BEFORE THE STORM

Preparing for hurricane Wilma is on everybody’s mind, but don’t forget about your technology related equipment ! Here a few things you should do before the storm gets here. The same rules apply at the office or at home:

OVERVIEW:

Unplug EVERYTHING. This includes computers, telephone systems (including the actual phone line!), monitors, fax machines, copiers, stereos and any other expensive equipment. It is not worth taking the chance on damaging your equipment.

Charge any other devices or tools you may need such as cordless drills, rechargeable batteries etc.

Once your cell phone is charged, don’t use up your charge while you still have a regular phone if possible. You will need all the juice you can get.

If you are in a low lying area or will be leaving equipment at the office, get everything off of the floor. If tidal surge is high you could be flooded meaning that everything on the floor will most likely be damaged.

Have a corded phone that does not require power to work. Remember cordless phones will not function without power. A regular cheap phone with no bells or whistles will. Phones pass just enough electricity through the phone line to dial but that’s it. When you lose power this may be your only line of communication if you cell batteries are dead.

BACKUP your data. If your primary data is on the office server, make a backup that you can take with you such as an external USB hard drive. If all else get ruined you will at least have your data.

In an effort to help you prevent damage or loss to your equipment and data, we have prepared a checklist of things you should consider:

PRE HURRICANE CHECKLIST:

BACKUPS: After today's work you should run a full backup then verify your backups have today's date before removing. If it is scheduled to run automatically tonight , stop by your office tomorrow and pick them up since the storm is not coming until Mon now it seems. Take your backup unit OFF site including power cords to the unit(s). Put them in a safe place up high.

If your data is really important to you, take the extra step and burn your data to CD or DVD and put in your safety deposit box at the bank. External hard drives are excellent for this purpose as you can storage a huge amount of data on the small device which will easily fit in most SDB's.

WORKSTATIONS: If your computers are on the floor in your office and you are in a low lying area I would recommend disconnecting all wires and putting them up on the desk or someplace high.. There is a strong possibility of flooding and if the floor is flooded it will damage your PC. Don't worry about reconnecting wires we can help if you need assistance, just get them off the floor before you all leave today. If your office has a window then move all workstations to a location in your home or office away from windows.

SERVERS: The same goes for your servers. Wait until you are ready to leave for the day and shut down and unplug your servers. Get them up high or even take them offsite if that is feasible and your office environment is particularly vulnerable.

LAPTOPS: Laptops are easy, just take them home with you. It is still a good idea to do a backup before leaving your office. Also don't forget your power cords you will wish you had them if you are away from your office for a couple of days.

PRINTERS: Printers particularly, network printers should be unplugged as well. If you have a large network printer it is most likely on the floor and will be difficult to get up high. If it is near a window you may want to consider rolling to another room away from the windows. Smaller printers should be unplugged and should be ok in place if they on top of a desk.

NETWORK SWITCHES & ROUTERS: Do not forget to unplug all of your switches and routers. These are usually the first to go as they are very sensitive to power interruptions. If you take out a router in your office remember your network and internet will go down. You may wish to consult with your network administrator if you have one.

FAX MACHINES AND PHONES: Keep in mind that with hurricanes come severe lightning. Electricity follows the path of least resistance which is usually your phone lines. Anything connected to the other end of a phone line can get damaged. At the very least unplug not only the eclectic from phones and faxes, but the phone line. 90% of the time the damage occurs through the phone line not the electrical so unplug BOTH. If you need your phones for the answering machine then make that judgment but keep these things in mind.

If you have a large office phone system you may wish to contact your phone vendor and inquire about surge protection on the system itself (which is separate from the telephones). Normally they are in a phone closet and protected by a surge protector but it is a good idea to check especially if you have an expensive phone system in your office.

CELL PHONES: Your cell may be your only functioning phone so make sure your batteries are all fully charged including any extras that you may have.

DSL & CABLE MODEMS: This is the last thing that you want to disconnect but you want to be prepared to do so. This could be your only portal to storm information and updates if you TV goes out. Also the lighting damage comes through phone and coax cable lines so if there is lighting disconnect right away.

OTHER EQUIPMENT: Any other expensive equipment including televisions, projectors etc should also be unplugged. Remember a lighting hit takes a fraction of a second to damage a very expensive piece of equipment, don't take the chance.

POST HURRICANE CHECKLIST:

RECONNECTING: All of the equipment that was unplugged of course needs to be plugged back in again. If you have a Server start there first. Your server should be booted before any of the office workstations. Followed by phones, faxes, printers, routers and switches, DSL or Cable Modems then workstations, If you are on a network make sure you can still access your server.

DSL & CABLE MODEMS: Next check your internet connection. Keep in mind that although your equipment may be ok Sprint, Time Warner, or Comcast for example may has sustained damage preventing you from getting internet access. You may want to call them to verify. Also remember that if you do not have internet you will not have email either.. If you connect your DSL modem for example you want to look for the DSL light which should indicate that the DSL is active. This is similar with a cable modem but usually the light says INTERNET.

OTHER EQUIPMENT: You should expect that everything may not come right back as it was before especially if the power has gone out. If something is not working as it should simply give us a call we will do the best to get to you as soon as possible. Also keep in mind that certain pieces of equipment may need to be reset or possibly replaced if it was damaged. If you require service please be patient with us as this is normally a very busy time period for us immediately following a storm.

If you have any questions about how you should prepare for this hurricane, please feel free to contact us we will be happy to answer your questions.

You may forward this to anyone you like to help others prepare and prevent damage.

Stay safe!

Len Osborne, CEO

Naples Technology, Inc

Also see Power Outages | After The Storm