Things get complex, but don't forget to check the easy stuff first

So my Veeam backup solution wasn't performing as I thought it should. Veeam had direct access to my SAN via a 4Gb FiberChannel HBA, and was only pulling around 40MB/s. I was pulling my hair out and finally posted on a forum for assistance. The advice? Check the driver on the HBA card. Lo and behold, the QLogic HBA card was using a MICROSOFT driver. That's just no good. After updating the driver, my speeds went from 40MB/s to anywhere between 130-250 MB/s. Now that's a speed boost!

I think it's important that we as technical people strive to maintain good troubleshooting skills. Sure, the infrastructure gets complicated, but don't ever forget that the best fix might be the easiest. Your internet isn't working? Start from the bottom and work your way up. Sure, it might be a routing issue, but put traceroute away for a minute and check that the network cable is plugged in. Keep it simple, stupid.