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Brief Assignment

BTEC Level 2 First


Diploma in
Information and
Creative Technology
(NQF)

Computing and Administration


Academy

Student Name
Rene Tucker

2015 - 2016
UNIT 14

INSTALLING AND MAINTAINING HARDWARE


INVESTIGATION
PART 1 OF 3

Assignment
Result
Date
Signature

R/P/M/D
02/11/2015

R/P/M/D

Rene Tucker
HLC Consultant

Computing and Administration Academy

BTEC Level 2 Diploma in Information and


Creative Technology (NQF)
Student Name
Assignment Title

I confirm that the work submitted for this Assignment


is my own work and has been produced during the time
allocated for the Assignment identified
Student Signature

Investigation
Assessor

02/11/2
015

Naihla Saleem

Unit Title
Installing and
Maintaining Hardware

Date

Hand out

Hand in

16/10/15

02/11/15

BTEC Level 2 Diploma in Information and Creative Technology


Technology (NQF)

ASSESSMENT EVIDENCE ASSIGNMENT 1 INSTALLING AND MAINTAINING


To achieve a PASS for this assignment
your work must show:

P1

HARDWARE

Page
location

Criteria
Met
Y/N

Assessor feedback

Page
location

Criteria
Met
Y/N

Assessor feedback

Page
location

Criteria
Met
Y/N

Assessor feedback

Explain the benefits of installing and


maintaining hardware for two different
technology systems.

To achieve a Merit for this assignment your


work must show all Pass criteria met plus:
M1 Review how installing and maintaining
hardware for one technology system
could impact an individual or
organisation.
To achieve a Distinction for this
assignment your work must show all Merit
criteria met plus:
D1 Discuss the strengths and
weaknesses of hardware for a given
technology system.

Unit 14- Installing and Maintaining Hardware


Assignment 1- Part 1
[Type here]

Rene Tucker
HLC Consultant

Unit 14 Installing and Maintaining Hardware


Introduction
This assignment aims to allow learners to demonstrate their skills and knowledge on
installing and maintaining computer hardware.

Scenario
You work as a consultant for an IT company called HLC IT Consultants that specialises in
maintaining technology systems.
For this scenario, a client, West Mercia Employment, is a small company with employees
who use technology systems. The client is an employment agency, placing potential
employees into suitable job roles. They have two banks of customers, prospective
employers and their possible employees. Their role is to match candidates to vacancies.
They need to maintain client data, have good communication systems and provide both sets
of customers with relevant information (both electronic and hard copy).
They have found a few technical problems and are considering upgrading their systems.
Before the client decides whether to buy a brand new system, they would like some advice
from you about repairing and maintaining their two existing systems.
System 1 is a stand-alone computer used in the CEOs office which is connected to an inkjet printer.
System 2 is in their general office where they have eighteen stand-alone computers and one
ink-jet printer.

Task 1 (Criteria P1)


Prepare a presentation or a report for the client.
Record the current status for the two systems (see attached form), noting the hardware and
operating systems, including any peripheral devices and connectivity possibilities.
Explain the benefits of installing and maintaining hardware in the two different technology
systems of West Mercia Employment. You should include at least one internal component
and one external device that could be added to each system.

Hints:
You should explain 4 reasons why we maintain systems.
You should explain at least four reasons why faults develop in systems
and give examples of at least four components that could develop a
fault that would impair a system.
You should describe at least three benefits that arise from installing
and maintaining hardware.

Task 2 (Criteria M1)


Choose one of their two systems and explain in your report the implications for the
organisation of maintaining hardware in that system. These implications should include

Unit 14- Installing and Maintaining Hardware


Assignment 1- Part 1
[Type here]

Rene Tucker
HLC Consultant

training, compatibility, decommissioning, service level agreements and risks (to the
organisations business, systems or data). You should explain the possible impact of some of
these on the organisation, its employees or its clients.

Hints
You should include at least 4 possible effects on an individual or
organisation that could arise from installing or maintaining hardware.
Explain at least two examples of possible implications arising from
maintaining or installing hardware and how these could impact on an
individual or organisation.

