Educational ICT Virtualisation Specialist

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Precedence Technologies Ltd
Technology House, 36a Union Lane
Cambridge, CB4 1QB, United Kingdom
T: +44 (0)8456 446 800 / +44 (0)1223 359900
E: enquiries@precedence.co.uk
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Preparation to be carried out by the customer prior to a Precedence Installation Service

General

The following tasks are required to be undertaken by your school:

  • Engineer Working hours are pre-10am to 5pm, sometimes later. The school needs to ensure that the engineer has sufficient access to the premises and to all areas. This is more critical during installations during holiday periods. If an engineer cannot work between 9am and 5pm, then there is a risk that the work cannot be completed in the time allocated.
  • Please confirm the Network Manager/ICT Coordinator will be available on-site during commissioning and for sign off.
  • Check there are enough network leads available for the new clients and servers. Alternatively, Precedence can advise whilst on-site on quantities, lengths and colours and arrange next-day delivery of such items.
  • Please ensure all mice, keyboards, power and data cables are connected on all stations Precedence are required to commission.
  • Please ensure all admin passwords are available for the engineer.
  • Backup all data from any legacy or third party stations /laptops prior to commissioning.
  • All new and existing workstations and peripherals including printers, which are to be commissioned onto the network are unboxed and placed in the positions where they are to be used. An unpacking service can be purchased if required. Please note that new server(s) and workstations should NOT be powered on before the Precedence engineer arrives to commence the commissioning. New servers and associated components (e.g. RAM and HDDs) should not be unboxed or assembled. Customers must also ensure that all the appropriate software and driver disks required for the installation of existing workstations, peripherals and printers available to the Precedence engineer. Please ensure that there is sufficient space for the positioning of equipment.
  • Ensure that there are sufficient power supplies and sockets for all new and existing equipment being installed during the works.
  • Make sure the provision of the Internet connectivity is complete before the commencement of the works.
  • Ensure that the network cabling infrastructure is correctly configured prior to the installation visit. Where additional devices (e.g. stations, servers, printers etc.) are being attached to the network cabling, please ensure that there are sufficient data outlets and they are 'live' i.e. they are correctly connected to an appropriate network active device (hub or switch) prior to the Precedence installation engineer's visit.
  • Ensure that any known problems with the network are resolved prior to the installation visit e.g. virus infections, faulty hardware etc.
  • When the scope of work involves crucial services being interrupted for a period of time (e.g. domain controller, fileserver, SIMS), please ensure that all users of the network understand the impact. The entire network, including networks sharing the same cabling infrastructure (e.g. existing administration network), may be affected. Specifically, one should assume that no-one, including the Network Manager, will be able to use the network for any purpose between the hours of 9am and 5pm. If this prerequisite is unacceptable to you, please immediately contact your project co-ordinator who will be happy to discuss the alternatives.
  • You have read and understood the Proposal. You will undertake any pre-requisites listed below prior to the Precedence installation engineer's visit.

Thin-Client

  • It is the responsibility of the school to provide all licensing information and media for applications that are to be installed on the application servers. These need to be ready prior to the Precedence engineer's arrival.
  • PLEASE NOTE: We will be unable to install any applications where neither the media and/or licensing serial numbers (proof of purchase) are available.

Remote access and administration requirements

Ports required to be opened inbound by your ISP are detailed here.

Provisioning Services (PVS)

With Provisioning Services (PVS), all PCs and AtomIQs will work from the same Windows installation.

To aid the installation process, we will need images of a typical machine. The easiest way to do this is:

  1. Take one PC
  2. Do a clean Windows 7, 8.1 or 10 installation
  3. Add the basic applications used on all machines
  4. Install the drivers for that particular PC.

Once done, remove the hard drive and place it in each different type of make and model of PC you have. It is assumed that the PCs all support SATA hard drives - any PCs that do not are likely to be of an age where they would be better suited by being re-purposed as thin-clients. Install the drivers (network, graphics, sound and VGA) for each type of hardware. This will give you a hard drive that can be used in any machine. The engineer will add the drivers of the AtomIQ, if applicable, when on site.

This is a bit of a chore but will help the process greatly and allow you to double-check each type of machine, as well as reducing installation time and cost.

Rack Requirements

Your establishment is responsible for ensuring that the following items have been met/completed prior to the arrival of the Precedence installation engineer(s):

  • All required racks are standard 19inch, 1000m deep (internal measurements). Please note, 600mm to 900mm deep racks are not suitable.
  • The rack(s) are fully assembled, with suitable environmental conditions, airflow, etc. Solid doors (glass or metal) are not suitable.
  • Keys for rack doors are available
  • All rack uprights are at their furthest separation.
  • The rack(s) have sufficient 240v AC mains power provision.
  • The racks have been arranged with suitable space for the server(s)/UPS(s) to be inserted without moving other items.
  • If the above conditions are not in place at the time the Precedence installation engineer arrives on site, your establishment will be responsible for fitting all server(s)/UPS(s) into the rack(s) after the Precedence installation engineer has left site at the end of the visit.
  • If the installation service is significantly delayed or postponed due to inappropriate rack preparation by your establishment, delays will be charged in half day units at the rate of £350 per half day.
  • Please note, Precedence Technologies reserves the right to refuse to perform this service if the installation is deemed to be unsafe.
  • Customers are responsible for fitting any third party rack and/or mounted equipment/server(s).
  • Pedestal Servers and UPS units: Unboxing and positioning the server(s) and UPS(s) will require physical assistance from your establishment as these servers/UPS units require a two−person lift for health & safety reasons. If you are unable to provide this assistance, Precedence can arrange for a second engineer to attend site by ordering additional services.
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Page last modified on March 08, 2017, at 12:38 PM by sborrill