Your server is the most critical part of your Practice’s network. If it is down you are left without your practice management software, X-rays, documents, finances, etc. Watching for advance tell-tales signs of developing problems, and dealing with the little issues before they become big ones, helps minimize interruptions.
Catching Small Problems Before They Become Big Ones
Our Proactive Server Maintenance program is ideal for customers interested in addressing network issues that arise before they become serious and affect the operation of the practice, acting proactively rather than responding re-actively. The program was developed based on our customers’ goals to reduce and manage the expenses of ongoing maintenance of their existing networks.
An MME technician will connect to your Practice’s server once per month and review the status of the backup system, antivirus protection, event logs, uninterruptible power system, storage systems and security updates. We will be looking for signs of developing problems while performing necessary ongoing maintenance.
Investing in this program will reduce the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of your network by minimizing unplanned interruptions of the whole practice. An MME expert will keep your server in tune so that your network, and your Practice, will continue to run smoothly.
How does it work?
Every month an MME technician will connect to your Practice’s server(s) over your existing high speed Internet connection. Once connected, they will inspect the server’s performance following a predefined maintenance list. Since it may be necessary to restart the server as part of the maintenance, the timing of the work will be coordinated not to interrupt your Practice’s operations.
At the completion of the work a summary report will be sent to you via email informing you of the work performed so that you can have peace of mind knowing everything is working. If an issue is uncovered that cannot be addressed within the scope of this program (such as the UPS battery needing routine replacement), you will be contacted and informed of the issue so that a course of corrective action can be set in motion.
What are the minimum requirements?
To be able to effectively perform the responsibilities we need the following:
- A designated contact person to coordinate the scheduled work and address unresolved issues.
- An email address to send the monthly status report to. Email is the only format that this report will be sent.
- The server(s) must be remotely accessible over a high speed internet connection.
- We must be provided with the passwords to the Administrator accounts of the server(s) and firewall device.
What Does it Include?
The following is a sample maintenance list of the items that will be reviewed by the technician. A maintenance list for your individual needs will be determined by your MME representative when you enroll in the program.
Backup System
- Check the backup job status and review the backup completions since the last maintenance
- Review the backup logs for any failed or incomplete backup jobs and adjust the system as necessary
- Delete/archive any logs older than one month
- Perform a limited test restore from currently available backup media to ensure backup integrity.
Antivirus Software
- Check that the system is operational
- Verify the Antivirus software is up to date with latest signatures and update if necessary
- Check quarantine for any viruses and review their origins
- Empty quarantine (if necessary)
Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)
- Check functional status
- Perform a self-test
- Periodically initiate a calibration
Operating System
- Apply all available Microsoft Critical Updates published via Microsoft Updates
- Restart the system as needed
- Review the event logs for unusual errors or issues, then clear/archive the event logs
- Review the Dell OpenManage system logs (if available)
Storage System
- Review the status of the RAID array
- Review the remaining available storage on all local drives
- Clean any temp files that may have accumulated
- Empty the recycle bin
How Do You Enroll in the Program?
All it takes is a simple call to your MME representative and say “Do it!” We will gather the necessary information from you (often we have everything we need already) and once your payment is received we will schedule your first service. Please Contact Us.
What does it cost?
There are two pricing models, depending on if you have traditional physical Servers or Virtualized Servers. Fees can be paid monthly or annually in advance.
Traditional Servers
An annual subscription costs $1,350 for a single server, plus $786 for each additional physical server such as a terminal server or DFS server. For example, an office with two servers such as a server and terminal server would cost $2,136 per year.
Virtualized Servers
An annual subscription costs $786 for a physical virtualization host server, plus $675 for each subsequent virtual server configured within the same host. For example, an office with one physical virtualization host server and two (2) virtualized servers (domain controller and terminal server) would cost $2,136 total per year.
A virtualized server environment may also include one or more separate physical DFS server(s), which would cost the same $786 each as above.
What are the Limitations of the Program?
This program is designed as routine maintenance for your network, similar to getting the oil changed in your car every 3000 miles. We are checking under the hood and changing the oil, not rebuilding the engine. It is not all-inclusive, nor is it designed to resolve any issue that arises with the server or the network.
Specifically:
- It is limited to the inspections detailed in a predetermined maintenance list
- The service will be provided once per month on a date and time that is mutually acceptable to both parties. MME must be allowed to perform the work within reasonable business hours of 5am to 8pm Pacific Time.
- Although every effort will be made to discover developing issues, this is in no way a guarantee of system performance. Regular maintenance should lead to reliable operation, but many other factors can affect the performance of the server or network that are beyond our control such as environmental factors, equipment deterioration or failure and changes made by others.
- Minor issues that are discovered and can be addressed with a reasonable amount of time (less than 30 minutes total per month) are covered by this program.
- Maintenance will only be performed remotely, this is not an onsite program.
- No other support needs may be combined with this program. Any support needs for the practice not specifically included in this program are billed according to MMEs standard billing practices.
- No phone support or other forms of server work are included in this program.
No Server? No Problem.
Smaller Practices and even server-less Cloud based Practices may not have a full sized Windows Server, but they still have data to protect. MME offers a ‘Lite’ version of our PSMA program scaled down to meet these needs at a scaled down price. Learn more about PSMA-Lite here.