Task 3 (Criteria D1)


West Mercia Employment is considering the possible complete replacement of its existing
hardware. Before it does so the management need you to understand the strengths and
weaknesses of their current system. Add to your report a discussion on the strengths and
weaknesses for the given technology system.

Hint
You need to consider the strengths and weaknesses of the hardware for
a given technology system. You must discuss both strengths and
weaknesses, discussing at least one example of each.

Unit 14- Installing and Maintaining Hardware


Assignment 1- Part 1
[Type here]

Rene Tucker
HLC Consultant

HLC IT Consultants
Current Status of West Mercia Employment
Technology Systems
CEO Office

General Office

Machines

1 Personal computer

Printer

1 ink-jet (Epson Stylus Colour


440)
Stand-alone

18 personal computers (same


spec.)
1 ink-jet (Epson Stylus Colour 440)

Network
status
Processor
type
Processor
speed
R.A.M. type
R.A.M. size
Video card
Connectivity
Monitor
Storage
capacity
Storage type
Optical drive
USB drives
Fire-wire
connection
Other
peripherals?
Operating
system
Applications

Intel Core i5

Stand-alone. Network ports


available in office infrastructure.
Intel Core i3

2.5 GHz

2.5 GHz

DDR3
4 GB
NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT
None
24
I TB

DDR2
2GB
ATI Redeem X1950XT
None
15
160 GB

HDD
DVD/CD (internal)
3.0 Multi- card Reader
(internal)
Yes

HDD (internal)
DVD/CD
2.0 USB Reader

Keyboard, Mouse, Speakers


(external components)
Windows 8,

Keyboard, Mouse, Speakers


(external components)
Windows XP

Microsoft Office, Paint,


Calculator, Adobe Suite 2008

Microsoft Office, Paint, Calculator

Other
considerations

Unit 14- Installing and Maintaining Hardware


Assignment 1- Part 1
[Type here]

No

Add- All-in-One Printer Scanner


Fax

HLC IT Consultants IT Systems report for company West


Mercia Employment.
As at the clients request, here is a detailed report analysing existing
technology systems, possible upgrades and maintenance strategies.
First, lets define routine maintenance. Routine maintenance is when
hardware is replaced due to being old, breaking down or broken. Also, routine
maintenance involves general cleaning of the components in the computer, for
example, getting rid of any dust that has amounted. In brief bullet points, I will
explain why it is important to carry out routine maintenance on all business
technology systems below;
1. Routine Maintenance will help with improving the overall function of the
computer. For example, dust can prevent heat dissipation and short out
components, by removing the dust these problems can be prevented.
2. Routine maintenance allows for the operators to detect any faults and
carry out or assign a professional to carry out repairs. This ensures that
no damage is done to the system and that any problems are detected
and fixed before it gets worse.
3. In terms of the benefits for an organization to carry out routine
maintenance, replacing broken or faulty equipment can prevent the
money loss due to time wasted by employees not able to use their
system or a component, the company will still have to pay the employee
during this wasted time, deadlines may not be met, and employees may
not be able to properly or efficient deal with customer needs. All can
result in the loss of business.
4. By upgrading a system, you are increasing the reliability, as well as a
possible increase of speed and storage capacity. If your system is old,
over time you will start to run out of storage space which in turn can
cause your PC to response slow to request.
5. Routine maintenance upgrades can satisfy user requirements. In the
instance of West Mercia Employment, more detail below, upgrading the
system will satisfy user requirements in terms of providing employees
with more employee-customer communications outlets, as well as adding
other means of data input such as a scanner, etc.
Several problems that affect the reliability of a computer system are;
Heat- Can accelerate aging and cause glitches
Dust build up prevents heat dissipation and can short out components
Unstable power causes crashes and failures
Static electricity can destroy components
There are several things that you can do to prevent a problem from getting
worse in your system
1. Look for dust and dirt
2. Check safe installation
3. Overloaded power sockets
4. Trailing cables
5. Food and drink
6. Listen for unusual sounds

