The particularly tricky aspect of storage spares is that a customer asking
for a drive almost every time needs something more than simply a drive. A
customer whose system disk has failed really needs a new drive, along with a
standardized OS install. A customer who is running out of shared disk space
and wants to install a private drive really needs more shared space or a drive,
along with plus backup services. And so on.
We don’t encourage SAs to have a prove-that-you-need-this mentality.
SAs strive to be enablers, not gatekeepers. That said, you should be aware
that every time a drive goes out the door of your storage closet, it is likely
that something more is required. Another way to think of it is that a problem
you know how to solve is happening now, or a problem that you might have
to diagnose later is being created. Which one would you rather deal with?
Fortunately, as we show in many places in this book, it’s possible to
structure the environment so that such problems are more easily solved by
default. If your site chooses to back up individual desktops, some backup
software lets you configure it to automatically detect a new, local partition and
begin backing it up unless specifically prevented. Make network boot disks
available for customers, along with instructions on how to use them to load
your site’s default supported installation onto the new drive. This approach
lets customers replace their own drives and still get a standardized OS image.
Have a planned quarterly maintenance window to give you the opportunity
to upgrade shared storage to meet projected demands before customers start
becoming impacted by lack of space. Thinking about storage services can be
a good way to become aware of the features of your environment and the
places where you can improve service for your customers.