CASE STUDY
Miles IT to the Rescue: Handling the Global CrowdStrike Outage
Learn about Miles IT’s exemplary response to the July 2024 CrowdStrike outage.
Thanks to our strategic efforts and in-depth expertise, our entire company joined forces to get clients up & running and minimize downtime.
THE CHALLENGE
Global CrowdStrike Outage
On Friday, July 19, 2024, a faulty CrowdStrike update rendered thousands of businesses inoperational. As company systems failed and experienced the “blue screen of death,” daily life ground to a standstill.
Hospitals canceled surgeries. Airlines grounded flights. ATMs stopped working. Overall, 8.5 million Microsoft devices were affected worldwide.
Luckily, our clients were able to get back up and running quickly—all thanks to our dedicated teams and coordinated efforts.
THE TIMELINE: JULY 19, 2024
Immediately jumping into action
From the beginning, we effectively organized research teams and segmented support resources to restore client systems.
12:00 AM
Right away, our on-call teams noticed systems crashing at an alarming speed. They immediately began rallying resources.
1:00 AM
Recognizing the scope of the issue, we launched response actions right away. Our top technical experts outlined solutions for each scenario and explained the fixes to our team members.
3:00 AM and on
All hands on deck—with a game plan ready to go, our support teams started restoring client systems. At the same time, our tech experts continued identifying solutions for specific scenarios.
12:00 PM
Most of our clients were up and running and ready to work. We continued to provide around-the-clock support and resolution all weekend until every issue was resolved.
OUR COORDINATED APPROACH
Uniquely qualified to succeed
With 25+ years of IT experience, we’re used to organizing efficient responses to large-scale tech issues. We employed an organization-wide approach to get clients back up and running ASAP.
Flexibility & Dedication
Staff from all teams in the company stepped in to help, reflecting our entire organization’s commitment to our clients.
Organized Team Structure
Pre-established lanes of expertise enabled us to quickly divide, deploy, and triage resources, from research to remediation.
Breadth of Experience
Thanks to our unique training, teams could work comfortably in new tech environments outside of their assigned clients.
Remote Company Operations
With team members located all over the world, we could start helping clients immediately, both remotely and onsite.
Technical Expertise
We didn’t wait for CrowdStrike to solve the problem—our research team worked tirelessly to develop and test solutions.
CLIENT SPOTLIGHT
Helping Mestichelli Barnes Dental stay on schedule for all appointments
Mestichelli Barnes Dental provides dental care to patients in the South Philly area, including emergency dentistry.
On the day of the outage, they had appointments with patients starting at 7 AM and needed to be operational by then.
We prioritized their systems and got them up and running in time for their appointments so they could continue providing patient care.
TEAM SPOTLIGHT
Coming together to save the day
Miles IT team members are standout individuals—not just experts in their field, but people who deeply care.
Balancing Act
Though most businesses struggled with the CrowdStrike update, normal support tasks still came in. Our team expertly triaged and handled every issue.
Willingness to Help
From Account Managers handling support tasks to Vice Presidents remediating servers, many team members took on tasks that were outside of their normal scope of work.
Diligence & Commitment
Staff members worked from the early morning hours into the late evening, outside of their normal shifts, until clients were fully operational again.
KEY RESULTS
Fast, effective remediation & support during a global crisis
Our teams rectified client issues efficiently and effectively—faster than other businesses.
of clients up and running by midday on the day of the outage
of servers remediated by 5pm on the day of the outage
TAKEAWAYS
Well-coordinated approach during a chaotic situation
The sheer scope of this outage made it incredibly unique—IT issues don’t usually affect so many clients at once.
Our successful response is a testament to our established processes, skilled leadership, and committed teams.
As exhibited in our response to this incident, Miles IT is an organization built on the values of caring and collaboration. We’re incredibly proud of our team’s tireless work to get every client running smoothly again.
We truly are One Company.
LOOKING AHEAD
How to better prepare for an IT outage
No business anticipates a system crash, but with the right proactive measures, you can minimize disruptions, maintain critical operations, and recover more quickly when an incident occurs.
Find A Dedicated IT Partner
The businesses that got back up and running the fastest during the CrowdStrike outage had incredibly efficient, well-organized, and competent MSP partners, like Miles IT. Ensure you have a strong IT partner you can lean on.
Create Your BCDR Plan
How will your business operate in the event of an emergency? Document immediate actions, roles, and responsibilities with a Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery Plan to speed up recovery efforts.
Upgrade Business Systems
Older, legacy systems may take longer to restore after an IT outage. Leverage up-to-date business technology to accelerate daily operations, increase your team’s productivity, and minimize company downtime during an incident.
Revisit Access Control
Review the level of access for each software platform in your environment. CrowdStrike’s degree of control is necessary for its robust cybersecurity measures—but not all software needs that type of access.