- Description
IT/286
Computer Maintenance and Troubleshooting
Week One Discussion Questions
- In the PC World article “How to Survive: The Worst PC Disasters,” the author outlines 12 potential problems a computer system or user might encounter. Identify three such problems you have encountered. Which of these problems can you identify as having a high risk of occurrence? Explain your response.
- Consider the topics covered in “Basic Computer Troubleshooting at the Computer Hope.” How would you utilize the information provided in the Basic Hardware Troubleshooting section to resolve a computer issue you have previously encountered? Provide a few examples of diagnostic procedures and tools that may be readily adapted from the article.
Week Three Discussion Questions
- After reading the PC World article “Technology’s Most (and Least) Reliable Brands,” discuss how your behavior in a customer service role might affect customers’ perspectives on your brand.
- After reviewing the Macworld article “Solve Printer Problems,” discuss the process you would undertake to identify and rectify the cause of poor-quality printer output.
Week Five Discussion Questions
- The PC World article “Protect Yourself Against Application Sneak Attacks” identifies a number of potential problems that are referred to collectively as malware. Discuss how you might identify a specific category of malware and how you might remove it.
- Think of a time when a member of a team you were a part of was having operational issues with their computer. What diagnostic utilities were used, or could have been used, to diagnose and solve the problem? What was the problem? What was the cause? How would an effective team have prevented the problem in the first place? How might the Microsoft® Windows® Help utility have been used to prevent or troubleshoot future problems?
Week Seven Discussion Questions
- After reading the Journal of Information Systems Education article “Using Selected Options of the IPconfig Command to Teach Network Troubleshooting Techniques,” discuss the information and its usefulness in resolving network problems.
- After reading the Broadcast Engineering article “Network Troubleshooting,” discuss the first steps that must be taken when there are problems with the network. What is the difference between trace route and ping? How might the availability of resources on the central server appear to be network related?
Week One: Fundamental Diagnostic and Troubleshooting Techniques | |||
Details | Due | Points | |
Objectives | 1.1 Identify aspects of troubleshooting theory. 1.2 Identify diagnostic procedures and tools. | ||
Course Preparation | Read the course description and objectives. Read the instructor’s biography and post your own. | ||
Reading | Read Appendix A regarding the final project requirements. | ||
Reading | Read Ch. 4, “Form Factors, Power Supplies, and Working Inside a Computer,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Read Ch. 5, “All About Motherboards,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Read the section entitled “Troubleshooting the Motherboard and Processor,” of Ch. 6, “Upgrading Memory,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Read Ch. 7, “Upgrading Memory,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Read Ch. 8, “Supporting Hard Drives,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Read Ch. 9, “Installing and Supporting I/O Devices,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Read Ch. 10, “Multimedia Devices and Mass Storage,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
Participation | Participate in class discussion. | Ongoing | 10 |
Discussion Questions | Respond to weekly discussion questions. | DQ1 – Tues. Oct. 9 DQ2- Thurs. Oct. 11 | 20 |
Week Two: Tools, Diagnostics, and Troubleshooting for Computer Hardware | |||
Details | Due | Points | |
Objectives | 2 2.1 Apply troubleshooting techniques to solve a failed boot. 2.2 Apply troubleshooting techniques to solve memory-, hard-drive-, and motherboard-related problems. 2.3 Apply troubleshooting techniques to solve problems related to peripheral devices. | ||
Reading | Review last week’s readings. | ||
Reading | Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
CheckPoint Toolwire® Lab: Using the Add Hardware Wizard and Device Manager | Complete the lab using the following instructions:
· Log in to the student web page at https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/portal/portal/public/login.aspx
· Click on this week’s course page, then click the link to the Using the Add Hardware Wizard and Device Manager Toolwire® lab. A new window will open with its description. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Lab Access to begin the lab.
· Complete the lab using the Add Hardware Wizard and Device Manager as indicated.
· Create a Microsoft® Word document and paste a screen shot of the final screen of the lab. To take a screen shot, press the Print Screen or Prt Scr key on the upper-right-hand corner of your keyboard, open your document, then press Ctrl + V.
