How Computer Hardware Works

COMPUTER HARDWARE BASICS

MICROPROCESSOR:

Microprocessor is the brain of any computer. It controls all activities inside the computer. Basically it performs 2 types of operations - arithmetic & logical operation (internally), read & write (externally). Read /write operations are performed on 2 types of devices - I/O and memory devices. It uses the “address bus” to select any “location” on these devices, sends a read/write signal over the “control bus” and then the information over the “data bus”.

MEMORY DEVICES:

The CPU stores all information in the computer’s memory. There are two memory types - RAM & ROM

RAM (Random Access Memory):

This volatile type is a read & write memory device. This loses its contents when power is shut off.

The types of RAM are

· DRAM (Dynamic ram) – is similar to a capacitor, as it tends to lose its contents and hence requires to be refreshed. This is the Computer RAM.

· SRAM (Static ram) – Is faster than Dram and doesn’t require to be refreshed. This is costly and hence only a limited amount is used as CACHE memory in the computer.

ROM (Read only memory):

ROM can be programmed using a programmer and then it acts as a “read only” device. This device is used as the textbook for the CPU in the computer and is called ROM BIOS. It stores all the basic information of programming the devices present inside the system as well as the POST (Power On Self Test) sequence. AMIBIOS and AWARD BIOS are the most common ROM BIOS.

The types of ROM are

· PROM (Programmable Read Only Memory)

· EPROM (Erasable & Programmable Read Only Memory)

· FLASH ROM

· EEPROM (Electrically EPROM)

· EAPROM (Electrically Alterable ROM)

I/O DEVICES:

Apart from passive memory devices, there are certain controllers in the system, which assist the CPU in performing various operations. These are referred to as I/O devices. These devices include Interrupt controller, Timer, Ports, DMA Controller, Floppy Drive Controller, CRT Controller etc.

BUSES & EXPANSION SLOTS:

These are the means through which communication between various devices of the computer takes place and the types are as mentioned below.

ISA (Industry Standard Architecture):

ISA bus consists of a 24-bit address bus and the 16-bit data bus. ISA can support 8MHZ clock speed.

MCA BUS (Micro Channel Architecture):

MCA bus is available either in 16 bit or 32 bit versions. It was developed in a new line of computers called the PS/2 (personal system 2). The clock speed is slightly faster (10MHZ instead of 8MHZ).

EISA BUS:

EISA has a 32-bit Address and Data bus and 10MHZ CLK speed.

VL BUS/VESA LOCAL BUS:

It is a 32-bit bus which was positioned local to the CPU and hence its name. Therefore it could support high bus speeds (that of the CPU).

PCI BUS:

PCI has many benefits over other bus types. First of all, it supports 64 bit and 32-bit data paths. So it can be used both for 486 and Pentium based systems. PCI can run up to 33MHZ speed and has the advantage of being isolated from the CPU. INTEL developed this bus.

PCMCIA: (PC Memory Card International Association):

The PCMCIA was first designed for expanding the memory in small, handled computers. PCMICIA’S bus width is only 16 bits, but a 32-bit version is on its way. There are three types of cards namely

· Type 1 (3.3 m thick)- used for memory card.

· Type 2 (5 mm thick)- used for modem and LAN adapter.

· Type 3 (10.5 mm0 thick) - used for most common applications like PC hard disk Cards.

ADD ON CARDS:

These are cards plugged on to the main board, the mother board (The one that houses the CPU & RAM/ROM Bios). Each performs specific functions of interfacing the Motherboard to peripheral device like mouse, Monitor etc. Some Add-ons are discussed below.

DISPLAY ADAPTER:

These interface the motherboard with the monitor and there are several types of cards. The variations are in resolution, no. Of colors supported and speed.

CGA (Color Graphics Adapter)

640 X 200 pixels

MDA (Mono Display Adapter):

80 characters wide 25 lines long

EGA (Enhanced Graphics Adapter):

640 X 350 mode

VGA (Video Graphics Adapter):

Advanced versions of SVGA/TVGA which start from a resolution of 640 X 480 pixel

AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port):

Introduced in the celeron/P II based systems, this caters to the demanding multimedia applications with its high performance.

IDE I/O CARD:

Supports the following functions.

SERIAL PORT:

Communication external to the computer is done serially (bit after bit) through this port. It is used to connect communication devices like mouse, modem etc.

PARALLEL PORT:

8 Bit data transfer takes place between the computer and an external device. It is typically used to connect a printer.

GAME PORT:

It is used to connect a joystick for playing games.

IDE (Integrated/Intelligent Drive Electronics) Interface: This interface is used to communicate with IDE Hard disks.

FLOPPY DISK CONTROLLER:

The FDC can support up to two floppy disk drives. The FDC is connected to the system bus and to the DMA controller. It performs data transfer in DMA mode.

SOUND CARD:

This is the card that adds audio effects to the computer by providing interface with microphone and speaker. This is used in Multimedia Computers.

PERIPHERAL DEVICES:

FLOPPY DRIVES:

1.44 MB & 1.2 MB are two types of popular Floppy Drives.

HARD DISK DRIVES:

ST 506 & ESDI are old types. IDE hard disks are popular because their price to performance ratio is very good. For very high performance, SCSI (Small Computer Systems Interface) is the ideal option, if price is not a criterion.

CDROM DRIVES:

CDROM drive is used in a multimedia system as it can support all types of CD ROMs – be it data CD, Audio CD, Video CD. It has a great advantage of storing about 650 MB of data in a single CD.

KEYBOARD:

Keyboard translates the keystrokes into letters or numbers. These letters are interpreted and the computer CPU depending executes commands on what was sent. Variations in terms of XT/AT, no. of keys, type of keys used may be observed.

MOUSE:

To interact with the pictures (ICONS), a special pointer device was introduced into the computer world. This device is known as mouse and is connected to the serial port.

The mouse contains a round ball that makes contact with two rollers-one for X-axis (the horizontal) and one for Y-axis (the vertical). Moving the mouse causes the ball to roll, and the ball, which is in contact with the two rollers, causes them to turn. This is used for moving clicking the mouse buttons makes a pointer head on the screen and selection.

SCANNERS:

In addition to keyboards and pointing devices, there is another very common method of getting data into the computer. A Scanner is used to scan an image (say from a photo) and editing may be done using a suitable software.

MONITORS:

The monitor receives video signals from the computer video adapter card and displays the video information as pixels (picture elements) on the monitor screen. A variety of monitors ranging from CGA mono to SVGA colour are available for users to choose from (though the former is totally obsolete).

CONFIGURATION SETUP:

This is where we define the system configuration. This is done only when the system is assembled and configured for the first time or when it is upgraded. (One may enter the SETUP by pressing “Del” key as the system is powered up). Different BIOS’ support different options but the most essential ones, which are found on all systems, are listed below.

DATE & TIME: It displays the correct Date & Time. It has to be set when system is first installed.

FLOPPY TYPE:

To define the Floppy drives connected (1.2MB or 1.44MB).

HARD DISK TYPE: To select the Hard disk type (Primary or secondary)

DISPLAY TYPE: Its select the types of video adapter used for the system monitor.

CACHE ENABLE/DISABLE:

This category speeds up the Memory access. (Default value: Enable) and defines presence or absence of cache memory.

QUICK POWER ON SELF TEST: Its speeds up the Power On Self Test after you power up the computer.

PASSWORD SETTING: This allows you to set the System password.

POWER MANAGEMENT: This category allows you to select the type (or degree) of power saving.

LOADING DEFAULT VALUES:

There are many parameters, which need to be defined in the CMOS setup, and one may not want to do so manually. This option loads certain default values, stored in the BIOS ROM, which have been defined by the manufacturer for optimal system performance.

ENABLE/DISABLE ON BOARD FUNCTIONS:

To enable/disable certain onboard functions like Floppy Disk Control etc (This applies only to integrated Motherboards where the ADD ON functions are integrated on the Motherboard itself).

PNP FEATURES: This category is used to configure the PCI Bus slots.

IDE AUTO DETECTION: This allows you to detect the IDE Hard drives automatically.

SAVING & EXITING:

This allows you to save the new setting value in the CMOS memory and continue with the booting process.

POST (POWER ON SELF TEST):

This POST firmware is stored in ROM on the motherboard. This POST is a series of a simple program to test and catch faults in different components and circuits. It tests the microprocessor, interrupt controller, PPI, DMA controller, ROM, RAM, peripheral controllers etc.

SYMPTOMS:

In case of error detection during POST, indications like error beeps/error messages helps troubleshoot problems.

SPEAKER:

With the help of speaker error beeps, we can troubleshoot faults. Each fault causes the speaker to emit different patterns of beeps.

DISPLAYED ERROR MESSAGES:

When system is powered on, error message will be displayed on the screen (Floppy disk fail), if the Video Adapter is functional.

DIAGNOSTIC CARDS:

The advanced diagnostic add on card captures details of POST sequence and displays a hexa code which may be used for in-depth & accurate diagnosis of a POST problem.

CDROM DRIVES:

A computer CD-ROM drive uses small, interchangeable, plastic-encased discs from which data is retrieved using a laser beam, much like music compact disc. And like a music CD, a computer CD-ROM stores vast amounts of information. This is achieved by using light to record data in a form that’s more tightly packed than the relatively clumsy magnetic read/write heads a conventional drive must manage.

The drive is controlled by a software in your PC that sends instructions to controller circuitry that’s either a part of the computers motherboard or on a separate board installed in an expansion slot.

How a CD_ROM drive works? · A motor constantly varies the rate at which CD-ROM disc spins so that regardless of where a component, called DETECTOR, is located in relation to the radius of the disc, the portion of the disc immediately above the detector is always at the same speed.

