KOLFE INDUSTRIAL COLLEGE

department of ICT
Unit of competency :-maintain
inventories of hardware and software
and documentation
 LO 2: Store technical documentation
This learning guide is developed to provide you
the necessary information regarding the
following content coverage and topics
store software, hardware and equipment not in use
Storing securely technical documentation.
Accessing and disseminating technical
documentation as required by clients.
 What is technical documentation in software?

• Technical documentation refers to any type of

documentation that describes handling, functionality
and architecture of a technical product or a product
under development or use.
• Technical documentation aims at providing enough
information for a user to understand inner and outer
dependencies of the product at hand.
 Storage Considerations
Storage
• Equipment not being used should be stored. It may
be new hardware and software in boxes, or loose
parts, or sensitive materials that need to be stored
securely until installed or needed. Valuable items
such as memory chips or original software copies
may need to be locked in a safe.
An IT store can hold new hardware, spare parts,
repaired equipment, extra copies of software, daily
and weekly backup copies of files as well as memory
IT equipment is often delicate and expensive.
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The environment for IT hardware and software
storage should be:
lockable
dust-free
static-resistant
safe from water and humidity
well ventilated and lit
at a constant temperature
separated from other perishable stores.
 Guidance from technical manuals

• Most IT equipment is fragile/easily broken and

should be handled with care it can be damaged
if not packed correctly in storage.
• It is also advisable to access the website of the
manufacturer. Often they update information
about equipment on their website, or add
additional information on packing and
disposing of computer consumables and
equipment.
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• Information from technical manuals needs to
be recorded in the inventory for all stock (in
storage or being used) such as the expected
lifetime of the product.
• Printer manuals, for instance, will state how
many pages can be printed before the toner
cartridge or developer needs replacing. Packed
and unopened toner cartridges can be kept for
quite some time, but developer has a more
limited shelf life.
 Storing components, software originals and
documentation
• All information about storing components can also
usually be found in technical manuals. Generally,
sensitive components will be stored as follows.
Memory chips
• Each memory chip should be placed in a foam-protected, anti-
static bag. Each bag is then placed in an individual box or in a
larger box that will have separate slots for each chip. Memory
was once very expensive and always stored in a safe
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Expansion cards, motherboards and other spares
• Expansion cards also must be placed in anti-static bags and
each bag then placed in an individual box or in a larger box
that will have separate slots for each card.
• Motherboards and other spares should be kept in boxing so
that they are not stacked on one another and also to avoid
dust building up.
CD-ROM drives and hard disks
• CD-ROM drives are stored in stacks on a shelf in the
storeroom.
• Hard disks should be placed in foam-protected anti-static
bags.
• Each hard disk needs to be stored in an individual box.
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Software originals
• When an organization purchases software, copies
need to be made of all disks. Installation of the
software should be carried out with the copied disks
and not the original.
• The original disks need to be stored in a secure place
such as a safe and preferably off site as a form of
assurance against any problems within the building,
such as flooding from heavy rain or fire damage.
Store securely technical documentation
Documentation
• Documentation, including manuals that come with
hardware and software, needs to be stored
correctly.
• Some manuals may need to be kept with the
relevant computers if they are used regularly.
Generally, manuals are kept in a storeroom or IT
library (which may be in the same place).
• Documentation such as licensing should be
recorded and stored in a safe area, such as a locked
filing cabinet.
 Technical documents

• Technical documentation is any piece of content that

describes how a product works.
• This includes the methodologies, features, and functionalities of
a product.
You can use technical documentation to:
• Explain how a product works.
• Document internal processes.
• Capture correct, valuable information that your team needs to
stay productive.
• Make information easy to find and reference.
The purpose of technical documentation is to make life simpler for
every stakeholder by empowering them with simple, clear, easily
accessible information.
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• Technical information may need to be
available throughout the organisation. Some
documents will have limited access, some may
be found on the open shelves in the IT work
area, and others kept in client’s offices. In a
highly developed business, images of
documents can be online via the IT network.
 Document control

