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When the Lights Go Out - Power Outage Tips

Posted 10/21/19

Protect your systems from power loss damage

Power losses can devastate servers, workstations and network infrastructures, resulting in the loss of valuable data, costs to repair your system, and lost time and productivity restoring the systems. Measures can be taken to help prevent these blows to your business, and allow you to get up-and-running again soon after the power is restored.

A high-quality uninterruptable power supply (UPS) is an essential part of your IT infrastructure. A properly sized and configured UPS acts as a short-term power source to provide you with enough time for a proper shutdown of your systems when a power loss occurs. This piece of equipment can save you a lot of problems if you are aware of what you need to do during power outages.

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If you know that power will be shut off:

• Perform a normal shut down of your servers/systems before the power goes out.
• If you’re not sure how to properly shut down your servers, call us and we can walk you through the process or even do it for you through TSG remote monitoring.

If power goes out unexpectedly:

• Your UPS will start beeping. This means your system is now running on battery power, and that you need to do a normal shutdown on your servers/systems quickly to prevent damage.

Not sure how to do a normal shutdown?:

• We can walk you through it by phone.
• If you have TSG Connect, give us a call and we can do it for you remotely.

Remember: Do NOT allow a power outage to shut down your servers/systems. This can be damaging to the equipment and more importantly, your data. Always do a normal shutdown if possible.

When power is restored:

• Try to power-up server.
• If there’s a problem, call us.
• If you don’t know how to power-up properly, call us and we can help you through the process.

It is best to have all computers, printers, and peripherals and electronic devices plugged into a UPS, but at minimum, they should be plugged into a quality surge protector. During storms, a spike (surge) of electricity can come through the circuit and damage your equipment. A surge protector can prevent this from happening. Again, a UPS is the preferred solution, as it provides both battery backup and surge protection.

A power outage does not have to be a setback to your company’s productivity. If the above precautions are implemented, you are more likely to avoid business disruption and get back to work with ease and efficiency. Don’t forget, you can always call TSG if you need assistance or to discuss products and services that will keep your business up and running.