Welcome back to Tech Service Today's IT Disaster of the Week series where we post the ugliest IT environment our technicians ran into this week. 

This week one of our Technicians visited a customer who clearly sees no difference between IT equipment and their waste baskets - as is evident by the fact that both are kept on the floor in their office (and both were equally as clean as the other).

With IT equipment being the stuff that keeps every business up and running, it is crazy that so many companies do so little to protect those assets.  In this case, an inexpensive rack or cabinet would do the trick. But the question is, would they know which rack to purchase? 

Believe it or not, choosing the right network equipment rack (or server cabinet) to house and protect your IT equipment is not a simple endeavor. The most common mistake to avoid is using a single size dimension - most often the minimum height (or total rack units) - as your only requirement.

At some time in their past, even the most seasoned IT veteran has probably ordered the wrong-size rack, then had to answer to their superiors for the exorbitant return-shipping costs the company incurred because of their rookie purchasing mistake. These folks would be the first to tell you that you need to understand the importance of every dimension of a rack (both internal & external), and then learn how to determine your exact requirements for each measurement  before you start shopping for a rack.

To help you avoid the mistakes so many IT professionals have made, Tech Service Today put together the TST Rack and Cabinet Buyer's Guide for IT Professionals. Download your free copy today.

Check back every Friday for TST's latest IT Disaster of the Week photo. 

Click here to see last week's IT Disaster photo.

Want to make sure your network never appears on our IT Disaster of the Week?

Then tap into Tech Service Today's comprehensive collection of IT Best Practices videos covering everything from getting your IT projects approved to successfully rolling out new technology to all your facilities. Click here to access our complete webinar video library.  

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