3 signs it might be time to replace your servers

This is not a one-time thing, either. Maintaining a solid data infrastructure means constantly paying attention to the health of your servers, and if your current machines aren’t up to snuff, being ready to make a change. Luckily, by working with Dell Technologies and Zones, you can easily do so.

And you may have to. The truth is that servers can give out at a moment’s notice. You might have machines that are going strong for years, with no signs of poor performance, and then all of a sudden you notice a physical defect or a decline in performance that drags your business down.

It’s important to be proactive about fixing such issues, such as by working with Dell Technologies and Zones. If you allow a poor server infrastructure to languish, you could be looking at a great deal of downtime for your business, which is likely to be far more costly than simply making a server upgrade early.

So how long do servers live? According to research from Spiceworks, it varies. Historically, companies have gone with a rule of thumb of five years, but recently, there’s been a trend toward shorter lifecycles. IT leaders are becoming more vigilant about monitoring their servers, looking for evidence of deterioration, and upgrading early when they need to.

Here’s a look at three red flags that might suggest it’s time to make a change in your environment.

• Abnormal temperatures: Just like the human body, a CPU is in trouble if it suddenly spikes a fever. If you notice that your servers are running unusually hot, that’s probably a sign that something is wrong with your CPU, chipset, and/or HDD temperatures. The server’s fans can only work their magic for so long; eventually, the servers simply need to be replaced.
• System failures and reboots: If your personal computer often freezes and needs to be rebooted, you might not think much of it – but if your business’ servers are often breaking down, it’s probably a sign that they’re dealing with an excessive workload and can’t handle it. One breakdown might not be anything to worry about, but an ongoing pattern might call for decisive action.
• Flagging performance: We’ve all had frustrating days when our computers are simply too slow. When this happens with your company’s servers, it’s more than just frustrating – it can be catastrophic. Servers that aren’t up to their usual standard of performance can drag down your entire business, making work less efficient and your people less productive.

The key to a healthy server environment is to monitor your machines closely – preferably using a tool like Dell EMC OpenManage – and not hesitate to take action when necessary. Fortunately, the experts at Dell Technologies and Zones are happy to help with that process. Zones has a team of IT specialists on board who know what it takes to manage healthy, high-functioning servers – and we’ve partnered with Dell Technologies to bring you new solutions when you need them. Reach out to us today if you’re ready to begin that journey.

We have plenty of Dell Technologies solutions to offer – including Live Optics, which you can use to collect, visualize and share data about your IT environment. Get in touch with us to schedule a free assessment today.

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