How a Managed IT Service Provider San Jose Can Help Prep Your Office Systems for Winter Weather

Is your San Jose business prepared for the winter weather?

It was only three years ago when the worst flood in a century hit the region. Silicon Valley was not exempt when Coyote Creek spilled its banks. Hundreds of businesses were affected as floodwater and power outages struck.

If natural disasters hit this winter, will your IT systems be able to cope?

This article examines how to winterize the office to prepare for severe weather.

We look at how the best managed IT service provider San Jose offers can create an IT audit. Those findings will help shape your backup and data recovery plan in a power outage caused by high winds and rain. You will also learn how to winter-proof your premises against network failures and be safe in a storm.

Read on for 5 top tips to keep you running without interruption this winter.

1. Backup and Data Recovery in a Power Outage

Is your business prepared for a power outage?

The major flood in 2017 put thousands of homes and business premises in the dark. As a result, many on-site file servers crashed. Data was lost, and without an off-site backup plan, companies filed for bankruptcy.

According to a US Geological Survey study, a Megaflood dubbed ARkStorm could hit soon, causing $725 billion in damages.

Backing-up essential data should be a priority, regardless of the weather.

Yet, a significant problem with storing information in your local facility is accessing it during a power outage. Hardware is also susceptible to water and fire damage if the wires short circuit.

Cloud backup solutions overcome these limitations.

Backup and Disaster Recovery (BDR) hardware automatically stores your data online in the Cloud. Everything’s kept up-to-date and is accessible to all your employees, even through bad winter weather.

2. Winter Storm Preparation With a Continuity Audit

Planning for winter disasters like burst pipes closing the office requires careful foresight. That is why Sagacent Technologies urges our customers to carry out a continuity audit.

Disaster response examines all areas of a business. That includes computer hardware, data access, and network infrastructure. It needs to happen before, during, and after a disaster occurs.

A continuity plan covers five key stages:

1. Mitigation – reduce risks
2. Preparedness – getting ready for a disaster
3. Continuity – emergency management phases
4. Response – actions taken during emergency
5. Recovery – restore and resume operations after a disaster

Backing-up is not the same as business recovery.

Backup deals only with data, while recovery and continuity consider all aspects of your infrastructure. A proper audit ensures everything gets assessed.

The result is an itemized plan of action that will kick into place when required to keep your business running.

3. Winter Disasters and Tech Safety

What if a fire broke out due to a winter storm causing a power surge? Does your business have a disaster response for handling a fire?

Fire suppression systems help save lives by triggering when the temperature gets too high.

Restaurants and larger offices install these devices, which must be tested on an ongoing basis. Regular inspections ensure they comply with local fire safety codes.

A managed IT provider can help share testing data remotely with a compatible system.

Businesses can also share fire evacuation procedures and company response policies online. Authorized personnel can access and edit these documents without having to enter the office.

Training on what to do in an emergency also benefits from a managed IT service.

More and more businesses use videos to train their employees on what to do during a disaster. Hosting files on the Cloud offers a low-cost means of delivering this content.

Hosting on the Cloud is scalable too. That means you can build your training resources library without running out of space.

4. Winter-Proofing Your Office Hardware

Adding simple hardware to your system’s set-up can help reduce the chance of frying your equipment.

If you are a small business owner, make sure to use power-surge adapters if connecting several devices. Adding an uninterruptible power supply or UPS provides emergency power when the mains go offline.

If the worst does happen, how can you use a managed IT service to reduce your office hardware costs?

Hardware as a Service (HaaS) makes sure you have everything you need to carry your business through the winter.

Workstations, network switches, servers, etc., are installed on your premises as part of your service plan. There are no upfront fees, which means no major capital costs. The hardware even gets replaced with newer models when they become obsolete.

By using HaaS, you are winter-proof and future-proof your equipment.

5. Natural Disasters and Network Failures

Local networks are unusable when a winter storm hits and employees cannot make it into work. Does that mean productivity has to stop?

The ongoing pandemic has made companies realize how essential remote working is to their survival.

Accessing data through the Cloud has changed the landscape of application usage. Traditional local network apps no longer meet the requirements of a mobile or external workforce.

Communications have evolved, with video conferencing changing how companies conduct meetings. Low-cost VoIP allows staff to make phone local and international calls from their homes.

Winter-proofing your local network means migrating to the Cloud.

A managed service provider, like Sagacent Technologies, can make this process painless. We can also help save you money and share all the benefits a managed Cloud solution can offer.

Managed IT Service Provider San Jose

Preparing for the worst-case winter scenario is the smartest decision you can make.

Rains, cold weather, and power outages will severely disrupt your business. Retaining data and having a plan in place could mean the difference between success and failure.

Sagacent Technologies is a leading managed IT service provider San Jose is proud to support.

We provide computer services throughout the Bay Area and Santa Clara. Our clients include those in the legal, medical, engineering, and insurance sectors. These businesses rely on us to provide an uninterrupted IT service no matter the weather.

Do not leave your company out in the cold this winter. Contact us to see how we can assist you.

Sagacent Technologies offers technology management and support, including proactive/preventative maintenance, onsite and offsite data back-ups, network and security audits, mobility solutions, disaster planning, and emergency business resumption services. The company serves clients of 10 to 150 employees within the Silicon Valley region.