· The laser projects a concentrated beam of light that is further focused by a focusing coil.

· The laser beam penetrates a protective layer of plastic and strikes a reflective layer that looks like aluminum foil on the bottom of disc.

· The surface of the reflective layer alternates between lands and pits. Lands are flat surface areas; pits are tiny depression in the reflective layer. these surface are record of the 1s and 0s used to store data.

· Lights that strikes a pit scattered. But light that strikes a land is reflected directly back at the detector, where it passes through a prism that deflects laser beam to a LIGHT-SENSING DIODE.

· Each pulse of light that strikes the light-sensing diode generates a small electrical voltages. These voltages are matched against a timing circuit to generates a stream of 1s and 0s that can understand.

Author is an MCSE and having more than 8 Yrs. of Experience in Networking and System Administration. Has delivered guest lecture in various Indian Colleges. He can be contacted at kkpathak@technetindia.net Web Site: http://www.technetindia.net

How Computer Hardware Works

COMPUTER HARDWARE BASICS

MICROPROCESSOR:

Microprocessor is the brain of any computer. It controls all activities inside the computer. Basically it performs 2 types of operations - arithmetic & logical operation (internally), read & write (externally). Read /write operations are performed on 2 types of devices - I/O and memory devices. It uses the “address bus” to select any “location” on these devices, sends a read/write signal over the “control bus” and then the information over the “data bus”.

MEMORY DEVICES:

The CPU stores all information in the computer’s memory. There are two memory types - RAM & ROM

RAM (Random Access Memory):

This volatile type is a read & write memory device. This loses its contents when power is shut off.

The types of RAM are

· DRAM (Dynamic ram) – is similar to a capacitor, as it tends to lose its contents and hence requires to be refreshed. This is the Computer RAM.

· SRAM (Static ram) – Is faster than Dram and doesn’t require to be refreshed. This is costly and hence only a limited amount is used as CACHE memory in the computer.

ROM (Read only memory):

ROM can be programmed using a programmer and then it acts as a “read only” device. This device is used as the textbook for the CPU in the computer and is called ROM BIOS. It stores all the basic information of programming the devices present inside the system as well as the POST (Power On Self Test) sequence. AMIBIOS and AWARD BIOS are the most common ROM BIOS.

The types of ROM are

· PROM (Programmable Read Only Memory)

· EPROM (Erasable & Programmable Read Only Memory)

· FLASH ROM

· EEPROM (Electrically EPROM)

· EAPROM (Electrically Alterable ROM)

I/O DEVICES:

Apart from passive memory devices, there are certain controllers in the system, which assist the CPU in performing various operations. These are referred to as I/O devices. These devices include Interrupt controller, Timer, Ports, DMA Controller, Floppy Drive Controller, CRT Controller etc.

BUSES & EXPANSION SLOTS:

These are the means through which communication between various devices of the computer takes place and the types are as mentioned below.

ISA (Industry Standard Architecture):

ISA bus consists of a 24-bit address bus and the 16-bit data bus. ISA can support 8MHZ clock speed.

MCA BUS (Micro Channel Architecture):

MCA bus is available either in 16 bit or 32 bit versions. It was developed in a new line of computers called the PS/2 (personal system 2). The clock speed is slightly faster (10MHZ instead of 8MHZ).

EISA BUS:

EISA has a 32-bit Address and Data bus and 10MHZ CLK speed.

VL BUS/VESA LOCAL BUS:

It is a 32-bit bus which was positioned local to the CPU and hence its name. Therefore it could support high bus speeds (that of the CPU).

PCI BUS:

PCI has many benefits over other bus types. First of all, it supports 64 bit and 32-bit data paths. So it can be used both for 486 and Pentium based systems. PCI can run up to 33MHZ speed and has the advantage of being isolated from the CPU. INTEL developed this bus.

PCMCIA: (PC Memory Card International Association):

The PCMCIA was first designed for expanding the memory in small, handled computers. PCMICIA’S bus width is only 16 bits, but a 32-bit version is on its way. There are three types of cards namely

· Type 1 (3.3 m thick)- used for memory card.

· Type 2 (5 mm thick)- used for modem and LAN adapter.

· Type 3 (10.5 mm0 thick) - used for most common applications like PC hard disk Cards.

ADD ON CARDS:

These are cards plugged on to the main board, the mother board (The one that houses the CPU & RAM/ROM Bios). Each performs specific functions of interfacing the Motherboard to peripheral device like mouse, Monitor etc. Some Add-ons are discussed below.

DISPLAY ADAPTER:

These interface the motherboard with the monitor and there are several types of cards. The variations are in resolution, no. Of colors supported and speed.

CGA (Color Graphics Adapter)

640 X 200 pixels

MDA (Mono Display Adapter):

80 characters wide 25 lines long

EGA (Enhanced Graphics Adapter):

640 X 350 mode

VGA (Video Graphics Adapter):

Advanced versions of SVGA/TVGA which start from a resolution of 640 X 480 pixel

AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port):

Introduced in the celeron/P II based systems, this caters to the demanding multimedia applications with its high performance.

IDE I/O CARD:

Supports the following functions.

SERIAL PORT:

Communication external to the computer is done serially (bit after bit) through this port. It is used to connect communication devices like mouse, modem etc.

PARALLEL PORT:

8 Bit data transfer takes place between the computer and an external device. It is typically used to connect a printer.

GAME PORT:

It is used to connect a joystick for playing games.

IDE (Integrated/Intelligent Drive Electronics) Interface: This interface is used to communicate with IDE Hard disks.

FLOPPY DISK CONTROLLER:

The FDC can support up to two floppy disk drives. The FDC is connected to the system bus and to the DMA controller. It performs data transfer in DMA mode.

SOUND CARD:

This is the card that adds audio effects to the computer by providing interface with microphone and speaker. This is used in Multimedia Computers.

PERIPHERAL DEVICES:

FLOPPY DRIVES:

1.44 MB & 1.2 MB are two types of popular Floppy Drives.

HARD DISK DRIVES:

ST 506 & ESDI are old types. IDE hard disks are popular because their price to performance ratio is very good. For very high performance, SCSI (Small Computer Systems Interface) is the ideal option, if price is not a criterion.

CDROM DRIVES:

CDROM drive is used in a multimedia system as it can support all types of CD ROMs – be it data CD, Audio CD, Video CD. It has a great advantage of storing about 650 MB of data in a single CD.

KEYBOARD:

Keyboard translates the keystrokes into letters or numbers. These letters are interpreted and the computer CPU depending executes commands on what was sent. Variations in terms of XT/AT, no. of keys, type of keys used may be observed.

MOUSE:

To interact with the pictures (ICONS), a special pointer device was introduced into the computer world. This device is known as mouse and is connected to the serial port.

The mouse contains a round ball that makes contact with two rollers-one for X-axis (the horizontal) and one for Y-axis (the vertical). Moving the mouse causes the ball to roll, and the ball, which is in contact with the two rollers, causes them to turn. This is used for moving clicking the mouse buttons makes a pointer head on the screen and selection.

SCANNERS:

In addition to keyboards and pointing devices, there is another very common method of getting data into the computer. A Scanner is used to scan an image (say from a photo) and editing may be done using a suitable software.

MONITORS:

The monitor receives video signals from the computer video adapter card and displays the video information as pixels (picture elements) on the monitor screen. A variety of monitors ranging from CGA mono to SVGA colour are available for users to choose from (though the former is totally obsolete).

CONFIGURATION SETUP:

This is where we define the system configuration. This is done only when the system is assembled and configured for the first time or when it is upgraded. (One may enter the SETUP by pressing “Del” key as the system is powered up). Different BIOS’ support different options but the most essential ones, which are found on all systems, are listed below.

DATE & TIME: It displays the correct Date & Time. It has to be set when system is first installed.

FLOPPY TYPE:

To define the Floppy drives connected (1.2MB or 1.44MB).

HARD DISK TYPE: To select the Hard disk type (Primary or secondary)

DISPLAY TYPE: Its select the types of video adapter used for the system monitor.

CACHE ENABLE/DISABLE:

This category speeds up the Memory access. (Default value: Enable) and defines presence or absence of cache memory.

QUICK POWER ON SELF TEST: Its speeds up the Power On Self Test after you power up the computer.

PASSWORD SETTING: This allows you to set the System password.

POWER MANAGEMENT: This category allows you to select the type (or degree) of power saving.

LOADING DEFAULT VALUES:

There are many parameters, which need to be defined in the CMOS setup, and one may not want to do so manually. This option loads certain default values, stored in the BIOS ROM, which have been defined by the manufacturer for optimal system performance.

ENABLE/DISABLE ON BOARD FUNCTIONS:

To enable/disable certain onboard functions like Floppy Disk Control etc (This applies only to integrated Motherboards where the ADD ON functions are integrated on the Motherboard itself).

PNP FEATURES: This category is used to configure the PCI Bus slots.

IDE AUTO DETECTION: This allows you to detect the IDE Hard drives automatically.

SAVING & EXITING:

This allows you to save the new setting value in the CMOS memory and continue with the booting process.

POST (POWER ON SELF TEST):

This POST firmware is stored in ROM on the motherboard. This POST is a series of a simple program to test and catch faults in different components and circuits. It tests the microprocessor, interrupt controller, PPI, DMA controller, ROM, RAM, peripheral controllers etc.

SYMPTOMS:

In case of error detection during POST, indications like error beeps/error messages helps troubleshoot problems.

SPEAKER:

With the help of speaker error beeps, we can troubleshoot faults. Each fault causes the speaker to emit different patterns of beeps.

