Tips from a Troubleshooter: Fine-tuning your performance
You know that your network setup works for your organization. You have a server with uptimes measured in years and ping times measured in nanoseconds. The sales are fast, your users are happy and well-trained, and everything is going smoothly.
But now you open up a new wing, and have an exhibit come through that is going to be massive. Your network needs to scale up, and your IT director needs to know his options for being able to handle a few more points of sale, and additionally has a new phone system that needs to be installed.
Oh, and cost is definitely an object.
Where do you begin?
As IT professionals (and nerds in our spare time) we might be familiar with the technology already (and if a review of the hardware would be helpful, please leave a comment, I'd be happy to!) and the system requirements on your software vendor's site won't be the final determination, but they will allow you to get a starting point. With these, you can make sure your current server is up to specs, and make sure that any new workstations out there aren't running with substandard hardware.
From there, you can make sure that you are getting the most value you can out of your current hardware:
- Database Maintenance - One overlooked wizard in the Blackbaud Management Console has solved numerous performance cases I've had over all the products I've supported: Database Maintenance. You can schedule this easily in the BMC, and it is invaluable in making sure your data is streamlined. Here is a Knowledgebase article that spells out the process.
- Cabling - If you need to, invest in a cable tester for your Cat6/Cat5e. I've spent weeks troubleshooting a performance issue only to determine that a faulty network cable was causing the headaches.
- Antivirus Software - Make sure you know your software inside and out. If a scheduled scan of the server/workstations occurs at 5PM, that's great when the user is gone at 4:30 but horrible when they're leaving at 6. In addition, it may make more sense for your organization to do small-scale scans during the week and a full scan at a more dead time (maybe midnight on a Sunday night).
- Reimaging - One of the most powerful tools you can do for your workstation users is make sure they have all the tools they need, and in working order. If you're getting ready for a busy season, it might be worth it to look into reimaging some (or all) of the machines.
Additionally, it's easy to set Patron Edge up for a "door sale", meaning that your box office manager can prepare his cashiers' workstations for that opening night rush.
Stay tuned. For the next entry, we'll look at alternative configurations of your server(s) for even more power.
One of the things I love about my job (but rarely get to do) is hear from you directly outside of troubleshooting issues. Non-profits, in my experience, are the experts at stretching a technology budget. Got a tip you'd like to share? Leave a comment or feel free to email me at Sean.Long@Blackbaud.com.