WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. -- There’s no doubt that technology is a big part of today’s world. But ever wonder what it takes to maintain the different systems that are used every day?
One of the main jobs of the 442d Force Support Squadron’s Cyber Support flight is just that – to take care of all communication operations and technology within the wing.
“Probably 75% of what we do is customer based,” said Tech. Sgt. Hannah McCormick, the equipment control officer for the 442 CS flight. “We work any hardware or software problems and go through tech refreshes every three to four years. We also have our knowledge management shop which handles all the publications and records management.”
This year, the flight is working to accomplish a technical refresh of about 600 assets, mostly comprised of laptops.
“The overall process can take around three to five months,” said Master Sgt. Joshua Snapp, the 442 CS flight superintendent. “Every laptop has to be reimaged, set up to go on the network, and then it has to sit on the network to receive updates before we actually pass it out. For one device it can take about 18 hours.”
Imaging is the process of installing a fresh copy of the operating system on a hard drive. Although lengthy, the CS flight has been able to refine their process which has allowed them to increase their imaging capabilities significantly.
“Originally we could only image about five assets at a time, but we generated an image server that has allowed us to image 30 at a time,” said Master Sgt. Snapp. “We’ve been able to innovate and use that technology with the help of the 509th Infrastructure Shop setting it up, and it has allowed us to increase our productivity.”
Through innovation and collaboration, the 442 CS flight is well on its way to accomplishing another successful technical refresh. With the addition of more laptops, the goal is to aid in the mobility and flexibility of the wing.
Once the entire process is completed, the old assets are shipped off to a Defense Reutilization Marketing Office where they are redistributed around the community.