Post the Microsoft® Word document as an attachment. | Fri. Oct. 19 | 30 |
Individual Troubleshooting Computer Hardware | Review and complete Appendix B by writing a 150-word answer to each question. Post the worksheet as an attachment. | Sun. Oct. 21 | 90 |
Week Three: Power Supply Diagnostics and Repair | |||
Details | Due | Points | |
Objectives | 3 3.1 Identify procedures for measuring the power supply voltage. 3.2 Apply troubleshooting techniques to solve electrical system problems. | ||
Reading | Read Ch. 2, “Introducing Operating Systems,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Review Ch. 4, “Form Factors, Power Supplies, and Working Inside a Computer,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
Participation | Participate in class discussion. | Ongoing | 10 |
Discussion Questions | Respond to weekly discussion questions. | DQ1 – Tues. Oct. 23 DQ 2 – Thurs. Oct. 25 | 20 |
Week Four: Troubleshooting Operating Systems | |||
Details | Due | Points | |
Objectives | 4 4.1 Identify procedures for recovering an operating system. 4.2 Identify solutions to operating-system-related problems and error messages. 4.3 Identify recovery sequences for a failed application installation. | ||
Reading | Review last week’s readings. | ||
Reading | Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
CheckPoint Toolwire® Lab: Troubleshooting Application Installation | Complete the lab using the following instructions:
· Log in to the student web page at https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/portal/portal/public/login.aspx
· Click on this week’s course page, then click the link to the Troubleshooting Application Installation Toolwire® lab. A new window will open with its description. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Lab Access to begin the lab.
· Complete the lab.
· Create a Microsoft® Word document and paste a screen shot of the final screen of the lab. To take a screen shot, press the Print Screen or Prt Scr key on the upper-right-hand corner of your keyboard, open your document, then press Ctrl + V.
Post the Microsoft® Word document as an attachment. | Fri. Nov 2 | 30 |
CheckPoint Toolwire® Lab: Troubleshooting the Windows 7® Operating Systems | Complete the lab using the following instructions:
· Log in to the student web page at https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/portal/portal/public/login.aspx
· Click on this week’s page, then click the link to the Troubleshooting the Windows 7® Operating Systems Toolwire® lab. A new window will open with its description. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Lab Access to begin the lab.
· Complete the lab.
· Create a Microsoft® Word document and paste a screen shot of the final screen of the lab. To take a screen shot, press the Print Screen or Prt Scr key on the upper right hand corner of your keyboard, open your document, then press Ctrl + V.
Post the Microsoft® Word document as an attachment. | Fri. Nov 2 | 30 |
Individual Collaborative Troubleshooting Operating Systems Paper | Write a 1,400- to 1,750-word collaborative troubleshooting operating systems paper by following the instructions in Appendix C. Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines. Post your paper as an attachment. | Sun. Nov 4 | 150 |
Week Five: Diagnosing Operating Systems | |||
Details | Due | Points | |
Objectives | 5 5.1 Identify how diagnostic utilities are used to solve operational problems. 5.2 Describe how the Microsoft® Windows® Help utility is used to prevent and troubleshoot problems. | ||
Reading | Read Ch. 15, “Tools for Solving Windows Problems,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Read Ch. 16, “Fixing Windows Problems,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Read Ch. 22, “Supporting Printers,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
Participation | Participate in class discussion. | Ongoing | 10 |
Discussion Questions | Respond to weekly discussion questions. | DQ1 – Tues. Nov 6 DQ2 – Thurs. Nov 8 | 20 |
Week Six: Printer and Scanner Troubleshooting | |||
Details | Due | Points | |
Objectives | 6 6.1 Analyze data to determine the causes of printer and scanner problems. 6.2 Identify solutions to printer and scanner problems. | ||
Reading | Review this week’s readings. | ||
Reading | Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
CheckPoint Toolwire® Lab: Troubleshooting Printer Hardware in Windows 7® | Complete the lab using the following instructions:
· Log in to the student web page at https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/portal/portal/public/login.aspx
· Click on this week’s course page, then click the link to the Troubleshooting Printer Hardware in Windows 7® Toolwire® lab. A new window will open with its description. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Lab Access to begin.
· Complete the lab.
· Create a Microsoft® Word document and paste a screen shot of the final page of the lab. To take a screen shot, press the Print Screen or Prt Scr key on the upper right hand corner of your keyboard, open your document, then press Ctrl + V.
