Network Equipment Maintenance

Are your switches and routers ensconced in dust? Network devices need to be maintained. Once they are set up, the maintenance can get overlooked until there is a problem. Here are a few tips to keep your network equipment running and avoid unplanned downtime.

• Keep the device dust free. Use compressed air to blow out the dust.

• The temperature and humidity in the room where the device resides should be kept at the optimal operating range. Temperature should be 64.4° F to 80.6° F with relative humidity less than 60%.

• Free up space around the device to promote proper ventilation.

• Plug devices into a surge protector instead of a wall jack.

• Keep the network devices in a locked room and restrict access.

• Maintain support/maintenance contract from manufacturer. This gives you access to patches and firmware updates.

• Update firmware regularly.

• Change passwords regularly.

• Remove old/unused accounts