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Overall, routine maintenance is good practice to ensure the equipment is


working most efficiently within an organizations technology system or an
individuals personal technology system.
I will now give a report on the Technology systems and existing
components within West Mercia Employment, detailing the strengths and
weaknesses, possible upgrade suggestions, as well as the benefits and any
implications of carrying out this routine maintenance on the organizations
systems.
It was noted that West Mercia Employment is an employment company
responsible for finding and placing potential employees in jobs. There are two
types of customers that West Mercia caters two, employers and potential
employees. The company has two technology systems for the services they
provide, one for the CEO and the other for the general office. The CEO office
consist of one PC with its peripherals and an ink-jet printer. The General Office
has a total of 18 PCs' with one ink-jet printer that is shared. After analysing the
two systems and gathering information on the specs, we cross referenced the
data with the technology needs of West Mercia Employment.
CEO Technology System
Firstly, after taking a look at the specifications of the CEOs' system, I
have concluded that the CEOs system is adequate for the work that it is used
for. The internal components specs are as follows:
The stand-alone DELL computer has an Intel Core i5 2.5 GHz processor which is
a good processor model and speed to run and operate the hardware and
software that the CEO will use, alongside, the Seagate 1TB 3.5" SATA hard drive
which provides enough storage for the system. With 4GB of DDR3 DELL PC3L10600R RAM (memory) running any of the programs and software the CEO will
use will be enough memory space and speed. The system also sports USB 3.0
Multi Card Reader, which will allow the CEO to use several flash memory
devices and cards to transfer data to and from the computer in a fast and easy
manner. The CEO has a fire-wire connection which will allow him to connect any
digital devices to his system so it can be detected and read on the system. The
system optical drive supports CD/DVD. All running on a Windows 8 Operating
system. External peripherals include a keyboard, mouse and an Epson Stylus
Colour 440 ink-jet printer. Although the CEO Technology system is adequate for
office use, I would make a suggestion to add a few external peripherals. Such
as, a personal fax and scanner. The scanner may come in handy when the CEO
receives important hard copy documents that will need to be transferred onto
the computer. The fax is also a good input/output device to send and receive
documents from other business associates or clients. Fax machines are widely
used in business operations. The reason I suggest the CEO having their own
personal external peripherals is for privacy and confidential matters such as
important documents.
Overall, the CEO Technology system is a strong system that will perform at the
expected tasks efficiently.
General Office Technology System
Where I have suggested just several things that may improve for the
CEOs technology system (all external hardware), there is quite a few things I
would suggest improving in the General office system to improve efficiency.
Because the general office environment is where a lot of the business and
client data is processed the employees should have a system that will be able
to handle all data most efficiently and improve the overall operation of the day
to day business that West Mercia Employment conducts.

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o Specifications Of the General Office


