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Getting connected – why network problems are best left to the experts
Networks, like the computers, printers and scanners they are supposed to link, are coldly, hardly logical. End users (i.e., us), aren’t. And that, in a nutshell, is why network problems happen – and, moreover, why network problems (like all computer problems) are a lot easier and cheaper to solve if you just call in someone that actually understands them.
There’s a special issue connected with network problems that makes them all the easier to mess up. Networks are essentially just bits of wire (or, these days, radio signals) linking discrete terminals and their apparatus. So for example – a small business network might physically connect six PCs and a printer by a series of phone cables. The cables are plugged into each machine in the correct order and – presto – anyone can use the printer, no matter where in the office they sit or what machine they use.
What this means is that when network problems occur – when the network doesn’t work as it should, and PC3 can’t print from the printer – people think they should be easy to fix. Which, in some cases they are – as simple as reinserting the cable into the back of the computer from whence it has fallen. In the cases, though, where network problems aren’t simple (network problems can just as easily be involved with setup issues in the software that governs the network, or incorrect settings on individual computers): this illusion that all network problems can be solved by fiddling about with cables, can be catastrophically destructive.
The successful behaviour of small businesses is utterly dependent on their networking capabilities. Small businesses experiencing network problems are businesses in trouble – so why leave the resolution of that trouble to chance? Given that the information shared on business networks can be utterly critical (imagine what would happen if one machine in a network held financial information flatly contradicting the company accounts), network problems, when they occur, need fixing swiftly – and by someone that company can trust.
Enter the external contractor. Unless a company’s business is IT (in which case one can reasonably expect its networks to run properly), that company has no more business trying to fix its own network problems than it would trying to mend a broken forklift truck in its warehouse. Network problems affect sensitive daily operations in any small business – particularly so for small businesses, in fact, whose operations cannot stand much suspension before the fiscal burden becomes too great. Network problems most commonly result in information discrepancy, as outlined above – when one machine becomes cut off from a network a company can find it suddenly has two contradictory versions of the same database. Sorting out that kind of mess is both imperative and terrifyingly long-winded. Using an external contractor not only to solve network problems, but to run tests, backups and network maintenance is essential.
For small businesses, network problems are often something that happens to other people. Until, like floods, fire and other acts of God, they happen to them. Small businesses insure against fire, theft, flood, with sensible policies that dictate procedure in the event of the unthinkable: network problems, which are not only a lot less unthinkable but a lot more common, really ought to be insured too. No small business worth its salt has any reason not to have a qualified network engineer on call – and where better to look than in a company whose reputation for honesty, fair pricing and comprehensible service is gathering momentum weekly? Computer Repair Ltd, accredited by networking giants CISCO and ITIL, offer free consultation and effective backup – call 020 7473 1583, or visit their website at www.computerrepairltd.co.uk .
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