• Working in an IT reference section you might

be expected to handle changes to technical
users’ manuals written by staff in your own IT
department.
• Document control includes withdrawing old
versions, disposing of them and issuing
updated copies. To do this job efficiently, your
records inventory must show who holds
copies.
 Levels of access and the currency of documents- General access

• IT documentation can hold details of flow

charts, program code, and technical reports,
wiring plans, testing results, measurements
and system analysis.
• These documents need to be sorted and
identified with a key number and an emphasis
on making the information accessible.
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All documents have common requirements, they
must be:
Easy to find
Available when needed
Current(up-to-date)
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• Available when needed: As in all human endeavours,
time is a constraint in IT; documents must be
available on request as most of the time the particular
information sought will help decision-making.
• Easy to find: In order to retrieve a document (to find
a piece of information or update it) efficiently, it must
be stored under a classification scheme.
• Current (up-to-date): Normally, a document has an
owner who is in charge of maintaining it, but in order
to update a document, a business process called
‘change control’ must be followed.
• Change control is the process of managing
and controlling changes; requested or
otherwise.
• It ensures that all work is justified and that all
work requested and approved is completed and
tested.
• In some organisations, no change can be made
without an approved change control form.
 Organizing documentation
Why classify documentation?
The purpose of classifying documentation is to store it in
an organised manner. This then allows timely and easier
access to the right documents when needed.
More generally, documents can be managed in line with
the organisation’s business goals and objectives.
The three main (and related) reasons why an organisation
needs to organise its documentation, are that this:
allows them to find information more easily
allows faster response to any type of query
makes work easier.
The basics of a well organized system

 Access, room to expand and ownership

• Documents should be organized so that people are keen to use them.
Users should not need to learn complicated hierarchies, or constantly
refer to convoluted indexes to find a document — if a system is
complex and hard to use, people end up not using it at all.
• The aim is to avoid people having to guess or make judgments on
where to store or look for relevant documentation.
 The filing system and naming protocols
• The filing system should help users retrieve documents quickly. A
system of sorting the documents is at the heart of every filing method.
• The program makes it easy to create directories and folders, but one
person may name a file by the first word in a document, another will
give the file a code. All users need a common file naming policy.
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 File code numbers and bar codes
 A widely adopted practice to overcome all that is to give every
book, document and file a code or number.
 The items can then be sorted numerically on the shelves or in
the file drawers.
 The number will be printed on the document, and is entered
into the computer inventory along with its location.
 Some large organizations add a barcode to items by a sticky
label or printed onto each document.
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 Documents and Reference Materials Inventories
 There should be an inventory of documents and reference materials. Depending
on the amount of information, filing system and size of the library, the records
for technical papers and manuals can be kept on a card index, or in a computer
database.
 Each document and reference should be numbered or coded
 A record of those numbers, a description of the item and its location are then
recorded in an index file or an electronic catalogue
 ISBN numbers versus numbering systems
 Most books already have a number printed on the page with publication and
publisher details, called the imprint page. This number is the International
Standard Book Number (ISBN) or ISSN for International Standard Serial
Number (for journals and magazines etc), used by libraries and publishers and
which may be used in the inventory record.
 To make it easier, a separate filing number may be stuck on the spine of the
book. Libraries use a numbering system called the Dewey Decimal system. A
numbering system such as this can be used for both books and the file names
for documents.
 Valuable originals and document security
Valuable original documents, possibly held in a
protected place under the care of IT, may be:
 legal or historical papers
 signed forms
 Tender documents
 Contracts
 Agreements
 Warranties and licences.
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The objective of document security is to preserve the
organisation’s information assets and the business
processes they support, by:
• Confidentiality: where documentation is accessible
only to those authorised to have access
• Integrity: where accuracy and completeness of
information contained in the documents and processing
methods are safeguarded
• Availability: when documentation and associated
assets are accessible by authorised users when
required.
• Document and file properties
Network storage
• Network Storage is one proven system of storage, using a local area
network (LAN), is based on the structure of an organization.
• On the organization’s LAN, each major department or team is given its
own folder: Operations, Customer Service, Administration, Human
Resources, Payroll, Accounting, etc. Within the department folder,
subfolders are assigned to different sections and projects.
Advantages of network storage
• Each department and workgroup can own folders assigned to them.
The department will manage its location, maintenance and access.
• It is flexible and easily expandable to allow for growth: simply
subdivide folders if more classification is needed.
• It is flexible when business realignment occurs: departmental folders
can be moved to reflect the new structure without disrupting their
contents.
• Departments are in charge of archiving documentation when they
became out of date.
Formats for storing IT documentation
• For a document to be available to customers, documentation
must be stored in a file type that is widely compatible with a
number of platforms. Documents cannot be stored in a format
that the audience or user may not be able to open.
Guidelines for online documents
Geographical distance is no longer a barrier to communication.
Modern documentation is also increasingly distributed online,
because it:
 is easier to documentation keep up-to-date
 is less expensive to produce
 can be presented in a file format that can be used on any
platform
 takes up less space than printed materials
 Access and disseminate technical
documentation as required by clients.
Accessing stock and inventory
• Stock:- describes the goods that an organization currently
holds.
• For example, if an organization makes computers, they
need to keep a stock of hard disks, system boards, network
cards, monitors, cabling and so on.
Inventory: - is a list of what you actually have, and a
description of it.
• For example, when you insure the contents of your house
you are usually asked to perform an inventory of the
contents, in order to calculate how much to insure it for.
 Document control and distribution

