Computer systems can fail at any time, and too many businesses rely on one-time repair agreements when a problem occurs. Don't bet on everything working properly for as long as possible, and don't assume that a problem can be fixed quickly enough to get back to business as soon as possible. Instead, here are some details about what could go wrong and how often, as well as service agreement considerations to make sure you're getting the right technicians on your side.

How Often Do Business Computers Fail?

To understand how often a business system could fail, you need to separate a system's failure caused by hardware or software from mistakes by users.

Some systems do have imperfections. Even with a well-known computer company and a well-known software company, there may still be some mistakes in code or interactions that aren't expected. When the software doesn't mesh well with what the hardware provides and these errors happen, they're called bugs.

Computers are not the 100% logical, black and white machines that either work or don't work that many people assume. They have burn in phases that require information to be stored in memory, and errors need to happen in order for a fix to be found. In some cases, your new computer may simply lack a set of supporting data infrastructure that needs to be downloaded.

This often happens when you get a "new to you" computer that is modern enough to handle most software, but new techniques have been developed for the software you need. An example is the .net Framework from Microsoft that has incremental changes, or Windows updates that fix certain flaws or aid new features. The program needs these features to work and your computer can support the features, but without the right downloads, errors will happen.

That level of performance needs to be fixed before looking to employee training and user-caused problems such as viruses, installing too many programs, or making unauthorized changes. 

Service Technician Abilities And Agreements

A service technician can handle these small problems that have a big impact on your business. Whether it's a business workstation or a Point of Sale (POS) console, a service technician can provide software fixes, physical upgrades, and even training with the right agreement in place beforehand.

When you create a service agreement, you usually pay a certain amount in order to receive services in the future. This can be fixing systems that were damaged because of a bad update or changes caused by the developers of your software, or adding new components to make your systems more efficient.

User error often requires technician intervention, but there are usually limits. If a technician needs to visit multiple days in a week to fix the same user-caused mistake, something needs to be done to either correct the user's mistakes or stop the system from reacting in a negative way--and if the system is performing at a normal level, it's better to fix the employee, not the system.

Excessive repair needs are usually not cost-effective for the repair technician, so be prepared to train employees if the same user mistakes are being made. If computer training is important to your business, you can even arrange for technical use training as part of the service agreement.

For business workstation troubleshooting, POS repair, and technical training, contact a business system repair professional like posrepairdepot.com and discuss a long-term service agreement.