Whose Network is it anyway? Notes for business owners.

It is a good practice for business owners to outsource technical support to keep their minds focused on their primary responsibilities. Outsourcing saves not only time and money but also provides valuable expertise not necessarily available in-house… so good technology support should be your trusted technology advisor.

Every business owner should take the time to understand the fundamentals of his/her computer network; after all, whose network is it anyway?

1. Know your passwords: Passwords are the first line of defense against external and internal intrusion into your computers or network, and a lot has been written regarding the security aspects of using passwords.  Passwords to computers, servers, and network devices are the keys to your critical business information and the security of your network but if your office manager becomes sick or leaves, do you still have access to your QuickBooks database, client list, inventory list, pending projects, etc? Who knows this information?  Your office manager? Your tech support? Do you?  The time spent discovering the password to the accountant’s workstation or finding device information for a new technical support person is money wasted. You should make it your business to know all of the passwords to access critical information and devices on your network.

2.    How to properly start and restart your server: I received a call several weeks ago from a client requesting the password to restart a server that had shut down after the building lost power. I gave him the password but suggested that to turn on the server he needed only to push the button.  A lot of network administrators don’t like the idea of someone on site having administrative access to the server but they can’t be available all of the time, sometimes starting or restarting a server or workstation is the solution to a problem. Do you know how to safely shutdown, restart, or start your server?  This can save you time and money.

3. Add or disable a user: When that disgruntled employee walks off the job, how quickly can you disable that person’s user account and deny him/her access to your network?  If you have to call your tech support person to do this task, you are not only wasting money but you’re compromising the security of your network.  The same holds true for new employees.  Add them as you hire them to allow access to your network. Your tech support can make sure they have the correct security permissions after you make your call.

4. How to change a password: As that disgruntled worker walks out the door, how quickly can you change the password to your server?  Computer passwords should be changed frequently to increase the security of your network.  When was the last time you changed your password? Do you know how to change your password?

5. How to check to make sure your backup is running: You bought a new external hard drive and pushed the button to backup your computer and/or server.  Now you can rest.  How do you know that your backup is running properly?  Is there a backup log or report?  Are you checking that report daily to make sure that backups are running as scheduled? Is there a pattern of repeatedly missed backups?

6. How to restore a file from backup: OK, so now your backups are running daily but what happens if you need to restore a file?  Being able to quickly restore an accidentally deleted file or folder saves you time and money; plus ‘test restores’ should be a standard part of network maintenance to ensure that the backup is working beyond reviewing log files.

7. How to check if your antivirus is up to date: Not only should virus scans run on a regular schedule but business owners should know more than when the subscription is due. They should also know if the virus definitions are up to date.

8. How to run a virus scan: In addition, business owners and staff should know how to run a virus scan.  This is particularly true for laptops. Increased mobility also means increased responsibility.  If scans are scheduled to run at 3 am, it does no good if your laptop is shut down or asleep.  Worse still is only running a scan when you suspect a file might be infected.

9. Is your system security up to date? Are you only relying on MS updates?: Updates are at the core of the security for your system (computer); antivirus and other applications build on this core. At first, many complained about Windows needing update patches, so Microsoft automated the critical level of this process; then people assumed that this would take care of the process.  Although critical updates are automatically installed, there are other updates, including Office 2003/2007 application updates, driver updates, and other options that are not part of the critical update process. I have a policy of manually updating servers to control what and when updates are installed.

10. Could you start over again if you had to?:
Starting again is a little more than just having a plan; it is also an attitude.  There are at least three components in planning that help with this attitude:

• Do you have up to date network documentation for your existing site?
• Does your tech planning for the future and/or disasters include a budget?
• Does your recovery plan include where to start first? Who to call?

As business owners, we are always working to maintain our foothold while looking for that next step up. I don’t expect small business owners to be technology mavens but I do think that they should have a good functional understanding of their network.

Outsourced IT support may be the solution for your continued maintenance and growth but the final decisions are yours.  With that in mind you should always keep your hand in maintaining a functional understanding of how your investment is protected.  Because, as we come full circle, whose network is it anyway?