Frequently Asked Questions

• Onsite IT support: $130.00 per hour (minimum one hour)
• Remote IT help: $32.50 per 15 minutes, no travel fee
• Travel: $30 within the Kāpiti Coast, $50 to Levin or Porirua, or $60 south of Porirua or north of Levin for anywhere else inside our service area

Annual management plans are priced separately. Everything is quoted before work starts.

Yes. We can usually recover data from computers that will not boot, including desktops and laptops. Our data recovery service uses professional tools to extract documents, photos and files from damaged or corrupted drives. Even if Windows or macOS no longer loads, your data can often still be saved.

Yes. We diagnose hardware and software slowdowns, replace hard drives with SSDs, upgrade memory, and remove unwanted programs or malware. Most systems can feel like new again for a fraction of replacement cost. See computer repairs.

Yes. Our device setup and data migration service transfers your files, photos, emails and apps safely to your new computer, laptop or phone. We make sure everything works before you start using it, and can advise on complete new setups for a home or business.

Yes. We specialise in Wi-Fi setup and internet troubleshooting, covering weak coverage, Starlink installation, mesh network setup and router configuration.

Yes. We remove malware and scam software, secure your Wi-Fi and devices, and provide plain-English guidance on avoiding phishing and fraud. Our online safety page covers the most common scams in New Zealand.

Yes. We work with all major systems including Windows PCs, Apple Macs, iPhones, iPads and Android devices. Our IT support services, including remote monitoring and support tools, are fully compatible with macOS.

Yes. Many issues can be fixed remotely using secure connection tools, saving you time and travel costs. There is no call-out fee on remote work and results are often immediate. See ongoing IT support.

Yes. Our annual management plans cover remote monitoring, antivirus, Microsoft 365, cloud backup and an annual Tech WoF health check on every tier.

Yes. We are available 8:00am to 10:00pm, seven days a week. Tech problems do not only happen between nine and five, so evening and weekend appointments are normal. Just contact us to arrange a time.

We cover the entire Kāpiti Coast including Paraparaumu, Raumati, Waikanae, Peka Peka, Te Horo, Ōtaki and Paekākāriki, plus Levin and Porirua. Remote assistance is available anywhere in New Zealand. See our service area.

Yes. We set up reliable backups using Google Drive, OneDrive, iCloud or Dropbox, and make sure everything syncs properly across your devices.

No, not necessarily. A subscription such as Google Drive, OneDrive, iCloud or Dropbox is the more convenient option: it works from anywhere, syncs by itself and needs nothing from you, and for most households that convenience is worth the monthly cost. But it is not the only way. A home media server, also called network attached storage, is a pay-once alternative that keeps your films, music, photos and documents on your own hardware, streams them to every screen in the house and can still be reached when you are away. You buy the equipment once rather than paying every month, and nothing sits on somebody else's server. The trade-off is that it is a piece of kit in your home that occasionally wants attention. We are happy to advise on which suits you and to set up either, or both, since a media server on its own is not a backup. See ongoing IT support.

Yes. Lighting, heating, cameras, doorbells, speakers, smart TVs and the app that is supposed to tie them all together. Most of what we get called about is not a fresh installation but a system that used to work and has stopped, usually after a router change, a password reset or an update, or a setup left behind by whoever installed it originally that nobody can now get into. We get it back to being one thing you can actually operate, and we will tell you honestly when a particular product is not worth persevering with.

Yes. A security check goes through the things that are commonly wrong and rarely looked at: router admin passwords still set to the factory default, firmware years out of date, ports left open to the internet, cameras and smart devices running on credentials anyone can look up, accounts without two-factor authentication, and backups that have never been tested. You get a plain-English list of what we found, what we changed and what is worth doing next. Our online safety guide covers the everyday version you can do yourself.

It matters, but there is no need to rush. Microsoft stopped issuing security updates for Windows 10 in October 2025, so those machines still run perfectly well but no longer receive patches when new vulnerabilities are found. Many computers from roughly 2018 onwards can upgrade to Windows 11 at no cost, and we can check in a couple of minutes whether yours is eligible. Where the hardware will not support it, the realistic choice is between replacing the machine and keeping it sensibly locked down for a while longer. We will give you a straight answer about which makes sense rather than pushing you towards a new computer. See computer repairs.

Everything is quoted before work starts, and quotes hold for seven days. Invoices are emailed once the work is done and are payable within seven days. Parts and hardware are quoted separately from labour: once you approve them in writing we issue an invoice, order the parts when payment comes through, and let you know as soon as they arrive. Full details are on our terms of service page.

For most onsite visits, yes, at least at the beginning and the end. We need access to the device or the network, and two minutes hearing what the problem actually looks like usually saves far longer than guessing from a description. Once the work is under way you are welcome to get on with your day. For remote sessions you do need to be at the computer to grant access, though often only for a moment at the start.

We only look at what the job requires. Remote access is used only with your permission and while you are at the machine, and it ends when the session does. Where a job genuinely involves your files, such as moving data to a new computer or recovering it from a failing drive, we agree with you beforehand what is being copied and where it is going. If you would rather sign out of banking or email before we start, that is entirely reasonable and will not slow anything down.

Either works. If you would rather buy your own, tell us what you are looking at and we will say what will fit and what to avoid, then fit it when it arrives. If you would rather we handled it, parts are quoted separately from labour and ordered once you approve the quote. Parts we supply carry the manufacturer's warranty where one applies. We will also tell you when a repair is not worth doing and the money is better spent on a replacement.