Hardware Platform Stability

System hardware provides the basis for the operating system and applications and, therefore, must have a solid foundation. A common source of system problems is related to loose mechanical connections resulting in intermittent problems manifested through hard-to-track error messages at both operating system and application levels. Subjecting the hardware platform to mechanical vibration could loosen components and change their electrical characteristics.

All connected components in a system must be correctly fitted and secured to ensure maximum mechanical contact to guarantee that the electrical characteristics remain constant. Memory and CPU components must be fully inserted and secured into sockets. I/O cards must be fully inserted into the self-identifying bus (SBus) or Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) connectors, and fully secured. External cables must be fully inserted and secured with the correct strain relief in place to ensure the cable weight does not strain internal components. Cables also have a specified minimum-bend radius that must be maintained. For optical fiber cables, the bend radius is especially important, since a minimum-bend radius violation will result in signal attenuation.