Routine and comprehensive software and data backups are a standard technique in maintaining the integrity of the lab's systems. The backups ensure that software and data can be restored in the event a hard disk file is damaged or stolen, or if there is a virus contamination. The acquisition of hardware and software is another of the Lab managers responsibilities. Although lab systems may already be installed it is an ongoing task to upgrade and augment the lab's hardware and software. The manager must see that correct hardware and software upgrades are ordered and installed.
Hardware upgrades are in many cases user installable.
Software upgrades are user installable, but in many cases the software publishers advise that the installer have some training or education in advance of the installation process. As is often the case this training does cost, but the costs from a faulty installation of key software can more than offset any savings from not attending the training. New software packages may be acquired or requested by faculty or users. Great care must be exercised in the timing and installation of any new software on an operational lab. The most benign changes can sometimes have disastrous results such as hanging the network, causing other, previously stable software to misbehave, and causing intermittent problems such as disappearing files.