Why Reboot your computer (and automatic reboot days at COB)
"Log Off" vs "Restart" or "Reboot"
When you turn on a computer, it does some self-testing to be sure it is working correctly, then loads the familiar Windows "Operating System" that allows you to run programs like Outlook or PowerPoint. This is called "booting up".
When you "Log off" or "Log out" of a computer, your session ends, but the Operating System session continues to run. It is not reloaded fresh.
As your computer runs, its memory gets cluttered and fragmented with all the tasks it's done since booting up. If you shut it down and re-start it, that's "RE-booting". The result is a clean memory stack with no software session fragments, and your computer runs much better. Microsoft Windows also takes the opportunity to install any security and update patches that have been waiting for the occasion. This is why it's important to restart, or reboot, your computer often. It's a good idea to reboot every couple weeks, and every day is not too often. This is true of all computers.
To restart your computer, click on the Windows button, then the power button, and choose "Restart".
Rebooting is so important that the College Of Business sends a "Restart" signal about every two weeks to catch our computers that have not been manually restarted. But you should know that your computer will lose any unsaved work when it is signaled to restart. So save your work often! And be sure to log out of your computer on days when automatic reboots are scheduled.
Automatic reboots happen every other Sunday at 2:00am. Here's the automatic reboot schedule for FY-19:
| Month | Days | Comments |
|
August |
19 | |
|
September |
2, 16, 30 | |
| October | 14, 28 | |
| November | 11, 25 | |
| December | 9, 23 | |
| January | 6, 20 | |
| February | 3, 17 | |
| March | 3, 17, 31 | |
| April | 14, 28 | |
| May | 12,26 | |
| June | 9, 23 |