Good Maintenance Practices; Keeping Your Computer Current - Lenovo 10HV Hardware Maintenance Manual

Good maintenance practices

By performing a few good maintenance practices, you can maintain good computer performance, protect
your data, and be prepared in case of a computer failure.
• Keep your computer software, device drivers, and operating system up-to-date. See "Keeping your
computer current" on page 50.
• Empty your recycle bin on a regular basis.
• Clean out your Inbox, Sent Items, and Deleted Items folders in your e-mail application on a regular basis.
• Clean up files and free up storage drive space and memory space occasionally to prevent performance
problems. See "Performance problems" on page 69.
• Keep a log book. Entries might include major software or hardware changes, device-driver updates,
intermittent problems and what you did to resolve them, and other issues you might have experienced.
The cause of a problem might be change in hardware, change in software, or any other actions that might
have taken place. A log book can help you or a Lenovo technician determine the cause of a problem.
• Back up your data on the storage drive regularly. You can restore the storage drive from a backup.
To back up your data, do one of the following:
– For Windows 7: Open the Lenovo Rescue System program. See "Accessing a program on your
computer" on page 38. Then, follow the instructions on the screen.
– For Windows 10: Use the File History tool. Right-click the Start button to open the Start context menu,
and then click Control Panel. View Control Panel using Large icons or Small icons, and then click File
History. Follow the instructions on the screen.
• For Windows 10, create a recovery medium as early as possible. You can use the recovery medium to
recover your operating system even if Windows fails to start up.
To create a recovery medium, right-click the Start button to open the Start context menu, and then click
Control Panel. View Control Panel using Large icons or Small icons, and then click Recovery. Follow
the instructions on the screen.

Keeping your computer current

In most cases, it is a good practice to have the most up-to-date operating system update patches, software
programs, and device drivers. This section provides information about how to get the latest updates for your
computer.
Getting the latest device drivers
Attention: Reinstalling device drivers will change the current configuration of your computer.
To get the latest device drivers for your computer, do one of the following:
• Download the device drivers that are preinstalled on your computer. Go to http://www.lenovo.com/drivers.
• Use the Lenovo program or Windows Update. See "Getting the latest system updates" on page 50.
Note: The device drivers provided by Windows Update might not be tested by Lenovo. It is recommended
that you get device drivers from Lenovo.
Getting the latest system updates
To get the latest system updates for your computer, ensure that your computer is connected to the Internet
and do one of the following:
• Use one of the following Lenovo programs to get the system updates, such as device driver updates
and software updates:
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Lenovo S500 Hardware Maintenance Manual