My dental software is slow!
Does your dental management system work very slowly? Are you embarrassingly waiting in front of your patients while the hourglass keeps going round and round?
Dental offices have specialized computing needs. Combine your dental management software (Dentrix, Eaglesoft, Abeldent, etc.) with your digital imaging (Patterson Image, Dexis, Vixwin, etc.) and you have a small number of workstations using a single server. While any computer company can have trouble setting up and maintaining its network, it takes a specialist to get it up and running.
There are many reasons for the slowdown of your software; however, there are some rules of thumb that are primarily to blame. Not all offices are set up the same and may be affected by one more of these common problems.
1) Anti-virus software
It is suggested to run an updated antivirus on each computer in your office. But not all are made the same. First of all, stay away from homebrew versions of antivirus software. These include Norton 360 and McAfee Total Protection. You’ll also want to stay away from full Internet security packages. These are great for standalone computer systems, but wreak havoc on networked computers. It is recommended to use the Enterprise versions that are available from companies such as Symantec and McAfee. Another product that works well in dental offices is AVG Network Edition.
An incorrectly configured antivirus can also cause significant slowdowns. Be sure to set your antivirus to NOT scan your mapped network drives. This is extremely important for the use of digital imaging programs. Check each workstation! Even a couple of workstations scanning network files can have a noticeable effect everywhere. Look for the Exclusion settings within your antivirus.
You’ll also want to check for scheduled daily scans. These are scans that will check all files on the computer for viruses. The scan must be scheduled for a time when your office is closed.
2) Overused server
A common mistake is to use your server as a workstation. Although this works, it is not highly recommended. A server must have a role; be a server! Don’t use it for email, web browsing, and image editing.
If you use a server as a workstation, you are more likely to get infected with a virus or malware. With the low cost of computing equipment, it’s not worth risking hours of downtime by letting your staff use the server as their personal computer at home.
3) Multiple switches in the network
As offices grow, they will add computers to their network. It is very common to daisy chain your network switches. For the best possible performance, only one switch should be used. So buy a bigger switch to go with your entire workstation. This may also be a good time to upgrade from a 100 Mb switch to a 1 GB switch.
4) Continuous backup software
Most backup software is scheduled to run once a day when the office is closed. However, there is some software that uses a method called Continuous Data Protection (CDP). The software continually monitors your data for any changes. Once a change is made, it will take a copy of it. Not bad for files that don’t change very often. But your files can have thousands of changes made during a normal day. This is not only dangerous, as it can damage data, but it can also slow down your system.
Troubleshooting
Diagnosing a slow network can take a long time, even for an experienced technician. However, there are a few main areas that you can focus on to reduce your problems.
The first thing is to monitor your server while the office is fully operational. Open your task manager on your server and notice spikes in resource usage. If the server is heavily loaded, you may want to upgrade or replace it. You’ll also want to check how much hard drive space you have left. Anything less than 20% can cause you problems.
The next thing is to check each workstation. Start at the stations with the most complaints. Relaunch task manager to observe excessive resource usage. Older systems may have become cluttered with excess software and junk. Perform a tune-up to clean up any unnecessary software. A few slow computers can affect others by extending software load times and thus occupying the server longer.
Slow dental software (Dentrix, Eaglesoft, Abeldent and Tracker) can be a thing of the past. By checking common areas of concern, performing general maintenance, and following the golden rules of a network, your computers will continue to run smoothly.