IT Infrastructure

Computer

Just like in Japan, there are many home electronics retailers in Thailand, with a wide variety of manufacturers and brands. On the other hand, there are many so-called “cheap or bad” models on the market, and there are cases where they break down within a year even though they were purchased for business use, or it takes a month to repair them even though they are under warranty. is not uncommon.
You must purchase a model from a trusted retailer that provides official support from the manufacturer.

Internal LAN, electricity, telephone line installation

In newly constructed offices and factories, situations such as internet outages, unstable power supply, and noise on the telephone often occur. The cause may be due to the following installation method.

• The material of the LAN cable has been thinned out (use of inferior quality products)
• Breaker capacity exceeded (planned power consumption not confirmed)
• Low electricity and strong electricity are not separated (mistake in the installation method itself)

Of course, this is not the only reason, but sometimes it is caused by inexperienced or malicious companies.
You need to hire a company that has a proven track record and can explain things to you properly.

Server

In Thailand, where it is hot all year round, server machines and network equipment often go down due to rising temperatures.
Servers and network equipment are basically operated continuously all year round, so there are many cases where the temperature rises during holidays when the air conditioning is turned off, and the equipment breaks down when you return to work on Monday.
It is necessary to have a system that can properly control temperature and instantly detect abnormalities.

Domain Registeration and Email Address Creation

When starting a new business in Thailand, it is essential to acquire a domain (the part after the @) and create email addresses. However, when relying on local Thai email service providers (email server rental services), there are occasional issues such as the inability to send or receive emails or becoming infected with viruses. This is often due to inadequate management by local Thai providers. Unlike Japan, early recovery through backups or the restoration of lost data is not guaranteed.

Considering that email is the lifeline of business activities, sufficient measures are necessary to address potential contingencies.

Viruses

According to the ‘World Distribution of Dangerous Websites 2010’ issued by the leading security software developer McAfee, Thailand is ranked 48th among 358 domains worldwide, posing a risk of virus infection simply by accessing or clicking on websites (Japan, for reference, is in the top 3). Even with firewall and antivirus software, there is a possibility of infection, so regular checks (virus scans) and log analysis are necessary.

Illegal copy software usage

According to the report from the worldwide organization ‘BSA’ (GLOBAL SOFTWARE SURVEY JUNE 2018), the usage rate of illegal software in Thailand was still 66% in 2018. Many local small and medium-sized enterprises, in particular, use copied licenses. There are also sites where expensive software can be downloaded for free. Some employees may unknowingly use such illegal copy software, causing serious damage to the company. Therefore, regular checks and persistent awareness efforts, such as internal IT literacy education, are necessary.

Hardware stop / Failure due to power outage

Although things have improved from a few years ago, power outages often occur in Thailand due to heavy rain or lightning strikes.
Even if you have an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) installed, there are cases where there is a power outage on holidays or during the night, which can cause device settings to be reset or the configuration file itself to be corrupted.

Problem isolation and recovery in case of network failure

Thailand still uses ADSL lines, and there are always speed issues.
Furthermore, even if you have a problem with not being able to connect to the Internet, it may be difficult to determine whether it is a problem with your company’s equipment or the Internet provider, and it is often difficult to know who to contact or what to do.

WEB access log

When it comes to operating and viewing SNS such as Facebook or playing online games during work hours, Thai people believe that it is okay to do so as long as the work that needs to be done today is done.
By regularly analyzing web access logs, it is useful to evaluate individual utilization rates and work attitudes, which can be reflected in personnel assessments and internal rules.

Illegal software usage

Referring to JETRO’s “Internal Software Management Policy and Rules,” establishing internal regulations and conducting monthly inspections to understand the actual software usage within the company contribute to protecting the company’s credibility.

License presentation

Submitting the monthly updated ‘IT Asset Management Ledger’ or appropriately managing documents related to licenses can be helpful in dealing with unscrupulous inspectors.

Repelling self-proclaimed “Investigators”

In case of individuals falsely claiming to be investigators and requesting entry inspections, TBS will collaborate to handle the situation on behalf of your company.

Submission of mandatory WEB access logs

In Thailand, it is mandatory to retain WEB access logs for a period of 90 days.