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 past week. While we typically focus on the messes we find in wiring closets and data centers, this week's photo showcases something that almost everyone can relate to: The Desktop IT Disaster.

We spend a lot of time explaining the benefits of using cable management products to maintain order in your network equipment racks and server cabinets. That's because we encounter those rack-mount cabling disasters at least a dozen times a day.

But if you traced all of those cables out to their opposite ends, you often find equally disturbing cable disasters at the workstation locations. They are not only eye-sores, but can become real headaches for your network users when they cause network connectivity issues and/or accidental disconnects.

Take this week's photo as a prime example. There are two data cables connecting the computer and VoIP phone to the network.  But those data cables are completely tangled in the jumble of power cables on the floor. Why is that a bad thing? Because of EMI.

While some power strips/surge suppressors are shielded, most of the cables you plug into them are not. As a result, the electrical noise radiating from those power cables - called electromagnetic interference (EMI) - can degrade the performance and/or speed of the data being transmitted across your network patch cables...especially when the power and data cables are tied in one big knot. (We playfully refer to such networks as "Knotworks".)

While there are lots of solutions available to help you manage desktop cables (i.e. raceway, corrugated duct), the simplest way to restore order is using hook & loop fasteners (often referred to as VELCRO®). And to reduce the possibility of EMI affecting your workstation's network connection, we always recommend that you secure all your power cables in one bundle, and your data cables in a separate bundle.

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

which represent one of the thousands of customer sites our technicians visit every year as they install and service IT, networking, and telecom equipment & cabling for our clients.

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

Do you already have an IT disaster that needs to be cleaned up?

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to install a network. But to ensure that your equipment, racks and cabling are installed properly in an organized, efficient fashion, it does require the talents of a skilled IT technician. If you need help installing or cleaning up your network, contact Tech Service Today to have a skilled, seasoned Technician dispatched to your site.

Need help installing, troubleshooting, testing, documenting, or replacing your network cabling?  Call Tech Service Today for on-site technical services anywhere in North America - often in 4-hours or less.

Just call (800) 973-2022 (option 1), or Email us at Service@TechServiceToday.com