Post the Microsoft® Word document as an attachment. | Fri. Nov 16
| 30 |
Individual Troubleshooting Computer Hardware | Review Appendix D. Complete the Troubleshooting Computer Hardware assignment by writing a 150-word response to each question. Post Appendix D as an attachment. | Sun. Nov 18 | 120 |
Week Seven: Diagnostics and Troubleshooting for Computer Networks | |||
Details | Due | Points | |
Objectives | 7 7.1 Apply techniques to diagnose network-related issues. 7.2 Identify driver and network interfaces, protocols, permissions, and firewall configurations. | ||
Reading | Read Ch. 17, “Networking Essentials,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Read Ch. 19, “Security Essentials,” of A+ Guide to Managing & Maintaining Your PC. | ||
Reading | Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
Participation | Participate in class discussion. | Ongoing | 10 |
Discussion Questions | Respond to weekly discussion questions. | DQ1 – Tues. Nov20 DQ2 – Thurs. Nov 22 | 20 |
CheckPoint Network Troubleshooting Case Study | Review Appendix E for the four troubleshooting scenarios that represent typical networking problems. Complete the Network Troubleshooting Case Study by writing a 150-word response to each question. Format your case study consistent with APA guidelines. Post your case study as an attachment. | Fri. Nov 23
| 30 |
Week Eight: Diagnostics and Troubleshooting for Computer Security | |||
Details | Due | Points | |
Objectives | 8 8.1 Identify computer security technologies and diagnostic tools. 8.2 Recognize practices used in social engineering. | ||
Reading | Review last week’s readings. | ||
Reading | Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
CheckPoint Social Engineering Article Review | Read the article “A Comparative Analysis of Tools for Verification of Security Protocols” in this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. Write a 350- to 700-word review addressing the sequential process the article discusses that highlights a specific but common risk to computer security. Discuss the steps you must take to protect systems under your care from similar risks.
Post your article review as an attachment. | Fri. Nov 30 | 30 |
Individual Toolwire® Lab: Configuring Windows 7® Policies | Complete the assignment using the following instructions:
· Log in to the student web page at https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/portal/portal/public/login.aspx
· Click on this week’s course page, then click the link to the Configuring Windows 7® Policies Toolwire® lab. A new window will open with its description. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Lab Access to begin the lab.
· Complete the lab.
· Create a Microsoft® Word document and paste a screen shot of the final page of the lab. To take a screen shot, press the Print Screen or Prt Scr key on the upper right hand corner of your keyboard, open your document, then press Ctrl + V.
Post the Microsoft® Word document as an attachment. | Sun. Dec 2 | 80 |
Week Nine: Computer Maintenance and Troubleshooting Capstone | |||
Details | Due | Points | |
Objectives | 9 9.1 Troubleshoot an operating system problem. | ||
Reading | Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
Participation | Participate in class discussion. | Ongoing | 10 |
Capstone Discussion Question | Respond to the capstone discussion question.
· What skills do you think are most important for those who perform computer maintenance and troubleshooting on a regular basis? Why? Share a few of your favorite computer maintenance and troubleshooting resources. Discuss troubleshooting tips and strategies, and any resources that may have helped you understand areas where you struggled. | Tues. Dec 4 | 20 |
Final Project Maintaining and Optimizing Windows 7® Systems Lab and Study Guide | Complete the final project using the following instructions:
· Log in to the student web page at https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/portal/portal/public/login.aspx
· Click on this week’s course page, then click the link to the Maintaining and Optimizing Windows 7® Systems Toolwire® lab. A new window will open with its description. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Lab Access to begin the lab.
· Complete the lab.
· Create a Microsoft® Word document and paste a screen shot of the final page of the lab. To take a screen shot, press the Print Screen or Prt Scr key on the upper right hand corner of your keyboard, open your document, then press Ctrl + V.
· Create a 1,050-word study guide for the lab that describes the steps needed to maintain and optimize Microsoft® Windows 7® operations. The study guide must provide step-by-step instructions accompanied by descriptive screen shots.
Post the Microsoft® Word document as an attachment. | Sun. Dec 9 | 230 |