• In an IT organization or department, the controlled

distribution of documentation is of paramount
importance.
Levels of security and confidentiality
• Security you should always store computer hardware and
software in a secure place, in order to prevent theft.
Access to a storeroom must be restricted to authorized
personnel.
• Security also means protection against fire, flood, mound
and insect pests.
• You must also make sure that there are real connections
between the stored stock and the inventory records.
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• The inventory record of any document should
show the security level.
Security level of inventory include:-
High security :-valuable originals
Low security :- general access required
Medium security:-sensitive and restricted material
High security :- critical information and fragile media
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High security — valuable originals
• Some documents in the care of IT must be kept safe, perhaps
in their original condition.
• They may hold trade secrets or confidential information.
• Some documents are held in a form that is liable to damage
and must be kept in a secure area, not to be removed, with
even authorised people only able to access copies or images
of them.
High security — critical information and fragile media
• Original documents that may have a critical value, or be
recorded on a fragile medium such as tape, should not be
allowed to leave their secure storage place. Only copies
should be taken out.
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Medium security — sensitive and restricted material

 Some records contain sensitive material, and may not be
seen by all employees.
 Each document and each authorised user of a system
should be assigned a security level.
 Unauthorised people can be denied access to the whole
system
Low security — general access required
 Other documents might hold knowledge that is critical to
the workings of IT equipment, but copies or images can be
freely distributed, so long as the version of the document is
clearly marked, and the reader has the necessary authority.
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Hard copy documents
• If a document is in hard copy, and the user is
authorized to access it, the lender’s details can be
recorded in a simple database to keep track of it
Soft copy documents
• Distribution can be made secure and tracked by
granting access to only the appropriate documents
(by pre-determined levels of security) and by
sending documents by email and filing/registering
a copy of the email.
 Reporting, auditing and archiving documentation
 Your manager could ask you for a report on who has been
using the technical documents listed in the index or inventory.
 You may need to show what’s been added, what’s been
deleted, or transferred.
 Technical records need regular auditing. You may be called
on at intervals to check records and manuals.
 If so, you would look for items missing, damaged, misplaced,
borrowed for too long, or materials that are out of date.
 Some documents have to be kept, by law, for a certain
amount of time and should be archived.
 Records or books that have not had any activity for a while
can be transferred to archives, freeing up valuable space.