DISPLAYED ERROR MESSAGES:

When system is powered on, error message will be displayed on the screen (Floppy disk fail), if the Video Adapter is functional.

DIAGNOSTIC CARDS:

The advanced diagnostic add on card captures details of POST sequence and displays a hexa code which may be used for in-depth & accurate diagnosis of a POST problem.

CDROM DRIVES:

A computer CD-ROM drive uses small, interchangeable, plastic-encased discs from which data is retrieved using a laser beam, much like music compact disc. And like a music CD, a computer CD-ROM stores vast amounts of information. This is achieved by using light to record data in a form that’s more tightly packed than the relatively clumsy magnetic read/write heads a conventional drive must manage.

The drive is controlled by a software in your PC that sends instructions to controller circuitry that’s either a part of the computers motherboard or on a separate board installed in an expansion slot.

How a CD_ROM drive works? · A motor constantly varies the rate at which CD-ROM disc spins so that regardless of where a component, called DETECTOR, is located in relation to the radius of the disc, the portion of the disc immediately above the detector is always at the same speed.

· The laser projects a concentrated beam of light that is further focused by a focusing coil.

· The laser beam penetrates a protective layer of plastic and strikes a reflective layer that looks like aluminum foil on the bottom of disc.

· The surface of the reflective layer alternates between lands and pits. Lands are flat surface areas; pits are tiny depression in the reflective layer. these surface are record of the 1s and 0s used to store data.

· Lights that strikes a pit scattered. But light that strikes a land is reflected directly back at the detector, where it passes through a prism that deflects laser beam to a LIGHT-SENSING DIODE.

· Each pulse of light that strikes the light-sensing diode generates a small electrical voltages. These voltages are matched against a timing circuit to generates a stream of 1s and 0s that can understand.

Data Recovery Tips

If you have ever faced the loss of data, you will know what it’s like to have anxiety over severe trouble with your server, hard disk or RAID health. This is however, a time for some caution in terms of time and money.

Data recovery can sometimes be worked out yourself, with help of software and some simple tips. This is usually the case when the drives are not physically damaged. If they are damaged however, you will need to send the drives to a specialist who will recover the data for you.

Here you need to decide the optimality, as the costs of data recovered needs to be balanced with the cost of data involved. If the lost data is not important, just take a lesson from this failure; replace the faulty drives, and start backing up. There should be adequate drive space and a schedule, so that you regularly create copies of your data.

There is no foolproof method where you will have 100% of your data recovered or will never have a crash. However, as they say, prevention is better than cure. Backing up is the prevention method when it comes to computer data.

Data loss

If you suspect any data corruption, drive corruption, or data loss, the possible symptoms will be:

• Error messages informing you that the device is not recognized.
• Previously accessible data is suddenly nowhere to be seen.
• Scraping or rattling sound in the drives, especially hard disks.
• Hard drive may not spin and may be still.
• Computer or hard drive does not function at all, like no booting is possible.

All of these indicate that the drive is corrupted. 44% of data losses are due to drive malfunction.

Tips on how to recover data

Some quick tips that can get you out of this gruesome situation are:

1. Recovery through software: First try to locate some data recovery software from your technically inclined friends. They may have some disk recovery software that can be used to get your data back.

2. Hardware Crash: If you have detected that your hardware is at fault and has crashed, by no means try the normal shutting down procedures. Just pull out the plug, and do not wait. Never try to save or recover the data at this time, as you may lose the otherwise safe or recoverable data as well.

3. Pinpoint the trouble in the hard disk: If you are not sure of the issue, listen to your hard disk for any scratching or unusual sounds. If this is the case, you will need recovery service; something that will cost you money and will take time also.

4. Determine the health of the drive: If you have determined that the drive is healthy by the above means, you may still be able to recover the data by yourself. Try using the recovery software or using the drives as slaves etc.

5. Slave disks: Try to connect the drive as a slave to another computer. This way you might be able to recover all of the data.

6. Locate the corruption: This can easily be found by booting from the floppy drive, or using the F disk and then viewing the partitioning information.

7. Shop for recovery software: Do an online search for data recovery software and see what software is ranked best, and what suits you. This software will usually not be free, but it may access your data and recover it for you. You can also make enquiries at a PC software store in your area.

8. Server Crash: If you had been working on a server and it has crashed, never try data recovery on the same server.

9. RAID Drive Crash: Replace the RAID data drive that failed, never ever reuse it.

10. RAID Drives: Label the multiple drives in RAID array.

11. Database files: In the case of Microsoft Exchange and SQL data failure, you should never do direct operations. Keep a copy of the database files and then start the work on the copies, not on the main files.

12. Utilities: Do not try to run Volume Defragmenters and Volume Repair Utilities on the suspect drives.

13. Other utilities: Also avoid the use of Volume Repair utilities if there has been power outage, or if your file system looks corrupted. This must be done only by people who are extremely confident and are technically wise.

14. Keep information: Always keep the following information at hand:

- The size of the drive
- Operating system (i.e. Windows 98, Windows XP, etc.)
- Situation of failure (what happened just before the drive stopped working)
- Is the drive recognized by the computer or not

15. Boot drive malfunction: If the drive that has crashed also had the OS on it, things are tricky. In this case, try to get recovery software with boot functions. This way the computer will boot from the software, and then you will be able to see your data files and copy them to safe drives.

16. Avoid physical cleaning of drives: Never attempt shaking, or cleaning the data drive on your own. This may cause more physical harm.

17. Do not remove drive covers: Hard drive covers are best left to specialists. Never try taking them off yourself. This requires special equipment, and is best left to technicians in labs.

18. Dropping the hard disks: The disks should not be dropped to be unstuck. This will not help get the hard disk unstuck, and will just do more damage.

19. Exposure to water: The drive can not be dried by any dryer if it was exposed to water, so do not try that.

20. Scrutinize the workplace: Pay attention to the place where you had kept your computer or notebook, etc. Highly humid, warm places or shaky desks may also cause hardware failure.

21. Firewalls: Viruses run havoc on the drives, sometimes erasing the data. Make sure that you are well protected behind a firewall. If you have not had one until now, get one now. Protect the network as well as your servers.

22. Physically damaged drives: If the drives have been corrupted physically, they must be sent to a Class 100 clean room. This is a place where they can be opened and physically taken care of. While sending the drives to such a facility, take extra care while packaging them. If possible, try to get the original cases for packing.

If you have tried all the normal methods and you still have a problem with your data drives, it's time to hunt for a data recovery company. There are many companies which provide such services, but you will have to be very careful whom to trust. Visit their websites and find out their level of technical expertise.

You can also call their helpline numbers by phone, and find out about their technical experts and the facility where your drive will be worked on. A reliable company will reveal everything, and will be very open to your requests. Usually, a good company can report on their preliminary findings within 24 hours of receiving the drive. They will then wait for your approval, if you will like to get your drive repaired at the estimated cost/time and risk.

Hard Drive Data Recovery Tool

Hard drive data recovery tools are now widely available. More and more companies are offering hard drive data recovery tools knowing that more and more people are now using computers with hard drives that are generally subject to break down. Also, the hard drive data recovery tools were designed and developed for the hope that the lost data can still be recovered although the computer system considered them inaccessible. The truth of the matter is, when the data is corrupted or deleted from the hard drive by accident, the data is not totally lost. It is just stored somewhere, and hard drive data recovery experts can do something to retrieve them.

Now, if you are currently experiencing data loss and you want to retrieve your important files, you can contact an expert to help you do the task of retrieving your lost data. But, if you want to know what available hard drive data recovery tools are commonly used by hard drive data recovery experts these days, note the following:

Restoration

Restoration is a hard drive data recovery tool that primarily works to rescue your accidentally deleted files and permanently deletes those that you want good-and-gone. It is also worth noting that Restoration is a hard drive data recovery tool that can live on a floppy, so it leaves no trace of its activities.

PC Inspector File Recovery

Depending on how your files were lost, it may be hard to retrieve them. But, you don’t need to worry because PC Inspector File Recovery comes to the rescue. The PC Inspector File Recovery is basically a hard drive data recovery tool that works to recover lost files and locate partitions automatically, even when the boot sector of your machine has become damaged or deleted. Another great feature of this hard drive data recovery tool is that PC Inspector File Recovery can recover the lost data even when the header entry of the file is no longer available. And, this hard drive data recovery tool can even allow you to save the recovered files on the network drives.

Restorer2000

Restorer2000 is but another hard drive data recovery tool that is so powerful in recovering accidentally deleted files from your hard drive. This hard drive data recovery tool is capable of retrieving the lost files even though the data loss resulted from corruption or reformatting of the hard drive. This is actually the reason that Restorer2000 is often considered in a number of hard drive data recovery tool reviews as one of the most powerful undelete and data recovery software solutions available in the market.

Stellar Phoenix

Stellar Phoenix is a family of effective hard drive data recovery tools that are supported by different types of file systems, such as FAT, NTFS, and others. It’s nice to know that this family of hard drive data recovery tools is now available online with a free demo download, allowing you to understand the strengths and weaknesses of this hard drive data recovery tool before you decide for a purchase.

There are other hard drive data recovery tools out there in the market, but these mentioned tools are by far the top-rated products in the software market these days.

http://www.y-capture.com is the

Tips for Failed Hard Drive Data Recovery

One thing that manufacturers of hard drives do not tell us when we buy our brand new computers, is that hard drives are subject to fail, regardless of the amount of time they are used. With some systems it may take more than 10 years before the hard drive failure occurs, while others can fail within just a year of normal use. Because of this, failed hard drive data recovery is an important issue that needs some thought.

