Contra Costa Community College District Technology Website:

As computers and computer networks continue to dominate our life, the need to keep them operating smoothly becomes more critical.

Technical support (also known as tech support) is a range of services covering the installation, configuration and maintenance of computer networks, computer hardware, software, or other electronic or mechanical goods. This includes both the computers and the networks they run on. Businesses today demand qualified personnel to deal with the convergence of complex operating systems, sophisticated computer hardware, Wide area networks, vpns and mobile technology.

In general, technical support services strive to keep the network operational and attempting to help the user solve specific problems with a product rather than providing training, customization, or other support services.

Technical considerations are related to the physical hardware situation and the operating system as well as supporting systems such as databases and storage capacity. These technological changes in products increase complexities for typical end users.

Technical support varies but may include some or all of the following:

Network design, installation, configuration and maintenance
Dealing with technical questions and problems
Help Desk Activities and troubleshooting
User training with the hardware and software
Installation, configuration and repair of personal computers
IT infrastructure management services
Customer care services

Computer hardware problems often need to be dealt with in person, however remote support (remote control) can be initiated over the Internet and support provided instead of in person.