What Is Downtime?

Date First Published: 19th April 2022

Topic: Computer Networking

Subtopic: Data Transmission Technologies

Computer Terms & Definitions

Difficulty Level: 2/10

Learn more about what downtime is in this article.

Downtime refers to the time when a network or a server is inaccessible due to congestion, maintenance, rebooting, physical disconnections, DDoS attacks, poor network design, hardware failures, and software failures. In most cases, downtime is only temporary and the systems go back up and running after a certain period of time. Downtime that lasts for extended periods of time is suggestive of bigger issues, such as continuous cyberattacks. In order to prevent downtime, multiple servers may be configured so that the other server takes over, in the event that the first server fails.

Types Of Downtime

• Planned downtime - This occurs when a network administrator warns users in advance that the network will temporarily go down for a certain period of time. This gives users a chance to prepare. Planned downtime often occurs during hours where the network is not used, such as in the early hours of the morning. This gives the network administrator a chance to maintain or upgrade the network or server.
• Unplanned downtime - This is the opposite of planned downtime and occurs when the network suddenly goes down with no advance warning and the time the network will go back up is unknown. Users have no chance to prepare for unplanned downtime. Unplanned downtime is often caused by cyberattacks, such as DDoS attacks and poor network design.

Effects Of Downtime

The main effect of downtime is no communication from the network or server, due to it being down. Downtime can have other effects, such as:

• Loss of important data. If an organisation stored important data in the cloud or on a file storage service, they would be unable to access it.
• Loss of revenue. Because downtime means that customers will be unable to access any products or services, it will be impossible for an organisation to use ecommerce.
• Decreased productivity. If an organisation relied on the internet to perform most tasks, it would cause delays in the time that they complete their work.
• Bad reputation of the organisation. If downtime in an organisation persisted for a long period of time, it would have a negative impact on the reputation of the organisation as it would suggest that the organisation has trouble managing and protecting their network.