InsightsVessel IT
The vessel IT annual inspection checklist
Vessel IT rarely fails loudly. It degrades quietly: the backup that stopped running after a server swap, the admin password that left with the last superintendent, the certificate that expires mid-ocean. An annual inspection exists to find these while they are still boring.
This is the checklist our engineers work through when we attend a vessel. Use it yourself, or hold whoever does your IT to it.
Servers and onboard infrastructure
- Physical condition: mounting, ventilation, dust, corrosion, cable strain
- Storage health and capacity headroom, not just "is it on"
- UPS batteries tested under load, runtime still matching the assumption
- Operating systems still in support, or isolated and documented if not
- What changed since last year, and whether the documentation knows about it
Backups
- A restore actually performed, on board, from the real backup set
- Backup scope still matches reality: new systems added since last year are included
- Offline or off-vessel copy exists for the data that matters most
- Somebody on board knows how to start a restore without calling shore first
Endpoints and peripherals
- Bridge admin PCs, ECR workstations, office and crew machines patched and supported
- The printers, scanners, POS terminals and signage that quietly ruin your week
- Local admin rights reviewed: who can install what, and why
- Machines nobody dares to reboot identified, isolated and scheduled for a plan
Identity, access and credentials
- Accounts for crew who left the vessel disabled, not just forgotten
- Admin passwords rotated and stored where the company can reach them, not in one head
- Remote access paths listed: who can reach the vessel from shore, and how
- Default passwords hunted down on anything added during the year
Network
- Segmentation still real: crew, operations and payment traffic actually separated
- Firmware on gateways, switches and access points at known-good versions
- New devices on the network identified and added to the inventory
- Wi-Fi coverage spot-checked against the design, especially after refits
Certificates and expiry dates
- TLS and system certificates inventoried with renewal dates before they bite
- Software licences and support contracts mapped to expiry
- Anything that phones home to a maker's server documented and justified
Spares and lifecycle
- Critical spares on board checked against the recommended list
- Hardware approaching end of life flagged for replacement before it fails at sea
- A failure on the worst day means hours of downtime, not a voyage of it
Compliance evidence
- Cyber asset inventory refreshed: manufacturer, model, firmware, connectivity
- Patch and update records current, in the shape ISM and class surveys ask for
- Incident response plan still matches the crew and systems actually on board
The two findings that matter most
Across vessels, two findings repeat. First, backups that were never restored: the job runs green for years and the first real restore attempt is during an emergency. Second, nobody knows what is connected: equipment added by contractors and crew over the years that appears in no inventory, which is precisely what ISM cyber risk management and IACS UR E26 surveys now ask you to produce.
One inspection a year, done honestly, converts both from incidents into line items. If you would rather not staff that yourself, that is exactly what our Managed Vessel IT service is for: the IT superintendent you do not have to hire.
Rather have us do this for you, every year?
One annual on-board IT inspection is part of our Managed Vessel IT service, along with remote support, monitoring, patching and the compliance evidence class asks for.