At least once a year, you should remove the CPU housing and blow out the insides of your computer system. Any source of compressed or forced air can be used for this purpose, including using the blower end of a canister type vacuum cleaner. The hard disk drive on a computer system, the primary permanent storage area for programs and data, also needs regular maintenance, to prevent storage problems and the potential loss of data. At least once a week you should run disk diagnostic and virus scanning software, just to insure the health of the hard disk and your system. Backups should be made of critical software, data and information as well, just in case a system crash occurs.
Backup files are the responsibility of the computer user.
Computer equipment is temperature sensitive. Although it might not be thought of in terms of traditional maintenance, you should make sure that the room temperature in which you house your computer equipment is kept at a uniform level. Anywhere from about 65 degrees to 85 degrees Fahrenheit is acceptable. In addition, keep computers away from windows, heating ducts and doors that directly open to the outside. If temperature seems to become a problem with a computer system, the first line of defense is to periodically open your system and to pull and re-seat expansion cards and ribbon cables.