There comes a moment where your servers reach the end of their lifespan. As essential data housing components, servers hold sensitive information that requires careful handling. Improperly decommissioning old IT devices can put your data center at risk for breaches. Luckily, here’s what to include on your data center decommission checklist to help you avoid a worst-case scenario.
Outline Your Process
Drafting the scope of decommissioning requires a thorough outline of the process stating a solid timeline, how much equipment needs removal, safety procedures, and stages of removal. Identifying the full scope of your project allows you to assemble resources and map out priority areas during the decommissioning.
Perform Comprehensive Audit
A complete evaluation of your devices facilitates discrepancies between the physical specs and software. Many relevant staff members will need to perform their inspection, so remember to have all reviews completed before starting to decommission.
Develop a Plan
A well-developed plan may need a combination of spreadsheets, templates, and physical documentation as evidence of procedures completed.
Remember to include contact lists for all team members, master and individual lists for servers, internal cooling units, and other components. You’ll need to have a section stating whether each device will undergo repurposing, reselling, or recycling.
Identify Necessary Tools and Labor Requirements
Your decommissioning checklist will also need a defined outline for all tools and labor required to complete each step. When moving and packing old equipment, you may need a forklift, pallet, boxes, and labels. To determine labor, identify the individuals and hours needed to complete the job.
Destroy Your Data
Destroying your data and software is a crucial step achieved by several approaches. You’ll need to establish a strong sanitation framework to remove unwanted files and encrypt hard drives. While you can degauss your drives, there are other eco-friendly methods to use when wanting to destroy data.
Label and Pack Old IT Equipment
After data destruction, label each piece of equipment to indicate its final destination and coordinate removal. You can use alphanumeric tags, a color-coded system, or paper printouts to designate a proper location for each device.
Knowing what to include on your data center decommission checklist is essential to ensure a smooth transition between equipment. After properly decommissioning servers, contact us at Evergreen IT Solutions. We offer assistance to data centers and companies looking to sell used IT equipment through our buyback program!
We provide competitive offers on new, used, or refurbished hardware and offer onsite quotes for materials purchased. Evergreen IT Solutions also provides data destruction to ensure your company’s safety.
For further questions and inquiries, please don’t hesitate to contact us through email, as we’ll place you in contact with one of our purchasing representatives.