The Importance of Regular IT Maintenance & Updates

The next time an alert pops up on your computer or phone with a message that says it’s time to install an update, don’t dismiss it with the quickness of the latest TikTok video trend. These prompts that feel more like interruptions are for your own safety and there are a few reasons why you should make time to click update and enjoy the quiet serenity of a spinning circle or slowly moving progress bar on your phone or computer while the update installs.

When discussing technology with friends, family, and clients, I sometimes need to explain a concept or provide additional background on why I’m making a particular recommendation. When I find myself in this position, I  often find it helpful to use analogies to help explain. These work very well because they often allow one to understand the general concept without needing to fully understand the technical details. The analogy I rely on most often is when I compare a computer to a car. Miami is a city of drivers, we’re no Los Angeles but we hold our own, so most people here drive, are often car owners, and can easily relate. It turns out that cars have a lot in common with computers (and these days are more computer-like than ever before) and are well suited to the comparison.

One of the first things we learn about cars is that they require maintenance. The physical demands of driving on the mechanical components of a vehicle cause internal components to wear down. Additionally, vehicles are made of components that are (to a certain degree) designed to wear down, items like tires or windshield wiper blades. We know that we need to change our oil at regular intervals, and the same goes for our brake pads. In this respect, computers have some similarities but the components that require routine maintenance tend to be less of a physical nature.

The characteristic that makes computers so useful is their versatility, that is, their design as general-purpose devices. A computer can do almost anything we need and it’s because we decided years ago that as long as the core physical components (we call these components the hardware)  remain relatively the same, we can configure the logical components (we call this software)  to do, virtually, whatever we need.

It’s not uncommon that we make a mistake (or a few) during the very complicated process of designing, manufacturing or programming of our computing devices. Not unlike the mistakes that are sometimes made during the design or manufacturing of a vehicle or critical vehicle component. I’m sure we all remember having to take our cars in to replace their airbags a few years ago. Luckily, when a mistake is discovered in a computer software component it’s usually fixed, not by requiring us all to take our devices back to the store. Rather, it’s fixed by issuing new software which in this case is referred to as a “patch” or more commonly, a software update. Computers, network devices, smartphones, and other electronic devices have developed more and more functionality over the years and their capabilities vary broadly. The software written for these devices is often its most complicated and intricate component, which means there are many opportunities for issues to arise throughout these systems.

Our computers and smartphones run an “operating system” which is software specifically designed to manage the hardware that these devices use and allow other “application software” to be run. When issues are discovered in the operating system of a device it’s often imperative that it’s updated quickly to ensure the desired functionality and security of the device. Then there’s the application software, in the late 80’s through the early 2000’s we referred to these as “computer programs” and then we graduated to referring to them as “computer applications” and now, in the age of the smartphone we simply call them “apps”. These also require updates to fix issues to add functionality.

We’ve become so dependent on our computers, devices, and the infrastructure on which they rely that there’s an opportunity for bad actors to find issues in our computers, networks, and devices and exploit them to steal information and money. These opportunities only exist because we make mistakes and when a bad actor discovers one of these mistakes it’s referred to as a vulnerability. These vulnerabilities must be fixed (or patched) by the software maker so that we, the users, can be protected.

Software updates are critical to ensuring our devices and networks work as intended and stay secure. Additionally, there are certain actions that we must take periodically to ensure that our devices perform optimally. The most basic of which is the tried and true refrain to “restart your computer”. The reason you’ll often receive that as the first step to take when working through an issue is because restarting your computer or device will clear any programs from the system's short-term memory and gives the operating system something of a “fresh start”. This can and often does resolve the (hopefully temporary) issue at hand.

At Invizio we understand that your computers, networks, and devices are tools you use to do your best work. It’s important to make sure that they work in a safe, reliable manner. We help our clients with these important maintenance tasks, making sure that important software updates are installed promptly and performing automatic routine maintenance tasks that help with overall network and system performance. One of the biggest risks we face is that of an unpatched system and it can be time-consuming and complicated to ensure each computer and device is fully patched on your own. Our fully ManagedIT service might be just what you need for your company or organization. Where routine maintenance, software updates, and patching are part of our total offering.

Have a question (or two)? Reach out to our team at solutions@invizio.com.