Basically, there are two main types of hard drive failure. The first is those hard drives that fail due to a software problem, and the second failed hard drive category applies in the case of a physical malfunction with the hard drive.

Referring to the first category, the failed hard drive data recovery is usually considered when the data on the drive gets corrupted due to something like a corrupted partition table, damaged boot record, or missing root directory information. A lot of experts feel that the hard drive failure due to software is generally easier to recover with the use of easily available failed hard drive data recovery software.

It involves a much more complicated process when you need to recover data from a failed hard drive that has physically malfunctioned. This is because when the failed hard drive has been physically damaged in some way, then any additional access to the hard drive may cause further corruption to the data stored on the drive. It is harder for the failed hard drive data recovery process to obtain the key files and stored information back from the hard drive. Most of the failed hard drive data recovery services that you will see advertised are offered for this category of failed hard drive data recovery.

If you are unlucky enough to need a failed hard drive data recovery, bear in mind that a greater level of caution is needed so that your data recovery is successful. When you are considering using any of the failed hard drive data recovery software you need to be aware that there will be a risk of further data loss as the software gets to work on the hard drive. One of the best ways to avoid an additional damage is to create an image of the drive using an imaging tool.

If as an example, your failed hard drive happens to be the drive which contains the operating system, the best failed hard drive data recovery step you can take is not to boot the drive at all if this is possible. According to the experts this is reasonably simple for a desktop system - all you need to do is to disconnect the boot drive and replace it with a new drive. For this to be totally successful you need to ensure that you have a drive with a large enough capacity to hold the image of the current drive.

You will then be able to install an operating system on the new drive. This basic failed hard drive data recovery step is accomplished by just reconnecting the old drive as a slave unit or by placing it in an external case and then connecting to it through USB or FireWire. However, for your failed hard drive data recovery to work best, it is important to disconnect the current boot partition, because trying to install the Operating System on the new drive will just result in temporary files being written to the old drive.

For more articles by Charles Cass on Hard Drive Failure

What Is Data Recovery

Retrieving deleted/inaccessible data from electronic storage media (hard drives, removable media etc...)

Typical causes of data loss include:

o Electro-mechanical Failure

o Natural Disaster

o Viruses

o Data Corruption

o Sabotage

o Human Error

Is Data Recovery important?

Over the past years, hard drives have gotten a lot quieter and faster, with capacities of more then 350 GB. The downside is that their consistency is far from perfect, and the devices are often burdened with mechanical failures, this warning however is never mentioned in the vendors' product specifications.

Our experience for over a decade shows that users can be sub-divided into two groups. The first group of users is well informed or has already experienced the sting of losing data. In cases such as these, the user is careful to back up information such as emails, photos, document files and financial data on a CD/DVD or other media, at least on an asymmetrical basis. A corporate user has the IT department or an administrator one who takes care of his backups. Digital assets are thus protected however still a virus attack, hardware failure or simply human error can destroy this critical asset. However, this group is a small minority.

The other group lives with an enduring risk, either because they aren't aware of the possible horror scenario or often it is the case, they don't take it seriously enough. It should be clear to everyone that any multifaceted component at any day may fail to provide its services. If such a scenario occurs, then all the data stored exclusively on a hard drive would most likely be lost.

So when this nightmare happens and your hard drive is clearly damaged, people pick up the phone and call data recovery firms, which have the necessary equipment and lab infrastructure to do the required job. According to Imation’s Small Business Survey Special Report conducted in April 2003.

30 percent of small businesses admit they have no formal data backup and storage procedures, or do not implement their procedures consistently.

“Fifty-five percent of small businesses rated themselves as "fair" or "poor" in terms of having a documented disaster recovery plan, or do not have one at all.”

“Review and evaluation of data backup and storage procedures is not a common practice among small businesses.”

“The majority of small companies” backup critical data on a daily basis and daily backups are more common among companies that deal with higher volumes of data. But one in three small businesses still wait until there is a problem before reviewing and evaluating their backup and storage procedures.”

“Moreover, 21 percent said that they are doing a "fair" or "poor" job of periodically removing important business data offsite – a vital procedure to protect businesses from physical disaster. An additional 13 percent of small businesses admitted to not removing backup files at all – that’s 34 percent at risk”.

Data Recovery Techniques

Basic questions which needs to be answered before recovery process

1. What is the data which needs to be recovered?

2. What type of hard drive is it?

3. How much data is on the hard drive?

4. What happened when the drive failed?

5. How fast do you need the data?

Recovering critical data is a specialized process that requires the right software, hardware and advanced techniques. In many failure-related cases, the chances of recovering data from a damaged hard drive range from 90-100%. If the electronic system is the only thing affected, then the drive can often be reused after the electronic control panel has been replaced. If, on the other hand, the defect is of a mechanical nature, then recovery will be a bit more difficult, which can be taken care at any specialized data recovery services companies lab.

If it is problem related to the file system, which has caused inaccessibility of the data then it can be recovered using data recovery software, an independent review has been posted on my website which lists the best in the field and helps you to identify the correct solution.

How to Delete the Browsing History on Your Internet Browser

Whenever you use your Internet browser, it is very important that you delete your browsing history after you log off. In this way, you will be able to keep other people from knowing what you did online. You will also prevent other people from getting their hands on personal information that you may have unwittingly saved on your Internet browser while surfing the Internet.

You see, every move you make online is recorded. Most of the websites you have visited will have left cookies in your computer that will track your online activities and gather information about you. Whenever you make a transaction on the Internet, the details you have filled out will be saved on your Internet browser. Your instant messaging clients log your conversations.

And if you think that your Google searches were done anonymously, think again. Google and other search engine companies maintain supercomputers for the sole purpose of collecting information based on your searches.

If you are not diligent enough to delete your browse history, you may end up in trouble just because someone else has information you should have kept to yourself. It is easy enough a task to delete your browsing history even though the ways vary depending on the Internet browser. Here is how it is done.

Clearing Browsing History with Internet Explorer

If you are a Windows user and you have your Windows Update turned on, your computer would have already downloaded and installed Internet Explorer 8. This latest version of Microsoft's proprietary Internet browser has made clearing your browsing history a lot easier.

To delete your browsing history in Internet Explorer 8, all you need to do is to click on the Safety menu on the toolbar. This will open a drop-down menu. Click on "Delete browsing history" on the drop-down menu and you are done.

You can also configure Internet Explorer to do this automatically for you. To do this, click on the Tools menu and then click on Internet options. This will open a dialog box with tabs. In the General tab, check the option "Delete browsing history on exit."

You can also open the "Delete..." button just underneath to select which files to get rid of when you log out. It is recommended that you check everything - temporary Internet files, cookies, history, form data and passwords - if you are using a shared computer.

Clearing Browsing History with Firefox

Mozilla Firefox is one of the more popular alternatives to Internet Explorer. Just like with Internet Explorer, it is also easy enough to delete your browse history in Firefox.

To clear your browsing history with Firefox, you would need to click on the Tools menu. In the resulting drop-down menu, select the "Clear Recent History" command. This will remove all the data your Internet browser saved while you were surfing the Internet.

To make this automatic, you can open the Options dialog box, which is also under the Tools menu. In the dialog box, select the privacy tab and check the option that says "Clear history when Firefox closes."

You can refine this further by clicking on the Settings button. Make sure that you have a check mark next to Browsing history, Cookies, Cache, Download History, Active Logins, Form and Search History, and Saved Passwords.

It is not that difficult to delete your browsing history every time you close your Internet browser. Make sure you do this to keep your personal information protected.

Property of RecoverMyPc Inc.

Ara Pekel invites you to visit http://www.recovermypc.com
RecoverMyPc will give you the Secure Data Recovery that you need. Use our free Online Picture Recovery Tool, Free Software, Software Coupons, and Great Articles to read.

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Computer Repair 101 - 5 Free Tools to Speed Up Your Slow Computer

Is your computer not as fast as it used to be? Do you consistently get application crashes, "time outs" and the dreaded hourglass? When you press the power button on your computer in the morning, can you start the coffee, take a shower, style your hair and get dressed, all before your computer is finished booting?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, your computer needs more than another cup of coffee. It needs a tune-up. You probably already know that there are a myriad of ways that a computer repair professional can help you. But, unfortunately, not everyone can afford to call a computer repair specialist every time something breaks - especially those hardest hit by the current economic downturn.

I'll be honest, here. As a computer repair consultant and owner of a computer repair shop in Colorado, I am not one to suggest the use of free tools very often. When someone can afford to purchase software, I usually advise them to purchase a quality retail product, because the paid-for software is typically far superior and the user is entitled to support.

In my experience, free tools are usually either crippled versions of their related non-free products, or simply don't do a good enough job to be useful. But, there are a few free tools that are exceptions to that rule, and offer a good product for those who genuinely cannot afford to purchase off-the-shelf software.

So, with that being said, here are my 5 suggestions for free tools to speed up your slow computer. All 5 of these popular tools can be searched for and found easily through Google.

1. CCleaner

CCleaner is legendary for its usefulness in helping rid computer systems of any and all junk that has accumulated on a hard drive. However, there is a hidden gem in CCleaner: its ability to find and clean problems in the registry.

Using CCleaner once per week will keep your system running pretty smoothly all by itself. But, combining it with the other tools listed below will give you some synergistic results. For example, in our computer repair shop, we use CCleaner before any antivirus scan because it will help the scan go much faster (the resulting drive has fewer files to scan).

