Regardless of your industry, if your business operates any of its own server rooms or data centers, you need to protect them. Damage to your servers can have massive consequences.
To better protect your data center, you need to be familiar with the types of threats that can put it at risk. They include the following:
Fire
Very often, servers in data centers are numerous, packed tightly together in a small space. That many devices operating near one another in a small or cramped environment can result in server rooms getting very hot. If a combustible item were to be in that environment, it could result in a fire.
You can guard against this by ensuring your server rooms are cooled and ventilated according to expert recommendations.
You also need to install a fire suppression system. When doing so, look for one that uses compressed gas to extinguish fires. A sprinkler-based system can actually damage your servers. That brings us to our next threat:
Water
Water and servers don’t get along well. Even a minimal amount of water can trigger a short circuit.
Thus, you must regularly inspect your server room for leaks, prohibit employees from bringing beverages into server rooms, and ensure the humidity level is within an ideal range. If a server room gets too humid, condensation can develop. This may be enough to cause significant damage.
Negligence
Sometimes, employees cause damage to servers accidentally. While it’s impossible to guarantee with absolute certainty that accidents will never happen, you can substantially limit the chances of them occurring by thoroughly training any and all employees who have access to your data center.
Outside parties
For various reasons, sometimes others may have the desire to access or damage your servers to commit a USA crime. Perhaps an unscrupulous competitor is willing to covertly hire others to break into your data center and destroy your servers if they believe they can get away with it. Or, maybe a misguided activist group falsely believes you’re engaging in unethical operations, and wants to punish your company by damaging your servers. Additionally, disgruntled former employees might believe taking out your servers would be a satisfying act of revenge.
You need to consider that some people with bad intentions may want to break into your server room. Minimize the chances of this happening by ensuring all locks and essential security features are strong and in good working order. It’s also a good idea to set up a 24-hour video surveillance system.
This won’t just help you identify the culprits if a break-in does occur. It can prevent break-ins from happening in the first place. Often, burglars don’t target homes with visible security systems because the risk of being caught is too great. The same can be said of those who might wish to target data centers. If someone sees that you’ve installed surveillance cameras, they might think twice about trying to access your servers.
It’s also important to be very careful when deciding who should and should not have access to your servers. Don’t give access to anyone except those who genuinely can be trusted not to abuse it.
Remember, in the digital age, your servers play a critical role in your operations. These tips will help you protect them.