At this moment, the general offices consist of eighteen personal computers and
one 'shared' Epson Stylus Colour 440 ink-jet printer. The eighteen computers
are all stand-alone 15" computers and all have the same specs that include
internal hardware; 2.5 GHz Intel Core i3 processor, 2GB DDR2 of RAM, ATI
Redeem X1950XT Video Card, 160 GB SATA 1.5Gb/s HDD, Serial ATA 150 CD
Drive, Type two USB ports, Operating system Windows XP Professional. This
system does not support fire wire, or network connection. External peripherals
include keyboard and mouse. The General office technology system should be
more advanced if not at par with the updated CEOs' system. Within this
system, more information is transferred, used and recorded.
o Possible Upgrades
I will begin with the internal devices and software that would make this
system more efficient. The processor type and speed will be sufficient enough
for the operations of the employees. However, it will be beneficial for the
system to have a boost in memory. I would suggest increasing the RAM
memory from the 2GB DDR2 to an 8GB DDR2 or DDR3. Increasing memory
allows the computers programs to run smoother and helps elevate pressure on
the main storage drive, the hard drive. This particular model computer is
capable of processing 8 GB of DDR2-DDR3 RAM with 4 slots. At present, only
one slot is fitted with the 2GB DDR2 RAM. Each computer can upgrade and add
the 2 4GB of DDR3 RAM (price range between 20-30 pounds). Alternatively, you
can fill all RAM slots with an extra three 2GB DDR2 RAM (priced between 10-20
pounds), which will increase the memory to 8GB storage space. The latter
being the more feasible choice. The RAM will increase the performance speed
of the computer as well as allow the computer to run several programs at once
which may be beneficial in an organization like West Ma5rcia Employment
when an employee is filling out documents with clients as well as entering data
for the company. West Mercia employment needs a system that can handle
large databases that will store both customer banks of information. I would also
suggest to increase the storage capacity from 160 GB of HDD storage to 1T.
Having a Terabyte of HDD storage will ensure that there is enough space along
with the increase in RAM.
There is no evident reason to upgrade the 2.0 USB drive for business
purposes. However, I will suggest possibly getting a plug-in multi card reader
that will support multi flash memory devices. Although, I cannot predict when it
will be used but it could prove useful to have one or to two in the office. There
is no need to upgrade the video card for the software and programs that West
Mercia employees will be using.
A very beneficial upgrade for the general office system will be the
operating system. Windows XP Pro is an older operating system. I suggest
upgrading the system to a Windows 2010 version. The current processor is
compatible with this upgrade. One of the main reasons for always updating an
Organization Operating System is for security purposes. The longer a software
package has been around and the more popular the software package is, the
more the software represents a security risk. Over the useful life of a software
package, security holes and the malicious viruses that take advantage of them
make a long list of reasons to upgrade to newer and more secure versions of
the same software.
Also, I highly recommend the company implement a good
communication system, i.e. access to internet for emails, possible social media
platforms etc. At the moment West Mercia does not have internet access in

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either of its technology systems, which is limiting employee and customers


communication. I suggest implanting a Local Area Network (LAN) that will allow
the computers as well as devices be connected throughout the office.
Having internet access will prove to be an essential part of West
Mercia Employment.
It will allow you to reach a wider audience for your business as well as
provide a cost efficient means of doing so.
By using such platforms like social media, email, and online advertising
ads, West Mercia will be able to provide customers any relevant
information like service specifications and updates.
Also, by creating an online presence West Mercia can give customers
access to their services or a contact as long as they have an internet
connection. This can be useful for those who cannot for some reason call
into the office or do not have the time to stop by for a simple inquiry.
Another helpful reason to have an internet connection within your business is
West Mercia can provide some of the services online. Many products and
services can be delivered over the Internet. Online services will become an
even brighter option for many businesses. Since the transaction is electronic,
billing and inventory control can be automated, increasing accuracy and
reducing your accounting and product storage costs.
The implications of maintaining and upgrading West Mercias' general
office IT system.
While improving the general office system will allow employees communicate
with customers more efficiently, better and faster access to data needed, there
are implications that come with updating the system. For example;
There will need to be training for employees on how to efficiently use the
new software. This may be time consuming. A good suggestion would be
create several groups and set out times for each group to train. This
method will ensure that work is not fully put on hold. In the end the new
software upgrade will be worth it. Another implication that
Another implication would be compatibility issues. If you upgrade a
component like the RAM, you may find that the CPU needs to be
upgraded to produce enough power to support the new RAM.
Balance between cost and performance. When doing upgrades always
make sure that the upgrade is necessary, compatible and cost- effective.
You will need to consider the price of the actual product as well as the
price of having installed.
Also, making sure a qualified person or someone that is knowledgeable
about the upgrade process carries out the job to prevent unnecessary
mistakes.
Decommissioning of hardware is important. Making sure the old hardware
is disposed of properly can be a hassle.
In conclusion, after analysing both systems, their components and
possible upgrades, I will suggest to make upgrade the CEO system by adding
the external components listed above to make more efficient. However, will all
the upgrades, implications and possible compatibility issue it will be more
feasible to replace the general office technology system entirely. A new PC
system will have the latest upgrades and components already installed and will
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guarantee longer life. There will still be a need for training, decommissioning of
systems and professional installation of the new systems.

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