As a technology service provider, it’s probably a given that we believe in proactive maintenance. We believe being proactive is less costly both in lost revenue and lost time (and time is money so it’s doubling down when a technology outage occurs).
Many clients are afraid to replace aging hardware, these systems represent a big investment for them typically and they want to get the most “bang for their buck” out of systems they spent thousands of dollars on. They’re also used to how these machines operate and aren’t sure if newer machines will really represent a quality of life upgrade for them.
There’s also the fear that replacing hardware will be a protracted situation, where transferring files, setup etc. may result in the one thing we all fear most in the business world – downtime.
This is generally not the case, most of the time switching out systems is an easy seamless process that’s completed in less than a couple of hours or even during a lunch break. Switching out a server can be more time consuming but at Valley Techlogic we perform those upgrades after hours so as not to inconvenience our clients. We can also keep your existing server running as we get the replacement up and going in most cases (and is another reason it’s a good idea to perform these upgrades before a hardware failure occurs).
Proactive maintenance also applies to software, whether it be updating existing software or finding a new solution for a software product that’s no longer available. Replacing aging hardware and aging software often go hand in hand, with clients keeping a system around that’s functionally way past it’s prime but is necessary to run a line of business software that’s no longer available.
This is a risky endeavor, machines running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2012 or older are no longer being updated by Microsoft and represent a literal threat vector to which bad actors can infiltrate your business. The same goes for other aging devices that are no longer receiving firmware updates, such as routers and peripherals like smart switches that connect to the internet.
At Valley Techlogic we are utilizing tools that track the age of equipment and whether it’s been recently updated, that way we can make recommendations to our clients ahead of time when equipment has reached its end of life.
In many businesses, operating on a “run-to-failure” basis makes sense, if you’re in manufacturing for example repairing large, expensive equipment for as long as you can to maximize your ROI is a smart business practice. However, anyone would agree that replacing equipment that’s become unsafe is absolutely crucial.
That’s why we operate on a proactive model, in the technology world aging hardware that can’t be updated is a risk to your business whether it be from unintended downtime or a cyber security threat.
Here are some other items we’re also proactive about for our clients:
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If you would like to learn more about obtaining a proactive technology service plan for your business, just request a consultation. We’ll even give you your first service call on the house (up to 2 hours) which we can use to evaluate your existing devices and offer our recommendations. Learn more today.
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This article was powered by Valley Techlogic, an IT service provider in Atwater, CA. You can find more information at https://www.valleytechlogic.com/ or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/valleytechlogic/ . Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/valleytechlogic.
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