Computer repair technicians work in a variety of settings, encompassing both the
public and
private sectors.
Because of the relatively brief existence of the profession,
institutions offer certificate and degree programs designed to prepare
new technicians, but computer repairs are frequently performed by
experienced and
certified technicians who have little formal training in the field.
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A repair technician might work in a corporate
information technology
department, a central service center, or a retail computer sales
environment. A public sector technician might work in the military,
national security or law enforcement communities, health or public
safety field, or an educational institution. Despite the vast variety of
work environments, all computer technicians perform similar physical
and investigative processes, including
technical support. Experienced technicians might specialize in fields such as
data recovery,
system administration, or
information systems. Some technicians are self-employed or own a firm that provides services in a regional area. Some are subcontracted as
freelancers or
consultants.
This type of technician ranges from hobbyists and enthusiasts that
volunteer or make a little side money, to those who work professionally
in the field.
Computer malfunctions can range from a minor setting that is incorrect, to
spyware,
viruses, and as far as replacing hardware or an entire
operating system.
Some technicians provide on-site services usually at an hourly rate.
Others can provide services off-site, where the client can drop off at
the repair shop. Some have pickup and drop off services for convenience.
Some technicians may also take back old equipment for
recycling (In the EU, this is required under
WEEE rules).
Hardware repair
While computer hardware configuration varies widely, a repair technician will work with five general categories of hardware;
desktop computers,
laptops,
servers,
computer clusters and
smartphones /
mobile computing. Technicians also work with and occasionally repair a range of
peripherals, including
input devices (like
keyboards,
mice, and
scanners),
output devices (like
displays,
printers, and
speakers), and
data storage devices such as internal and external
hard drives and disk arrays. Technicians involved in system administration might also work with
networking hardware, including
routers,
switches,
fiber optics, and
wireless networks.
Software repair
When possible, repair technicians protect the computer user’s data
and settings, so that after repair, the user will not have lost any data
and can fully use the device with little interruption, the problem.
Addressing the issue, the technician could take action as minor as
adjusting one or several settings or preferences, but could also apply
more involved techniques like installing, uninstalling, or reinstalling
various software packages. A reliable, but somewhat more complicated,
procedure for addressing software issues is known as a restore, in which
the computer’s original installation image (including operating system
and original applications) is reapplied to a
formatted
hard drive. It should be known though, that anything unique, such as
settings, or personal files will be destroyed if not backed up on
external media, as this reverts everything back to its original unused
state.
