Myth: Can Dust Bunnies Take Down Your Company’s Network?

5 Tips for Protecting the Physical Well-Being of Your Technology
by Stephanie Spino | www.everonit.com

It’s overlooking the small things that will get you in the end. Car maintenance, teeth cleanings, and watering the plants all fall into this bucket; so does technology. With so much emphasis placed on internal maintenance efforts, (e.g. installing spyware hardware, etc.,) considering the physical state of technology often gets overlooked. Neglecting this could cause your internal maintenance efforts to be in vain as time presses on. A periodic evaluation of your equipment’s external conditions may save you time and money; rescuing you from enduring frustrations down the road. Remember, when it comes to technology disasters, a seemingly innocent dust-bunny can wreak as much havoc as a malicious virus. Find out why:

Be very quiet…I’m hunting dust bunnies

Yes, dust bunnies in mass can take down your network. It may seem like common sense, but protecting servers and other equipment from dust and other particles is important. Contaminants can cause components to short-circuit or overheat, which can lead to intermittent failures and other issues. Keeping your work space dust free takes very little time and will help preserve your system’s physical condition.

Keep it cool

Computers should live in climates of approximately 70 degrees Fahrenheit with limited humidity. Temperature is not usually an issue in offices, but unexpected temperature increases coupled with improper cooling could mean trouble. This is especially true for a server tucked away in a back room with minimal airflow and no ventilation.

More power

Even if the lights go out, your company will stay in business with this piece of advice. Identify the resources that are critical to the operation of your company and ensure that an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) or standby generator is in place in the event of an emergency. Be sure to include network tools, such as routers, when assessing equipment that will require backup power during an outage.

Your bathroom is not a server room

Your best option: Assign a room solely dedicated to housing your server(s) and equipment. This space should not be dueling as a storage closet, a break room, or anything else for that matter. Developing a custom security plan for your office based on your organization’s physical facilities and its overall structure and policies is ideal for strengthening the protection of your system.

Charm the snakes

Beware of loose and tangled cables that could be kicked and/or disconnected. Make sure wires are neat and orderly, either with a cable management system or tie wraps; all cables should be securely attached at both ends if possible. Keeping your cables neat and orderly will prevent pinches, scrapes, and other forms of physical damage.

Before reading this article you may have thought computer viruses and hackers were your company’s only technological enemies, but there are others to contend with. A bit of common sense and a little tidying up can go a long way to preserving the overall health of your systems.

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