An Inside Look at Your Computer Guy's PC Repair Toolkit?

Answer 1

Computer repair is a lot like car repair. On one hand, there are the folks for whom the inner workings of computers are a mystery. Professionals who do it for a living are on the opposite end of the spectrum and then there are those tinkering hobbyists who fall in the middle. Regardless of where you fall in this list, it's important to understand the tools of computer repair. A well-stocked PC repair toolkit is vital to getting a home or office computer back online and some might be surprised at what's in it.

Software

Analysis and cleanup software are important parts of any PC repair toolkit. One example of important analysis software is Memtest86. Memtest, like the name implies, tests a computer's memory. It does this by asking each piece of RAM to perform hundreds of thousands of complex calculations. Failure indicates the memory needs replacement.

Cleanup software is also crucial. Viruses and adware can infest a computer, rendering it unusable. Antivirus software like Avast and Microsoft Security essentials are great, free tools. For free malware removal, your local PC repair tech might use Malware Bytes or Ad-Aware.

Tools

Your neighborhood computer repair technician might not carry a pipe wrench or hammer, but some tools are definitely crucial. Even though modular PCs like those offered by Dell mean more internal parts are easily removable with plastic pull tabs, it's still important to pack at least a screwdriver set, hex wrenches and needle nose pliers. One necessary tool you may not think of for a PC repair toolkit is canned air. Computers are notorious for sucking in dust, lint and pet fur. Sometimes all a computer needs is a good cleaning.

Spare Parts

Finally, any good PC repair tech should carry or have access to a variety of spare parts. Anything from extra memory, keyboards and mice all the way to spare monitors are important in troubleshooting computer problems. Another key tool is a portable hard drive. If things are really bad and a computer needs to be completely wiped and have the OS reinstalled, vital documents and other data can be temporarily stored on the portable drive while the work is being performed.