Server freedom: the ongoing quest

Okay, so for better or worse, we decided to fiddle around with unplugging our server’s internet cable yesterday (Sunday) afternoon to see if our individual computers could talk with each other and to the printer and network scanner.  What a beautiful thing to see the computers all talking together without the server!  A second gorgeous revelation was that our printer also took commands from each stand-alone computer, no server needed!

However, as with every lofty goal in life, there’s that one last harsh reality.  That one fly in the ointment that just ruins an otherwise Happy ending.  The scanner is networked to an “LDAP server”, which may not necessarily be an impossible task to solve, considering that such a “server” can be designated as a stand alone computer.  However, wouldn’t you know it, at 6 pm on Sunday, after over an hour of fighting to try to get the scanner to take commands from individual computers in the office, the darned thing still did not work consistently.

Phone tech support on a weekend?!  Are you kidding me?  Apparently, Fujitsu hasn’t figured out, yet, that some crazy doctors just like wreaking havoc on their business workflows on weekends.  So at 8 AM today, trusty Ken (my manager) was available to save the day (yet again) and call the tech support line again, this time with a live person on the other end. Their wise and hallowed advice? Why don’t you just unplug the darned thing, wait 45 minutes, and plug it back in again? Voila! Angels were heard from on high! Light shown through the windows! And we had a working scanner back again!  (keep in mind we had plugged the server’s networking cord back in)

I’ve already asked Ken, “So how about trying again at 5 PM today?” He didn’t exactly seem enthusiastic this time around, but as long as there is tech-illiterate bone in my body, we are going to prevail!

Dr. West is an endocrinologist in private practice in Washington, DC.  He completed fellowship training in Endocrinology and Metabolism at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. West opened The Washington Endocrine Clinic, PLLC, as a solo practice in 2009.  He can be reached at doctorwestindc@gmail.com.

About the author

Dr. Michael West

Dr. West is an endocrinologist in private practice in Washington, DC. He completed fellowship training in Endocrinology and Metabolism at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. West opened The Washington Endocrine Clinic, PLLC in 2009. He can be contacted at doctorwestindc@gmail.com.

2 Comments

  • I don’t know what system your PCs are on, but if its XP, etc., there is a pseudo server built in that allows the PCs to interoperate. I suspect that is why you could work. They can be quirky. Sometimes one PC or another will not work on the network and you have to reboot everyone.

  • Thanks Carl, that would seem to me to be correct because of our fairly good success at getting the other things to talk and work together without the server.

Click here to post a comment
   

Categories