What You Need to Know Before You Contact IT Support

A guaranteed source of aggravation within your business is to have technical issues with your devices. We have all been there. The computer lags, the cell phone has a continual spinning wait icon, and a printer doesn’t print–to name a few typical frustrations. The following suggestions may resolve your problem or give you the quickest response if you need to contact IT support. 

1. Restart your device– This action resolves almost 50% of IT glitches. Even though it seems too simplistic of a fix, restarting your device clears out the temporary memory and resets the machine and, in some circumstances, will automatically run a diagnostic. If the machine is not responsive, physically restart it by turning off the machine, waiting 15 seconds, and then turning it back on. 
2. Verify your device is charged or plugged in – Time flies and if your device is battery operated, it may have shutdown automatically due to a lack of power. Make sure your device is charged. Likewise, make sure your charger or machine, such as a computer, docking station, or printer, is plugged in.
3. Make sure you are connected to the Wi-Fi – This is a common problem. When the Wi-Fi is down, you cannot connect to the Wi-Fi, and you cannot reach the Internet. Sometimes you simply need to connect to a different Wi-Fi network. Or, a frequent fix is to restart the router.
4. Try a Google search – On a different device, search on the problem that you are having. It may be a common error, for instance, not finding a recent file because it was moved. A Google search will also remind you to update your virus and cybersecurity software.
5. Try to remember what you were doing – Before calling IT, try to remember what you were trying to do. It’s not that you caused the error; you may just need to update your software or operating system.
6. Take a picture – If you have received an error screen, the wording can be very non-descript and overly-techy. By taking a picture of the error or screen, you and IT support have an immediate reference. If you cannot take a screen picture via your computer, take a picture with the camera on your cell phone.
7. If possible, have your device type and version numbers ready – IT will need to know the type of device, which version of the device, and any applicable software, such as Windows, iOS, and Office.
8. Have your contact information ready – IT may need to get back to you, so decide where and how you can be reached for continued support. You may want IT to contact you via landline, cell phone, email, or text messages.

Technical problems are a fact of the modern era. The above list will help you to limit any downtime or lack of usability with your technical devices and get you reconnected. We can help. Contact the team of IT experts at MidnightBlue for on-call support, IT services, solutions, and more.