless NIC and video adapter card.
Step 7: After this, some internal cables are connected for data transformation and power supply.
Step 8: Now, the side and top panel have attached with the case and cables are joined with the
desktop, mouse, keyboard, printer etc (Saltzer and Kaashoek, 2009).
During assembling the Personal Computer, the health and safety is most important. During
assembling the different hardware devices, the assembler should not touch the open terminals of
internal cables and other power supply ports. At the time of connecting the CPU with the external
power device, it should be check that the switch of external power is off (Stein, 2006).
3.2 Installation process of OS after the assembly of PC
After assembling the PC, the nest step is installing operating system (OS) in computer
system. The most popular OS's are Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Ubuntu,
Mac OS X, Linux Mint and Fedora. The installation process of OC is as follows.
8

Step 1: Insert the booting CD into the CD drivers by switching on the power of CPU. When the
system starts, a black screen will appear on the system regarding the instruction of setup. The
process of OS setup can be seen in the below figure (Obrien, 2008).
Figure 1 Installation of Windows XP OS
(Source: Obrien, 2008)
If the screen is not appearing then again reboot the system by selecting BIOS by CD. Here,
the boot off process has done with the help of CD. After 40 second, a blue screen will appear related
to installation of OS. Then press Enter to continue and press F8 accept the licence agreement.
Figure 2 BIOS by CD
(Source: Obrien, 2008)
9

Figure 4 Installation of Windows XP OS
(Source: Obrien, 2008)
Step 2: The second stage is related to make the partition of the hard drive as per the requirement.
Press enter for continue of installation of OS (Obrien, 2008).
10
Figure 3 Installation of Windows XP OS
(Source: Obrien, 2008)

Figure 5 Installation of Windows XP OS
(Source: Obrien, 2008)
Figure 6 Installation of Windows XP OS
(Source: Obrien, 2008)
11

Figure 7 Installation of Windows XP OS
(Source: Obrien, 2008)
Step 3: Under this stage, the partition of hard drive will be performed and format of partitions are in
the form of NTFS. By pressing enter, it is needed to wait for complete the partition process. After
this, a new screen will appear which is showing in below figure (Obrien, 2008).
Figure 8 Installation of Windows XP OS
(Source: Obrien, 2008)
12

Step 4: Here, the configuration of PC will be performed. With the help of the many options and
requirements, the OS installation process will be complete.
Step 5: Under this stage, the network settings will be set by filling the different types of information
and clicking next (Obrien, 2008).
Figure 9 Installation of Windows XP OS
(Source: Obrien, 2008)
13

Figure 10 Installation of Windows XP OS
(Source: Obrien, 2008)
Figure 11 Installation of Windows XP OS
(Source: Obrien, 2008)
14

Figure 12 Installation of Windows XP OS
(Source: Obrien, 2008)
Step 6: Here, the Windows XP OS has installed in Lenovo PC. By restarting the system, the CD
will be removed by CD ROM. After this, the internet will connected and install the needed
software, browsers and antivirus (Obrien, 2008).
TASK 4
4.1 Routine maintenance tasks on a computer system
Routine maintenance is an important part of every computer system to assess its performance
and detect the errors which affect the speed and performance level of computer. For the routine
maintenance, there are several types of tools available such as backup and defragmentation tools.
This helps the users to perform routine maintenance tasks as per the needs (Wolf, 2008).
There are some types of backup systems available for computer for routine maintenance
which is as follows.
Full back up: In this tool, the selected files and folders for the backup have backed up. In the case
of subsequent backup process run, the whole files and folders are backed up again.
Advantage: Restore of files and folders are fast.
Disadvantage: Required more space for storage (Webmaster. 2012).
Incremental backup: It is used in the case of when some changes were making in the last backup.
15

Under this method, the only modified data will be saved.
Advantage: Faster as compare to the full backup system and required less space to store
Disadvantage: Restore process is slow (Webmaster. 2012).
Differential backup: It is used to take backed up of all changes which have made since the last full
backup. In this, on full backup has taken and then a subsequent backup will run to determine the
new changes in the existing data of last full backup.
Advantage: Required less space as compare to full and incremental backup.
Disadvantage: Restore process is slow (Webmaster. 2012).
Online backup: Here, the backup of the data has saved on Google Drive on Sky Drive. In this
method, the data has automatically saved by using internet connection.
Cloud backup: It is require an authorized login for taking the backup of the data from the system.
Here, an internet connection has connected with the computer for regular backup (Webmaster.
2012).
ABC Company should use the cloud backup strategy because it is more secured as compare
to the other backup tools. Only authorized person can login the software and access the information
as well as save the information. It secured the data from the theft, fire, floods, earthquake etc.
Defragmentation tools are used to determine the location of non-contiguous fragments of data
into the files and stores it into hard disk of computer system. This can be schedule in the system to
perform routine maintenance of computer which is executing by OS. The process of scheduling of
defragmentation is as follows.
 Click on start button.
 Type Disk Defragmenter in search option.
 Click on Disk Defragmenter.
 Click on configure schedule and select the option frequency,
Click on Daily, Monthly or Weekly
Select the disks for defragmentation
 Click on OK button (Schedule Disk Defragmenter to run regularly. 2015).
4.2 Need and issue of the upgrading the software in existing computer system
Every computer system required the up-gradation because of increase the speed and
performance. The things which are considering during updating the hardware or software are speed,
accuracy, response time, storage capacity etc. In the case of PC's of ABC Company are also needed
to upgrade with the time. But before the updating the operating system, some issues are required to
identified which are as follows.
16