2. Startup Inspector for Windows

In case you didn't know, too many programs that load on start-up can quickly cripple a good computer. Limiting start-up programs to only the bare essentials is an excellent way to reclaim much lost speed. Some people even go to extremes and disable all start-up programs and non-Microsoft services, but that can have a negative impact on things such as backup schedules, antivirus protection, and useful keyboard shortcut keys.

Startup Inspector for Windows takes the guess work out of this process. Not only does this utility take the place of MSCONFIG's very limiting interface for managing start-up programs, but it also has the ability to access a database of known start-up programs. It will even give you suggestions for disabling certain applications, or leaving them intact so as to not limit the functionality of certain programs.

3. Malwarebytes

Nothing chokes a computer's speed faster than Malware. But, how do you sort the good from the bad? Is that toolbar you installed a bad program? How about that game you love to play online? Could that "coupon finding" toolbar that you just installed be a virus in disguise?

That's where Malwarebytes can help. It's one of the best free malware removal utilities that I know of. Many seasoned computer repair technicians swear by it. Although the free version of Malwarebytes is "crippleware" (the free version doesn't provide real-time protection), it does a very good job if run manually on a regular basis.

4. Avast Antivirus

Avast is a program that I've warmed up to over the years. As I stated earlier, I'm picky about that software I recommend. That goes double for antivirus protection, because antivirus protection is usually your only barrier between you and the scumbags of the Internet. I will never respect those who would steal and use someone else's identity and/or financial information to get something for nothing, rather than to work honestly for what they want.

If you absolutely cannot afford antivirus protection, do not go without it. Instead, download Avast Home Edition. Avast Home Edition is completely free, but you do have to register it before the 60 day trial has expired. Registration is free, and afterward you can use it for a year before having to re-register. In addition to being free, Avast works pretty well, too.

5. Defraggler

Without getting into the technical details of what fragmentation is, or how it happens, let's just say that if you haven't defragmented your hard drive lately, you are probably overdue. Defragging your hard drive is like reorganizing your storage closet. It makes things easier (and therefore quicker) to find.

There are very few tools that rival Defraggler. Although I tend to prefer Diskeeper more than Defraggler due to it's ability to perform real-time defragmenting, Diskeeper is not free. However, Defraggler is a close second to Diskeeper and is completely free of charge.

Coincidentally, Defraggler is made by the same company as CCleaner. It seems that Piriform is on a roll when it comes to developing and releasing free and useful utilities. Google the term "defraggler", download it, use it. Leave it running overnight, as it will probably take several hours to finish.

The Clean-Up Proces - Step by Step

The order you use these free computer repair tools are up to you, but as a professional who has done this more times that I can count, here is my recommendation for how to use these free tools to speed up your slow computer.


Use Startup Inspector for Windows to remove unneeded programs from startup
Reboot
Use CCleaner to clean junk files from the system
Clean the registry with CCleaner
Reboot
Update Malwarebytes and scan. Remove anything it finds.
Reboot if it recommends you to do so.
Update Avast and scan. It should quarantine anything it finds automatically.
Reboot if needed.
Use CCleaner (again) to clean up any junk left over from the virus removal.
Yes, clean the registry with CCleaner one more time, also.
Defrag the hard drive to reorganize the remaining "good" data on your drive.

Conclusion

In 9 out of 10 cases, using these 5 free utilities will have your computer back up to speed. If you properly utilize these tools and your computer is still not functioning properly, it doesn't mean that the tools did not work.

Perhaps your computer problem is beyond the scope of these tools. Maybe you don't have a sufficient amount of RAM memory. There is also a possibility that your computer has a serious hardware issue (such as a failing hard drive) which requires the attention of a computer repair professional.

Luckily there a hundreds of websites on the Internet that will provide free advice to those in need. They won't do the work for you for free, but will be glad to provide information and resources to help you help yourself. There are even a few that offer free video training on how to repair your own computer. By doing your homework and asking a lot of questions, you can learn to solve any computer problem without spending any money at all.

Good luck.

Bradley Chapple is a computer consultant and owner of Aspen Computer Services. Come visit us at Laptop Repair Fort Collins, Colorado and Computer Repair Fort Collins, Colorado today for articles, software reviews and to read our regular computer repair blog.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bradley_Chapple

My Computer is Slow to Connect to the Internet

There could be several reasons why your computer is slow to connect to the Internet. When you consider what happens in the first moments you are connected, its little wonder your favourite web site takes ages to load.

First thing that happens is Windows calls home to check for updates. At the same time, your Anti-Virus programme also calls home to check for updates. And if you have an Anti-Spyware programme, it will also be checking for updates. Other programs, like your Mobile Phone's PC Suite, for example, or any number of other programs, will also try to call home. All trying to elbow each other aside and all, using up valuable resources. Some multi-media programs use an awful lot of resources, even if you are not directly using them. Consider stopping these from automatically starting when you start Windows. You can still access them by clicking Start, and choose them from the menu.

Sometimes it's best just to be patient for the first few minutes after you click connect and wait until they have all finished calling home before you start surfing. Keep an eye on those two mini computer screens on your task bar, just near the clock. If they are both illuminated, this indicates activity between your computer and the Internet. Wait a while until one or preferably both go out. Windows and Anti-Virus updates are important, you can turn off automatic updates, but I do not recommend doing this.

If your PC is infected by Spyware or viruses, these will also be attempting to call home; some can even alter your Internet Connection settings to make it easier for them to do this. Run a Full System Scan with both your Anti-Virus and Anti-Spyware utilities.

Anti-Virus and Anti-Spyware programs all use much more resources than they did, even two years ago. So you should think about adding more RAM to your system or a faster CPU, or both. This should help compensate for all those competing programs.

If you have add-ons to your browser, Java or Search Bars for example, try turning these off to see if things improve. In Internet Explorer click on Tools then Manage Add-Ons. These options will return next time you start Windows.

Your Internet cache can become cluttered over time. Click on Start, then Control Panel, then Internet Options. Under 'Browsing History' click on 'Delete' this will clear up your Temporary Internet Files.

For Cable or DSL make sure you have a Phone Line filter, if you already have one it may be faulty, try another. Also try disconnecting all other Phones and extensions. It's just possible the fault could be your wiring. Contact your ISP, they can usually check your Phone Line for speed, or offer helpful advice.

David Snowdon has been working with Computers since 1980. He is a published writer and author of many PC articles including LOW VIRTUAL MEMORY

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=David_Snowdon

Detailed Information About Computer Data Recovery

Data loss has different meanings to different users. It depends upon many factors such as who you are? What did you lose? What is the overall cost of replacing data? Data loss can bring huge damages to programmers, who lose access to last few years of their programmed codes. If it was a contractual work, then they will not be paid for all that has been lost. It can result in loss of the salary of an employee, or a loss to the company. This lost data cannot be often retrieved. The loss of an operating system or an image can easily be restored.

What to do if your important data get lost?

Data lost can bring huge loss to any business that does not have any back up for it. If you lose some memorable pictures or your child's photograph, these cannot be replaced or recovered ever. If anyone is stuck with the problem of lost or damaged data, he or she can seek the professional computer data recovery company. Such companies offer hard drive data recovery services to recover damaged data. The extent of recovery depends upon the state of storage medium. They undergo simple but logical recovery methods to find the data lost. It is advisable not to use your storage medium or PC till you speak with a professional.

If you are putting up in any corner of Australia, you can seek professional advice from data recover Sydney companies. The expert intervention will surely help you in recovering the useful data.

What more to do?

It is suggested to talk with your friends and inquire about the details of some reputable company. Your damages or lost data should be important to them as it is to you. Moreover, the company should be capable enough to recover data from different storage mediums.

The hard disk drive recovery service should include database repair and recovery, logical and physical data recovery and RAID recovery. Their expertise should also include familiarity with data recovery from applications such a SQL, lotus and others.

Computer data recovery software

This software can help you in recovering data that is lost due top hard drive damage or general computer error or deletion of files accidentally. It is not always that the files get deleted, but instead there may be the case, when these might be corrupted. Data recovery software can fix the file, which can be accessed later.

If you ever face any such problem with your PC or laptop, just call up a professional without bearing any loss. The computer data recovery team would surely lend you the helping hand so that you don't face any heavy loss. They know their job quiet well...

For any help on computer data recovery, check out the info available online; these will help you learn to find the Data Recovery Sydney!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=John_Z._Smith

Data Recovery Techniques - Know How

When it comes to data loss, the condition becomes drastic. In most cases price is even not a big factor but the only thing that everybody aims towards is -- how to get back lost files? Users probably try anything that may result in lost data recovery, but sometimes frantic efforts also can make the situation worse. So why to take risk? Every wound has its remedy.

Following are some mythologies that you will help you to take right decision:

Old Mythology:
It was the time when data loss was considered the biggest headache. People used to send their devices to data recovery service centers to get back lost or deleted files. Data retrieval services were composed of many factors like time, many human efforts, physical presence of hi-tech labs and of course enough money. Due to these reasons, file rescue service techniques could not get much name and fame and almost vanished with the decade of time.

New Techniques:
In the modern world, Data Recovery Software has emerged as the new technique to recover lost data from storage systems. With analysis and research, it has been proven software is the best means to restore files and folders lost due to unforeseen occurrences.

Causes & Preventions:
Various factors are responsible to cause data loss from storage media including Accidental file deletion, Virus activities, Incomplete software installation, Application failure, Inadequate device knowledge, Corrupted media, Logical disk crashes, Power spikes or other human faults. In order to prevent data loss you need to have trusted data recovery technique means that can successfully recover lost data.

RecoveryBull Software

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Raven_Bennett

Protect the Internal Network From Hackers

Attention! All the hackers on the systems of various according to their sects and wishes are eager to penetrate your network, but you can defeat these attacks by providing an appropriate combination of security tactics.

