Server & Storage Team: Enterprise Maintenance Windows

As part of the Enterprise Change Management process, the Maryland Department of Information Technology (DoIT) Server & Storage team has established fixed quarterly maintenance windows for enterprise infrastructure services. These scheduled windows are essential for performing critical/major infrastructure work to ensure the continued stability, security, and reliability of our shared enterprise systems.

Scheduled Enterprise Maintenance Windows

Time: 10:00 AM – 10:00 PM

1. Second Saturday of January

2. Second Saturday of April

3. Second Saturday of August

4. Second Saturday of November

During these maintenance windows, the team will perform major enterprise-impact activities, including:

• Vulnerability remediation

• Disaster recovery testing

• Platform upgrades

• Infrastructure modernization

• System performance or resilience improvements

What to Expect

Agencies should plan for the following potential impacts during these windows:

• Service Interruptions: Intermittent service interruptions or temporary unavailability for enterprise-hosted applications and platforms.

• Performance Degradation: Performance degradation or latency during updates or failover testing.

• Reboots & Restarts: Planned reboots or service restarts for servers, storage, and dependent systems.

• Environment Limitations: Limited access to certain production, non-production, or shared environments.

• Support Delays: Reduced support responsiveness for non-critical incidents.

• DR Testing: Disaster Recovery (DR) testing activity, including simulated failover scenarios and controlled service transitions.

Protocol for Planned Activities

For all planned activities within these maintenance windows:

1. Change Requests: A formal Change Request will be opened for each scheduled activity according to standard Change Management procedures.

2. Impact Analysis: A change impact analysis will be conducted (if possible) as part of the communication.

3. Advance Notice: We will distribute advance communication and awareness notifications to all affected agencies before execution.

4. Lifecycle Updates: Updates will continue to be provided throughout the lifecycle of each change as needed.

We will make every effort to minimize disruption and complete all activities within the defined windows. When possible, we will continue to provide detailed notifications in advance of specific changes impacting your systems.

Thank you for your cooperation in maintaining a secure and resilient enterprise environment.​