Insufficient hardware: If any hardware is not supporting the present version of software then it is
needed to update the OS.
Setup error: During installing any software, if any kind of error occur then the probability of
upgrade OS is increasing (Balter, 2013).
Driver problem: It has seen that most of the drivers are not supporting the old version of OS then it
is need to update them with the time.
Activation issue: Most of the time, some applications shows the activation error during installation.
This is raise because current version of OS is supporting the application.
Performance problem: Sometimes the old version of OS has affected the work and performance of
the system. In this case, the requirement of OS update has increased (Gunther, 2011).
CONCLUSION
From the above study, it has concluded that revolution in IT sector has responsible for
development of computer system. It affects social life and working life of community. There are
different types of backup and defragmentation tools have available for routine maintenance of
computer system. It is important to determine the needs of upgradation of OS with the time to
improve the performance and accuracy of system.
17

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Andrew, A., 2012. Unconventional computing. Kybernetes. 41(3/4). pp.518 – 522.
Balter, M., 2013. Performance Modeling and Design of Computer Systems: Queueing Theory in
Action. Cambridge University Press.
Carpinelli, 2001. Computer Systems Organization & Architecture. Pearson Education India.
Flynn, M. and Luk, W., 2011. Computer System Design: System-on-Chip. John Wiley & Sons.
Goodier, J., 2002. Encyclopedia of Computers and Computer History. Reference Reviews. 16(1).
pp.37 – 38
Gunther, N., 2011. Analyzing Computer System Performance with Perl:PDQ. Springer Science &
Business Media.
Hutton, D., 2004. Molecular Computing. Kybernetes. 33(8). pp.1338 – 1339.
Hutton, D., 2008. Computing Reality. Kybernetes. 37(3/4).pp.563 – 564.
Johnson, S. and Kleiner, B., 2002. How to compute pain and suffering. Management Research
News. 25(3). pp.59 – 64.
Mann, C., 2007. Peer-to-Peer Computing: Building Supercomputers with Web Technologies.
Kybernetes. 36(3/40). pp 34-75.
Mano, 2007. Computer System Architecture. Pearson Education India.
RAO, P., 2008. Computer System Architecture. PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd.
Saltzer, J. and Kaashoek, M., 2009. Principles of Computer System Design: An Introduction.
Morgan Kaufmann.
Stein, R., 2006. The Computer System Risk Management and Validation Life Cycle. Paton
Professional.
Wolf, W., 2008. Computers as Components: Principles of Embedded Computing System Design.
Morgan Kaufmann.
Online
Beal, V., 2015. Computer system. [Online]. Available through:
<http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/C/computer_system.html>. [Accessed on: 5th
November, 2015].
Four types of computers. 2015. Introduction to Computing. [Online]. Available through:
<http://www.byte-notes.com/four-types-computers/> [Accessed on: 5th November, 2015].
Garner, S., 2012. Computer System Specifications 1: Communication or Confusion?. [Online].
Available through: <http://www.dragonpoint.com/computer-system-specifications-1-
communication-or-confusion/> [Accessed on: 5th November, 2015].
Obrien, J., 2008. How to Install Windows XP. [Online]. Available through:
<https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/support-software/How-to-Install-Windows-XP-36/>.
[Accessed on: 5th November, 2015].
Schedule Disk Defragmenter to run regularly. 2015. [Online]. Available through:
<http://windows.microsoft.com/en-in/windows/schedule-regular-disk-
defragmenter#1TC=windows-7>. [Accessed on: 5th November, 2015].
System requirements. 2015. Specifications. [Online]. Available through:
18

<https://www.microsoft.com/en-in/windows/windows-10-specifications> [Accessed on: 5th
November, 2015].
Webmaster. 2012. Types of Backup. [Online]. Available through: <http://typesofbackup.com/>
[Accessed on: 5th November, 2015].
19