Networks are daily threaded with attacks, so you need to provide permanent protection. No doubt that the most common threats are: first, the viruses, which are small programs that in reality is trying to infiltrate your network and fool the computer, entering it as an attachment with an e-mail message, beginning immediately after opening the attached file, repeating the same self in the system of your computer. Secondly, Trojan horses which run through the computer by entering the applications or data files are useful, and that is activated on the Trojans after the mediation of specific programs; even begin to take over the reins in the system of your computer.

Thirdly, the worms that are also working to replicate itself and spread to begin the search for security holes in your system, so as to penetrate your system, and often remain hidden until the right opportunity to start attack of the distributed service (DDoS). No doubt that these three types of attacks pose a major threat to his company's data and your personal data as well. Of course, you don't want or any one of the owners of companies that their networks are points of attack to distributed denial of service attacks. Therefore, we must first ensure that the protection of all devices connected to your company, and the first step to ensure this protection is to provide these devices with firewall, which is a line of defense to it.

But is it enough to spend hundreds of dollars for the provision of firewalls, or that the cost would amount to several thousands of dollars? On the walls at a minimum be equipped with an examination engine of the data package (SPI), which examines the content of packages of data and gives the right of access to your network, in the event it was free from malicious software code.

How to use the firewall?

Firewalls can also be based on certain rules or filters block the movement of inappropriate incoming and outgoing data. It can benefit the choice of Internet Protocol (IP) for example, and to prevent existing staff in the network access to the protocol specific addresses on the Internet or receiving emails from them. Firewalls can also block the movement of data in the network based on a unique identifier named " the title of control to access to the" (MAC). Many of firewalls can control in data by using filters of key words or scope, and permit data which is destined for a particular location. Firewalls also allow the creation of more sophisticated to make more complex rules for the data.

There is a better option than the firewall which is equipped with the test engine of the data packages (SPI), is the firewall, which depends on the engine of test of the deep data packages (DPI). It works great test engine (DPI) to examine the full content of the data package in addition to the advantage of examining the packet header to be performed by the firewall engine equipped with the examination of the data packages (SPI). The engines can deep packet inspection of data, during the examination of the contents of packets to discover and prevent many types of attacks: denial of service attacks, such as (DoS), and rash cache, and attacks the guise of Internet Protocol, in addition to a series of attacks by worms. The more the costs of the firewalls as become more like instruments of security, as a result of processing the applications of intent to combat viruses, spyware and virtual private networks (VPNs).

Know the firewall that you need

When the cost of the firewall is cheap, the process was prepared more easily, because the additional costs of course will provide more options, and as we know that when the number of options are increased and available, The process of the preparation of these options are more complex, so we recommend you first to learn what works well on protection, and what are the threats that want to keep away from you. For that we recommend first to write a list of all the services that users need to access, such as web sites and e-mail servers and FTP servers in addition to the messenger services and remote access of data, because the firewall can filter services on the basis of the nomination of port numbers (a way of addressing a particular service in a computer) used by these services, and Internet Protocol address of the source or destination of data. We will mention the following examples of common services outlets figures, namely: 80 of 23 service and HTTP service Telnet and FTP service for the 21 and 25 of the service SMTP.

There is no doubt that the safest way to build a list of control to access to services is beginning block all data movements, and then revisit it after the disengagement to the services required for the block one after the other, such as allowing the movement of data on port 25, if these data are bound to Internet protocol address on your e-mail in your network. If you need access to services in the internal network of computers outside your network, such as Web servers or e-mail servers, you will build more complex rules of the nomination. You can know if the firewall, which has used an outlet of the neutral area DMZ to connect with these services and to be able to isolate the services open to external networks, on the internal network, but if the firewall does not have an outlet for the neutral area DMZ, then supposed to be allowed to feature passage of the performing the work, a process in which all the movements of short data service on a particular Internet protocol address of an internal party. For those who are afraid of the topic of writing the rules for the nomination to firewalls, we say that the operations are not difficult, as appears to them, they soon learn to establish a simple set of such rules, they will learn quickly accomplish complex rules, but if they insist on their fear of the establishment of rules for the nomination, they then use specialists.

Read more on internal network security at horus4it.net

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Shrif_S_Kassem

Essential Tips For Backups, Data Safety - Avoiding Data Recovery

Backup, backup, backups!

If there's one thing I've learned in 20 years and 12,000 data recoveries, it's that everybody doesn't back up their data sometimes. Computers may be dumb, but they know when you don't have your data backed up - because THAT's when they break. Don't let your computer fool you - back up new data daily.

It's important that you keep two alternating backups, and an additional spare piece of media. This means to have one disk (or tape, or thumb drive) labeled "EVEN" (for even-numbered days, one labeled "ODD" and one spare. Eventually, something will go wrong with a backup. For example, if an error occurs on an "EVEN" day, and you put in your "ODD" backup, you may ruin both. Instead, put in the spare. If there is a problem, you've saved your extra backup (from the day before yesterday) and have not wasted all your hard work. If there is no problem, and it was only a temporary glitch, then put your spare back on the shelf, reformat the "EVEN", and carry on with your backup.

What's the best thing to make a backup on?

There are a lot of ways to back up your data. Most new computers come with CD-R, or CD-RW drives. Most PCs still come with floppy disk drives (and you can get one for a Mac). There are Zip drives, tape drives, USB "thumb" drives, and more. My current favorites are External FireWire or USB 2 drives, and CD-R for full backups, and USB thumb drives for smaller amounts of data.

There are quite a few external drives on the market today and if you have a computer that's less than three years old, you probably have the ports for hooking these up. They usually come with backup software as well. As of this writing, the drives are mostly under $200. Once installed, it's a good idea to leave these drives off except when backing up. That way, a power spike or other environmental event that may destroy data on your hard disk will be unlikely to damage the external hard disk.

For CD-RW drives, I recommend using CD-R media only, as it's too easy to overwrite a previous backup using a CD-RW disk. This is a good form of backup for large amounts of data (they hold more than 650 MB), and each disk is inexpensive. But it leaves you with a lot of plastic disks sitting around. That's why I typically use them only for large backups. Heat, bending, and scratching are the enemies of CD disks. Incidentally, while it's hard to do CD-ROM recovery, it is possible to recover CDs that are damaged.

Zip drives come in sizes from 100 MB to 750 MB and cost from $60 to $200, while additional disks cost around $10 each. These are sensitive to dust, shock, too much heat, and big magnets. Remember to alternate backups with Zip disks as a damaged Zip drive can damage a Zip disk. Zip disk recovery is possible, but tends to be less successful than recovering other media.

Floppy diskettes don't hold very much (1.4 MB), but cost a few cents, and are easy to carry around. Almost all PCs have them, and quite a few Macs do. Floppies are sensitive to heat, magnetic fields, dust, bending and other rough handling.

Tape drives should only be used for very large amounts of data. They are relatively expensive and slow. They're great on large networks for after-hours backups, but they're easily damaged. Tape recovery is difficult and expensive.

I am an unabashed fan of USB thumb drives! These are actually memory sticks with a USB plug on the end that act like portable hard disks. They are sturdy - I accidentally let one go through the wash in my shirt pocket. After it dried out, it still had my data on it (don't try this at home)! While we've been successful performing USB data recovery, in this case, it wasn't even necessary! They come in sizes from 64 MB to more than 2 GB. They can be shared and used on PCs and Macs without reformatting. You can buy one at a local computer or electronics store for $35-$150.

What's the alternative to backing up your data? Well, as every drive eventually fails, it's pricey data recovery or data loss, which can be devastating

Be safe. Back up your data.

Steve Burgess is the president of data recovery worldwide. As a founder of the data recover industry in 1984, Mr. Burgess has trained leading recovery companies and performed recovery work on more than 15,000 hard drives and other media. Burgess also writes and is a highly regarded computer forensics expert.

Track and Back UP Your Data

As internet and network marketers, so much of what we do is related to establishing our 'virtual real estate'. Our data tracking needs, regardless of our size and time in business, are no less critical than those of the Fortune 500 companies.

However, in order to emulate the results of the big boys, we independent and / or small business concerns need to keep a close watch on our data (ad campaigns, referrals, keywords, marketing results, etc). As we drive our SEO campaigns, we must be able to track what does and does not work in any given situation.

With the plethora of free analytical tools that are available to us, we can compete with anyone. Google Analytics is a good place to start. With a little effort, we can all improve our knowledge and skills, and most importantly, our conversion rates that grow our businesses.

As we go though our daily activities, we never think the inconceivable will happen to us, and then it does.

Oh GREAT! Windows crashed. OH NO, it can't be, System Restore is unable to recover my data. Oh man, I have to reformat. Please tell me I haven't lost everything! OH GREAT! The owner just ran out of talent. It is a good thing I backed up my files on an external hard-drive.OH NO, my external hard-drive is corrupted.

(This really happened to a well known and very successful internet marketer with over 50,000 addresses in his mailing list)

The importance of backing up our critical and personal data cannot be over emphasized.

Something similar happened to me, although my loss was not business related. I love music and have a large, ever growing mp3 collection on my computer. In order to protect those files, I bought an external hard-drive for my computer and another for my wife's computer.

And then it happened.

Windows XP crashed and I was unable to restore my files via System Restore. Rather than reloading the very popular Windows XP, I decided to go back with Windows Vista Business. Of course, I was comfortable with the knowledge that my personal and music files were backed up on my external hard-drive.

And then it happened.

