---
id: KB-TD-013
url: https://app.codecontract.io/help/day-to-day/the-day-something-is-down
idioma: en
categoria: trabajo-diario
subcategoria: bandeja
audiencia: usuario
nivel: basico
actualizado: 2026-08-13
tambienEn: [es]
relacionados: [KB-PR-009, KB-PR-001, KB-TD-018]
citadoPor: [KB-TD-001]
---

# The day something is down

_What you can carry on doing, what to postpone, and what NOT to do._

**Responde a:** the platform is slow what do i do · cannot work today system down · carrying on when the system fails · plan b when something is not working

One day something will not work: the system, your connection, a third party's email. The difference between a lost morning and a nuisance is having decided beforehand what to do and, above all, what not to do.

## The first three minutes

1. **Check whether it is yours or general** — Have someone else try from another connection. It saves half the calls.
2. **Check the status page** — If it is general, they already know and there is little to add.
3. **And tell whoever was expecting something today** — A two-line notice prevents five calls and a bad impression.

> [!IMPORTANT]
> The third point is what the other side values most. A deadline that slips with notice is manageable; the same deadline unannounced becomes a trust problem lasting far longer than the incident.

## What you can carry on doing

| Yes | Better not |
| --- | --- |
| Taking photos and preparing them to upload later | Going back to paper "just for today" |
| Calling whoever has something outstanding | Sending the same thing several times |
| Drafting and leaving things ready | Redoing work that may already be saved |
| And noting what happens, with times | Writing off what was in progress |

> [!WARNING]
> The second row on the right consumes most and causes the most mess afterwards: retrying a send that did go through leaves the recipient with three identical emails and you with three charged actions. Check the status before repeating anything.

## Getting back to normal

**En corto**

- Upload whatever was done outside the system, the same day.
- Check whether anything was left half-done before assuming it completed.
- And note what happened in the affected file, if it had consequences.

That last point is not bureaucracy: if a deadline was missed because of an outage, being able to say when it started and when it was resolved changes the conversation entirely.

> [!NOTE]
> The fourth row on the left — noting with times — is what lets you explain it afterwards. Reconstructing three days later exactly when something stopped working is impossible and sounds like an excuse.

**Is what I was writing lost?**

What was saved is there; what never saved is not. When unsure, check before redoing.

**Who do I tell if it is general?**

Whoever was expecting something from you. The technical incident is already being handled.

**What if it is just slow?**

Work on what does not depend on uploading large files and leave those for later.

## Ejemplos

**A team loses a morning retrying sends during an incident.**

- Checks whether it is general and warns clients expecting delivery that day
- Prepares photos and drafts to upload later

→ The afternoon is fully recovered and no recipient gets duplicate sends.

**Something is not working and the team sits idle for half a morning.**

- Checks whether it affects others or just one person
- Carries on the alternative way while it is fixed
- Reports with the time, the screen and the error code

→ Work does not stop and support starts with a diagnosis rather than a question.

**«It does not work» is reported with no detail.**

- Describes what was expected and what happened

→ The first reply is already useful.

**Five people report the same thing separately.**

- Checks whether a case is already open

→ The problem is worked once.

**People wait for a fix without telling the suppliers.**

- Warns whoever is waiting on something

→ Nobody outside is left without an explanation.

**It is resolved and no record remains of what happened.**

- Records the incident and its resolution

→ Next time it is resolved in minutes.