My Computer Crashed and I Need School Work Recovered!

Here's what I did to help a student with a literally crashed computer and what you should do to prepare for that day when your computer won't start.

By in home, onsite and low cost remote computer, tablet and smart cell phone tutor, trainer, mobile virus removal and repair specialist,

Experienced, dual certified teacher J. Richard Kirkham B.Sc. of Honolulu Hawaii covering all of Oahu.

Call or Text 808.224.1870

BEFORE your computer breaks down

To speed up your slow computer and

For help with Windows PCs, Surface tablets or Apple/Mac computers.

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What Happened to The In Home Computer Client’s Computer?

The computer client in Kalihi here on Oahu had knocked his computer off the bed in his sleep. After that it would turn on for a few seconds then power back down. Turned out in this case he had damaged the motherboard which is the main board on the computer. When that gets damaged it’s usually more cost effective to get a new computer. The problem was he had school work on his computer and needed files recovered.

What Was Weird About This Laptop?

This computer was a little different. It had an M2 SATA SSD 

. That means a weird rectangular “hard drive” which stored the information you used on your computer such as work files, school projects and photos. SSD stands for Solid State Drive. It's a newer and generally more stable version of a hard drive. I did not have an adapter for that to plug into a USB port and attempt to recover files. I called all over Oahu. No big box electronic stores or local electronic shops had the adapter I needed to help my computer client. I finally ordered the M2 SATA SSD to USB adapter from Amazon 

. I ordered two of them. One for my in home computer client and one for myself so I can help other work from home people here in Honolulu with crashed, new computers.

Backup Your Files Backup Your Photos Backup Your School Work

Did I mention to backup your work? This was a good laptop this student had. He didn’t expect to kick it off the bed in his sleep so he didn’t backup his work. You should be doing two different types of backup.

Some form of cloud backup such as OneDrive or Google Backup and Sync.

To be clear, these are not actual backups. They are syncs. You delete one you delete the other. You get a computer virus in your files and they sync to the cloud containing your healthy files. Cloud backup and sycs are an easy way to recover from normal crashes. They’re also GREAT for people like me who use several different computers and other devices.

An off-network backup.

Off network backup simply means not connected to your computer or internet. This can be done with something as simple as an external hard drive or SSD preferably 

 and my own simple to use backup solution. Keeping your backup up to date and unplugged from your computer when you’re not backing up your data will protect your work files and photos from electrical surges and the more modern computer viruses which give antivirus software a nod and they fly right by it into your computer.

Avoid The Ostrich Computer Defense

The old fable is that the ostrich sticks its head in the sand whenever there’s danger. Thus, if it can’t see the danger, there must not be any danger. There really are just a few people out there who believe everything is okay as long as the computer, cell phone and tablet start up. These few people don’t even get their computers checked by a professional every four to six months. Continue to be proactive with your computer and other devices and they will last longer and be faster and more productive.

Oh, put your computer away before napping :-)

Rick

J. Richard Kirkham B.Sc.

[email protected]