Network outage forces DMV computer systems to go down

Many companies rely on some form of computer network to complete business functions. Having that setup go down can be extremely detrimental and a high level of dependency can bring workflow to a halt. Add in a line of already annoyed customers and you have a recipe for disaster, similar to the problems that the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) went through on Tuesday morning.

As anyone with a driver’s licence can tell you, going to the DMV, even for the simplest of tasks, is a less than enjoyable experience. A networking problem led the California DMV’s computer network to go down statewide. While the website was not affected and facilities were able to continue doing road tests and simpler processes on paper, customers looking to do anything computer-based were turned away, according to the Associated Press. Because of the vast government network the DMV uses to connect its multiple offices, finding the exact issue took some time.

“We haven’t been able to isolate it,” said Adam Dondro, a spokesman for the California Technology Agency, in a press release before the issue was uncovered. “It’s somewhere between one of [the DMV] routers and either our technology router or a Verizon router. We’ve been kind of peeling the onion to try to figure out where it is and haven’t been able to nail it down yet.”

A few hours later, the issue was uncovered -the state route was malfunctioning. However, the problem could have been much worse for the California DMV – which services nearly 24 million drivers and 31.7 million vehicles – and its customers had the issue persisted.

With more businesses relying on strong networks and infrastructure to work efficiently and stay connected, a networking outage can cause any company a number of problems. Partnering with an IT consulting agency like CTI Technology can help any business ensure their network is up to task when a company demands of it.