Cleaning Out Your Server Room in Preparation for a Server Room Move

by Stephanie Faris on Monday, July 21 6:00

When your business realizes a server room move is inevitable, you'll likely spend many months planning every piece of the process. One of the first things you'll probably do is enter your server room, look around, and realize serious work must take place before true planning can begin.

There are several major things your business can do to prepare for the big move day. The years of accumulated equipment and accessories will, unfortunately, need to be examined thoroughly, with some being discarded and some moved to the new location. As planning begins, here are a few things you can do to get your server room ready.

Set Up a Disposal Plan

One of the biggest challenges you'll face as you clear away the clutter is discarding items you no longer need. You'll likely be faced with large loads of cabling, racks, shelving, and outdated computer equipment that cannot be thrown away via traditional methods.

As part of your preliminary planning, come up with a plan to recycle or throw away items that won't be moving with you. The best solution is to donate it to another business that can use it. Check with schools and charitable organizations in the area to see if they can possibly make use of your old server equipment before recycling it at a local electronics recycling facility.

Conduct a Thorough Inventory

Once you have a plan for disposal in place, it's time to determine what needs to stay and what can go. Document every item that will be going to the new location and label it as such to avoid it being accidentally mistaken for waste.

As an extra precaution, set up a staging area to set all equipment as it awaits removal. This could be in an area of the server room with signage or a completely separate room or closet.

Plan Post-Move Cleanout

Even with the most meticulous pre-move cleanup, there will always be items that can't be moved until the relocation is complete. You probably have racks, shelving, peripherals, and other support items that you'll need to continue to use until the day of the move, especially if new versions of those items will be at the new location.

As you're planning your move, be sure to build in a plan for employees to clean up any remaining equipment at the previous location. Keep in mind that your access may be limited at the existing location after a certain time, so this work may need to be done the week following your move. If you have a written plan in place, your existing facility owner may be more forgiving if you need an additional week or two to store the equipment while you get settled at the new location. The earlier you can set up this plan, the better your chances of having extra time.

A server room move can be stressful, but if you start cleaning in advance, you'll have less to deal with on the move date. Even if you don't have plans to move in the near future, keeping your server room as clutter-free as possible will help you maximize your space and avoid major work when it's time to move.