What to do about your IT Services in a Storm

A northeaster is bringing wind-whipped, wet snow to Massachusetts.  New England braces for huge Blizzard!

Minimize Technology Problems and Protect your IT Infrastructure Before a Storm:

Expect service interruptions for power, internet, and phone.  During strong storms, it is possible for high winds and water to damage local circuits and grids that feed your business.  Your IT Service provider should be monitoring your site and  be in constant contact with local Internet Service Providers in the event of any outages to ensure that, if your business is affected, you get back online as quickly as possible.

Power off AND unplug your desktop PCs and laptops (if possible) – this will help protect them from a variety of power issues.

Verify all your backups to ensure the latest backup is available in the event any equipment is damaged. 

It is recommended if you are using a tape backup system that you bring the latest backup tape off site.

Businesses using a cloud backup system and disaster recovery appliance are automatically protected and do not need to do anything.  Your data is automatically stored in a facility geographically located far from the expected area of the storm.

Customers using hosted email services should not expect any interruption in service. These hosted environments are usually fully backed up and have multiple locations if one goes down.  If you have your own email server we suggest shutting it down and uplugging it during the storm to help protect it from a variety of power issues.  If you are unsure of your configuration contact your current IT Services Provider or their helpdesk.

Hopefully you have a disaster recovery plan.  If you don't, you can download one here:

After the storm has passed, plan on experiencing problems, especially if the electricity goes out and there is no generator to run while the electricity is down.  Make sure to have contact numbers for your IT Services Provider.

 Most important, be safe.  Most technology is replaceable.  You on the other hand are not!

Who is handling your IT and are you protected?