Servers are an essential part of any company, and you do need the right server racks and the right server in order to be able to function properly and without issue. For those that are working with a managed hosting service, server racks are not as important, but you should know about them and what they do. When you run your own Minecraft server, or you work on your own web server development or web server name, you might have those servers in your home or in your office. You may also have storage for those servers or a place where those servers are kept.
Understanding web hosting is only part of your web server if you are running one on your own. Servers need to be kept at a specific temperature, they need to be kept away from water and moisture, they should be kept free of dust and debris, and they should be protected from things like falling over or being bumped into. Server racks are a form of protection for your servers and can make a big difference in how long they last, in how safe and secure they are, and in how well they work for you.
Data centers and server rooms are widely regarded as some of the most efficient, safe, and secure ways to store information. Because of this, nearly every large corporation either has one in-house or rents data center space out from a cloud computing company.
And while hosting one’s data on a remote server has myriad advantages, these data centers are also highly prone to being the victims of human error — even stupidity.
Could you be making a really stupid mistake with your data center racks and not even realize it? Here are three of the most common — and dumbest — things people do with their server rack cabinets and enclosures:
Drink and food spills
It’s one of those things that seems obvious but happens a lot more often than one might think. Many times, IT workers or administrators will bring a drink or snack into a data center room — and this food and drink will either be spilled or leave crumbs behind that can both cause significant damage to any server. Because of the risk, a food or drink spill can have on your server cabinets, it’s essential to enforce a strict no food or drink policy within any data center rooms.
Failing to prepare for an electricity outage
There are a huge number of ways people can stupidly shut off power for a data center’s servers and subsequently compromise the data contained on these servers. From accidentally shutting off the power switch to not investing in a backup generator, it’s all too easy to shut off your servers. And when electricity is the life force of any server, you can’t afford to let this kind of thing happen!
Using your servers as a desktop computer
It may be tempting to surf the web or just use the servers in your server rack cabinets like a normal desktop computer. However, doing so makes all the information stored in your data center highly vulnerable to viruses, bugs, and more. Never let IT staff browse the web on your servers — it could cost you.
What’s the dumbest thing you’ve seen someone do with server rack enclosures? Share your best stories with us in the comments below. See more. Check out this site for more.
