The dealership IT knowledge base.
Real problems we see at heavy-duty truck dealerships, with checklists you can run before you call anyone. 32 articles and growing. Bookmark, share with your shop manager, print for the parts counter.
Outlook Won't Send Quotes Larger Than 5MB: The Real Cause
Your service advisor swears the quote went out. The customer never got it. Here's what is actually happening between Outlook, Exchange, and the recipient.
Email & ProductivityShared Mailbox vs. Distribution List for the Service Drive
Both look the same to customers. They're very different on your end. Pick the wrong one and you'll lose conversations.
Identity & AccessWhen a Service Writer Leaves: The 15-Minute Offboarding Runbook
The day someone leaves the dealership is the day their access becomes a liability. Here's the exact sequence we run.
Identity & AccessWhy "Domain Admin for Everyone" Will Get Your Dealership Breached
It made things easier in 2014. In 2026 it's the single fastest way for a ransomware actor to take your whole store.
F&I & ComplianceThe Red Flags Rule for IT: What Your Vendor List Better Cover
The Red Flags Rule is about identity theft prevention. Most of the controls land squarely on your IT department. Here's the mapping.
F&I & ComplianceDeal Jacket Storage: Network Share vs. Cloud vs. DMS-Native
Where you put the deal jacket determines who can audit it, how fast you can produce it, and whether you keep it long enough to satisfy the regulator.
DMS SupportProcede Excede Slow Quote Lookups: The Index Rebuild You're Missing
Procede quote searches that used to return in two seconds now take twenty. The fix is usually a database operation Procede support won't volunteer.
DMS SupportCDK to Karmak Migration: 8 Things Nobody Tells You
DMS migrations get sold as a six-month project. The IT side of one is closer to a year if you do it right. Here's the field guide.
Service OperationsMitchell 1, Identifix, and ALLDATA: Which Logins Belong on the Tech Bench
Your techs each need a login. Or do they? The right answer depends on the platform and the audit risk you can stomach.
Mobile & TabletsZebra Tablets in the Service Bay: Why They Drop Off Wi-Fi at Lunch
Your service techs hand-write five tickets a day because their tablet keeps disconnecting around noon. The pattern isn't random.
NetworkingThe VLAN Layout Every Dealership Should Be Running
Most dealerships are running one flat network. That's a security finding, a performance problem, and a compliance issue all at once.
Hardware LifecycleThe 5-Year Workstation Plan: When to Refresh, When to Reimage
A workstation isn't a permanent fixture. Treating it like one is why your service writers reboot four times a day.
Backup & DRWhen Your DMS Goes Down for a Full Day: The Manual Workaround Playbook
Even with a perfect backup strategy, you may face a day with no DMS. What you do that day determines whether you also lose customers.
Vendor ManagementThe Vendor Stack Audit: Logins, Renewals, and Owners
Most dealerships don't know how many IT vendors they pay. The audit takes an afternoon and pays for itself within a month.
Print FleetDealership Printers Are the #1 IT Ticket. Here Is the Checklist.
Ricoh, HP, Canon, Lexmark, Xerox, Zebra. The 9-step path we walk before we touch anything fancy, plus brand-specific gotchas.
DMS SupportYour DMS Is Running Slow: A 10-Minute Triage Checklist
Before you call the vendor, walk this checklist. Usually the problem is local.
NetworkingService Bay Wi-Fi Dead Spots: Why Your Tech Tablets Drop and How to Fix It
Steel-walled bays, lift columns, and parts shelving eat 5 GHz signal alive. Here's how we design around it.
Service OperationsDecisiv Cases Not Syncing: A Diagnostic Path
When a fleet says "the case never updated on our side," walk this checklist before you escalate.
OEM ToolingOEM Diagnostic Adapter Won't Connect: The 7-Step Tech Bay Checklist
Paccar EST, Cummins INSITE, DDDL, Volvo PTT all rely on the same RP1210 plumbing. Here's how to fix it fast.
CybersecurityFTC Safeguards Rule for Auto and Truck Dealers: A 30-Day Readiness Plan
You're a financial institution under the FTC. Here's what you need in place, and a phased plan to get there.
DMS SupportCitrix Workspace Freezes When Launching CDK: The Real Fixes
A locked-up Citrix Receiver/Workspace at 7:30 AM kills the service drive. Here are the seven fixes we run before opening a CDK case.
Cost OptimizationMicrosoft 365 License Audit for Dealerships: What to Drop, What to Keep
Most dealer groups we audit are over-licensed by 20 to 40 percent on M365. Here's the SKU-by-SKU map of what service writers actually need.
CybersecurityThe MFA Rollout Playbook for Service Writers and Parts Counter Staff
You can not roll out MFA at a dealership the way a law firm does. Here's how we get adoption to 100 percent without losing the morning rush.
Backup & DRVeeam vs. Datto vs. Hyper-V Replica for Dealership Backup: A Field Comparison
Three backup architectures, one shop. Here's what survives a flooded server room, what doesn't, and what each one really costs to run.
Print FleetWhy Your Service Drive Printer Prints Blank Tickets at 7 AM (And Only at 7 AM)
Repair orders printing blank during morning rush is the most-reported and most-misdiagnosed dealer print issue. Here's what is actually happening.
Voice3CX vs. RingCentral for a Multi-Rooftop Dealer Group: Real-World Tradeoffs
On paper they look similar. In practice, the right choice depends on three things very few sales reps will ask about.
DMS SupportKarmak Fusion Thin Client Login Loop: The 5 Fixes That Actually Work
A login screen that bounces back to login after credentials is the worst kind of failure: it looks like a password issue and almost never is.
Physical SecurityVerkada Cameras Going Offline Overnight: The PoE Budget Problem Nobody Checks
When half your lot cameras drop between 8 PM and 6 AM and come back at sunrise, the cause is rarely the camera. Here's the path.
NetworkingFortiGate vs. Meraki MX for the Dealership Edge: A Buyer Guide
Both will route your packets. Where they actually differ, and which one we deploy at heavy-duty truck dealers, comes down to who runs the box.
CybersecurityThe Dealership Cyber Insurance Questionnaire, Decoded
Forty pages of questions, half written for a tech company. Here's what each section actually means for a heavy-duty truck dealer, and how to answer truthfully.
EndpointOnboarding a New Technician Laptop in 30 Minutes: A Runbook
A new tech starts Monday. The DMS, the OEM tools, the diagnostic apps, the VPN, the printers, here is the order to do them so the laptop is on the floor by 9 AM.
OperationsServer Room Walk-Down: The 17 Things We Look For in Every IT Closet
Discovery week, day three: we take photos of your IT closet. Here's exactly what we're looking at, and what each one tells us about the rest of the environment.