Wednesday 15 July 2009

Just A Little Too Shocking – Something So Innocuous Can Be So Dangerous

We all know that static can be deadly to electronic components. Despite this knowledge, we still encounter folks that do not take the appropriate precautions such as antistatic straps and grounding themselves while working on servers, workstations, printers, and more.

Our most costly mistake was the loss of a client’s HP LaserJet that did not take too kindly to having the formatter board touched without a static strap. The printer came up fried after replacing a driveline component in the printer.

So, what brings this post about?

Right now, ShadowProtect is in the process of restoring a client’s SP image from about 11:30 this morning.

The restoration is being run on one of our lab boxes using the Hardware Independent Restore feature since the SBS server hardware has seemingly taken a complete dive into non-responsiveness.

The cause of the death of this particular server was the moving about of a number of desks here in their office. Components were unplugged, things moved around, and in the mix somehow there was enough of a spike passed through the network cabling to cause the server to lock up and not come back.

The box itself is about 4 or so years old. It has seen better days and has been misbehaving on occasion over the last three to six months. So, something happened today to push the box over the edge.

When it comes to moving systems around, it is important to let users know that they need to keep contact with a metal component on the CPU tower before and during any moves taking place.

The system should be properly powered down before removing any cables from the back of the tower.

Once the machines are powered down, it is important to make sure to remain in contact with that metal while removing the VGA, DVI, USB, and network cables.

The A/C cables should be the last things to be removed from both the CPU tower and monitors. Make sure to use the power switch to turn off the power supply if one is present before pulling the plug.

The reverse order should be used to connect everything back together all the while making sure to be grounded during the process.

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists
Co-Author: SBS 2008 Blueprint Book

*All Mac on SBS posts will not be written on a Mac until we replace our now missing iMac! (previous blog post)

Windows Live Writer

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