St. Petersburg, FL · September 2022, Hurricane Ian
Restoring a St. Petersburg Locksmith's IT After Hurricane Ian
After Hurricane Ian in September 2022, a St. Petersburg locksmith shop lost its usual connectivity and access to key business systems. Dispatch, payment processing, cloud phones and manufacturer databases depended on getting the office connected again. The job was to restore those functions and recover access to the master key database.
By Lazaro Anias, founder & engineer. Published . Updated .
- Location
- St. Petersburg, FL
- Project period
- September 2022, Hurricane Ian
- Scope
- Temporary connectivity, phones and master key database recovery
Where it stands: The shop used an emergency connection and temporary infrastructure while its usual services were unavailable.
The challenge
- The shop could not use its usual internet connection for dispatch, payment processing and email.
- Business calls needed to reach technicians while the office connection was unavailable.
- The master key database was on an unavailable office machine and needed to be recovered.
What we built
Generator-powered Starlink connection
A Starlink dish and portable generator provided a temporary uplink for dispatch, point of sale and email while the normal connection was unavailable.
Cloud phone rerouting
We rerouted the main business numbers from the cloud phone system to technicians’ cell phones so calls could reach the people doing the work.
Specialty equipment reconnected
Key-cutting equipment and diagnostic tablets joined the temporary network to restore access to the manufacturer systems used in the workflow.
Master key database recovery
We recovered the master key system database from the office machine and made it available on temporary infrastructure for commercial rekeying work.
The results
- The shop resumed dispatch and card processing using temporary connectivity.
- Technicians could receive calls to the existing business numbers.
- Access to the recovered master key database supported commercial rekeying jobs during the recovery period.
Client details are anonymized out of respect for the businesses involved. The work, the numbers, and the outcomes are real.
Related services