Control The Uncontrollable
A bolt of lightning strikes your station and all your computer systems are fried. Just after entering a record, the power goes out. A tornado rips through the station. A virus wipes out the hard drive. These are all things that have happened to our clients. Here's some advice to help you minimize your losses in the event of a calamity.
Always Use A Surge Protector
Electrical fluctuations can cause short or long-term damage to a computer. A sudden voltage drop could cause the computer to terminate unexpectedly, causing all unsaved changes to be lost and potentially corrupting open files (including FH databases). A power spike could damage computer components permanently. A surge protector helps shield fragile computer components from damaging power spikes (including lightning) and minimizes voltage fluctuations. Note that communication lines (e.g., modem) should also be surge protected.
Always Use A UPS
When power to a computer is interupted, the computer terminates unexpectedly and unsaved work is lost, and open files can become corrupted. When FH is open, FH databases can be corrupted. An Uninteruptible Power Source (UPS) automatically provides backup power if the electrical supply is interrupted. At a minimum, this allows open work to be saved and allows the computer to be shut down normally. Note that even if you have a generator, a UPS is still recommended to prevent the power loss until the generator is fully powered up.
Always Use Up-To-Date Virus Protection
Viruses are a growing cause of problems for our clients. To minimize the risk of virus infections and the problems they can cause, always use up-to-date virus protection software.
Always Keep Up-To-Date Backups
A surge protector and a UPS won't protect your FH data from all calamities. You should always keep an up-to-date back up of your data to use in case of unforeseen circumstances. This backup should be stored in a safe location.
