If you use a computer, doesn't matter if it's Windows based, Linux based or BSD based, all computers require maintenance. Since most of you probably use a Windows based computer at work, that's what I'll write about today.

Like most things in life, a computer requires maintenance. It requires that you keep the hard drive clean, you keep it defragged, and that you make sure you have the latest hot fixes or updates installed so you are secure and running at peak performance.

I like to cleanup my machines either manually or via our MSP software, which automatically takes care of these routine tasks. You can use our tools to automate such tasks, or you can do them manually fairly easily.

Over time, your hard drive will need some files deleted. These are files that are backups that Windows makes before it applies hot fixes or updates, if you have never done this, it can be taking up significant space on your drive. An easy way to cleanup hard drive of unwanted or archived data is by running the drive cleanup wizard.

You can run the drive cleanup wizard by simply typing in cleanmgr followed by enter in the Run box and following along. Once the cleanup is done, you need to defragment your hard drive. An easy way is to again, from the Run box type in defrag c: followed by enter, this will defrag your C drive.

If you suspect your PC maybe infected/infested with something, a good free utility to use is the Safety Scanner from Microsoft. Simply visit https://safety.live.com and click on Full Service Scan, be warned, depending on the size of your hard drive, this can take a few hours. This process also cleans the system registry so it's a good habit to run this once a month.

Finally, make sure you upgrade to Microsoft Update so you can get free updates to most Microsoft products as opposed to only Windows updates. Once a month or so, you should go to Microsoft Update site. There are several updates that will not install by themselves so you have to manually install them. Be fore warned however, if your machine is already infested with malware, some updates may cause problems with your setup.

There are some more things that power users can do to keep their PCs shipshape, but the above tasks will do a great job of keeping your machine from getting too bogged down over time.