On a forum I frequent, somebody recently posted a tale about some sysadmins having a problem with a server. Said server kept on restarting due to a signal from the UPS indicating that its power drain was excessive.

The solution the sysadmins came up with? Disable the Microsoft® Exchange™ service running on that server, to reduce CPU load, and thereby reduce the power being consumed by the server, and thereby stop the UPS getting upset.

The obvious question is: why was the server running a service which isn’t necessary (if it was necessary, how can they turn it off)? But this is a sidetrack question.

The important point is that the “solution” wasn’t a solution, it was a way of making the problem go away. This doesn’t work, and as a rule, the problem comes back in a much worse form.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking you’ve solved a problem by brushing it under the carpet. In the long run, it tends to ruin the carpet.

The solution is to provide a solution, not find a way of ignoring the problem.