SysAdmin Talk

Documentation. That thing that most SysAdmins know they should do, but usually don’t. Have you stopped to think that maybe documentation is not limited to a wiki or ye olden Moleskin notebook? No, documentation can and should also take the form of labeling your assets. I’m not talking mere inventory tracking; I’m talking honest-to-goodness informational documentation in label form. The following are some tips that I’ve learned over my time as a SysAdmin, concerning the art of labeling.

First, you must choose your labeling method wisely. In my mind, there are only three major methods of labeling:

1. Sticky labels
2. String tags
3. Indelible markers

Thoughts on Sticky Labels

If you choose to use sticky labels, the device of choice in my experience is one of Brother’s many P-Touch line of label printers. When using a label printer, make sure the printing is big enough to see when in dim light and angled away from you. Make the characters as tall as the printing strips will allow. As a rule, you will almost never have optimum viewing circumstances when you need to view your label.

Test out the sticky side of the label on whatever equipment you’re labeling. It might not remain affixed over time, especially if the surface is warm (think servers) and especially in the dry climate of a server room. You may need to either look for better label tape, or affix a different tape over the label (clear packing tape is my preference).

Thoughts on Tags

In some cases, the better choice for labeling devices will be with what I morbidly refer to as “Toe-Tags”. If you’re going to be searching online for these things, use terms such as “manila tags” or “shipping tag labels”.

You may be familiar with these if you use HP servers with ILO in them; as each ILO enabled server comes with a tag that has your unique ILO login information from the factory.

The benefit of these kinds of tags is that you can twist and turn them to any degree that suits your viewing angle. You can also tie them to items that you don’t want to leave a residue on, as will happen with labels or permanent markings (such as with a Sharpie).

The downsides to manila tags is that you’ll have to be within arm’s reach to turn the tag to an optimal viewing angle. They can also restrict airflow, and the strings can potentially snap.

Thoughts on Indelible Markers

It’s the most permanent way of labeling. Stickers can scrape off and tags can easily be removed, but indelible markers are forever. If you choose this method, don’t just use black markers; silver is a necessity as well. Many devices are already dark in color, and using a black marker will make the tag very difficult to read. Silver Sharpies are a great tagging tool.

Also, give your indelible markers a sniff test. For instance, I have a massive Sharpie Magnum, which is a chisel tip with a barrel the size of a howitzer. The aroma that is released when the cap is removed gives everyone within 15 yards a contact high and the nauseating smell stays in the room for hours. Not a good idea for most scenarios.

Also remember to throw away your inhibitions concerning writing on stuff! I worked at one place that frequently purchased shiny, new Macs which were absurdly expensive. The asset tagging involved writing, with indelible markers, on the chassis of the machine; to say that this freaked me out is an understatement. I didn’t want to deface those pretty, expensive machines! In time, however, I hardened my heart and learned to deface like a deranged graffiti artist in the center of the darkest slum. It’s not about the prettiness of your Catalyst or DL785 G6; it’s about getting the job done right.

General Labeling Guidelines

Make sure that your labels or tags are secure and can’t easily fall off! That’s a “no duh” concept, right? Well, it might still need a bit of discussion. If you put new labels on your devices, make sure that you check those devices in a few days or months to see how the labels are holding up. You might have to choose a stickier tape or a stronger string.

Furthermore, consider whether or not you need an indelible mark for legal reasons. I’ve been focusing mostly on server room equipment, but you might want to label regular PCs or other assets that can float in and out of the server room (like cable toners or multimeters). Someone could easily remove a sticky label and claim one of these device as their own; in these cases, consider labels that  tattoo the surface of the device, or using indelible markers. Also, make sure not to leave your mark on a removable part of the device – an asset marking on the battery hatch is a poor idea.

It bears repeating: label anything that could “walk away” from an area. Label it in big letters. If possible, make it hard to miss and even a little embarrassing. No one is going to steal a sweet little 1800-8g ProCruve switch if it’s plastered in Hello Kitty stickers and has “I heart Robert Pattinson” scribbled on it. But seriously, if it can detach, unhook or otherwise become mobile, label it shamelessly. Either that or glue / tape / weld it to a permanent structure.

Be redundant (see: recursive). Put a label or tag on the front and back of the device. Or top and bottom, as the case may be. Personally, I try to label things on each flat surface and, assuming a rectangle, that’s six labels. If you use shipping tags, put the information on both sides of the tag. Yes, it’s redundant, but so are your UPSs, and you’re not trying to weasel out of using those, are you? (I don’t think I want to know the answer to that question). You never know what unlikely bodily contortion you will find yourself in when needing to see a label. You might be gripping a flashlight with your teeth, using one hand to push back a cascade of cable and the other hand to balance an improperly screwed in chassis switch, while you crane your neck to catch a glimpse of that one, lone tag you put on the side of the PDU tucked into the server rack’s wall cavity. Put labels on multiple sides for your own sake.

Be verbose! Even if it means toe tags the size of a post card or ticker tape streamers for labels. Of course, that could pose a problem to air flow in some situations so, if you can, be as verbose as practicality allows, and then some.

Don’t abbreviate. TP100-MP1U might make sense to you now, but it won’t in 12 months. No, it won’t. It certainly won’t make sense to your other admins, or whoever comes after you. Even if the device’s DNS name really is TP100-MP1U, put “10 tape Overland Auto loader, third rack” beneath it to give at least some clue what it is to n00bs. Again, crazy situations that make you wish you had made more informative labels will almost always come up.

Springboarding off of the previous paragraph, obscurity is not security. If you’re worried about telling people what a thing is in verbose terms (core switch, failover router, etc.)… why do those people even have access to those things in the first place? There are greater issues that need to be addressed there, and obscure documentation is not the solution.

When labeling, make sure to give devices unique names on their labels. By that I mean that just labeling the back of your appliance “Hard drive array” isn’t enough. Neither is “ReadyNAS Array” or “5TB ReadyNAS Array in third rack”. You never know what circumstances lie ahead, and I guarantee that you will facepalm when another “5TB ReadyNAS Array” is put in place in the third rack.

That brings up the question of whether you should label things based on what they are versus what they do, or a combination of both. Should that server be known as it’s IP of 10.0.0.45/24? Should it be known as its DNS name of SQL2008-2? Or perhaps “Finance Reporting Server and Mirroring Witness for SQL2007-4″? Or is it all of the above? You’ll need to consider what you think you might need to know at a glance concerning what you’re labeling, and make your own decisions.

In the end, your assets will be more marked up than Lil Wayne’s body, but this is about practicality not beautification. Unless you get labels that have pretty pink swirls on them, but I digress. Truly, you will make your life easier if you begin to consider labeling your assets as a part of your overall documentation scheme.