Dales Computer Services

Recently I have visited numerous clients with problem computers. The most common issue is that their computers are running very slowly but recently I am seeing a rash of computers which are infected with viruses, spyware and other nasty problems contracted from the internet.

As I suggested in an earlier article making sure that you have up to date antivirus/antispyware software ensures that your computer runs more quickly and protects you from internet parasites. I recommend www.avast.com which is free for non-commercial use, or www.eset .com which is a good lightweight option for commercial users. Also ensure you access the internet via a router rather than a USB modem as routers come with hardware firewalls that completely hide your computer from potential hackers on the internet.

The biggest factor in keeping your computer safe and your data protected is how you and your family behave when using the internet. One of the most common scams on the internet is a banner warning that your computer is insecure or that it has problems. You are invited to download trial software which informs you that you have hundreds of errors or infections and that you need to purchase the software in order to clean or fix your computer. Almost invariably these programs are scams. No reputable software developer markets their products in this way.

You can avoid many of these scams by using www.firefox.com as your browser (available on Windows, Mac and Linux) and the useful free addon AdBlock Plus (see adblockplus.org) which allows you to exclude adverts from your browsing experience. It can be customised to your needs too, so you can choose not to alter your trusted websites in any way.

Having said all this, with the best efforts and good practices disasters still happen. When they do it is usually possible to sort out the problem but often the time cost of solving the virus or spyware issue is not cost effective and it is often simpler and more effective to reinstall your computer to its original factory settings. If you are going to do this the manufacturer supplied method often wipes everything from your system when it restores a factory setting, including your music, photos and other documents.

To overcome this it is important that you regularly make backups of your computer data at least. With DVD writers as standard in most computers and external USB hard disc drives dropping in price all the time it is feasible to do this very quickly and have a method to restore your computer back to a fully working state in minutes. I have yet to see a client that has any backups at all!

A very good solution for Windows computers is the program Acronis TrueImage (see www.acronis.com). It is not free software but it is very efficient at making backup “images” of you whole computer system in a few clicks which means your whole system including Windows, installed programs and all your data can be restored rapidly if required. The program also allows you to backup selected files and folders too. It works in a clever manner so that after an initial backup you  can then backup your system in increments (ie. just the bits of the system that have changed since the last backup). This means that after the first backup subsequent backups are extremely fast.

Using an external hard disc (such as a Seagate FreeAgent drive) is a fast and efficient method that you can unplug from your computer when you are not using it so that it cannot become infected if problems should strike.