I made the mistake of backing up my Windows Vista Business files onto my external hard-drive before uploading 72 plus gigs of MP3's. The new operating system reformatted the external hard-drive and I really lost all of my data. I was fortunate that 44 gigs of my music was on my wife's external hard-drive. Through a lot of time and effort, as well as the graciousness of both Amazon and E-Music, I was able to recover about 99% of my music files.

The importance of backing up our critical and personal data cannot be over emphasized.

Sometimes, we get so busy that we don't take those necessary steps to properly protect ourselves and our important data. A few days ago, I was working on my site.

And then it happened.

The owner ran out of talent and accidentally deleted an entire blog post. I was editing keywords and managed to delete the post rather than just the keywords. Fortunately, I was able to recover the post..

The importance of backing up our critical and personal data cannot be over emphasized.

The Windows operating system has excellent back up and restore tools built into their program, but we need more to safeguard our sensitive files and lists..You may consider an on-line data storage facility and there are many from which to choose. Personally, I still believe in using an external hard drive.

Do your own research and decide what is best for you. Make it a habit to back up anytime that you make changes to your site or write a new article.

The importance of backing up our critical and personal data cannot be over emphasized.

To your continued and abundant success,

L D Johnson

(Larry Johnson}

Independent Business Owner

Not what we have but what we enjoy, constitutes our abundance.

~ John Petit~Senn

http://larryjohnson2010.com/blog/

Independent Business Owner, Marketer, Student of Life

Southerner, heavy drawl, native Georgian, and I have been known to bark at cars as well as Georgia Tech fans.

Blessed with fantastic family and great friends. Married 28 years, living in paradise.

In addition to good times with family and friends, I enjoy music, classic cars, street rods, beautiful beaches and a good game of chess. It doesn't get too much better than a circle of friends and family gathered around a roaring fire, some good tunes and plenty of slow cooked meat. I'm at home with pretty much any music with the exceptions of Disco and Rap, but lean towards Rock'n Roll, Blues and Jazz.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=L_D_Johnson

Clean Registry Errors With the Right Software - Speed Up Your Computer

Are you frustrated with the way your computer is behaving? Who will not be - if the computer takes ages to start and shut down? This low efficiency in performance is mainly because of errors in the registry and more often than not people are not even aware that this is the problem and end up re-installing the operating system as the last resort with the hope that it will not repeat again. For a few months everything works smoothly and then, there the same problem starts of. If you want a permanent solution to this problem you need to clean registry errors.

Why this is given so much prominence is because the registry acts like a central controller and if there are erroneous data that is stored in that itself, then no wonder you have problems with your computer. This is why you need to clean registry errors as often as possible.

You might have noticed that some times when you click on an application itself an error message comes saving that there is a problem with the exe file and only if you clean registry errors can your avoid this. Well, there is no need to get panicky as this is a registry error and all you need to do is schedule scans with the software at hand. If you are an avid user of the internet continuously downloading stuff from the net, then you need to watch out, because your registry can be affected with Trojans and viruses that you will not even know has entered your system until it is very late. Therefore make every effort to clean registry errors.

There is something called the registry bloat that happens which is also the main reason why your computer is slowing down. Initially your registry is compact and only contains essential details, but as time proceeds there can be software that you have installed which actually gets a lot of memory to be utilized slowing every thing down. Thus clean registry errors often.

Now Pay Close Attention Here-

A registry Cleaner will definitely cleanup a computer from errors that often cause it to crashes, freezes, and make the applications and tasks run slower than they are supposed to. A good registry repair program will scan and restore your PC, optimize performance, protect your computer, make it run faster as well as others basic functions.

There are many registry Cleaners available, Every Registry Cleaner has some benefits as well some drawbacks. I have reviewed top 5 Registry Cleaners Available, Don't forget to Check the Registry Cleaner Review- Click Here, Also Don't Forget to Run a Free Performance Scan using our Top Pick.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Russel_Turner

Creating Popular Graphic Effects Using Adobe Software

As an industry-standard, quality graphic design skills are a necessity for every graphic designer. Professional graphic effects are an essential part of graphic design. Professional graphic designers now utilize Adobe software to meet the high quality industry standards regarding graphic design effects.

Adobe software features allow graphic designers to create popular graphic effects. The following outlines the many features of the various Adobe graphic design software as reported on Adobe.com:

1. Adobe software allows graphic designers to create spectacular motion graphics and visual effects. There are specific tools and features for wide ranging fields such as video, science, architecture, and much more. For instance, when one uses Adobe After Effects CS4 software, one will be able to create motion graphics and visual effects that will amaze viewers.

2. Adobe software provides the essential tools for professional photo editing, graphic design, and digital imaging. Graphic designers can use the software for such tasks as creating art design for such projects as flyer, brochures, magazines, posters, billboard ...etc, creating corporate image and brands, creating CD or DVD covers, creating book and e-book covers, creating Graphic User Interfaces, creating online advertisements, film production, image restoration for improved quality or improving old or damaged images, professional portrait retouching, commercial advertising design or marketing, and much more. As well, the designer can automate tasks and increase production using such tools as batch processing, actions, scripts, and more.

3. Adobe design software such as Adobe Photoshop CS4 provides an innovative canvas rotation tool, finer screen drawing, and improved zooming. Another beneficial feature in Photoshop CS4 is the content-aware scaling which allows one to identify detailed areas of images and scale them while leaving the other areas of the image unaffected.

4. Adobe Creative Suite 4 Design Premium is excellent software for creating striking digital images and vector graphics, producing precise page layouts, refining typography, and developing high quality and impressive web pages that will catch the eye of all visitors.

5. Software such as Adobe Photoshop CS4 Extended allows for innovative 3D painting. Other beneficial functions of Adobe Photoshop include: gradients, frames, patterns, adding depth to layers and text scripts, textures, actions, converting gradient maps to 3D objects, and much more.

6. Adobe graphic design software provides designers with the Common Library containing a large repository of graphic symbols, form elements, text symbols, and animations. Graphic designers have the ability to expand the graphic design collection in the repository with their own custom created symbols and styles.

7. Web prototyping and image editing with such software as Adobe Fireworks CS4 allows one to design web pages in an innovative graphic environment.

8. Adobe's Live Preflight will warn users of possible production problems in real time so one can quickly go to the problem, fix it entirely in layout, and continue working on the project.

Professional graphic design software is a must-have for every professional designer. The creative and innovative features of Adobe software make it a vital tool for every graphic designer.

Worrying about huge cost of professional software? Searching for cheap Adobe software or cheap Microsoft software online? We offer various software of the best deal for you! We guarantee that all our software is 100% genuine at the lowest possible price.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Amy_E._Nutt

Toner Cartridges For HP 2550 2840 Color Laserjet Printers - FAQ

HP 2550 2840 series is a versatile Color Laserjet printers' series with high speed of operation and quality output of prints. Frequently Asked Questions on Toner Cartridges for HP 2550 2840 Color Laserjet Printers:

Q. What are the Toner Cartridges used in HP 2550 2840 printers?

A. HP 2550 2840 Color Laserjet Printers use Q3960A Black , Q3961A Cyan , Q3962A yellow and Q3963A Magenta toner Cartridge. These cartridges come with page count smart chip.

Q. What is page count smart chip used in these cartridges?

A. Page count smart chip tracks the number of pages printed by the printer; it shows "toner low" message when it is time to change the cartridge and "toner out" message when the cartridge is not there.

Q. Toner Cartridges Q3960A Black, Q3961A Cyan, Q3962A yellow and Q3963A Magenta are compatible with which all printer models?

A. These cartridges are compatible with models HP Laserjet 2550, 2550L, 2550LN, 2550N, 2800, 2820, 2840 series printers.

Q. What is the page yield of Black and Color toner Cartridges of these models?

A. Page yield of these cartridges is 5000 Black Prints and 4000 Color prints at 5% coverage per page.

Q. What is the cost benefit of buying remanufactured cartridges?

A. If you buy a remanufactured one, you may be able to buy set of 4 cartridges, Q3960A Black , Q3961A Cyan, Q3962A yellow and Q3963A Magenta toner Cartridge, at the price of one OEM cartridge.

Q. How will I help save environment by buying remanufactured cartridges of this model?

A. Remanufactured cartridges use recycled parts, thus helping in saving power which might have been used in manufacture of new parts, oil is saved which would have otherwise used in manufacturing process and also dumping of plastic and rubber parts in landfills is saved by recycling them. So you have a dual benefit of high cost savings and helping your environment by buying remanufactured cartridges.

Q. If I use Remanufactured Cartridges, will my printer warranty become void?

A. No, Antitrust legislations prohibit manufacturers of printers from voiding your printer warranty on usage of remanufactured toner cartridges, so warranty will remain intact even if you use remanufactured cartridges.

Q. When do I know it is time to change the toner cartridges?

A. When you see white streaks first time in your prints, it is the right time to order your toner cartridges; meanwhile you can use it by shaking the cartridge moderately which will help you to get some more prints for few more days till you get your supply of ordered cartridges.

Melanie Hogeveen is an expert writer in varied fields and has been doing research on several topics for the past several years. She is renowned for her advices and tips on buying products. For more details please visit HP 2550 2840 Toner Cartridges.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Melanie_Hogeveen

Video Card BIOS Upgrade

Video card BIOS update, like the motherboard BIOS update, is gradually welcomed by DIY group. Fix the bugs in the card and tap its potential, Flashing your video card BIOS allows you to have your system as stable as possible.

Nevertheless, graphics BIOS flash has latent risks. How can we minimize these dangers?

NVIDIA and ATI cards are two common graphics adapters in use. Before BIOS flash, the following preparation is necessary.

