Care and Maintenance

  • Use the following links to guide you through the care and maintenance of your laptop.

    Care and Maintenance
    Best Practices
    Troubleshooting

    CARE AND MAINTENANCE

    • Use only approved wipes for the screen- cleaners that are designed for LCD screens (regular glass cleaner cleaners that contain alcohol or ammonia and will cause damage).
    • While the computer is turned off, you may clean the keyboard, trackpad and surfaces with a lightly damp cloth. Never spray cleansers directly on your computer.
    • The trackpad can be damaged if not used properly. Never use a pencil, eraser or other object on the trackpad.
    • Don’t place heavy objects on top of the laptop. This may cause damage to the screen. In a pile the laptop must be on top!
    • Do not place stickers on the inside/outside of the laptop.
    • Be careful with the screen. Don’t touch the screen with your fingers or any other object.
    • Don’t place anything between the screen and the keyboard when you close the computer.
    • Use your laptop on a sturdy surface that allows for adequate air circulation. Placing the laptop on a pillow during use or blocking the air vents can cause it to overheat.

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    BEST PRACTICES

    When moving about with your laptop (From room to room and/or leaving campus):

    1. Eject drives and shared folders
    2. Save all open documents
    3. Put laptop to sleep (close the lid)

    Save and Backup Your Data:


    Data will be backed up if and only if you have your GOOGLE DRIVE FOR DESKTOP actively open and running. (Please click here for instructions on Google Drive Back Up)

    Once a week:
    • Make sure Manager (Mosyle) is open
    • Empty the trash
    • Restart or shut down (if you are not going to use your laptop for 2 or more days)
    • Clear your browsing data in Chrome
    Keep your Home Directory organized:
    • Keep your folders organized; documents in the Documents folder, movies in the Movies folder, pictures in the Pictures folder, and music in the Music folder.
    • Clean out your Downloads folder by deleting items that you no longer need or file the items you would like to keep in the correct folder (Desktop, Documents, Music, Pictures, or Music).

    Quit applications that you are not using:

    If you notice that your computer is sluggish or not performing as quickly as it usually does, try quitting any applications that you are not currently using to free up system resources and do a HARD restart by holding down the powerbutton until the computer turns off.


    To maximize daily battery runtime:
    • Turn down display brightness
    • Quit any applications that you are not using
    • See the lesson on Battery Life for more information.

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    TROUBLESHOOTING

    Follow the link below to view a comprehensive flow chart that will help you to work through common issues and problems.