Check That UPS

We have had several calls over the past couple of weeks where servers or other equipment have unexpectedly shutdown. Upon investigation we found that a UPS with failing batteries caused the problem. Normally a UPS is responsible for supplying power to critical network devices if there is a power outage. The power can be maintained for from several minutes to an hour or so depending on the capacity of the UPS and the load on it. This is a good thing. We don't want servers crashing when the power goes out.

However, UPSs use batteries and batteries age and fail. We have found that when UPS batteries fail the UPS can do strange things including shutting the power to the connected devices off even if there is no power outage. This is not a good thing!

Because UPSs are quite and not usually highly visible we tend to forget they exist until a problem occurs. To avoid any surprises, UPSs should be tested regularly. The test is simple, make sure no one is connected to the devices that the UPS is connected to, make sure no applications are running on your server. and pull the plug. The UPS is plugged into a power outlet on the wall. Pull the plug from the wall. The devices connected to the UPS should stay running. The UPS will usually start emitting some type of sound indicating power has been lost. After you have confirmed that the UPS can withstand a power outage, plug the plug back into the wall. The beeping should stop. Be careful with this test. You are playing with electricity and it doesn't always play fair. If you are unsure about this test get someone who knows this stuff to do it.

I also suggest that UPSs connected to critical devices be replaced after 5 or more years. They are not that expensive anymore and the value of not having problems caused by a crashed server far out way the investment.

We have included this test in our list of items that we perform for our Maintenance Program Clients.

Microsoft Releases Several Security Hotfixes

Microsoft released 3 Critical, 4 Important, and 2 Moderate Security Updates on Tuesday 10/11. This is their scheduled October Security Update. These hotfixes cover Windows XP, Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, Exchange, Internet Explorer and some other Windows components.

Our Maintenance Program Clients will have these updates installed on our next maintenance visit to your site. Other users can install the updates via the Windows Update Service. Be sure to have a backup and read the update information BEFORE doing any updates. We do not suggest users do server based updates.

Notes From Microsoft TS2 Meeting

Microsoft holds a quarterly event for its Partners called TS2. This event is generally of a technical nature, but designed to help us resellers sell and support Microsoft products. I have been to several of these events and have found them to be very useful. The most recent was held Oct 6 in Plainville, which was nice because I normally have to travel to the Boston area for these.

There were several new products presented at the event. The first was a new product called Microsoft Small Business Accounting. This accounting package is designed for small business with sales generally under $2M. It competes head on with Quickbooks. It looks very good. The interface is designed like Outlook which makes it pretty easy to navigate. It has pretty much everything a small business needs. Payroll, however is a little weak, although it does interface with ADP. (They are working on more payroll options) We don't sell accounting software, so other than possibly using it ourselves you won't hear much more from us about it.

The next product was another one that we won't be selling but it is a very cool system for small retailers. Microsoft Point of Sale is a full retail management package for small stores that might have 1 or 2 cash registers. It is a very cool system and very well priced.

There was a session on Windows Mobile 5, which we will be getting involved with. Windows Mobile 5 enables remote users to connect to Microsoft Exchange with a PDA or cell phone. Users have full access to their email, contacts, calendar, etc. This is really cool stuff. You will be hearing more about this from us. If you have Windows Small Business Server 2003 you will be ready to utilize these features when they are available.

There was a lot of other technical stuff that I won't bore you with. As always this was an excellent Microsoft event.

Click here for Microsoft Small Business Accounting info
Click here for Microsoft Point of Sale info
Click here for Windows Mobile 5 info