First, find the video card model.

Graphic card BIOS are distinct due to different brands and different models, generally they can not be applied universally. Do pay attention to the specific model, for example, the memory is SGRAM or SDRAM, it is 8MB or 16MB, PCI version or AGP version, is there any TV output...Otherwise, running an improper BIOS file may make the card going badly wrong or even scrapped.

Second, find the version of the original BIOS; search the manufacturers' website for BIOS details, download a compatible and newer BIOS file for the video adapter.

Third, check if any drivers required.

Fourth, a copy of the NVFLASH utility (used in NVIDIA BIOS flash, you can download it from websites and use it to restore the current graphics BIOS), or a copy of the FLASHROM utility (used in ATI BIOS flash).

Fifth, make a boot disk. All video card BIOS flash is carried out more reliably in DOS, so we need to make a DOS boot disk. And then copy the downloaded BIOS file and the NVFLASH.exe file (for NVIDIA BIOS flash)/FLASHROM.exe file (for ATI BIOS flash) onto the disk.

Since preparations are ready, then go to the next step-flashing graphics card BIOS.

In order to let the operation go smoothly, try to keep the power supply working in gear in the whole procedure.

NVIDIA graphic adapter BIOS update

1. Make a backup of the current NVIDIA graphic card BIOS
Utilize the BIOS flash disk to boot the computer and enter DOS, at the "A:" prompt, type "nvflash.exe -b backup.rom" and press Enter. The NVFLASH utility will restore the current NVIDIA graphics BIOS onto the flash disk (called backup.rom).

2. BIOS update
From the "A:" prompt, type "nvflash -p -u -f (name of the new BIOS file including the file extension)" and press Enter. NVFLASH will overwrite your old BIOS information with the new values. If you see any error messages or odd results, do not restart the system. Consult the troubleshooting below for further instructions.

If everything seemed to work properly, restart the system.

Depending on the BIOS version you used and the video card, you may need to install new drivers.

ATI graphic adapter BIOS update

Conventional method

3. Make a backup of the current ATI graphic card BIOS
Boot the computer with the flash disk, at the "A:" prompt, type "flashrom.exe -s 0 backup.rom" press Enter. Now the FLASHROM utility will restore the current video's BIOS onto the disk (called backup.rom).

1. BIOS update
At the "A:" prompt input "Flashrom -p 0 ***.rom" (*** means created name for the BIOS update file) hit Enter then the new BIOS will be written into the current BIOS chip. Wait for a few seconds, if there is no error massage popping up then restart the computer. Updating succeeds.

Special situation, add flashing command parameter

Add parameter "-f"

Some graphic cards would encounter ID error during the operation, try to add a mandatory updating parameter "-f"to force the BIOS flash; When the new BIOS file is confirmed supporting the video adapter ID, input "atiflash -p -f 0 ***.rom", and finally press Enter.

Add parameter "-atmel" or "-sst"

For some video adapters with the mBGA packaging its memory, and adding parameter "-f" is unable to update BIOS. If the BIOS chip is from ATM Company, then input "Flashrom -p -f atmel 0 ***.rom"; if from SST Company, then input "Flashrom -p -f -sst 0 ***.rom".

Depending on the BIOS version you used and the video card, you may need to install new drivers too.

In respect that reprogramming BIOS is not an easy job for all PC users, before flashing your video card with the new BIOS version, keep in mind to restore the current BIOS in case you run into trouble later on.

What should we do when BIOS upgrading fails?

Well, then, if screen dazzling and instability occurs after reprogram, is there any remediation?

We can figure out this issue by upgrading the backup BIOS file over again into the video card just like updating the new BIOS, only to change the command line "newbios.rom" to "backup.rom".

If flash fails, we have several fixes as below:

1. If Windows is accessible, but can not recognize the graphics card, use the DOS boot disk to start up the system, and rewrite the exact BIOS into EPROM. BIOS features can be resumed after start-up.

2. Screen is black.
Unplug the AGP video card firstly, and boot up the computer after plugging in a PCI card, after that enter the BIOS setting program in the motherboard, choose "Integrated Peripherals" option, change the option "Init Display First" value to "PCI Slot", save this setting and shut down.

Then reinsert the AGP card at the same time keep the PCI card still connected with monitor, and restart.

Finally, upgrade the correct BIOS as we update the new BIOS.

3. If there is no PCI card, we can try to "operate blindly".
First, find another computer, create an AUTOEXEC.BAT file in the DOS boot disk, and in this text file write "nvflash" (a filename of the backup BIOS in NVIDIA graphics card) or "Flashrom -p 0 Backup.rom ( in ATI graphics card).

After the batch file finishes editing, boot up the former computer with the disk, when reading is over, wait for more than 10 seconds, and restart the computer. Then everything returns to be normal.

If there is an EEPROM programmer, we can use it to rewrite the proper EPROM into BIOS.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Molly_Smith

Western Digital My Passport Essential USB External Hard Drive

Here we take a look at the Western Digital My Passport Essential 320GB USB 2.0 Portable Hard Drive which is an external 2.5" unit, model number WDME3200TE. This is the rather subtle Midnight Black edition but if you're a little more adventurous they come in several colours including Red, White, Pink and a rather striking Intense Blue. The WD Passport range also ships in other capacities including 160GB, 250GB and a huge 500GB version. They will soon even be releasing a 1TB drive in the Passport Essential product line. I would recommend getting the biggest size you can afford as it will cost you a lot more in the future if you run out of room and need another drive instead of wishing you'd bought a slightly bigger capacity. You can often find that the largest size demands a premium, but there's often not a lot between the remaining sized drives.

Looks
The passport essential has a sleek and glossy casing which can unfortunately scratch easily and also attract dust and the dreaded fingerprints. Despite this the Western Digital portable drive looks great. You could always buy a separate case to add further protection for your drive, especially if you plan on taking it out and about with you.

In Use
Setup of the WD My Passport Essential 320GB USB drive is really easy, just plug it in, start your PC and you are up and running. There are some useful utilities factory installed on the hard disk but they are not required in order for you to use the drive.

The utilities that Western Digital include with the passport essential consist of backup software, synchronisation software and encryption software that keeps your data secure in the event it falls into the wrong hands.

The my passport essential 320GB USB drive's transfer speeds are competitive for a 2.5 inch portable hard drive but are certainly slower than mains powered MyBook Essential drives from the Western Digital product range. The passport uses the USB 2 interface so is comparable in terms of transfer speeds to its 2.5" external drive competition. The new USB3 interface isn't supported on this model.

Reliability
WD have a very good reputation for reliability and although all hard drives can fail you probably won't get a more reliable external hard drive. The warranty is two years which is a little mean but it's not the one year that many manufacturers provide these days. Despite this you should always make sure you have a second copy of any data you store on a hard disk drive.

Positive
Lots of size options to suit your requirements
USB powered requires no external power adaptor
Small unit easily fits in a shirt pocket
Compatible with Windows and Mac operating systems
Software included with package
Turns on and off with your computer
Simple setup

Negative
Slower transfer speeds compared to 3.5 inch external drives
Glossy casing attracts fingerprints, scratches and dust
No firewire, eSATA or USB 3.0 support.

The western digital my passport essential 320gb usb external hard drive range is a great storage solution as a back up device or as a portable device. As always, is pays to read up on each drive you're looking at and to find the best price for the external hard drive you require. Thanks for reading my article.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mac_Jones

How Do Inkjet Printer Refills Work?

Well their name kinda gives the game away doesn't it? An inkjet refill kit allows you to refill your existing ink cartridges with fresh ink more than once. This saves you having to rush out and buy a new black or color cartridge every time you run short of ink. And let's face facts....don't you always run out of ink at just the very, very worst possible time?

There are two types of inkjet refill kit - black and color. The color kit comes with cyan (blue), magenta (purple) and yellow inks. This would allow you to refill your ink tanks individually with the required color. Refilling a combination or tri-color inkjet cartridge is a lot more difficult though.

The black inkjet refill comes with just black ink to refill...well....to refill your black ink cartridges.

How Do Refills Work?
Each inkjet refill comes with a syringe and air balance plugs. The syringe is used to inject fresh ink directly back into your cartridge. This is achieved in different ways depending on the cartridge manufacturer. Some ink cartridges are just much easier to refill than others. The main point is that every inkjet cartridge has a refill hole of one type or another that you can get the ink in through.

The clips or plugs are used to form a tight seal over the refill hole although they are removable for later refills.

Finally you need to prime the cartridge by setting the printhead on some paper towels - this encourage the flow of ink and then you can clean the printhead with the supplied cleaning fluid.

How Reliable Are Refills?
As long as you're careful and follow the instructions provided anyone can refill an inkjet cartridge. A standard printer cartridge can be refilled 7 - 10 times and must be discarded after that to prevent leakage and potential damage to your printer.

The Print Quality Is?
This depends on the quality of the supplier. Ink refill companies who work towards the high standards manufacture their inks to match the viscosity, density and drying time of their inks to that of the original manufacturer. You might need to test several suppliers before you find one that suits both you and your printers needs.

There are dozens if not hundreds of inkjet refill suppliers with online stores. Shopping online gives you the convenience of choosing the exact product you need delivered to your front door (sometimes overnight) at up to 75% less than you'd normally pay. Many online stores offer Free Shipping once you spend a certain amount with them.

One final note. Check your printer documentation for warranty warnings on using inkjet refills with your printer. Some manufacturers will void your printer warranty for using inkjet refills.

Wouldn't you like to be able to cut your inkjet cartridge costs by 75%? We can help you find cheap printer cartridges and inkjet refill kits right now.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Niall_Roche