We have been talking about ‘Storms’ in our blogs lately. The reason, well we just came out of mild winter, but the weather specialist is saying we could be in for a windy and stormy Spring, in fact we have already experience downpours, flooding, lightning, power surges and winds moving faster that 50 mph. We have talked about letting your employees work in the safety of their home. Before the storm starts to rage, lets re-evaluate how are you protecting your technology. Now let’s talk about keeping your computer, servers, printers and phones protected.
Lightning is a primary danger to a PC. The power in a bolt of lightning is immense and can instantly destroy electronic equipment. A lightning strike, even miles away, can travel through wiring quickly, and leave computer components rendered useless. The sudden loss of power can cause significant damage to your computers, servers, printers, routers, modems, phones, etc. If you are a residential computer user power outages can affect you also, the loss of your computer can be heartbreaking. The loss of your data: family photos, family videos, music and data.
If you are a business owner the question is how much are data and equipment are we you able to lose, yet still maintain your company.
First step to protecting your company’s technology is to have a surge protector or uninterruptible power supply (UPS) including a battery backup. What do all of the terms mean?
- A surge is caused by a high-voltage within the electrical system; an increase in voltage that last only 1 or 2 nanoseconds
- A spike is generally caused by lightning strikes
- A brownout is a low voltage within the electrical system
- A blackout is a total power loss
- A power strip does not provide any protection; electrical current is just passing thru the device
- A surge protector is built to protect your devices from spikes and surges in power
- An uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is an electrical device that runs of batteries for a limited amount of time
- Power Generator is a gas powered device that supplies electrical power during major power disruptions
You have a couple of options to deal with ‘Storms’:
1. Unplug all of your equipment
2. Send your staff home
3. Close the door and hide
4. Ensure your business insurance is up to date
5. Install UPS devices on your critical network and server equipment
6. Install surge protectors for every user's computer and phone
7. Install a power generator
In reality your business cannot function if you choose options 1, 2 or 3. As a business owner options 4 through 6 are key and you can’t afford not to install these devices. If you determine that your business is highly critical you may want to consider a power generator.
Before the ‘Storm’ hits make sure you are ready for a ‘Power Outage’.