Properly preparing and storing a laptop can improve its longevity and make back-to-school set-up easier. It can be overwhelming for IT teams that support K-12 students to collect and store laptops over the summer. Once the laptops have been collected, the next step is to prepare them for storage.
Devices must be repaired if they are broken, paired with their battery or charger, and wiped of data if they are returned. It is a critical procedure, as IT teams must ensure that student devices remain in storage until the next academic year begins. Having laptop preparation and storage properly implemented will help increase the device’s lifespan and simplify back-to-school setup. Here are our suggestions for summer storage.
Getting Ready for Storage
Preparing student laptops for storage between school years is critical, it not only affects the life of the device, but also decreases school liability. A laptop becomes increasingly sluggish as it accumulates data, apps, and information. By purging the device between school years, technicians can refresh it and lengthen its lifespan. Schools also need to ensure information security. If old information on a device is leaked the school may be held liable for it. It is advisable to wipe each laptop before the new school year begins, naturally the more you do at the end of the school year, the easier the new year is!
The best way to protect school and student information on the laptop is to perform a factory reset. By removing all information from the drive, apps, downloads, and associated accounts, storage, performance, and protection will all increase. Here are Google’s suggested steps for resetting a laptop, such as a Chromebook, to factory settings:
- Sign out
- Press and hold Ctrl + Alt + Shift + r
- Click “Restart”
- When a box appears, click “Power-wash” and then click “Continue”
- Follow the next steps that appear and then sign in with your administrator account
- Follow the onscreen instructions to set up the Chromebook
Then you need to reconnect to Wi-Fi and set up your school firewalls and administrative restrictions. Some IT teams prefer to put the devices in charging stations, but others use barcodes to match the laptop to its unique charger. Either way, each device must be plugged in for charging, and stored for the long term.
Taking care of a laptop’s battery.
Keeping devices plugged in all of the time is not usually recommended because it isn’t the greatest for their batteries. To maintain the longevity of laptop batteries, charge them to about 90 percent and then turn them off. Lithium-ion batteries, used in most laptops and Chromebooks, lose their capacity if they are always plugged in.
There are two ways to power down a laptop once it has been optimally charged. The most common method is simply unplugging and shutting down the device. The other method, offered by Windows devices and Google Chromebook, is to use the battery disconnect state. By doing this, you’ll need to charge your battery less before the start of school.
Every laptop must be periodically checked throughout the summer to prevent them from losing all their charge. It is also critical to maintain some amount of battery life, a battery that is empty for a long period of time can become permanently damaged.
Regardless of which storage style you decide, checking the battery level of a handful of devices every few weeks is recommended especially if they were charged conventionally (without putting them in the battery disconnect state). If all of them are above 20% charge, don’t charge them. If they are under 20%, charge all the laptops back up to about 90% before unplugging them from their power sources once again and putting them back into storage.
The temperature at which laptop batteries are stored is another significant factor in terms of battery life. Cold, dry environments are best for lithium-ion batteries. A laptop will lose battery life faster if it is kept in hot, humid conditions for an extended period of time. Because laptop batteries are unable to stand up to heat, they should not be placed in direct sunlight, even if the room is cool.
There are certain laptop storage requirements to keep in mind.
Preparing and taking care of every laptop is vitally important, but what about storage? Although storage is determined by what is accessible to each IT team and district, there are some strategies and tricks that can help maintain student device organization and security.
We have already reviewed how laptops should be kept in cold, dry environments where they are not exposed to direct sunlight. The ideal temperature range for storing a laptop is between 50 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit, although the lower end is preferable. If your storage area is exposed to sunlight, putting the laptops in cabinets or charge carts will help, as these will keep the sun off your laptops. Even in storage areas with little or no windows, cabinets and charge carts give you a way to further lock up the devices.
Choosing between cabinets and charging carts personal preference, existing laptop procedures, and budgetary concerns. Whether chargers are paired to specific laptops based on barcodes, for example, will have a big impact on whether charging carts are chosen over cabinets. When back-to-school time comes, the laptop is simply removed from the cart with its unique charger. Charging carts are also simple to maintain throughout the summer as each laptop is powered by the cart. They may also be rolled throughout the school easily as needed and can also be utilized in the classroom for storage.
There are no slots for charging student devices in the cabinets; so laptops should be stacked with no more than six to eight at a time, stacking them any higher can cause screen damage on the bottom devices from the weight. Placing specific chargers in little containers near each laptop stack would increase efficiency. A charging cart holds about 25-35 laptops on average, while a cabinet with four shelves can hold about 125-150 laptops. This will reduce the amount of shelving purchased and preserve space in the storage room.
The price difference between cabinets and charging carts is another important factor to consider when choosing between them. Charging carts are more expensive because of the advantages they offer, such as ease of charging and mobility. Each charging cart costs anywhere from $1000 – $1,800, depending on the number of charging slots and cart material. Cabinets are generally cheaper, ranging from $150 – $800, depending on aesthetics and material.
Final Note Regarding Laptop Storage
There are many factors to consider when storing laptops long-term. Ensuring the device and student information are safeguarded, storage space is cleared up, and laptops are properly stored over breaks, among other issues.
Divot Assets helps K-12 districts in managing all stages of maintaining and counting their physical assets through physical audits and utilizing industry leading asset management software. Whatever your fixed assets need, Divot Assets can assist!
Please contact us for a free demo to get more asset management assistance and support!
